by Sheryl
“I am,” I admitted, “But not so much the gory types. I like sci-fi action though. Damn it, the Lakers score again!”
“I take it you don’t like the Lakers?” he raised an eyebrow.
“Nope, die-hard Celtics fan,” I said proudly.
“Thank God. Or else you would have been too perfect,” he winked and ordered another beer. I looked down, avoiding his gave. “OK, let’s bet on this game.”
I met his gaze, “On what? For what?”
“I say the Lakers will win. You’re obviously betting against them. We can decide on the stakes later.”
I raised an eyebrow, “Clearly that didn’t work out too well for me last time.”
“Fine, winner offers the loser two choices. Fair? Or are you too scared?”
Dammit. I was unable to walk away when challenged. And betting against Daniel was always interesting. I nodded.
Our beers arrived. “Beer and basketball,” he raised his bottle to me. I followed suit. We watched the rest of the game closely. The Lakers won; I lost.
“I win! Now I need some time to decide on a fair punishment.” Daniel cheered. “Do you want to move to a table?”
“Sure,” I agreed. The stool was uncomfortable since it had no backrest. We grabbed our things and walked over to a table by the window.
“So do you follow basketball?” Daniel asked.
“Well I try but it can be difficult living with three very girly girls,” I answered.
He laughed. “True. They are very girly… But before you jump the gun, you not being as girly isn’t such a bad thing.”
“Why not?” I cornered him.
“Well…as fun as the bells and whistles are, deep down all guys like a simple girl. Girly girl screams high maintenance, which means expensive and drama. Take you for example, I can hang out with you here and enjoy a beer and the Lakers game without you badgering me for attention,” he divulged.
“Thanks I guess. Though not all my roommates are drama or expensive,” I took another swig of my beer.
“Obviously there can be exceptions.” He went on, “And I like that we have common interests. Makes it fun and comfortable without having to try too hard.”
“Ditto,” I said before I could stop myself. He gave me another heart-warming smile. “But don’t make a habit of it, this was a one off so you don’t accuse me of going back on my word,” I warned.
He frowned. “So you won’t consider changing your mind?” Damn. We had steered off into the wrong direction.
“No,” I said firmly. “Look, its not personal. It’s just me. Who I am and the way I am.”
“So you’ll never date?” he asked incredulously.
“Daniel, I’ll be honest with you. I can’t date. I’m not the dating kind. You’re a nice guy and I really enjoy spending time with you, aside from our few misunderstandings of course. But don’t waste your time on me. I’m sure there’s a hundred girls out there that would jump at the opportunity to be with you.” I explained.
“That’s the thing. I don’t want those hundred girls. I want you. Only you,” he stared intently into my eyes. “Eva, being with you is so…different. You’re so different. You put me at ease while testing everything I say and do. I feel alive when I’m with you.”
“Different isn’t always good,” I argued. “Right now you’re going to say you love my differences but down the line it’ll be these very qualities that you’ll be trying to change. Everyone notices the one standing out, but they also spend the rest of their time taming it to fit in.”
“Why are you talking like this? What happened to you? You have to have gone through something to be this cynical,” he asked.
I wasn’t sharing my past with him. I couldn’t. I hardly knew him and besides, I didn’t want to talk about it.
“It doesn’t matter. My answer to you is no,” I said decisively.
“Fine. Then hear me out too,” he put down his beer and laid his hands flat on the table. “You have a choice between telling me what happened or going on another date with me.”
Crap. “That’s not fair. I got bullied into this again,” I objected.
He shrugged his shoulders. “You agreed. Your choice.” He leaned back in his seat and smirked. “So what will it be?”
37 – LATISHA
I couldn’t believe it was almost Christmas. The past few weeks had passed by in a blur. This weekend was Aimee’s engagement party and next week I was leaving for India to shop for my wedding.
