To say that Eric had stalled when it came to getting out of the car would have been the understatement of the century. He had not just stalled, he had been moving at a snail's pace, checking all the windows, the doors, and then looking over to the passenger side for someone who was not there. Eric had looked all around himself in an effort to stay in the car for as long as possible. But in the end he'd had to admit defeat, open the car door, and get out.
Now that he was walking towards the restaurant, his pace had not improved from the slow one that he had used when getting out of the car. In fact, if anything, it was worse.
With each step that he took, Eric felt as though there were lead weights tied around his legs. Pulling him down and preventing him from going at a normal pace. He garnered quite a few curious stares from people who were walking at usual speed. They all stepped around him, giving him odd looks before carrying on. Clearly not interested enough to know why was that a grown man was moving as though he were wading through thick tar on a Friday night.
But no matter how slow Eric was moving, he was still moving. And with each step he took, the entrance to Chardays, came closer and closer until he was just a few feet away. All the while the rest of the world felt as though it were in black and white. At least that was true until a splash of color came out of nowhere.
Red.
That was the first thing that caught his eye. And his mind instantly clicked back to the fact that his sister had told him that his date for the night would be wearing red. That small glimpse of the colour had Eric perking up. He looked towards where he had seen the color, and his breath caught.
Eric had not really looked at women much after the break up with Melissa. But the woman before him had such a presence that he could not help but look. And as he looked, he found himself gazing into the most gorgeous
light brown eyes he had ever seen.
Hazel, gold, honey colored, whatever word was used to describe the eyes that belonged to the stunning woman Eric was all for it.
'Well, hello you,' He thought, shocked at his own inner thoughts but not disagreeing with them in the least. Where Eric had gone for a simple dark suit, completely devoid of color. She might as well have dived right into a rainbow and come out draped in the most eye catching colors.
From her hair and star earrings, to her makeup, to the dress that had caught his attention everything about her just drew the eye.
As he continued to look, Eric was startled to find that she was looking at him too. Her eyes sweeping over him appreciatively. His face heating up in a way that he knew made his freckles stand out, Eric found himself unable to look away. Was this her? Was this his date? He wondered.
Then his heart sank as the tiny details began to sink in. No, it could not be. His sister had said that his date would be in red, but he remembered her specifically saying that his date would have on a red scarf, not a red dress. Looking at her again, Eric's eyes frantically searched for a red scarf.
Maybe it was even a shawl, but there was none. His mood plummeting at the realization that she was not his blind date. Eric gave the lady a sad smile and looked away from her, unable to bear it when he saw the light in her eyes begin to dim.
Great, he was being ridiculous. He did not even know her. How would he be able to tell if she were feeling sad or disappointed? He was probably just channelling his own frustrations with the whole thing towards her. The lady was probably unbothered.
When he looked up again, she was just stepping into the very restaurant that he was heading into. Eric followed after her, grabbing the door before it could close. She turned back only once, gave him a slight nod, and then carried on, moving to one end of the restaurant while Eric moved to the other.
Clearly their paths had only crossed accidentally. It was not meant to be. Feeling dejected, Eric was led to his table by a familiar tattooed waiter, Fred,( a hard working young man who was putting himself through college). A few seconds later the door opened again, and in walked a lady in a body-hugging black dress, and a red scarf tied loosely around her neck.
Her sharp eyes scanned the restaurant before they landed on him, and a shark-like smile played across her face. Objectively, Eric could say that she was good looking, but that was about it. He did not get the same fluttery feeling that he had gotten while looking at the lady in red, and that disappointed him. Silently berating himself, he thought of calling the waiter over as the lady approached, but then he decided it. It would not do for the staff to be there while the two of them were making their introductions. Some people were shy about such things, but looking over at the lady with her confident steps, he highly doubted that. And a few seconds later, his guess was proven correct. The woman, Barbara, was anything but shy. In fact, Barbara, call me Barb, a police officer was the exact opposite of shy. And she also did not have any problem whatsoever giving orders. The moment that their introductions were done. Barb was the one to call Fred over. She stared at the young man with the piercings in distaste before she began rattling out her order. After finishing with that, she looked over at Eric, her gaze clinical.
