by Kamille Rose
"Anyway, how are you? I couldn't help but notice the deafening silence over here,” he commented.
"With good food, my mouth will be too occupied chomping down to talk about anything. But what about you? Are you having a good time?” I asked him.
"Yeah, I am. A really good time. I can tell it might take a while for your mom to come around, but I'm not worried about it. I'm a very determined man,” he said, squaring his shoulders.
"Oh? Well, you and my dad have a few things in common then." He chuckled in response. "Speaking of, what'd you guys talk about?"
"This and that.”
"Hm. Nothing in particular?"
“Nope!" he said, slapping the table.
"It seems to me like I won’t get anything out of you." I stood from the table, looking up at him with crossed arms.
"That's correct. Besides, a little mystery isn't so bad."
Before I could reply, my dad swooped in. "How are you, Princess?” he asked, pecking my forehead.
"I'm good, Pa. What's up?" I asked, wrapping one arm around his torso.
"You two can excuse yourselves if you'd like,” he told Joseph and me.
"Really?"
"Yes. Go have a night."
"You're the best."
I placed a sweet kiss on my dad's cheek before waving to Marlene, David, and my mom. They all gave me happy smiles in return. Joseph followed me from the kitchen and out the front door into the daring night.
"Man, I can finally breathe," I announced to no one in particular as I sat on the top step of my porch.
Joseph took a seat next to me and did what I knew he’d been itching to do all night. I watched as he brought a hand to his head and waved it back and forth. He was now sitting much more relaxed, hair mussed, and legs outstretched. It took him no effort to look good.
“I almost started sweating during the whole college thing," he said. “Honestly, I never planned on going.”
“Why?”
“Is ‘I don’t want to’ a fair answer?”
I exhaled a sharp breath. “Yeah, more than fair. And that’s okay. You don’t necessarily need a degree to be successful.”
“My parents never really pushed the idea on me. I did that all on my own. They said they’ll support me in whatever I wanna do, but I don’t even know what that is yet... and I’ve always felt the need to know, to act fast before I fall behind everyone else.”
Hearing this, I turned to Joseph, giving him my undivided attention. He was confident when it came to most things, so seeing him so anxious about his life after high school worried me.
“If it helps, I don’t actually know what I want to do either. Back inside, I was just trying to keep my mom quiet.” I sighed, rubbing my hands together. “But what I’ll tell you honestly is that you shouldn’t worry about falling behind anyone. Their goals aren’t yours, so don’t try to reach them. And there are lots of people who don’t start college fresh out of high school. You have plenty of time to decide what path you wanna take.”
When Joseph finally looked at me, his face was unreadable, but I knew a few things must’ve been running through his mind with the way his hand never stopped fidgeting.
“Thanks, Mariposa. I can’t say I ever thought about it that way,” he said, a ghost of a smile on his lips.
“You’re welcome... and I’m sorry about my mom being so relentless. I'm just glad she and Marlene eventually found common ground."
"Yeah, for sure. Hopefully, it's only up from there. And hey, I'm proud of you for not letting your mom run over you tonight."
"Thank you,” I whispered.
"Speaking of moms, I’m sure mine just sent me a text.” Joseph's phone dinged and he pulled it from his pocket. “Yup. She says the wine is great that she’s made plans with your mom for brunch next week. Guess that’ll give ‘em a chance to start over."
He laughed reading the message on his phone.
"Brunch is the ultimate mom bonding date. What about the news on the dad front?" I asked, beaming.
"Solid,” he affirmed.
I stared down at my feet that were digging into the cement below them, avoiding Joseph's face when I uttered the next phrase. "Maybe you should come around more often."
"Sounds to me like someone is getting attached.”
I felt my heart sink six feet into my stomach. Geez, that was embarrassing. But I enjoyed his company more than a lot of things these days.
"You're right. I mean, we already see each other every day in school," I muttered, dropping my head.
He scooted closer to me, lowering his head to peek at me through the curtain of hair that now covered my face.
