UntitledA Story by Marissa Just something I'm working on “Dude!
Seriously?!” He yelled into the receiver as he glared at his computer screen. “What?” asked a
groggy voice on the other end of the line. Averting his eyes from the screen he
said, “You signed me
up for a dating service? Really?” “I did?” Asked the
voice. “’Who Meets Who
dot com. The perfect site for
engineers and scientists to find each other.’” He sarcastically read from his
computer screen with distaste. “Oh that. Yeah,
we did it.” “Whose we, Michael?” He asked angrily. “Dude, its
fine. It was a long time ago. Why are you talking about it now?” “Well,
apparently, I have a date this
Friday.” He returned. “…Heh.” “What?” “Well, at least
someone likes you.” Michael sleepily chuckled. “Thanks.” He
said sarcastically. “What should I do?” “Go for it.” Michael
said. “What? Why
should I?” “Well, for one
there’s a girl who wants to be with you on Valentine’s Day,” He had
forgotten that Valentines was on Friday. “Secondly, you
haven’t had a date since…. Ever.” “Okay, that
one’s not true.” “Bart. Yeah it
is.” “But-“ “Oh. My. Gosh.
High School never counts! You’re an engineer now. You have your freaking doctorate. You deserve more than what that
one girl ever gave you for a year of your life.” He wasn’t
wrong. “Anyway. Go.
On. The. Date.” He yawned, “See you later.” The phone
clicked on the other end. The clock read
7:45. “Great.” Bart
said as he hung up the phone on the receiver. Closing his laptop, Bart
proceeded to move on with his daily morning routine and simultaneously attempted
to forget about the whole date. The clock read
8:37. Upstairs, he
dressed himself for an interview he had that morning at 10:00. He wore a blue
dress shirt, a few sizes too big, and a light blue tie, tightened like a noose
around his neck. Slipping on some black dress pants and socks, he decided he
felt like he was going to church. Smiling to himself, Bart grabbed examples of
his unrealized genius and rushed off to his car. He shoved the papers into the
backseat and hurried over to the driver’s side door. Climbing in, he fumbled
with his keys, when he realized he had forgotten the car keys back in the
house. Bart, being very annoyed at this point, slid out of the car and ran
inside. He found the keys right where they always were- on the hook by the
door. Returning to his car, he inserted the key into the starter. Holding his
breath, he turned the key. It made a strange, scratching sound. “Come on.” He
growled through gritted teeth. After a few moments of hesitation, the car
sprung to life. The clock read
9:30. Thanking the
almighty Lord, he sped off down the curvy road towards the highway. To his
dismay, traffic was backed up all the way off the onramp. Groaning, he took his
place in line. When Bart finally got on the road, the traffic was so thick that
he hardly moved at all. It would have only taken him a few moments to get to
the interview, but instead he had to hit the worst traffic of the day. The clock read
9:15. He barely made
it to the interview. He couldn’t blame the highway though. There had been a terrible
accident which had resulted in the traffic, but he still burst into the room at
9:57, his hair flopping and the papers flying. The man had his back to Bart,
and he seemed annoyed, or perhaps bored, he couldn’t tell. “Not often sir.
I promise it won’t-“ He put up his
hand and stopped Bart’s sentence. “Enough. You have wasted enough of my time.”
He sighed as he leaned against his leather chair and ran his hand though his
thin hair. “I knew offering this job to a younger man was a mistake.” “But-“ “No, please
stop.” He said as he slouched into his chair. “I’ve heard enough.” He turned
back towards the window and said, “This job is crafted for a skilled,
professional man and I do not think that you have the capacity for this job,
boy.” Bart gathered
up some of his designs into his hands, “You haven’t even seen my designs! I’m
positive that these designs will work for your plans! I-” Bart was cut off by a
sharp noise. The man dressed in an expensive gray suit had turned and had slammed
his fist onto the desk and shouted, “Enough! I have
no need for your services!” He sighed and looked up into Bart’s face and said
more calmly, “I’m sure your plans are perfectly crafted for my purpose. But, I
cannot have a young and unexperienced man on my staff.” How am I supposed to gain experience if you
won’t hire me?? “I’m sorry. I
hope you will find somewhere.” He dismissed Bart with a wave of his hand and
turned to look out the window once again. Infuriated,
Bart gathered his things and restrained the urge to snap the man’s neck as he
left the building. Shoving his things into the car, he drove off towards the
bridge leading out of the city. He just drove away. Thoughts about his hair,
his face, and his eyes filled his head. One thing after another pounced on his
psyche and his thoughts turned towards self-worth and self-love. Soon, he found
himself on a hill overlooking the city by the time night fell. “What now?” he
asked the universe who was slowly emerging from its slumber above him, “No job.
