Chapter Three

            Meg and I met Tiffany at Cynthia’s apartment in the nicer part of the city at one thirty Friday afternoon. We arranged for her party to start at two, for just the four of us, then Luka was going to come around four. He was bringing Nathan too. That was what I was really excited about. Sure, I was excited about spending time with my three best friends too, but I couldn’t wait to see Nathan again, even though the feeling I got when we made eye contact made me a little uncomfortable. It was a good sort of discomfort though. It was like he saw me in a way no one else had and that limelight made me so incredible, like he saw me, not just what everyone else saw.

            “Corri! You’re draping those streamers too close together!”

            Tiffany’s command broke me from my thoughts. She could get awfully controlling when it came to a party. Her perfectionism drove all of us crazy, but events she planned always ended up looking amazing, and people always had a great time. We spent every minute hanging decorations and moving furniture around Cynthia’s ultra-modern apartment until there were only two minutes until she was supposed to arrive. We were right on time though. When Cynthia walked in the door we ran right to her and gave her a great big surprise, birthday hug.

            “Oh! You girls!” She half-laughed, half-cried, but they were tears of joy and she hugged each of us individually after the big hug. And she complemented Tiffany’s, though childish, perfect and playfully elegant decoration.

            The two hours after that we did all the basic girly, party things. Mani-pedis, fashion shows, and a bad romantic comedy. All the while going on about the guys which few of us had, so it was mostly just Cynthia talking about, or rather recalling, all the guys she had been with, however short or long the relationships were, and Meg talking about how much she and Luka had in common.

It was really cute to see the differences between the two of them. And I thought, as they both told their stories, would they have even become friends if Tiffany and I weren’t here? This was because, if I was here, but there was no Tiffany, I could bridge the gap between Cynthia’s more physically based relationships, and Meg’s more emotionally and compatibility based relationships. And if Tiffany was here without me, she could persuade Meg to do something she wouldn’t ever normally do, and that would appeal to Cynthia’s free-and-fun side. It was good that we were all here together though.

When the guys finally showed up, Meg jumped right up and answered the door. It was her boyfriend after all. And when I saw Nathan, it was like Cynthia had turned up the thermostat twenty degrees. He was wearing a lightly worn, dark brown leather jacket, a royal purple collared shirt, and clean white jeans. There wasn’t anything amazing, or unique, or special about it, but it was exactly that which made it unique and special. I found that I wanted more than anything else right now to touch the leather, and slip the purple cover off his body, and it was this drift into fantasy that caused me to miss when he spoke to me.

“Hey, you’re… Corri, right?”

“Huh? Oh!”

When did he learn my name?

“Yeah, it’s Corri,” I said, playing with my hair automatically, “Cynthia’s boss right?”

“Yeah, Nathan. I’m also friends with Luka though…your boss.”

He held out a hand and I almost melted when I touched it. The hand was so warm, I felt like I was absorbing heat out of it and taking it into myself; I warmed up so fast. This was an uncomfortable warmth though, and maybe it was the combination of him touching me and looking at me, but instead of excusing myself and leaving like I would have under different circumstances, I simply dropped his hand and mumbled something about going to the bathroom, hoping Tiffany, who I was facing, would have read my lips and would follow me.

“What was that about?” She asked sternly, “that’s Cynthia’s boss. And your boss’s friend.”

“I don’t know, Tiff,” I was telling the truth, but she couldn’t possibly know that, “I just… I got too hot being in there with everyone.”

            “Okay…well, do you want to go home?” She had a kinder tone in her voice now, which I was grateful for.

            “No, I want to be here, for Cynthia. It’s just…” I didn’t know how to tell her the next thing I wanted to tell her. She knew me well enough though; she figured it out easily.

            “You have a huge crush on him, don’t you?”

            “Yes…” I admitted sheepishly, “I do. I barely know him though. It makes me a little bit crazy how much I like him.”

            Tiffany hugged me then, it wasn’t ideal since we were in Cynthia’s bathroom, however nice it was.

            “Thanks.” There were times when I just really loved Tiffany. “That was just the right thing.”

            “Now, you’re Corri. You’re beautiful, and fun, and you have so much to give. Go win over that hunky boss boy.”

            The last part of that statement was partially a joke, but everything else she said cooled me down and gave me the power to be able to sit with him for the rest of the night and get a little flirt on. I tried to keep it subtle, but I know the girls noticed. And Cynthia smiled more than once. She had to know he didn’t really have a girlfriend. But with that I got through the night without another major increase in heat, Cynthia had a wonderful time, and Meg got noticeably closer to Luka.

*     *     *

            I woke up the next morning a little shaken. I wasn’t entirely sure where I was, but from what I could see, however fuzzy, I knew I wasn’t at my own house, or Cynthia’s, or any of the girls’ places for that matter. I lay in the foreign place, half asleep, for about twenty minutes, I new because there was a digital clock on the table next to me. When I felt ready to get up, I nudged the thick, but soft covers away and found an arm around my waist. Initially, I was a little surprised, and shocked because I couldn’t quite piece it together. I hadn’t been drinking at Cynthia’s, so that wasn’t a reason, but I was still fuzzy on what had happened that got me here, in this, now looking at him, very attractive guy’s apartment. My companion moved, like he was going to be waking up, and I made a move to escape the arm that was around my waist. I was wearing a shirt, but no bra, so I wondered if maybe I had slept with him, part of me hoped I hadn’t.

