Status: This is going to be the darkest thing I've written...
Parasitic
One
“There was this time when my horse was skittish for no reason, so I…”
I tuned out my date for the night and took a long drink of my coke. Why did I listen to Ginny? Blind dates never end well, especially when set up by her.
Her taste in men is terrible. They usually take me to a cheap ass bar just like this one.
Except this one seemed to double for a small restaurant.
I wonder how it even passed the health inspection.
Something caught my eye and I looked past horse-man. A crowd of five or six men were laughing loudly and gulping down the mystery drink that was common here. A man that looked a few years older than my twenty-three turned his head and looked at me. His hair was the darkest brown I’ve ever seen- even in this shitty lighting- and stubble lined his jaw. He sent a wink my way and I quickly turned my attention back in front of me.
“Chestnut ended up bucking and I was thowed off of him,” the man, whose name I never paid attention to, said.
“Thrown,” I mumbled as I looked down at my coke.
“What?”
“‘Thowed,” I said, leaving out the ‘r’ as he did, “is not a word. It would be correct to say ‘I was thrown off of him.’”
Horse-man furrowed his eyebrows and I shook my head.
I’m terrible at dating.
“I think it is best if I just leave,” he murmured as he stood and walked away.
I waited for him to make his way out, before standing myself and heading towards exit. I pushed my blonde hair back and reached out to grab the handle to the door. A hand covered mine and I turned my head to see the guy who winked at me.
“Leaving so soon?”
I swallowed nervously and glanced around, trying to find an escape route.
He seemed to read my mind and laughed lightly before removing his hand. “I’m not going to hurt you.”
“That’s usually what people who are about to hurt me say,” I retorted and he flashed a crooked grin.
“What happened to your date?”
I crossed my arms and jutted my chin out. “He’s in love with a horse.”
He laughed loudly and I noticed his eyes were a dazzling light blue with a dark ring around the outside of the iris. “I’m Brandon,”
“My name is Eleanor,” I told him, “and I would like to leave now.”
Brandon moved away from the door and let me exit. “Come back and see me, Eleanor.”
I raised an eyebrow and continued to hail a New York City cab.
********
Why the hell am I doing this?
I should really just turn around and go home.
This is a bad idea.
I shook my head as if that would clear my thoughts and took a deep breath. Standing outside the cheap bar where I met Brandon, I was having a hard time actually entering. I quickly put my hand on the door and opened it before I could change my mind.
I ordered a simple coke and sat at a table. It was pretty busy tonight. My eyes were drawn to where Brandon sat the last time I was here nearly a month ago.
Wow. It’s been almost a month since my dreadful date with horse-man. Has Brandon really been on my mind that entire time?
I took a sip of my soda and twirled a piece of long blonde hair around my finger as I caught sight of him. He was already looking at me with a smirk from his spot that I assumed to be his usual.
The man next to him tried to say something, but it seemed as if Brandon blew him off with a wave of his hand. He stood up, mumbled something in the man’s ear, and headed towards my table.
“You sure took your sweet time to get here,” he said as he sat across from me.
I smiled and rolled my eyes before turning my gaze to his bare forearm. A tattoo of a dagger that went from his elbow to his wrist was marking his skin. “I like your tattoo.”
Brandon smiled the same crooked grin that was quickly becoming my worst enemy. “I like yours,” he responded and touched my right middle finger. I looked down and stared at the ink of tiny paw prints leading to the bottom of my finger which had a sitting cat that was the size of one knuckle to the next.
I narrowed my eyes at Brandon, but with a laugh escaping from my lips.
“Obviously, you like cats. Anything else I should know?” He questioned.
“Beer makes me want to vomit,” I responded as I pointed to his nearly empty mug.
“I quite like it.”
“Obviously, you do,” I scoffed and grabbed his glass so I could smell it, “how do you even manage to drink that piss?”
Brandon took the glass back from me, “The best beer I’ve had was in Germany.”
“You’ve been to Germany?” I questioned.
“Yep,” he replied, “I’ve been all over.”
