The One That Got Away?

Lorie ran up the stairs retreating to her room. Her heart pounding, the sound of blood rushing to her ears. Everything was blurry. All of her senses seemed heightened, forcing her to become more attuned to everything around her. She was walking through a fog, she wasn't sure what way was up. Sidney threw her in a whirlwind, the slightest of contact and whisper of words was enough to unearth her. Lorie thought Sidney had swept her away when they first met, but this was overload. He just touched her hair and said she was important, she wasn't sure why she felt like he made a confession of undying love to her. Even when her previous boyfriend, Bret, had told her he loved her Lorie never got this emotional or swept away.

Lorie and Bret dated for about two years, he being her first for everything. She believed him when he claimed he loved her and she believed she was in love with him as well. They dated her first years of college and lived together. Bret was tall about 6'2" and had an athlete's build. His sandy blonde hair and crystal blue eyes stood out against his tanned skin from all the hours in the California sun. She felt he was out of her league, but he never made her feel inferior. Bret was her opposite, her outgoing side, everything she wasn't. He was outgoing, knew the right things to say, had lots of friends, and was "cool". Lorie never missed the glances other women gave him, looking like they wanted to devour him. Lorie also caught the looks other women gave her, judging her as if she wasn't good enough for him. She wasn't pretty enough, outgoing enough; plain enough she was a nerd, and nerds didn't belong with guys like him. Lorie and Bret broke up when she found lipstick on the collar of one of his shirts. She felt so stupid, so small. He took her trust and love and practically destroyed it. Ice cream and movies were needed to help her recover, though she never really had. She never dated after him and these days have been no exception.

Lorie shut the door and leaned against it. Her hand went up to her neck and she cupped it with her hands on either side. Her breathing was ragged and she needed to get herself under control before they all went to dinner. She couldn't let Meagan know anything was amiss. She was certain that Meagan would know something was off between herself and Sidney. Meagan was like a hound dog when it came to these matters, she could sniff out new tensions or emotions with the best of them.

Lorie pushed herself from the door and went to the mirror hanging on the wall opposite her bed, noting her flusterd appearance. Her cheeks were swollen and red tinged, her eyes were watered slightly, and red was creeping up her neck. She brushed out her hair and reapplied some compact trying to hide the red. She grabbed her purse and walked to the door. She took some steadying breaths before turning the knob and walking towards an uncomfortable night.

~
Sidney had chosen a small Italian restaurant for dinner, claiming they ah food to die for. Her felt like a mediator between Meagan and Lorie, the amount of tension flowin between them was outstanding. He sat next to Meagan on one side of the booth and Lorie was alone on the other. She looked so small against the maroon colored leather of the seat, stretching well above her head. The restraint was more of a date hotspot not the place to have an awkward family, if you could even call it that, meal. The lights were dim, and each table had a vase containing a red rose and a candle illuminating the darkened space. Lorie was deffinetly underdressed but she never cared what people had to say anyway. Sidney was wearing a pair of nice dark was blue jeans and a black unbutton down. Meagan had a slim, right black dress on, adorned with a pair of diamond earrings, from Sidney no doubt, and red lipstick. Yep, Lorie in her Harry Potter t-shirt, jeans, and converse was deffinitley underdressed. Meagan had a sneer on her face, as if she knew this would happen. Sidney and Meagan were drinking wine, Lorie sticking to water.

There were no prices on the menu and that concerned Lorie more than anything. There was no way she could afford anything, espically having just been becoming jobless, but she smiled through it. She did not want her sister to catch on to her fiscal troubles.

"Hello all, sorry I'm late." A voice came from behind Lorie.

"James! It's so nice of you to show up!" Meagan exclaimed delighted. It was obvious Sidney and Lorie were unaware of James being invited to their dinner. Lorie recovered quickly and smiled at James, almost thankful for his presence. He relieved some of the tension between everyone.

"James! It's nice to see you, yet again." Lorie smiled and scooted over to make room for him, obvious that was were he intended to sit down.

"Lorie, it's always nice to see you. Sid, Meagan." James nodded at both of them and took his seat. He sat close enough to Lorie so she was deffinitley aware of his presence and his body heat raidated off of him, but their skin did not touch. His cologne washed over Lorie, the typical guy smell, deffinitley expensive. His watch followed the trend of his cologne. He was dressed in a navy blue button up and had dark jeans as well, he looked very nice. Lorie blushed as his eyes obviously raked over her outfit.

"You'll have to excuse her. She doesn't dress up very often, or has apparently forgotten to." Meagan said looking at her underdressed sister. James looked uncomfortable and Sidney's eyes widened his mouth open ready to come to Lorie's defense, but Lorie didn't want him go be her knight.

