Brief Encounters

The night was warm and the air was thick, so he insisted in the parlor of the restaurant that we dine next to vent that blew out cold, crisp air. His request was granted in our favor, and with a soft hand at the curve of my back, he led me along the side of him as we followed the receptionist to the table. Dutifully showing his respect, he pulled out the chair for me to sit on, and pushed me in closer to the table. He followed suitably after, but shifting his chair closer to mine for more intimacy.

"I hope this isn't too bad of a spot, Lottie." A small grin flashed at me before it faltered in a more serious matter, as he looked upon the menu for decent wine. With his brow furrowed in complete focus, I took my chance to quickly forget about him and scan over the environment.

We were sat in a more private room, closest to the kitchen, and farthest from the bathroom. The walls were painted ivory, and the lights shown a musky yellow. The carpet was a mahogany color that when shadows cast upon it from waiters walking by, added a passionate vibe to whoever watched. The carpet was the red flag, and the waiters were the bulls, speeding to a destination with a tray full of food on it, and being taunted by the color to come back with an empty tray going for more food. It was hypnotic to watch, but more foolish to the eye to comprehend that way.

Therefore I adverted my eyes fast, seeking my last hope of peace time before having to give my attention back to the man next to me that would soon speak up and declare we would be sharing the Red Moscato tonight.

And then I made eye contact with my match.

He was sat in a booth far away, facing the entirety of the room, and observing the scenery just as I was at the very moment. His hair was dark, nearly black due to the lighting in the room, and his eyes shared that same dusky hue. In all honestly he looked bored from the blonde sat opposite him, texting on her phone. Though, there was another disposition being sent towards me besides boredom that I was returning back to him: recognition.

"Red Moscato."

The eye contact broke as I turned my head to the smug voice beside me. Eden expanded his virile shoulders as he sat back in the chair with a look of pride radiating off him.

"Sounds nice." I replied. But we had that the last time we went out.

At the sound of a door flapping open, Eden went forward in his seat, and snapped his fingers at the waitress walking by empty-handed. She gave in to the call, and came towards us.

"We'd like a bottle of Red Moscato, please."

"Be right back with that."

The exchange of words ended as quickly as they had started, and soon enough Eden was staring right at me again. His smile went crooked as he placed a sweaty palm on my knee, and leaned over to give a chaste kiss to my cheek. Out of an uncomfortable fluster, my eyes averted to my match again.

He was still staring, but when he knew I caught him, he looked back to his plate of food. I blamed Eden for making him uneasy too.

"So what's the occasion that we are out again?" I asked to distract myself from the churning in my stomach.

"My cousin's wedding." He boasted. "Don't tell me you forgot?"

I didn't forget, I just needed to be reminded of how stupid a reason it was. "Oh, right. Sorry, I just haven't been thinking straight these past couple weeks. It must have slipped my mind sometime ago."

The waitress came back with the bottle, poured us our glasses, and walked away again. I immediately took mine and began taking large sips from it, ignoring the burn as it went down my throat and into my stomach.

"It's gonna be big, Lottie! You can only imagine with the wealth he has what he'll do with it... Soon enough I'm planning to make as much as he does and maybe we can have our own wedding." Eden flashed his eyes upon me.

I put my glass down carefully, making sure it wouldn't shatter in my grasp, and smiled weakly.

Then out of the corner of my eye I saw the blonde who was texting, get up from her seat opposite my match, and head towards where the bathroom would be.

"Doesn't she look promiscuous?" Eden whispered playfully in my ear. On instinct, I whacked his arm, and gave him a look. He sat back and began to chuckle to himself.

I looked to my match, and saw that he was staring down at his food still, but this time with a hand up to his face and his fingers working to massage his forehead. He looked embarrassed.

For the next couple of moments that occurred, Eden and I ordered our food. He got a salad, and I got a fillet mignon. However when Eden was commenting on how much I was going to eat, the blonde returned and my match stood up to leave with her. We shared one last glance, and then he was gone.

I felt completely vulnerable now.

With Eden showing off his 'dominance' every now and again, either by making decisions for me when the waitress came over or by advancing on me with kisses, I felt alone. There was no one to look towards who would perhaps give me a look of sympathy or empathy. Now I had to withstand Eden on my own, and even though I did this a majority of the time, having this break in the restaurant while my match was here, and suddenly having him gone left me feeling like a wreck. I wasn't used to it.

"Hey honey, would you like another glass of wine?"

Yeah, maybe I would right about now.