"Hey, hey, I was just teasing you. I really enjoy being around you and spending time with you... but instead of conveying how I feel how a normal person would, I say stupid things."
"It's fine. You don't have to lie to make me feel better.”
“I would never lie to you. About anything, okay?" Joseph moved to the step in front of me and kneeled to meet my eye level. "Listen. We have the night, right? Allow me to rectify my mistake and take you somewhere fun."
Just hearing that he enjoyed spending time with me was enough to make my smile reappear. But I tried to play it down. With Joseph, I didn't have any regrets so far, especially since the night at the cliff. I'd be a fool to pass up another night with him.
"... where will we go?" I asked, brushing the hair from my face as I sat up straight. His lips quirked up and the butterflies began a frenzy in the pit of my stomach. The effect his smile had on me was dangerous.
"A snazzy little lounge not too far from here. There's music, fantastic food, and a great atmosphere."
I giggled at him. "You sound like a Yelp review."
"Welp, that’s where I read the review for this place, so let's go!" he cheered, standing to his full height of about six feet. I used my dad as a reference, who was about 6’3’’, and myself, five-foot-nine.
I shook my head. "God, you’re so corny."
"And you like it, seen as you haven't rejected me yet."
"Touché."
Before we got into the car, I told Joseph that I needed to run inside. I quickly and carefully hurried up the stairs to grab my clutch. There was no way I was letting him pay for another full meal of mine.
⋅. ✯ .⋅
I let out a tiny squeak of excitement that only I could hear, enjoying the wind in my hair as we passed street signs. Our evening destination was indeed a snazzy, yet modern lounge. There were warm lights hung up high on the ash gray walls that gave the place a youthful, yet sophisticated feel. The aroma of fruity drinks combined with salty fries filled my nose and I sighed happily. Yelp really came through for us.
I admired the bodies swaying on the dance floor as Joseph led the way to a long, polished cedar bar. We sat and spent a few minutes looking over the menus until an exotic-looking guy around his mid-twenties came over to greet us.
His fern-colored eyes formed the shapes of crescent moons when he smiled in my direction. He had long black hair that covered his forehead and the light of the bar made his brown skin sparkle. He was no Joseph, but nonetheless he was an attractive man.
"I'm Sean, and welcome to the Tavern. I'll be waiting on you tonight. What can I start you off with?" he asked, attention solely on me.
If I'm not mistaken, when I lifted my eyes from the menu, I saw him peering down the length of my body, stopping at the asymmetrical slit on the dress clinging tightly to my flesh. A chill of uneasiness ran down my body.
Maybe I was reading the situation wrong. Maybe he wasn't staring at me, but some girl behind me. Whatever the case, I didn't like the feeling that washed over me when I caught the predatory glint in his eyes. In that moment, the man became a lot less attractive.
"I'll take an iced tea and a large order of fries," Joseph said.
"And for you, Miss?"
"Uh, can I have the virgin strawberry daiquiri?" I read off the menu pretending as if I were looking for another
item just so I wouldn't have to look directly at him.
"You sure can, beautiful." And with a wink, he walked off to prepare our drinks.
Joseph craned his neck toward me. "I think our waiter was just flirting with you."
I scoffed, dismissing his notion with a shake of my head. "No way was he flirting. I think it's required of most staff to be polite to their customers."
"He called you beautiful and winked at you. Don’t think that stuff’s in the employee handbook,” he said, scrunching up his nose. If it weren't for the tinge of playfulness in his voice, I'd say Sean annoyed him.
Rolling my eyes, I ignored his statement and rerouted the conversation. "This place is super poppin."
Joseph’s cheeks rose high as a sputtering laugh overtook him. The sound produced the same effect on me as his smile; it had bursts of joy ping-ponging in my stomach. Danger.
“Oh no, did you just say super poppin?”
“I sure did,” I replied.
He shook his head, smiling. “Well, I am proud of myself and I’m glad you’re enjoying yourself.”
