4. An Interesting Date

Delilah

"Nice little bookstore you got here," Jason says awkwardly.

I look at the man in front of me and can't help but smile. He has the kind of face that stops you in your tracks. He is at least six foot 4 with tousled black hair, defined cheekbones, and the sharpest, most mesmerizing green eyes, which held an amused glint.

He is gorgeous and somehow looks out of place in this rundown bookstore.

What is a prince charming doing out of his castle?

And why is he nervous? I wonder. How can someone who looks like that ever be nervous!

Despite his awkwardness, he is standing tall and still has a certain presence about him that I couldn't put my finger on. All I know is that I want to get to know him more, even though the last thing I need now is to meet another man. I just had my heart broken by my boyfriend of four years.

"I won't take up more of your time, but I can't leave without getting your phone number," Jason chuckled. He doesn't sound awkward anymore, and confidence suddenly shines through his cool green eyes. Boy, he recovers fast, I thought.

"Um...I don't know. I never met you before so..." I hesitate.

Jason takes my hand and intertwines our fingers together. "Just give me a chance. It's not every day I meet someone who makes my heart race."

I feel an unfamiliar flutter in my stomach. A smooth talker, huh?

His voice is deep and strong in the most pleasant way. "Okay," I find myself complying with his wish against my better judgment. I do the one thing I never do. I give my phone number to a complete stranger.

Jason smiled and walked out of the store, satisfied, and I was alone with my books again.

I force myself to stop thinking about Jason and try to focus on my work which is piling up. I just received a shipment of some old books, and I needed to sort them out by categories.

Plenty of books, not enough customers, I thought to myself and sighed.

After work, I go home. I shared the house with my old father, Robert, who was diagnosed with cancer two months ago. I've been trying my best to take care of him, but he is getting worse by the day.

I look at the table and see a pile of envelopes. With shaking hands, I open up the one that looks like a hospital bill. My bookstore isn't doing too well, so I barely have any money to pay for the mortgage, let alone hospital bills.

Most of the money in my savings account is gone, but I have to figure out how to pay for my father's chemotherapy. I can't just let him die!

"Honey, are you home?" my father calls me from his room. I drop the envelope on the table and stride toward the room.

"Hi daddy. How are you doing today?" I smiled.

"A little better. What about you, sweetheart?" Dad asked.

"I am fine. Do you have any pain?" I look at him with concern.

Dad doesn't answer. His eyes turn dark.

"Honey, you can't take care of me forever. You should go out and have a life so I don't feel as guilty," he chuckled softly.

"Stop worrying about my social life, dad. Everything is fine, really," I try to reassure him, but he is still frowning.

"Everything is not fine. I want you to go out there and meet someone since that boyfriend of yours turned out to be a jerk. If I still had my strengths left, I swear to god I would've beaten the shit out of that twerp," dad said grimly.

I giggled.

~-~

After a while, I decide to visit my best friend, Ellis. She always knew how to cheer me up, and she only lived two blocks away from me.

Ellis wasn't doing anything, so she was glad to have me over.

"Is everything okay? You hardly visit me unannounced these days," Ellis was concerned.

I sighed. I didn't want to burden Ellis with my problems, so I decided to tell her the only exciting thing that had happened to me. "Everything is fine. I did meet someone today," I smiled.

"A guy?" Ellis raises her eyebrows.

"No, a puppy. Of course, a guy!" I laughed.

"Oh, was he rich?" Ellis asks and looks at me curiously.

I shake my head. Ellis has always been extremely materialistic and refuses to date anyone who isn't rich.

"I don't know if he is rich, but he is extremely handsome and charming," I said.

"Just be careful. The last thing you need is to get involved with some loser," Ellis scoffed.

Jason didn't seem like a loser, I thought. Quite the opposite. He isn't just good-looking. I could sense he was intelligent by the way he carried himself. I found myself looking forward to his call.

Later that night, my phone lit up.

It was a text from an unknown number.

'How would you like to go on a date with me tomorrow?' It's Jason, by the way,' the text said.

A date? So soon? I hesitate before answering the text.

'Eager to go out with me already? You seem desperate,' I replied slyly.

'So, is that a big fat no?' Jason said, followed by a smiley face emoji.

I don't know what possessed me to go on a whim and agree with this stranger, but I found herself agreeing to the date after writing back and forth.

It was too late to back out now.

The next day, I put on my nicest dress to get ready for her date. Most men usually took me to nice restaurants for our first dates, so it was up to me to look the part.

The doorbell rang. He is right on time, so I run downstairs and open the door.

Jason is standing in front of me, wearing a pair of ripped jeans and a simple t-shirt, so I feel slightly overdressed compared to him. That surprised and annoyed me at the same time.

He could've at least put in some effort for their first date. And showing up empty-handed? Most guys brought me flowers. Even my asshole ex-boyfriend bought flowers for our first date.

"Um...that's an interesting car you got there," I said after staring at the most disgusting-looking car parked in front of my house.

"Isn't she a beaut? Got her at a garage for only 1200 dollars," Jason sounded proud, as if he had just made the most significant accomplishment of his life.

I try not to act snooty, but I am disappointed. I don't want to ride that junk because it looks like a safety hazard. But I decided to be polite. I then allowed Jason to open the passenger door for me. At least he is a gentleman.

I take a good look at him and instantly feel better. I decide to disregard the car situation and focus on Jason.

The man looks like a Greek god even though he is wearing a plain white t-shirt. I can see his muscles rippling underneath that thing. I realized I was crazy attracted to him!

"So, where are we going?" I asked, hoping to hear a name of a nice restaurant.

"We are going to the drive-in theater down the road. That way, we can talk during the movie, and no one will be bothered," Jason smirked.

Okay, not what I expected, but I should just go with it.

"I'm going to be honest with you. I can't afford to do anything expensive at the moment. I have a huge credit card debt I need to take care of, you know?" Jason let out a nervous laugh.

Oh, you got to be kidding me, I thought. Not only is he cheap, but he is also swimming in debt? I shouldn't have become swayed by his good looks.

"It's okay," I said with a tight jaw. Of course, this is not okay with me, but I must act politely.

Jason bought some nachos and hot dogs and called it dinner, much to my dismay. He was oblivious to my disappointment and proceeded to get comfortable in the car to prepare himself for our 'movie experience.' I sighed and went along with it. I was already here, so I might as well enjoy myself.

It was a cheesy horror movie from the 80s.

"Oh, look. She is running from the killer and going to the basement, so it'd be easier to get murdered," Jason rolled his eyes.

I look at him seriously. "Maybe she will find something to defend herself down there!"

"What? Her mom's shoebox full of nudes from the 1920s?" Jason smirked.

"Ewww, why would you think that?" I giggled.

"Because a lot of the movies have those. I myself haven't found any nudes, although the last thing I need is to be traumatized by my mom's nudes," he said casually, making me laugh again.

"You're so weird!" I laugh and throw popcorn at him. Even though he was cheap, I had to admit I was still having a good time with him. I simply enjoyed his company.