Tonight we were having our annual Christmas party at the hospital. We held one every year. Everyone bought a ticket and the money was used to decorate the cafeteria, buy the food and drinks and pay for the DJ. Any leftover proceeds usually went to the children’s charitable fund at the hospital. All the nurses, doctors and interns showed up in their party wear and for one night everyone enjoyed themselves thoroughly. Obviously we all had our pagers on us and took shifts to check up on the patients.
It was 8:30. That meant I had about half an hour to get dressed. I had brought my dress with me knowing I probably wouldn’t have the time to go home and change. I went for a quick shower to scrub off the hospital smell and freshen up. It had been a long week with Aimee’s upcoming party and preparations for my trip.
I put on the knee-length, one shouldered dark purple satin dress I had borrowed from Eva, since I didn’t have anything fun to wear, and my silver birthday glitter pumps. Though shinier than my usual pairs, they were quickly becoming a favourite. I dried my hair and wore it loose and applied some black eyeliner, bronzer and gloss. After spraying on a few spritzes of perfume and admiring my appearance in the mirror, I packed my stuff and walked out to join the party.
The organisers had really outdone themselves this year, transforming the cafeteria into a ballroom. The theme for this year was “Masquerade Ball”. It looked lovely. I chose a delicate black and silver laced mask that covered the top half of my face and walked over to the bar where Sally stood chatting to some of the other residents.
“You look lovely!” Sally greeted me with a kiss on the cheek and handed me a glass. “Don’t worry, its just fruit juice,” she winked.
I smiled and took a sip. Everyone chattered away about upcoming holiday plans and Christmas presents. I took the chance to survey the room.
All the doctors looked dashing in their formal wear and were taking advantage of the anonymity that the masks provided by flirting with each other. Everyone had made an effort to dress up for the occasion and for a second I almost forgot this was a hospital. However, as I scanned the room, I was let down to find that I couldn’t see a certain tattooed someone anywhere.
Since the night at the hookah lounge, Chris and I had avoided each other. More like I had avoided him and he had left me alone. I guess it hadn’t been too tough considering we were on different rotations under different doctors so didn’t have to work together. But truth be told, as much as I knew I was safer away from him, I couldn’t help but look out for him every corner I turned. I had been a little dismayed that he hadn’t sought me out. I missed his spicy scent and frustrating jokes.
“Come on, take a shot with me and let’s go dance,” Sally ordered tequila.
I opened my mouth to protest but she cut me off. “No excuses. I’m not going to let you off this time and there’s no Chris to save you either.”
I realised she was right and it was easier to do as told. I downed the contents of the glass and Sally cheered before she pulled me onto the dance floor. We started dancing to the music. I felt my body loosen with the beats.
“I can’t believe you’re leaving next week! What am I going to do without your pretty face here?” Sally screamed over the music.
I flashed her a smile. “I’ll be back before you know it.”
“Back from where?” a familiar voice behind me asked. I turned around.
Dressed in a black suit, white shirt and black tie, he looked like any other guy in the room. But only one guy had those golden eyes and sexy
tattoos.
“Hey,” he murmured in a voice low giving me goose bumps.
“Hey,” I returned, instinctively warming my arms by rubbing them with my hands.
“Cold?” he raised an eyebrow and gazed deeply into my eyes. I didn’t reply.
“Hiya handsome,” Sally threw her arms around Chris and gave him a kiss on the cheek. “Don’t you look great?”
“Right back ‘atcha,” he gave her a smile, never breaking eye contact with me. “So where are we coming back from?” he repeated.
“Tish is leaving us and going to India for a week,” Sally purred. She still had her arm around him and all I wanted was to wrench it off.
“Is that so?” he asked me. I nodded and stared at my feet, unable to bear the heat from his gaze any longer. Just then my beeper went off.
Saved by the bell.
“I… uh… gotta check on a patient,” I mumbled, turned around and ran off before anyone could stop me.
The call had been from one of my post-op patients. His blood pressure had dropped and one of the nurses had paged me. After checking his vitals, readjusting some of his IV fluids and making sure everything was normal, I turned around to leave. Chris was waiting outside the ward, leaning against the wall.
