Dane: Hollywood's Finest

by Wilde, Delilah

  "I went to Paris," I said, and Trisha's mouth opened in shock. She certainly wasn't short of funds but even she hadn't been to Paris.

  "Paris? How the hell did you afford to go to Paris? Oh my god...you have a sugar daddy, don't you?" she exclaimed. The idea was so ridiculous that I couldn't help but laugh. Trisha took this as a sign of confirmation so I decided to roll with it. Why not? After all, if she was yelling at me for sleeping with old rich guys for money she surely wouldn't realized that I had actually been sleeping with a young rich guy, because I liked him. The fact that his stepmother and my mother were sisters was just a coincidence.

  I allowed Trisha to lecture me for the rest of the afternoon. I even faked a tearful apology and promise to change my whoring ways in order to get her to just get off my couch and leave me alone already. It worked like a charm, though I was still promising Trisha that I would never sleep with a guy for his money ever again in my lifetime when I closed the door on her. I flopped down on the couch and fell into the deep sleep that I so dearly needed.

  Nate

  Moving on from Ruby seemed like a strange concept but I knew I had to do it. We hadn't even dated, I wasn't' really the dating type, but she seemed to have left a strange void in me that no other girl could fill. In the past I'd enjoyed variety. Meeting a different girl in every city was always exciting and they all did things so differently, it was fascinating. But every time I looked at a girl I couldn't help but compare her to Ruby.

  "Damn, she has an amazing ass," one of my co-worked would say on a work night out. I'd look at the girl, who would of course be beautiful and shapely but feel nothing.

  "It's pretty nice," I'd say, while thinking how much more I liked Ruby's nice round behind. It was the perfect mixture of soft and firm and I loved grabbing it. My friends could point out any girl in the world and I would have found ten reasons why Ruby was better if you asked me to. Even so, I knew I had to move on.

  One of the waitresses at my restaurant at the beach had an obvious crush on me. Every time I came in to check up on things she would hover around me, constantly asking me if I needed a glass of water or a bowl of soup. She was objectively pretty, but in my current state she did nothing for me. I asked her out and she let out a squeal of joy before apologizing shyly. This would be more difficult than I had expected.

  Ruby

  People can hurt you so much and yet still be selfish enough to ask you forgiveness. That was my first thought when Amy, my former best friend who had stolen Jeff from under my nose, contacted me and asked if we could meet up. She didn't even bother to call me. Instead she sent a long email that I only skimmed. What I gathered was that she was very sorry for what she had done and wanted me back in her life. At the very least, she wanted to make her peace with me. It was ridiculous and I would have said no fucking way if she hadn't promised to buy me dinner at a nice restaurant in town. Since I had returned from the fresh bread of France my ramen noodles and microwavable oatmeal cups were even less appealing than they had been before. For a free dinner at a fancy restaurant I would listen to my mom and Auntie Sharon fight for an hour.

  I made sure to look my best, hoping to look better than Amy. I put on my beautiful ruby necklace and a simple black wrap dress that I had bought in Paris. I let my hair flow out over my shoulders. When I looked in the mirror, I was happy. I wasn't the sad girl who had been cheated on anymore. I was successful (almost), confident, beautiful and sexy as hell. At least, that's what I told myself.

  Amy was waiting outside the restaurant for me, looking nervous as hell. When she saw me she gave me an awkward wave, which I reciprocated. When I got closer she went to give me a hug but I shook my head.

  "We're not there yet," I said. Amy nodded rapidly.

  "Of course we're not. I'm sorry, I just haven't seen you in so long. I really missed you, Rubes," she said.

  "Let's save it for when we're inside, will we?"

  Amy and I were seated at a two person table in the middle of the busy restaurant. It had some beautiful decor and a nice atmosphere, the kind of place that would be perfect for a first date. But this was not a first date.