"All thanks to you. I really can't wait to try those fries though. It smells amazing in here."
"I'm with you on that one."
A moment later, Sean returned with Joseph's iced tea. "Be right back with the daiquiri.” He held his gaze much longer than he needed to, but I physically shook it off and turned my focus back to the guy that mattered.
"An arcade would make this place so much better," Joseph commented randomly.
"Realistically, I don't think an arcade would fit in a lounge like this. It's more of an... arcade kind of thing,” I said, fighting a grin.
"What about Dave and Buster's?" he asked.
"Dave and Buster’s isn't a lounge. It's a casual restaurant in which it's arcade and games fit perfectly," I said, with a sure nod.
"Why can't this be Dave and Buster's?" he asked with a frown.
"Because it's not," I said, playfully flicking his forehead. His lips drooped even more, and I couldn't help but laugh at his childlike display. "Hm. Where's the nearest Dave and Buster's? Maybe we can —"
I stopped mid-sentence when I caught sight of my drink finally arriving. It stood tall on a silver tray skillfully balanced in our waiter's hand. My mouth watered at the sight. It looked deliciously beautiful and I was excited to try it.
"Here’s the strawberry daiquiri for the lady... who I bet tastes just as sweet herself." He licked his lips and I recoiled in disgust, mentally cursing myself for being so wide-eyed. He was flirting with me earlier, but this time around he was much more suggestive.
Joseph refused to tolerate it.
"Excuse me?" Joseph uttered in disbelief.
"Is there a problem?" the waiter asked, setting down the silver tray.
"The problem is that you're being obnoxious as hell. What makes you think a girl deserves or even wants to be talked to like that?" he retorted, his voice taut.
Sean looked Joseph up and down, and with a curt laugh, concluded he was no competition. "I doubt you're fucking her, so why don't you back off and let others have a chance. Kid."
My skin felt as if millions of bugs were embedded underneath it, and my eyes widened so largely that I thought they'd pop out of my head. Joseph rose from his seat and in the same instant, lunged across the bar for the collar of the man's shirt.
I cautiously jumped back, my heart hammering in my chest. He gripped the cotton between his fingers so tightly that his knuckles paled. The men's faces were inches apart.
"Watch. Your goddamn. Mouth," Joseph warned, each of his words laced with a venomous bite. I'd never seen him like this. I needed to do something, anything to subdue him. The last thing I wanted was for anyone to get hurt, especially because of me.
"Joey..." I called, reaching out to grab his arm. He was so focused on burning holes into the guy with his glare, that when he finally looked at me, he was shocked as if he'd forgotten I was standing next to him.
Freeing the pathetic man from his grasp, Joseph took his hands and caressed both of my cheeks. "Mariposa... I’m sorry."
His voice was soft speaking to me, and his hands were even softer holding me. Quite contrary to the death grip he had on Sean's shirt a few seconds ago. I leaned further into his touch, quietly forgiving him even though he had no reason to be sorry. He defended me.
His sorrowful eyes bore into mine and the music faded into a distant hum as I looked back at him, my hands locked around his wrists. I didn't care that we had several pairs of eyes glued to us following the scene that played out just a couple minutes before.
"Let's get you out of here, yeah?" he murmured, breaking the silence between us. I nodded, taking his extended hand as he led me out of the building from where we entered.
During the drive back, Joseph apologized profusely. He explained that he just couldn't stand idly by while "The Rat" talked about me like I was a piece of meat, which I totally understood. I didn’t know what to do myself, and I appreciated him sticking up for me.
"Where are we going? I thought you were taking me home." I noticed he had taken the opposite route. With his eyes still on the road, he lifted a finger to his lips, hushing me. "I knew it. I knew you had been plotting to kill me eventually."
"Close your eyes," he told me.
I did as he said. We drove a little longer before I felt the car come to a stop. He told me to wait as he stepped out and opened my door for me. Gripping his hand tightly to ensure I didn't stumble, he led me through a door. I heard chimes sound off as it closed behind us, reminiscent of Giovanni's place.