"Get him some meat, make it well done. The man needs to build muscle if he's going to lift me," The comment rubbed him the wrong way, but he did his best not to show it. Busying himself by looking at the menu and trying to pretend like he actually had a choice in choosing what to eat.
The waiter caught as of guard by the request, as Eric had been simply noted everything down quickly and left, throwing an apologetic look at Eric as he left. Watching the young man retreat, Eric suddenly felt the urge to run after him and hide in the kitchens but he could not do that.
He had promised that he would stay and do his best for the blind date, so that was what he was doing. He really wished that staying did not make him feel like a criminal being grilled just from the way that she was looking at him. Barb had definitely chosen the right profession by becoming a police officer.
"Oh so... A police officer... Huh? That is an interesting choice in career, why did you decide that the police force was it for you?" Eric tried to get conversation started. Most people were often eager to talk about themselves. Especially when it came to their job and their accomplishments. But unfortunately for him, Barb was not the kind to be thrown off by such things.
"Yes, I am a detective . I chose it because I like it. Let's talk about you now. I hear that you are a maths teacher and before that you were an engineer," Eric nodded, silently cursing his sister. Why had she given a stranger so much information while Eric had barely had anything to go on when it came to his date?
"Why not change to a more active career, it certainly would have helped you not be so skinny," Eric took offense to that. He was not skinny, he was simply lean and fit. So what if he did not hit the gym every hour of the day? He kept fit by running and doing push-ups. That was enough to keep his body toned, and to make sure that he remained healthy.
But apparently it was not enough for Barb. She did not like that he was not ninety-nine percent muscle, and she was not shy about voicing it.
"I will definitely be starting you on an exercise regime. High protein meals will be the order of the day and I think we should throw in endurance training as well. Your fashion sense could also do with a bit more flair. And we can also change..." By that point Eric was no longer listening.
Barb had clearly come on the blind date with a set idea on how he should look. Now that she had met him, her intent was on turning him into the person that she had imagined, at least physically. There was only one problem with that, and it was a big one.
Eric liked the way that he looked, and he was not changing for anyone. From Barb's very rude, and intrusive statements this would not be something that she would be changing her mind about.
They would never work out as a couple.
Before the food even arrived, he excused himself to go to the bathroom. Catching sight of the lady in red as he walked past. She did not see him, but Eric saw her. And just one look at the way that the star earrings she was wearing caught the light, made him feel a bit better. It did not matter if his date had ended before it even began. He had at least got to see someone interesting, Even if they had not shared a word. He was pretty certain that he would not be forgetting the lady in red any time soon. On his way back from the bathroom, Eric ended up making his way to the reception, and paying for their meals ahead of time. Even it he would not be eating his, he still paid.
He'd already ordered and he did not wish to inconvenience the staff. Adding a little extra for them because he just knew that Barbara was going to be hard on them.
Bill paid, Eric made his way back to the table. He did not even get a chance to sit before Barb was once again criticizing him.
"Your trip to the restroom took longer than normal. We will definitely have to work on your timing,"
"You and I will not be working on anything together. I am leaving, find someone else to micromanage," He left while she was still spluttering, obviously unused to be spoken to in such a straightforward manner.
As he left, Eric found himself regretting not only the fact that he had not eaten. But also the fact that he would not be seeing the woman in red again, there was just something about her that made him want to see more of her.
Once he made it to his car, Eric pulled out his phone and sent a text to his sister.
'I am not seeing her again. You cannot make me.' The reply came almost instantly.
'Barb can be a bit opinionated, but she's a sweetheart, I promise.' Eric stared at the text in disbelief before he texted back.
'Opinionated is an understatement. She called me skinny and proceeded to spend five minutes straight, talking about how she would change my diet and fashion sense. I am not seeing her again.' Message sent he threw the phone on the passenger side, started the car and made his way home.
What a disaster of an evening.