  It took approximately three seconds for Amy to start babbling. It turned out that I didn't need to read the email she had sent me, as she repeated it all verbatim now. She was lonely, she said. She saw how happy I was with Jeff and she got jealous.

  "I never thought anyone could love me like he loved you, Rubes," she said sadly. It made me want to vomit.

  "Oh god, please don't call me Rubes. And he didn't love me," I was about to say something else when my attention was captured. A couple walked in, both of them dressed beautifully. The girl was nervous and slightly awkward, but beautiful nonetheless in her clingy red dress. The man was instantly recognizable. It was Nate, with another woman. My stomach dropped as Amy continued to go on and on about nothing at all.

  Nate

  Katie, the waitress, turned out to be a nice enough girl. She was a dance major, working in the restaurant in an attempt to pay off her college loans. She was a perfectly nice girl but giggled at everything I said and point blank refused to get on my motorcycle.

  "Those things are death traps!" she giggled. It was only the start of the date but I already knew that it wasn't going to work. Still, I had promised her dinner and I was a man of his word. What I hadn't banked on was seeing the one girl I couldn't get off of my mind. Her face fell the moment Katie and I entered the restaurant, though I pretended that I didn't notice. I gave Ruby a quick wave as Katie and I were seated. Katie looked at Ruby with suspicion.

  "Do you know her?" she asked.

  "She's an old friend," I said. We were friends now, after all. It wasn't really a lie.

  "She's pretty," said Katie, "but kind of odd."

  I couldn't disagree. The next hour was only marginally better that Chinese water torture. Katie talked a lot, and I laughed at the right times though I wasn't really listening. She was so wrapped up in campus life and her sorority and all that stuff. It just wasn't interesting to me in the slightest. It didn't help that Ruby kept looking over at us. I felt bad for the girl that she was having dinner with, as Ruby clearly had no interest in her. All she cared about was me. Admittedly, I did look bad. I didn't generally take my business partners out to fancy candlelit dinners in the evening. But she must know that Katie meant nothing to me. Just as our desserts arrived Ruby and her companion stood up to leave. I had a strong urge to go after them, to say something. I realized that I had no idea what to say and that it would be rude to leave Katie alone, though she had obviously grown tired of me. What was wrong with me? I was Nate Watson. Women were always like putty in my hands. It felt strange to think that this one girl had thrown off my mojo so much. Insane, really.

  Katie frowned at me.

  "You're looking at that girl again," she said, "You've been looking at her all night. It's kind of annoying, actually."

  I hadn't realized that I was being that obvious. I tore my eyes away from Ruby as she left the restaurant and forced myself to meet Katie's gaze.

  "Yeah, sorry. I didn't realize. How's your ice cream?" I asked, but Katie was scowling now. The last thing she wanted to talk about was how good her sundae tasted. She threw done her napkin.

  "I decided that I'm not hungry," she said, picking up her handbag, "I think I'll call a cab and go home. I'm pretty tired."

  Her words were sharp and cold. I had clearly offended her somehow.

  "You've got to be kidding me. At least let me call the car for you," I said, but Katie shook her head and stood up.

  "No, I'm fine. I don't need your help, Nate," she said, "And, just a word of advice for the next first date you go on. Most girls don't like it when you spend the entire date staring at someone else!" She barged out of the restaurant, leaving me alone.

  Ruby

  Amy and I didn't settle anything over dinner. She talked and talked and talked about herself, about how heartbroken she was, about how she was lonely and Jeff just happened to be ar
ound. Yadda yadda yadda, blah blah blah. It was the kind of crap I had expected, but it was even more excruciating to listen to than I had anticipated. Even the delicious food didn't make up for it as my appetite quickly disappeared when I saw Nate and his beautiful date. She was young, elegant, pretty and slender. The kind of girl you see in magazines and wish you looked like. He had obviously upgraded from me. That thought made my heart sink. My stomach suddenly felt woozy and I couldn't quite understand what Amy was saying, though I heard every single word. All I could do was look over at Nate and the girl.