I leaned forward and rested my elbows on the table, “Where?”
He smiled and launched into stories about his travels. He talked about getting drunk in Germany, the Eiffel Tower in France, the beaches in Australia, and partying in Rio. I nodded along to everything he said with interest.
My phone beeped and I pulled it out of my purse. Ignoring the text message from Ginny, my eye caught the time.
1:25
“It’s getting late, so I should really go,” I told him as I stood.
Brandon smiled and leaned back in his chair, “Go to dinner with me tomorrow.”
The way he worded it made it seem as if he was telling and not asking. Little warnings were going off in my head at this, but against my better judgement, I ignored them.
“Alright.”
********
It had been another month since I had my dinner with Brandon and I had ended up spending most of my time with him. I felt bad for neglecting Ginny, but I didn’t do anything to change it. Today, though, she had forced me to have lunch with her.
“El? El, are you even listening to me?” She demanded and I quickly turned my gaze back to her.
“Of course.”
She huffed, but continued to tell me her problems as if I would magically fix them. My gaze turned and I stared out the window. Watching the faces pass by, a head of dark hair managed to catch my attention. I sat up a bit straighter and bit back a smile as his blue eyes met my grey ones.
“So what do you think?” Ginny asked and I tore my eyes away from the familiar face of Brandon.
“What?”
Ginny groaned and shook her head. “What the hell is going on with you lately? I’ve been practically chasing you down so we could hang out and now you’re not even listening to me. This is so unlike you.”
I may not have mentioned to her that I began seeing Brandon…
“I’m sorry. There is just a lot on my mind.”
She shook her head, artificial colored black hair swishing. “Whatever. I have to go now, anyway.”
I watched her throw money on the table and walk away. She got to entrance and the door was held open for her by Brandon. He walked into the warm cafe and slid into the booth across from me.
“Are you following me?” I questioned.
“No,” he answered, “I was coming back from doing some work when I saw your beautiful face in the window.”
“Charming,” I mumbled and he gave a crooked grin that showcased his white teeth and the dimple that made its place on his right cheek.
I tuned out my date for the night and took a long drink of my coke. Why did I listen to Ginny? Blind dates never end well, especially when set up by her.
Her taste in men is terrible. They usually take me to a cheap ass bar just like this one.
Except this one seemed to double for a small restaurant.
I wonder how it even passed the health inspection.
Something caught my eye and I looked past horse-man. A crowd of five or six men were laughing loudly and gulping down the mystery drink that was common here. A man that looked a few years older than my twenty-three turned his head and looked at me. His hair was the darkest brown I’ve ever seen- even in this shitty lighting- and stubble lined his jaw. He sent a wink my way and I quickly turned my attention back in front of me.
“Chestnut ended up bucking and I was thowed off of him,” the man, whose name I never paid attention to, said.
“Thrown,” I mumbled as I looked down at my coke.
“What?”
“‘Thowed,” I said, leaving out the ‘r’ as he did, “is not a word. It would be correct to say ‘I was thrown off of him.’”
Horse-man furrowed his eyebrows and I shook my head.
I’m terrible at dating.
“I think it is best if I just leave,” he murmured as he stood and walked away.
I waited for him to make his way out, before standing myself and heading towards exit. I pushed my blonde hair back and reached out to grab the handle to the door. A hand covered mine and I turned my head to see the guy who winked at me.
“Leaving so soon?”
I swallowed nervously and glanced around, trying to find an escape route.
He seemed to read my mind and laughed lightly before removing his hand. “I’m not going to hurt you.”
“That’s usually what people who are about to hurt me say,” I retorted and he flashed a crooked grin.
“What happened to your date?”
I crossed my arms and jutted my chin out. “He’s in love with a horse.”
He laughed loudly and I noticed his eyes were a dazzling light blue with a dark ring around the outside of the iris. “I’m Brandon,”
“My name is Eleanor,” I told him, “and I would like to leave now.”
Brandon moved away from the door and let me exit. “Come back and see me, Eleanor.”
