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I start looking around for an excuse to get a break from him as soon as my drink is drained.
I miss home. I miss Marie and my couch. I want to curl up with her and watch old movies tonight instead. I wish I could leave now without being incredibly rude.
Shoving down the wave of sadness, the sense that I’m so much lonelier here than I would be actually alone, I freshen up my lipstick and check my phone.
I guess I’m expecting to see a message from Calvin since I stood him up again, but there isn’t one.
I wonder what multiple course meal Chef Ryan made us for dinner.
A vision springs to mind of Calvin sitting in his massive apartment all alone, eating it by himself since I didn’t show up.
I remember him saying he felt lonely a lot of as kid, and tonight I probably gave him that same feeling.
I must be about to start my period or something, because inexplicably I feel a little emotional about not being at Calvin’s for dinner instead of where I am.
Maybe lunacy is contagious.
Get it together, Hallie.
Calvin’s feelings arenotmy responsibility.
Doing my best to shake it off, I put my phone away and head back out to the busy dining area.
A blonde mass of gelled hair atop a tall, lean body stands by the bar waiting for me. I flash him a tiny smile as I approach.
“Our table’s ready,” he tells me.
I nod and start to follow him, but he motions for me to move ahead of him, so I guess I’m taking the lead. I greet the hostess and give her his name, then she grabs a couple of menus and leads us to the table.
When I turn around to make sure he followed, I see his head down and he’s texting.
Jackson used to do that all the time when we went out to eat. Drove me crazy.
His gaze is still glued to his phone as he texts someone else, so I walk around the table and sit down. Several seconds pass, then a few more. Seeming to realize it’s a bit rude that he’s still texting and ignoring me, he peeks up from his chat. “Sorry babe, give me like two more seconds. I had a text from a friend and he’s just blowing my mind.”
Babe?
Don’t like that.
Ignoring it like he’s ignoring me, I open the menu and busy myself with deciding what I’ll order for dinner.
Finally, he finishes his other conversation and takes a seat across from me at the table.
I look up from my menu. “Is everything okay with your friend?”
He looks up as if startled to see me sitting here. “Oh. Yeah, yeah, all good. My buddy Chuck was just freaking out and I had to talk him down.”
My forehead creases with concern. “Oh no. Well, is everything good now? Do you have to go? If you need to go see your friend, I totally understand.”
He waves me off, then grabs his cloth napkin and unfolds it on his lap. “Nah, you’re sweet, but nothing I can do for him, unfortunately. He’s been dating this trashy girl we’ve all been warning him to lose, she’s clearly only after his money, but she must have a mouth like a Hoover because he can’t see it.”
Ew.
“We’re always joking with him to make sure it’s double-wrapped with her and he calls us assholes. Well, she’s pregnant, so who’s the asshole now?”
Maybe still you.
I don’t say that, obviously.