No life. No purpose.” Bart slumped down in his chair as he stared at the
setting sun and the lonely stars unraveling themselves from the colors around
them to create a new landscape. Bart wasn’t one for large changes, but the
stars just seemed so small, so insignificant, so that when they emerged, he
felt nothing. But when the sun arose each morning, the change from dark to
light caused him to flinch. Suddenly, for no apparent reason, his mind decided to remind him
about his date. Bart surprised himself by smiling. He was excited, he was happy
to have something to look forward to. He had forgotten about the joy of
surprise, the joy of change.
“No! He should
wear just a dress shirt and jeans. Girls love that.” Tamera said as she held up
a light blue shirt that Bart had forgotten completely about. “Seriously,
Tina?” Scoffed Helen, “He wouldn’t be caught dead in that. That’s why he hasn’t
worn that in the last year. At least.” Tamera rolled her eyes as she still
clutched the blue shirt. “I think,” Helen began, “He should wear stripes. He
always looks good in stripes.” “I don’t have
any striped shirts…” Bart said nervously. He was honestly scared of these girls
sitting in his room and digging though his closet, judging everything he owned.
“Oh that’s
alright, dear! I brought one of Tanner’s that might fit you.” Helen held up a
green and white striped shirt and smiled at Bart, “See! It’ll look great!” Bart
nodded as he looked at the shirt with distaste. “NO! The light
blue!” Insisted Tamera. “He hates your shirt.” “Oh! How dare
you! He loves it.” He didn’t love
it. “Okay. Ladies!
Ladies!” interjected Tanner as he stepped between the feuding girls. “I think
Bart needs a man’s opinion.” He turned to Helen, “Don’t you think, dearest?” He
pecked her nose with a kiss and Helen melted. “Fine. I guess
it’s good for him to have another opinion.” Helen sighed as she stepped off to
the side. Walking over to Bart, Tanner put his arm around his shoulders and led
him away from the girls. “Thank you
man.” Bart silently exclaimed as they began their man-counsel. “No problem. I
saw you dying a bit over there. And, I hate that shirt too. Helen just bought
it for me so I have to wear it.” Tanner painfully explained. “Anyway, you just
have to be yourself. Dress the way you’d dress if you were meeting the woman of
your dreams, and you’ll be set.” Bart thanked him and went over to his
ran-sacked closet. He was digging through a pile of shirts when he felt a hand
on his shoulder. He looked up to see Michael. He looked a bit sad, so Bart
asked, “What’s up?”
Michael leaned over and whispered, “I’m so happy I
forced you into this. My little bro going on a date!” Michael embraced him into
a crushing hug, which was awkward because Michael was easily five inches taller
than Bart, so he was lifted off the ground. “Oof! Michael.
Stop. I’m. Dying a bit.” Squeaked Bart. “Oh, sorry.”
Michael said as he returned Bart’s feet to the ground. “I’m proud of you man.” “Thanks?” Bart
asked as he returned to rummaging through his clothes. Soon, he had put
together an outfit he felt was who he was, but also what he’d like to meet a
potential girlfriend in. He changed and emerged from the bathroom and into his
room where he found his friends gathered in a semicircle around the door. He wore a white
dress shirt with a black vest over it. He had dark wash jeans and black shoes
and socks, and on his face he wore his black rimmed glasses. “So? What do
you guys think?” Bart asked hesitantly. He wouldn’t go on any date without
their approval, they knew much better than he did. “Hmm. I think
you look good.” Tamera said as she studied him. “Agreed. I
absolutely love the vest.” Helen exclaimed happily. “Looking good,
bro.” Michael approved. “I think you’re
ready for your date.” Tanner stated sincerely. Walking over to Bart,
“Congratulations, you are now a man.” Bart laughed, “Thank you! I’m
actually kind of nervous.” “Understandable.”