  They looked fantastic together. I certainly wasn't the only person in the restaurant looking at them. A few guys had stared appreciatively at the girl when she walked in, and even more women seemed to be admiring Nate. I couldn't blame them. After all, he looked better than ever. Surely if the restaurant business hadn't worked out he could have made the same fortune as a male model.

  The couple also looked happy together. The seemed to be laughing at a lot of jokes and chatting enthusiastically about various topics. They probably had a lot in common, way more than Nate had with me. I didn't know the first thing about motorcycles, or tattoos, or the food industry. Knowing my luck this girl was a food connoisseur, motorcycle aficionado who was covered in ink underneath that skimpy dress. They probably had incredible sex too, but I couldn't bear to think about that.

  Amy snapped her fingers in my face.

  "Ruby, you're not listening!" she said, looking slightly peeved. It was ridiculous of course, I should be the one who was annoyed. After all she had stolen the person who I had thought was the love of my life, all because she felt lonely. She should at the very least be able to handle how distant I was being. Even so, I apologized.

  "Sorry Amy, I just got distracted by all the beautiful artwork on the walls. This really is a nice place. But whatever, go on," I said. I turned my brain off as soon as she resumed speaking but was careful to keep my eyes on her. That way she might not realize that I wasn't listening. All the while I was looking at her I could sense Nate's eyes on me. What could he be thinking? Was this as awkward for him as it was for me? It had to be. Now he was in a happy new relationship with a girl who probably pleased him a thousand times better than I could. Here I was, listening to the girl who ripped my life apart make a case for why she should be absolved of all her sins. The thought of Nate pitying me made me cringe. I pondered about whether I should go over to their table and say hello. Perhaps that would show them that I wasn't embarrassed or ashamed to be here? No, that was a horrible idea. It would be embarrassing and awkward for everyone. I could be so stupid sometimes. I managed to hang on until half way through dinner. That was when I decided that I'd had enough.

  "Sorry Amy, I'm feeling sick. I think I better go home," I said, as sweetly as I could. I knew if I sounded any way annoyed or even slightly miffed then Amy would start the whole spiel again.

  From the brief bits of conversation that I had actually tuned into Amy had told me that she was reading all these books on mindfulness. She said that admittedly, she made the wrong choice in getting with Jeff but that my anger was toxic and in order to move forward in my life I had to forgive her. If not then I'd become a fat old spinster who never did anything valuable with her life. It was total bullshit of course, the new age kind of bullshit that Amy was obviously spending all her money on since Jeff left her. Despite how annoying it was, I didn't want to show any side of anger that might prove her point. Amy looked at me sideways as if I was up to something.

  "Are you really feeling sick, Rubes?" she asked. It was a big struggle not to yell at her for daring to call me 'Rubes'. That name was reserved for people I liked. Usually people who didn't fuck my boyfriend. I bit my tongue and forced a smile on my face.

  "Yeah I am. Indigestion or something. I'll go to the doctor in the morning. Anyway, it was really great talking to you. I'm glad we both got so much off of our chests," I said. Amy stood up with me and pulled me into a too tight hug. I forced myself to reciprocate though my skin crawled from the contact. She drew the embrace out for as long as she could too, seemingly testing if I was really as forgiving as I was pretending to be. I allowed her to hug me until even she got tired and pulled away, a big smile on her face.

  "Oh Ruby, I'm just so glad that you've found it in your heart to forgive me. I can move on with my life now, we both can," she said. I couldn't help darting my eyes over to Nate again. He and his new woman had just been served their desserts. That was great, she was the kind of girl who ate ice cream sundaes and stayed stick then. It made me feel even worse than I already did.

  "I'm glad too," I said to Amy.

