She Is Beautiful

I could see him from across the bar as he came in. He was wearing a checkered button-up, and though it was almost midnight, he had a pair of sunglasses sitting atop his flat-bill hat. The man on his left had pulled a beanie over his obviously distressed hair. They approached the bar and ordered a couple drinks, and he looked up and met my gaze. I looked away as my friend, Soraya, touched my shoulder.

"Belle, the guys back here bought us some shots," she said. "I won't tell them. I like free drinks."

She giggled at the end of her sentence and handed me a shot glass with clear liquid. I brought it to my nose first, and I bit my lip. Tequila. Shit. I looked up at my friend, who was waiting eagerly for my approval. I smiled and brought the shot to my lips. She grinned and did the same.

Soraya was the first friend I had made when I moved to Los Angeles. She had dark, flowing hair, and the most perfect dark tan skin I'd ever seen. She was Iranian-born but had moved here with her mother and father when she was only a toddler. She tells me her eyes made her stand out, and they were what caused her family to flee. She wasn't wrong - her eyes still make her stand out. Her right eye was a dark chocolate brown, but her left eye was a piercing sky blue. This uniqueness had earned her many jobs in the modeling business, and her status in LA was growing.

I think my favorite thing about Soraya is that she devotes all of her free time to making the lives of Middle Eastern girls better. She travels to Iran at least twice a year, and she spends many days lobbying for better refugee help in America. By looking at her, you wouldn't be able to tell how passionate she is about social issues, but looks are never a good indication of anything.

"Down the hatch!" Soraya giggled.

We both took our shots, and I choked. She smiled at me and put her arm around my shoulders.

"Thanks, boys," she said. "We are forever grateful."

A man about six feet tall nodded and said, "Maybe I could get your number."

Soraya shook her head.

"This one's not for you," she said, pointing to me, "and I'm pitching for the other team."

She pulled me away and kissed my cheek. I smiled and wrapped my arm around her waist.

"What would I do without you?" I said.

"I wouldn't want to imagine my life without my sweet Belle-flower," Soraya said. "Now, help me find a nice lady I can take home with me tonight, will you?"

I glanced around, surveying the crowd here at Johnny's.

"No dice, Soraya," I said. "Although..."

I looked up to see the man with sunglasses looking at me.

"If you want to go home with someone, I won't stop you," Soraya said. "But you do owe me."

"No," I said, looking away. "No, I was going to say, if you want to go somewhere else, we certainly can."

"You know I like it here. Let's stay here awhile longer."

"Okay."

We sat down at the table nearest to us, and Soraya chatted about some new modeling gig she was doing tomorrow. I was half listening, adding the appropriate "oh cool" and "yeah, definitely" every once in awhile. Truth was, I could feel the other guy's presence pulling me in, and I wasn't really paying attention. I saw his friend clap him on the back as he stood up. He took two steps in our direction and I cut Soraya off.

"Fuck," I said. "Fuck, Soraya. He's coming over here."

"Well, is he cute or you want me to start making out with you?" my friend replied.

"I don't know," I said, panicking slightly.

"Calm down, I've got this."

He was two feet away, and I smiled. He half smiled, but he kept walking past us to the back of the bar. I let out the breath that I had been holding in, and Soraya smacked my arm.

"What the hell was that?" she said.

"I don't know," I said. I looked behind me and said again, "I don't know."

He held his beer in one hand and looked through the jukebox with the other. I saw him side-glance at me, and I turned back to Soraya. She sat back in her chair.

"Let's go," I said, grabbing my purse.

"What?" she said. "Belle, we just-"

"Let's go," I said again. "I've seen him before. I think. We need to go."

Soraya leaned around me to look at the guy again, but she shook her head. As we walked out the doorway, I looked back again. We met eyes one more time, and I stopped. He smiled at me, and I smiled back. Soraya pulled me away, and we were out the door.