Tanner said with a shrug. “Just don’t think anything of it. I’m sure she’s a
cool girl.” “She’d have to
be to date you.” Tamera said teasingly. Helen giggled and said, “I can picture it now! Your love will be front page news!” Setting out on
his adventure, Bart stopped by a flower shop on his way to the restaurant. He
entered the foreign land of flowers and struggled to choose something nice. So,
deciding to play it safe, he bought a single red rose.
He slowly made
his way into the city towards the restaurant. Truthfully, he was terrified. His
heart wouldn’t stop pounding and his palms wouldn’t stop sweating, and he
couldn’t stop thinking about all possible outcomes of the meeting.
What if she was
a mean and terrible person?
What if she was
a prisoner that broke out of jail?
What if she was
a psychopath that wanted to murder him?
What if she
wasn’t even a girl!
He shuddered at
the thought. Bart pressed on and finally he made it to the restaurant early,
despite his snail-pace driving. The sky was dark and the restaurant shone with
yellow light that leaked out onto the sidewalk, illuminating the path. It was
for the most part deserted outside the windows, except a hunched figure just
outside the realm of light. The figure seemed to be standing on shaking feet
and her voice cracked when she tried to say something to Bart as he approached
the restaurant. He turned and looked at the figure. Bart couldn’t make out the
features of the figure’s face, but it was reaching out to him with a gnarled
hand. He walked over and placed the rose and ten dollars into their
outstretched hand and said with a smile, “I hope you have a lovely night. It is
Valentine’s day after all.” He returned to the restaurant, and was shown to the
reserved table he had prepared. He fidgeted for the next twenty minutes until
he noticed a woman walk in the door. He sat up expectantly, but she was shown to
another table. He slumped back into his chair with a disgruntled frown. Slowly
loosing hope, he began to think he was being stood up.
After a while,
he decided he was going to leave. Bart stood, but he noticed someone enter. She
was dressed simply in a white dress and white shoes and had big, clunky glasses
that actually complemented her round face. Her hair was tied back in a messy
bun, and she was breathing heavily from running. She seemed to be the one he
was waiting for. She looked over in Bart’s direction, and he realized he was
still standing. Awkwardly, he sat again, but then he realized she was
approaching the table. He jumped up and pulled out her chair for her. She sat
in it with a smile and thanked him. He scurried over to his chair and gracefully
fell into it. He looked at her, she looked at the floor. He looked at the
ceiling, she looked at him. This strange dance occurred for a good ten minutes
until their eyes finally met. Bart smiled and began with, “Hello, I’m Bart
Evack.”
How stupid am I? She already knew that; it’s
on my profile!
As he mentally
beat himself up, she smiled and returned with,
“Hello Bart, I’m-”
She paused, only slightly, then continued, “Joules, like the energy. Joules
Darington.”
“That’s a
really cool name.” Bart said, transfixed on her. She was incredibly
interesting. “What do you do for a living?” The question seemed to catch her
off guard, as she stumbled over her words.
“Well, uh, I
just got out of a truly horrible job working for a private employer, and now
I’m doing my own research.” She took a sip of water then continued, “I’m a
physicist working on general relativity, and I’m hired by people who have
questions the need answering.”
Bart’s
doctorate in Engineering seemed small now.
“That seems
exciting!” Bart said as he took a gulp of water.
“Well, it can
be. But most of the time it’s just running into dead ends.” Joules explained.
“My branch of physics isn’t exactly set in fact. But enough about me! What do
you do?”
“Well, I would
be an Engineer, but you know,” Bart sighed, “Times are tough.”
“I hear that.”
Joules said and raised her water glass. Bart smiled and clinked his glass with
hers,
“Here’s to the unemployed doctorate holders.” The night was amazing. He had a fair amount of laughs and learned
new things from her. She was fantastic in every sense of the word to Bart. “We
should do this again.” He said as he pulled out her chair at the end of the
night. “Agreed.” She said with a smile. “You’ll need my number then.” Score! Walking out of the restaurant triumphantly, he noticed that the
figure had gone, but his ten dollars was lying on the ground. He looked around
for the stranger, and shrugged as he picked up the bill. He climbed into his
car just as it began to snow. It was February after all, he shouldn’t be
surprised. Before Bart left, he looked over at Joules as she walked to her car,
her dark coat rapped snugly around her shoulders. She climbed into her clunker
and drove off. Only after Bart was sure she was safely on the road did he start
his car to go. He hadn’t had a better
night.
© 2013 MarissaAuthor's Note
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