"Meagan always had the better fashion sense between the two of us." Lorie said through a tight expression.

"So, where did you work before you came out here?" James asked trying to make conversation.

"I worked at an editing firm in LA. I loved it there."

"What did you say happened to your job?" He asked.

"She was fired." Meagan interjected.

"No, I was not fired. The firm went bankrupt and we were all laid off. Now, I'm applying to editing firms in this area." Lorie elaborated.

"Did you grow up in Los Angeles?" Sidney asked trying to keep the light conversation going.

"Yes, my mother and father had a house out there. I'm lucky to have grown up in a city where it rains only ten days per year. I regret to say I'm not looking foward to winter out here." Lorie said and blushed.

"When did you two become sisters?" James asked.

"My mother died when I was 16 and my father married Meagan's mother that same year." Lorie said her voice losing some of its life. It became obvious to James that she loved her mother, and he figured there was a story between Meagan and Lorie.

"And your other sister?" James questioned.

"Chantal. She's my maid of honor and I love her to pieces." Meagan said lovingly. "That reminds me! How's Bret these days?"

"Who's Bret?" Sidney asked.

"Lorie's boyfriend." Meagan added smugly.

"I didn't know you had a boyfriend." Sidney addressed Lorie coldly. He felt hurt that she wouldn't mention she was involved with somebody. James looked shocked but Sidney looked furious and like someone shot his puppy.

"We... Uh broke up." Lorie said in a small voice. She still felt the sting from her broken heart.

"Why?" Meagan asked bluntly.

"He cheated on me." Lorie admitted. Sidney looked like he was going to turn into the hulk at any moment. His fury that someone wod betray such a beautiful person was barley contained. The only reason he did not go on a tirade about this idiot was due to the fact Meagan was sitting right next to him. James placed a hand on Lorie's thigh and gave her a reassuring squeeze
underneath the table. It could not be seen by anyone, but Lorie felt it's comfort wash through her. She gave a small smile towards James, a silent thank you for his comfort.

Lorie was confused about how she felt about James, he was sweet and caring, he made her feel warm and happy. He was kind to her and most importantly single as far as she knew. That was a major plus in her eyes. His blue eyes gave her something to get lost in, a way for her to escape from reality. He was much like Bret, very attractive and her opposite. Was that why she was drawn to him? Or was it he was unique? The feelings she had for Sidney and James were very different. Sidney made her feel like she couldn't breathe, like she was seconds from death and only he could save her. It was pure power between them, like an undeniable force pulling them together, something like the cliche of fate. Their feelings were doomed, heck, she didn't even know how he felt about her. She wasn't sure he had any of these feelings, like breathing was impossible without him. James was very different, he made her feel happy. She felt alive and important to him. He didn't hide his feelings and didn't only talk to her in private, when his fiancé wasn't around. He made her feel tingly and warm, like it was a summer day. He was kind and sweet, it made her feel like she was the only person around. She was the center of his attention and he showed an interest in her, she was happy.

Lorie wanted to scream, she never had guy problems. She never experienced this dilemma in her life. As crazy as it sounds, Lorie felt LA was calmer and a better place for her.

Conversation and small talk continued to flow between the four friends, if you could call them that. James had not removed his hand from her thigh and she didn't say anything. Meagan had snuggled up to Sidney, marking her territory. They chatted and dinner finally came. Lorie ordered a chicken dish that sounded delicious. Sidney had garlic noodles, Meagan a salad, and James has some ravioli dish. Lorie let her fears about paying for dinner slip away and enjoyed the night. James was attentive to her like usual and Sidney tried to control his anger when he noticed the two of them smiling and looking giddy at one another.

Dinner was winding down and the wine glasses were almost empty. Meagan and Sidney were going to see a movie and Sidney immediately invited Lorie and James not wanting them to go off alone.

"Do you want to take a walk?" James whispered in Lorie's ear. Lorie didn't want to go because she did not want to get involved with anyone, but he had been so nice to her. She was on a high and didn't want it to end.

"Sure." Lorie whispered back. His breath was sending shivers down her spine. His breath smelled of the sweet wine he had consumed. He gave a dazzling smile her way and scooted out of the booth. Lorie reached for her wallet but James insisted he would cover her portion.

"So, you guys coming?" Sidney asked.

"We're going to go on a walk." James said and aced his hand on Lorie's lower back.

"Have fun." Meagan said to the two as they made their edit. Lorie couldn't force herself to meet Sidney's eyes. She kept her eyes cast downward and left him there with Meagan. Sidney had never seen so much red as he did in that moment.