“Everything ok?” he asked genuinely concerned.
“Yeah, just high pressure,” I reassured.
The creases on his forehead softened. “Good, now we can finish our conversation.”
I looked at him. “What conversation?”
He slowly walked towards me towards me. “From downstairs. From the other night…you’ve been avoiding me.”
I stepped backwards. He was too close. “No…I haven’t…” I stammered.
“Oh really? Is that why I don’t hear from you anymore? Is that why you ran off the other night? Tonight?” he accused.
I swallowed. “I wasn’t… running… off. I just…had to check… on a patient.”
I backed into the wall. “Is that so?” he growled, placed a hand on either side of my body and blocking me in. His scent invaded my senses and I couldn’t think.
“Chris, let me go,” I resisted weakly.
“What? I can’t hear you,” he inched closer. I could smell the alcohol on his breath.
“Chris. Stop it.” I put my hands against his chest. It felt sculpted and strong under my grip.
“Are you sure you that’s what you want?” he tilted my chin upwards so I was staring into his molten gold eyes.
I nodded my head, unable to answer. I didn’t trust my voice. My head screamed at me, ordering my body to push him off and walk away. But the rest of me rebelled, aching to have him close the distance.
“Speak. Up.” Chris growled in a low voice. He was so close I could feel his breath on my ear. I closed my eyes, trying to hold onto whatever strength I could find. I sensed his hands moving up my bare arms and I shivered under his touch.
“Still cold? Maybe I can help you with that,” he teased. I could feel the desire raging through my body. His hands slowly travelled upwards until they rested on my shoulders. His face shifted and he was breathing directly against my mouth. I felt his lips get closer and could hear my heartbeat pounding in my chest. I didn’t dare open my eyes.
Buzzzzzzz Beep Beep.
My eyes flew open. His beeper buzzed against my thigh. I snapped out of the spell and pushed him away. Hard. Chris stood there shell-shocked.
The beeper continued beeping. He took it out of his pocket and ran his fingers through his gelled hair.
“Latisha, I…” he looked around as if searching for the correct words.
“Goodbye Chris,” I said and turned around to leave before my needs got the better of me.
38 – ANYA
I put on my red ruby earrings and bracelet and looked at myself in the mirror. Perfect. I was dressed in a strappy fitted grey floor length gown covered in beading with a slit up to my knee. I had borrowed Eva’s red suede heels to add a bit of colour and my hair was loose and curly. I grabbed my red clutch and went to check on Aimee.
My jaw dropped as I caught sight of her. Aimee looked absolutely stunning. She had on an emerald green, tube topped, Cinderella shaped ball gown the colour of her eyes and her ring. It had a lace bodice and full skirt of net layers with a black bow that accentuated her tiny waist. Her long brown hair was curled and tied up in a messy bun with loose strands framing her beautiful face. A diamond necklace adorned her neck while she wore simple diamond studs in her ears. Her feet were clad in Latisha’s black suede pumps; I guess they were becoming her new favourite since Thanksgiving.
“Ready to go?” she looked at me as she put on her diamond bracelet and huge ring.
“Aim, you look amazing. Wow. I can’t believe you’re getting engaged!” I exclaimed.
“Allez! Don’t get teary on me,” she held out her arms. I went to her and gave her a hug.
“Hey, what about us?” Eva complained from the doorway. I giggled and wiped away a tear. Eva and Latisha walked in towards us.
Eva had on an electric blue halter gown with and A-line skirt and ruffles around the neckline and the bottom and pearl earrings. She wore her hair up in a ballerina bun and my silver crystal studded slingbacks. I had noticed that Eva was paying more attention to her appearance since Thanksgiving. Meanwhile Latisha was dressed in a black sleeveless straight cut gown covered in lace and with a straight neck and emerald green earrings. Her thick hair was straight and loose and she wore her silver glitter pumps that we’d given her for her birthday – classic and elegant.