  "This is just so amazing. For me, of course, because I get my old best friend back. But it's amazing for you as well. I really didn't think you had it in you to let go of your anger like this. You've always been so...stubborn. No, tenacious. I admire it really but I figured you might be too pig headed to get over this. I'm glad you weren't though. I mean, imagine being pissed off after all this time? It wasn't like you and Jeff were ever gonna get married and have babies..." she went on and on and on. I listened for another few minutes but eventually I had to interrupt.

  "Well that's great, Amy. But I have to go now. I'm sure we'll get together again...sometime. But I'm gonna say goodbye now," I said. I endured another one of Amy's terrible hugs and walked out of the restaurant, vowing that I would never be caught dead in the same room as her again if I could help it all. I considered making a similar vow about Nate, but the way I was feeling now I didn't even want to think about him.

  I hadn't thought through how I would get home. I had figured that I might be able to put up with Amy just long enough to get a ride from her, but that was obviously a bust. When I got outside rain was pouring down heavily from the sky. My apartment block was forever away and I didn't have cab fare. Even so, walking in a skimpy little dress through the pouring rain seemed more appealing than a twenty minute car ride with that crazy bitch. Maybe the discomfort I would feel would distract me from the whole Nate issue. I could only hope.

  As soon as I stepped out into the rain I knew I had made a grave mistake. The raindrops were ice cold and every single one that hit my body felt like a freezing bullet. I'd be lucky if I didn't get pneumonia.

  I forced myself to continue my walk forward. With every step I cursed myself for not thinking to bring cab fare. If my hair and makeup had looked any bit decent early the rain quickly undid any of that. My hair fell in deep red straggles around my waist. At least Nate hadn't seen me like this.

  Just as I was thanking my lucky stars for that one bit of reprieve, a flashy car pulled up next to me. It pulled up a little too fast and ended up splashing me. If I had been soaked before I was now drenched and freezing to boot. I screamed at the cold.

  "What to fuck?" I yelled, banging on the car window. "Watch where you'd going, douche bag!"

  The car door opened and in front of me was Nate. Of course, as if things couldn't get any worse. He saw the state I was in and laughed unkindly. I knew that I looked ridiculous but he didn't have to laugh at me for it.

  "Oh great, you're here to make fun of me on the way home to your little love nest, is it? Well laugh it up buddy!" I said. He forced himself to stop laughing and patted the passenger seat with his hand.

  "I'm sorry Ruby, I didn't mean to. Well, I did. But I couldn't help it. You just look so funny! But you should get in, you'll freeze to death in all that. I'm cold just from opening the door. Seriously, hop in," he said. I stayed where I was. Nate's little girly friend was nowhere in sight. It couldn't hurt, could it? Maybe I would get a clearer idea of what was going on.

  "OK, but I'm only getting in because I don't want to freeze to death or drown out here," I said, getting in to the car and slamming the door behind me. I peered at myself in the mirror. It was worse than I thought. All my eye makeup had melted down my cheeks, making me look like a crazy chick. Maybe I was a crazy chick. I definitely felt like one when I was around Nate.

  "So
, where to?" he asked, as I wiped up the mess on my face as best I could. I couldn't think of an answer to that question. I should have said that I wanted to go home, of course. I knew that. But the idea of locking myself up in that shitty apartment with only a ball of fur and my sketchbook for company was pretty grim. What I wanted to say was 'your place' but I wasn't an idiot. That was over now. We didn't do that anymore.

  "I don't know," I admitted and found myself adding, "Do you even have time to drive me anywhere? I thought you'd be spending the rest of the evening with your young lady friend."

  I tried my best to sound straightforward and normal rather than petty and jealous but I didn't quite manage it. Nate's forehead wrinkled and he looked at me.

  "Lady friend? Oh, you mean Katie. I don't know if I'd call her a lady, really. I mean, she's got good manners and all that shit. But she's still in college and she isn't exactly what I would call sophisticated," he said. I wasn't sure if he genuinely meant what he was saying or if he was saying it to make me feel better. Either way, I clung to every word as if they were little rays of hope, "she's a great girl though, I like her a lot."