            With closer examination though, I found that it was actually Nathan who was my companion. And with that realization I felt my skin warm up rapidly. That seemed to give him enough incentive to wake up from his semi-sleep.

            “Good morning,” he said easily, like nothing had happened.

            “Uhm… yeah, morning,” I was definitely in an uncomfortable place, “did we…?”

            “Sleep together? No,” he smiled lightly and it somehow made me feel better.

            “Then… why am I…?”

            “In my bed?” He teased.

            I rolled my eyes at him. I really just wanted to leave. I wanted to forget that I woke up in the bed of the one person I wanted more than anything in the world. I wanted to go back to last night at Cynthia’s and go home and wake up again in my own bed. With nothing being fuzzy. Although, this was kind of a great opportunity. Nathan would probably remember how I got to be in his bed.

            “So… how did I get here?” I didn’t want to sound like I was recovering from a hangover, but I think I did anyway.

            The gorgeous guy beside me laughed and told me, “You got a little drunk at your friend’s party last night and got very flirty with me.”

            Damn it, Corri.

            “Your friends didn’t want to send you home alone, and they were a little out of it too, so, they told me you wouldn’t mind waking up with me.”

            Note to self: strict talk with the girls.

            “Well…” I paused, not sure if I should ask the next question I was thinking. I didn’t have to though, because Nathan answered it before I said it.

            “We didn’t sleep together,” he reminded me with confidence, again, “you wanted to make out but I didn’t want it to be something you wouldn’t remember. And by the looks of it I made the right choice. You also kind of passed out in my bed, and I couldn’t help but snuggle a bit, so I’m sorry about that too.”

            Didn’t take advantage, and held me after I passed out? Good guy.

            “You know… I should really get going,” I moved to get out of his bed and make a run for it.

            “Oh, let me make you breakfast first,” he offered, “I make great omelets.”

            “That’s really okay,” I was out of his bed now, and thankfully I found my clothes easily. It was just a belt and the almost-a-shirt dress I had been wearing at Cynthia’s.

            “Please, I insist,” he was out of the bed now too, wearing pajama pants, which was nice, “it’s the least I could do.”

            He put his hand on my shoulder when he said this and made my heart skip a beat.

            “I guess that would be alright,” I said shyly, “I am kinda hungry.”

            He smiled and led me to his kitchen where he pulled the few cooking utensils he owned out of a mostly barren cabinet and cracked a few eggs into a pan. I sat down at the low kitchen table he had, which was really more of a repurposed coffee table, but it still served its purpose. As he added meat and cheese to the omelet, his apartment started to smell really quite good, and I didn’t know what it was, but seeing this sort of fatherly side of him triggered a fantasy. I hated and loved it. Hated because it made it harder for me to ignore my feelings for him, but loved because it gave me an excuse to maybe see him more.

            “You know, this really isn’t like me at all,” I started of explain, “ask any of the girls, Cynthia even, I never do this kind of thing.”

            I know it was supposed to have been making me feel better, but the way he looked at me just made me feel more self-conscious.

            “What? Spend the night at a guy you really like’s apartment and let him make breakfast for you in the morning? Or just the breakfast part?” He joked but he didn’t know the extent of the kind of the effect he had on me.

            “Well…” Now I felt really ridiculous, “all of it, to be honest.”

            “I guess you’ve never been with a guy who makes your whole face blush when he looks at you.”        

            Crap. He’s seen that.

            “Yeah, that’s true I guess,” I said with my hands on my cheeks so he wouldn’t see me blush again. Though I knew it was hopeless.

            He went back to cooking and gave me my food first. I offered to wait for him to start eating, but he told me it was no problem and that I should just go ahead without him. So, I did, and the food was completely delicious. Nothing was overcooked, and everything he put in it blended together perfectly. Like a melody of flavors. I watched him cook his own food while I nibbled at my own. Truth be told, I wasn’t really that hungry, I just kind of wanted some more time with him. But now that I had it, I wanted to leave. I had to force myself to stay in my seat though, as much as I wanted to leave I still didn’t want to be rude to him, I was grateful after all that he had made me breakfast. Later on though, I was lucky enough for his phone to ring, one of his friends, not Luka though. I could tell from how he spoke to the person on the other end. At part of his conversation, he said something about an item being in his bedroom or something along those lines so when he left the kitchen to go find it I took the opportunity to leave and run back home. As much as I didn’t want to leave without finishing the great meal he had put time into making for me, I did take the chance and left.

            I did feel bad. I had wanted to say good-bye. But at the same time I didn’t know if I could make myself face him again if I stayed there and waited for him to finish his phone call.

            I’m sorry. I thought as I opened the door. I like you too much.