“The limo’s here. Where’s your Maman?” Eva asked Aimee.
“She’s already at the club. She thought she should at least get there early and offer some help since the Worthingtons handled everything,” Aim explained.
“So…ready to go?” Latisha asked. Aimee shrugged her shoulders and grinned. I had never seen her this happy. We grabbed our winter coats and went down to the limo.
As we settled inside, we found a bottle of champagne and note addressed to Aimee.
Can’t wait to see you -
Enjoy the ride.
Love,
Ezra
“Awww,” I teased. Aimee blushed. I’d never seen her act this coy.
The drive was fun. We had the music on and chatted away. In a couple of days everyone would be splitting up for the holidays again.
“The guys are there already. Looks like we’ll be making a grand entrance” Latisha commented as she typed away on her phone. Our dates were all meeting us there considering everyone was coming from different locations and we didn’t want to squeeze into one car.
As we pulled up to the club, Eva let out a low whistle. The club had been transformed into a winter garden and looked beautiful. We stepped out of the car and straightened our dresses. Then we helped Aimee out and up the stairs.
When we entered the ballroom, the entire room fell silent and parted to make way. Everyone stared at us. I could hear the hushed whispers around me.
“Stunning”
“Lucky guy”
“Like a doll…”
I smiled for my friend. She deserved all the attention and praise she was getting today.
We made our way to the centre where Ezra stood with his parents and Aimee’s Maman. One look at Aimee and he was speechless. Even Ezra’s parents nodded approvingly and gave her a kiss on her cheek. Making sure Aimee was ok; we dispersed to go find our dates.
I spotted Andrew in a corner in deep conversation with a guy I didn’t know. As I walked towards him, our eyes met and he gave me a smile.
“Hello beautiful,” he gave me a kiss on my cheek.
“Hi,” I returned shyly.
“How was the drive?” he asked.
“Fun. How was your week?” I returned.
“Better now…” he winked at me. Then suddenly his face turned serious. “Listen, can I talk to you for a minute? Outside?”
My smile froze. “Umm sure,” I said, totally unsure of myself.
He took my hand and led me outside to the balcony overlooking the riding stables.
“Is everything ok?” I asked softly, unable to look into his eyes.
Andrew took my hands in his hands and squeezed them gently.
“No,” he said softly. “It’s not.” I must have looked really worried because he started laughing.
“Anya. Since the day Vivek told me about you, I couldn’t help wondering what you were like. When you came to the club with Ezra, I couldn’t take my eyes off of you. The way you smiled, the way you blushed, the way you took off your shoes when you walk in the grass. I haven’t stopped thinking about you since…”
I was confused. I didn’t know where this was going…
“But?” I asked hesitantly.
“But what?” Now Andrew looked confused.
“There’s always a but,” I said sadly. “Why did you call me out here?”
“Anya, I wanted to know if you’ll be my girlfriend. Officially. I know it sounds old-fashioned but there’s something special about you and I want to do this right. I want us to be in a committed relationship, an exclusive committed relationship.” He smiled at me.
My heart jumped.
“Yes! Of course!” I said and I jumped to hug him.
He laughed and held me in his arms. I hugged him tight. He cupped my face and bent down towards me until his lips were just hovering above mine.
“May I?” he paused to ask. I nodded slightly and closed my eyes.
His lips were smooth and soft as they descended upon mine. Andrew kissed me, slowly at first then more firmly. His arms wrapped around me and brought me closer while his hands held the back of my neck. After an eternity, he stepped back.
I smiled, knowing in that moment, everything was perfect.
39 – EVA
It really was a beautiful party. Even I had to admit it.
The ballroom was decorated with white flowers and white frosted twigs everywhere. In the centre there was a dance floor and circular table arrangements all around the room. The soft lighting all around the room gave the room an ethereal glow.
I watched everyone move around the room. Well dressed, smooth and slick. I usually hated social gatherings like this; people being fake and pretentious or on the look out for some action. But today was about Aimee. It was her day.
