On a Wednesday (One Week 2)

I looked over and saw him stand to his feet. Then he placed a few bills onto the counter.

As he was putting on his jacket, his eyes met mine. He blinked a few times, and a slow smile spread across his face.

I turned away, certain that he would walk past me and leave, but the next thing I knew, he plopped down on my left.

“I didn’t know that you were profiling me today,” he said. “Is it going well?”

“I’m not here for you.” I held up my list. “I’m here for this.”

“We’re supposed to do this together, Court.” He took it from my hands. “That’s part of our deal.”

“I can definitely do some of this stuff alone.”

“Yeah, like the student plays,” he said. “I can’t suffer through any more of those, whether we’re friends or not.”

The girl who he’d talked to earlier suddenly stepped between us, glaring at him. “I hope your draft stock falls by the spring and you don’t get picked until the very last round,” she said. “You’ve never been that good, on or off the field, and you’ll regret turning me down someday.”

She stood there, waiting for a response.

“I wouldn’t count this bar as one of the ones that people rave about, Court,” he said to me, ignoring her. “It’s a good dive option, but it’s not the best one.”

“He’s going to ask you to send him a fucking text or an email before he considers sleeping with you,” the girl said to me, continuing to bait Kyle. “He thinks that everyone is after his money, when he hasn’t gotten a single dime yet. How insane is that?”

Kyle’s eyes met mine, and he stared at me for several moments.

“What bar do you consider to be among the best, then?” I asked, ignoring the girl like he did. “I based my choice off the latest campus brochure.”

“Well, that’s your first problem.” He pushed a few stray hairs away from my face, instantly setting every nerve in my body on fire. “No one in their right mind actually reads those campus brochures, Court.”

“Someone once told me that they’re written exclusively for the helicopter parents.”

“They are.” He smiled. “I guarantee that the couple at the end of the bar is only here to see how much over-pour the bartender does, since their son has mentioned this place a few times.”

“How do you know that for sure?”

“Their son is my teammate,” he said. “If it wasn’t a severe conflict of interest, I’d introduce you to him. The two of you have a lot in common.”

“It’s not too late to do that.”

“It is, and it’s not happening.”

The girl elbowed Kyle before she walked away, finally accepting that he wasn’t giving her any more attention.

“Thank you for playing along,” he said, still toying with a few strands of my hair. “I appreciate that.”

“No problem … Is what she said true, Kyle?”

“This question isn’t a part of your thesis is it?”

“My thesis is rated G.”

“Oh, right.” He let out a low laugh. “In that case, maybe.”

“Well, I’m sure it’s only a matter of time before she comes back and changes her mind.”

“We won’t be here to see.” He shrugged, standing to his feet. “Come on, let’s go to South Side, and I’ll let you pick the first bar.”

“The South Side via the Birmingham bridge?”

“Yeah,” he said, grabbing my wrists and helping me up. “That’s the only one there is.”

I followed him outside, and he let up his umbrella for me.

We walked an entire block in silence, and I couldn’t help but notice him staring at me with every step.

“I can send you a few pictures to stare at, if you’d like,” I said as we approached a crosswalk.

“I would like that.” He smiled. “Do I get a say in what type I prefer?”

I blushed, ignoring that question.

I pulled out my phone and pretended to check my email for the rest of the way.

When we made it to the parking garage, he opened the passenger door for me.

“Do I have to pick you up again to get you inside?” he asked.

“No, but you should know that I can’t stay out long tonight. I need to be back by nine.”

“Why’s that?”

“Because I have a date.”

“Come again?”

“You know, that thing that you don’t do,” I said. “A guy on the layout team asked me out for coffee tonight.”

He blinked.

“That’s on my list, too.”

“South Side has plenty of places for coffee if you want to fulfill that this evening.”

“I’m referring to the ‘Find a Guy Who Loves Me’ part.”

“If a cup of coffee is all it takes, you may want to raise your standards.” He slipped his hand into my pocket and pulled out my list. “There has to be a reason this is the only one in pencil, and it definitely wasn’t on your Facebook status …”