He sat me down in what I assumed was our booth and told me to keep my eyes closed while he went off to grab something. Not too much later, I felt him slip into the open space next to me. It was then that he allowed me to open my eyes.
"Joseph?!" I squealed, opening my eyes to reveal a full-size cheesecake laying on the table in front of me. "I don't think I'll be able to finish this on my own," I said, shaking my head.
"I won't force you to. This is just me saying sorry... again,” he said with a frown.
"I told you —"
"I'm sorry if I scared you earlier and I'm sorry if I ruined our night. I took you out intending to cheer you up after my first screw up when I teased you back at your house.” He shook his head in frustration. “But I screwed things up again when I exploded at the bar. I've made you unhappy more than once tonight and you don't know how bad that’s eating at me. If I —"
I cut off his superfluous apology when I enclosed my arms around him. He was stiff at first, but later allowed himself to relax into my embrace when I spoke. "You know, for someone with a 3.8 GPA, you can be very dense sometimes," I mumbled into his shoulder, feeling him laugh against me. "If you didn't let your thoughts get so loud, you'd have heard me say multiple times that it's okay. I'm okay. Right here. In this booth. In your arms, I've never felt safer or happier, okay?"
He was the first to break away, staring intently at me. "What?" I asked, tilting my head.
My question seemed to snap him out of the daydream he was in. For the first time, he was the one turning pink. Joseph was blushing! and this moment had officially topped him wearing a bowtie.
"I... do you want to have a slice before we go?" he asked, clearing his throat.
"I'd love a slice,” I answered with a smile.
He dashed off to grab utensils and napkins. I was feeling thirsty remembering I never had time to drink my daiquiri, so I grabbed the attention of a nearby waitress and ordered myself something cold and refreshing.
"What can I get for you?" she asked.
Her thin rosy lips pulled into a warm curve as she plucked a black ink pen from the pocket of her blue apron. I admired the freckles that scattered her pale skin, and her pin straight auburn hair that was pulled into a high ponytail. She was effortlessly beautiful.
“You’re really pretty,” I told her.
“Thank you, but no way,” she replied with a bashful smile, shaking
her head in denial.
“You are,” I insisted, but I could tell she wasn’t used to the attention. Much like me.
I glanced at the drink options on the menu and decided on the Long Island Iced Tea. She raised an eyebrow at my choice, but I didn’t pay too much attention to the action.
"Anything else?"
"That'll be all, thank you."
Joseph and my second glass of iced tea arrived at the same time.
"There you are. I was beginning to think you snuck out the back door and ditched me," I joked.
He sighed, sitting back down next to me. "Sorry, Mariposa. Gio and I had a little chat."
"Well now that you’re here, let's dig into this thing, shall we?"
"Let's do it,” he agreed as he handed me a knife to take the first piece.
"Yuuum."
Between the cheesecake and iced tea, I was floating on a happy cloud. The drink coated the inside of my throat with an oddly satisfying warmth that slowly seeped into the pit of my stomach.
"Slow down, we don't want you choking now,” he said, watching me toss back what was left in the cup.
"This is the best iced tea I've ever had. Like ever.”
I wore a wide toothy grin. That's when Joseph became suspicious of me, but I turned around and flagged down the waitress one more time before she crossed the restaurant.
"Take it easy, will ya." He laughed nervously as he gently removed the cup from my greedy hands.
"Try it yourself."
"I've had the iced tea here. It's good but not that good."
He froze as the brown liquid touched his lips, his brow furrowing. "Sienna, what’d you order?"
"Hm?" I answered, playing with my thumbs.
"When you ordered your drink, did you ask for a regular brewed iced tea or the Long Island iced tea?" he clarified.
"Mmmmm... the long tea- tea island? It’s kinda sour, haha."
"How much have you had?"
JOSEPH
Sienna looked as if she was counting in her head before she decided on a number, holding up three, then two, and then three fingers again. I went with three and by the looks of it she was drunk. Shit.