I raised an eyebrow and continued to hail a New York City cab.
********
Why the hell am I doing this?
I should really just turn around and go home.
This is a bad idea.
I shook my head as if that would clear my thoughts and took a deep breath. Standing outside the cheap bar where I met Brandon, I was having a hard time actually entering. I quickly put my hand on the door and opened it before I could change my mind.
I ordered a simple coke and sat at a table. It was pretty busy tonight. My eyes were drawn to where Brandon sat the last time I was here nearly a month ago.
Wow. It’s been almost a month since my dreadful date with horse-man. Has Brandon really been on my mind that entire time?
I took a sip of my soda and twirled a piece of long blonde hair around my finger as I caught sight of him. He was already looking at me with a smirk from his spot that I assumed to be his usual.
The man next to him tried to say something, but it seemed as if Brandon blew him off with a wave of his hand. He stood up, mumbled something in the man’s ear, and headed towards my table.
“You sure took your sweet time to get here,” he said as he sat across from me.
I smiled and rolled my eyes before turning my gaze to his bare forearm. A tattoo of a dagger that went from his elbow to his wrist was marking his skin. “I like your tattoo.”
Brandon smiled the same crooked grin that was quickly becoming my worst enemy. “I like yours,” he responded and touched my right middle finger. I looked down and stared at the ink of tiny paw prints leading to the bottom of my finger which had a sitting cat that was the size of one knuckle to the next.
I narrowed my eyes at Brandon, but with a laugh escaping from my lips.
“Obviously, you like cats. Anything else I should know?” He questioned.
“Beer makes me want to vomit,” I responded as I pointed to his nearly empty mug.
“I quite like it.”
“Obviously, you do,” I scoffed and grabbed his glass so I could smell it, “how do you even manage to drink that piss?”
Brandon took the glass back from me, “The best beer I’ve had was in Germany.”
“You’ve been to Germany?” I questioned.
“Yep,” he replied, “I’ve been all over.”
I leaned forward and rested my elbows on the table, “Where?”
He smiled and launched into stories about his travels. He talked about getting drunk in Germany, the Eiffel Tower in France, the beaches in Australia, and partying in Rio. I nodded along to everything he said with interest.
My phone beeped and I pulled it out of my purse. Ignoring the text message from Ginny, my eye caught the time.
1:25
“It’s getting late, so I should really go,” I told him as I stood.
Brandon smiled and leaned back in his chair, “Go to dinner with me tomorrow.”
The way he worded it made it seem as if he was telling and not asking. Little warnings were going off in my head at this, but against my better judgement, I ignored them.
“Alright.”
********
It had been another month since I had my dinner with Brandon and I had ended up spending most of my time with him. I felt bad for neglecting Ginny, but I didn’t do anything to change it. Today, though, she had forced me to have lunch with her.
“El? El, are you even listening to me?” She demanded and I quickly turned my gaze back to her.
“Of course.”
She huffed, but continued to tell me her problems as if I would magically fix them. My gaze turned and I stared out the window. Watching the faces pass by, a head of dark hair managed to catch my attention. I sat up a bit straighter and bit back a smile as his blue eyes met my grey ones.
“So what do you think?” Ginny asked and I tore my eyes away from the familiar face of Brandon.
“What?”
Ginny groaned and shook her head. “What the hell is going on with you lately? I’ve been practically chasing you down so we could hang out and now you’re not even listening to me. This is so unlike you.”
I may not have mentioned to her that I began seeing Brandon…
“I’m sorry. There is just a lot on my mind.”
She shook her head, artificial colored black hair swishing. “Whatever. I have to go now, anyway.”
I watched her throw money on the table and walk away. She got to entrance and the door was held open for her by Brandon. He walked into the warm cafe and slid into the booth across from me.
“Are you following me?” I questioned.
“No,” he answered, “I was coming back from doing some work when I saw your beautiful face in the window.”
“Charming,” I mumbled and he gave a crooked grin that showcased his white teeth and the dimple that made its place on his right cheek.