I could be at home working right now, instead of wasting my time here. If I had known it was going to be this much of a let-down, I wouldn't have agreed to show up. I have got to stop letting myself get talked into these types of situations.
I finally spot him a distance away. He's deeply engrossed with some woman. I hesitate, I don't want to interrupt him, but I don't know how much longer I can take being here. It feels like this was a huge waste of time. But I also don’t want to just flake out and disappear, either.
I'm about to walk over to him, when I hear the hostess announce the start of another auction. I think nothing of it, but out of the corner of my eye, I catch a glimpse of fiery red hair and turn to see the woman walking up on stage. I do a double take and immediately stop in my tracks. I'm mesmerized, all I can do is stare at her. I think I'm holding my breath. It's like the atmosphere in the room suddenly changed.
It's almost as if I'm drawn to her. I move closer to the stage so I can get a better view of her. My eye is drawn once again to her long red hair, which she wears tied back. If I look close enough, I can see a soft smattering of freckles on her lovely face. Hazel eyes look nervously out over the crowd. They don’t stop on one person, certainly not me. I bet she is quiet or shy. She looks the type.
I pay close attention as the hostess says, "This young lady is auctioning off a date tonight."
I'm a little disappointed that that’s all she’s offering. I think someone else groans in the audience. But right away, people start bidding. I'm surprised by this. I can tell the woman on the stage is too. I'm even more shocked when my own hand flies up to be included in the bids.
The numbers increase, and soon it's just me and a couple of the wealthiest men here. I don't know what it is about this woman, but I can't stop myself. Maybe it's her appearance or the fact that she seems so different from the other women here, but something won’t let me quit.
She’s mine.
I watch as she looks out at those of us who are left bidding. She keeps looking at me, then away. Eventually we lock eyes. I can see her gasp softly on stage. My heart starts to pound deep within my chest. I don't know what's come over me. All I know is that I want her to be mine and I will stop at nothing to have her.
Her eyes remain on me as I raise my paddle. "Thirty thousand." I say in as calm a voice as I can. I hear several people gasp loudly. The men I was bidding against shake their heads and mutter. The redhead on stage stares at me in shock, so does the hostess. Eventually the hostess recovers herself and asks the crowd, "Do we have any other bids?" After a few seconds of head shaking she announces, "Going once…going twice…sold!”
I just continue to stare at the redhead. Eventually she looks away and goes to the hostess to await further instructions. I put my paddle away, satisfied. I’m done bidding for the night. I accomplished one part of my goal tonight. I'll have to wait until later to see if I can make the rest happen.
Tim has an arm around a girl as he walks over to me. "Dude, that was insane. What were you thinking?" he asks, appalled.
I shrug at him. "I honestly don’t know,” I admit, “There’s just something about her.”
He shakes his head in disbelief. "Man, when you want something you really go after it," he marvels.
I laugh a little, "True, but you already knew that about me. Excuse me a moment."
He nods and goes back to cuddling his date. I turn and look for the hostess. I need to pay my bid. I also keep an eye out for the redhead. I'm eager to get better acquainted with her. I see them standing together across the room. The hostess looks up at me, so I immediately walk over.
"I believe I owe you something,” I remark.
The hostess smiles warmly as I pay her. "It was a pleasure doing business. You two have fun!” she winks at us before walking away.
The redhead stands alone in front of me. She glances up at me, then away quickly. I can tell that she is definitely nervous. I look around and try to think of something to say. I don't want to frighten her. "Hello,” I croak out finally.
"Hi."
Her voice is very soft. I think was right about her being shy.