Authors: Kylie Kaemke
“Suze, do I really have to try them ALL on? Can’t we just pick one from the pile? I don’t need to be perfect. You’re just wearing a nice cotton sundress… why can’t I wear one of mine?” I pleaded with her, but she wasn’t backing down.
“
Sweety, I have Adam... I don’t need to get all gussied up every time we go out. He knows what he’s got.”
“Hey…” Adam shouted from the other room, a hint of pain in his voice.
“Oh hush darling, you know what I mean. Now, go try this one first.” She handed me a silver sequenced dress that barely covered my lower half, way too skimpy for a first date… but I did as I was told.
We narrowed it down to two outfits. The first was a very short dress, wine colored, with a delicate pattern woven into it like vines or leaves which were sheer so my pale skin showed through it. The sleeves were long and reached down to my wrists, but the top cut straight across and draped off my shoulders; leaving them exposed. She paired it with black strappy heels that tied up to my ankle.
The second was an oversized flowing shirt dress with an ornate pattern of different blues, yellows, and blacks. The dress was sleeveless, and the neck line deep, deep enough to show what little cleavage I had. Then on top of the dress she draped a black blazer with the sleeves rolled up, and gave me a chunky silver bracelet to match the silver and black clutch. The shoes were my favorite part. They were black ankle boots that folded over the edges and zipped up the sides: much more comfortable then the strappy sandals.
“Well,” she started. “My vote goes for outfit number two. Definitely outfit number two. It’s so hot… and so… you!”
“I agree, I feel comfortable yet daring. Plus, I’m not changing again. So this settles it.” And just as I finished my sentence there was a knock at the door. I looked at the brass clock on the wall and it read eight-fifteen. “Oh crap! I’m late!” I scrambled to get my things into the new clutch and I raced out of the room like a bullet out of a gun, but there he was standing in the foyer; looking overwhelmingly handsome in his dark jeans, a black and white horizontal striped t-shirt, and a quarter sleeved gray blazer. He was wearing his thick black glasses and a grey and black fedora; it was all very Justin Timberlake. He looked amazing, especially standing next to Adam who just threw on his baggy jeans and a plain white tee that Suzette promptly covered with a dark red button down shirt. He gave her a puzzled look but ultimately decided to go with it.
“I waited in the lobby for a bit, but I was worried you may have forgotten me. So I charmed the bloke at the check-in and he gave me your room number. I hope that’s not over stepping my boundaries.” He spoke with such poise. His speech was classy and charming, and I was so in love with it.
“I’m so sorry, I lost track of time, and Suzette kept making me try on all these outfits and I… um, this is Suzette and Adam.” I was embarrassed and began to ramble. Then I remembered I had to mention they were joining us. “Look, um… is it okay if they join us? It’s just, well, I mean…” but I couldn’t find my words and I totally stumbled. Adam and Suzette stared at me like I was a dunce, but Simon caught me.
“I understand, strange lad, strange town, lots of bad things could happen. I could be tempting you with my wit and good looks to steal
ya and sell you on the black market.” Adam glared at me. “I gotcha. No worries, the more the merrier!” His contagious smile beamed across his now slightly scruffier face as he walked over to shake Adam’s hand and tipped his hat to Suzette. Soon we were all smiling, and we headed out the door looking like we could rule the world with our looks to kill and our ‘we can do anything’ attitudes. I was proud and excited and things were looking very bright for me at that moment in time.
Chapter 5
Simon had a taxi already waiting for us at the curb. I instantly felt horrible for making him wait and letting the meter run up, but he didn’t seem to worry about it as he opened the door and ushered me in giving me a courtesy bow and reciting the words “
M’Lady”.
We all piled into the spacious cab. I sat in between Simon and Suzette while Adam opted for one of the fold down seats across form us.
Simon cozied up next to me and closed the door behind him. He then spouted instructions to the driver, but I didn’t quite make out what he had said. Where were we going? At least the cabbie seemed to know, he nodded his head locking eyes with me in the rearview mirror and took off from the curb.
Simon relaxed back into his seat and I found his hand resting on my knee like it was the most natural thing he could possibly do. Shocked by his electric touch I gawked at him nervously, but he just courtly smiled as though it was normal. I smiled back.
“So, where we headed?” Adam broke the silence.
“
You’re going to love it,” Simon perked up. “I’m takin’ ya to my favorite little hole in the wall for some grub. Best food you’ve ever tasted!” He seemed thrilled, but my friends didn’t seem sold on the “hole-in-the-wall” atmosphere. We had been more used to fine dining and champagne back in New York, but I was down for it. Different was never a bad thing, and Simon was such a standup guy how bad could it have been?
“Sounds delightful,” Adam sarcastically sighed. I shot him an evil glare and he squirmed in his seat. I didn’t need him messing this up for me with his attitude.
“Then what?” Suzette stepped in, perky as can be. At least I had her on my side, whether it was pretending or not.
“After we slam back a few drinks and have a bite there’s a club about a block away that has the most wicked DJ, and after that… well that’s a bit of a romantic surprise I had worked out for Lucy, b
ut you two love birds will fancy it as well.” Looking at me again he smiled, and I had to bite my lip to keep from biting his.
****
We arrived at the small pub
Simon spoke of and he wasn’t kidding. The place didn’t even have a proper name; it just had red neon letters hanging above the windowless brown rusted door that read ‘PUB’. A single black rounded light hung above the door with about a thousand little bugs buzzing around the bulb. I definitely felt a mix of emotions from this place. Worry, a little disgust, but also excitement and curiosity. It would be my mother who would run from a place like this, but I didn’t want to be like that. If an amazing guy like Simon could hang out at a place like this then it must not be all bad. Never judge a book by its cover… right?
Upon entering, our nostrils were filled with the mouthwatering smell of greasy fried foods. The place was small, but amiable, not at all the unwelcoming place the outside made it seem to be. The décor was all mahogany furnishings, a long bar against the back wall, booths lined the outer walls, and tables were scattered throughout. The red walls were covered in photos of patrons having fun laughing and drinking, it was quite adorable really. There was a small space left open next to the old fashioned juke box in
the left corner near the entrance. A very adorable young couple was wildly dancing to some British pop song I didn’t recognize, but they seemed to be enjoying themselves.
There were only about twelve people in the whole place, and when they spotted Simon they all turned to shout “
Oy! Simon!” seeming quite excited to see him. He shouted back and waved to them all. The bartender began to pour four tall pilsner glasses full of deliciously golden colored beer.
Simon led us to a booth in the corner, close to the bar. We climbed in and a small thin woman slinked over to us holding the tray full of beer. She was so petite that the tray should have tipped her over, but she carried it with one hand as if it was a tray full of feathers. She gracefully
swooped it down in front of us and placed our glasses one by one on the worn-out coasters laid across the table.
“Howie says first round is on the house” she stated. Her accent was very thick, maybe even Scottish rather than British; I always had a hard time distinguishing
. Simon nodded toward the bartender, Howie, and raised his glass to him to say thanks.
The waitress left without even offering us her name or any menus. I thought to myself that was quite rude, but then I remembered that I wasn’t in one of New York’s finest restaurants where men had to wear dinner jackets and women had to be on their best behavior; I was where people were real and I loved it.
“I guess you come here often, huh?” Adam broke the silence as we each sipped our free beers.
“Yeah, these are me mates. I spend most of my evenings here, or I at least try and pop in when I can. Good beer, great food, and brilliant people. What more could I ask?” Simon beamed as he spoke about this pub, and that made me love it too. I tasted my beer
some more, letting the bubbles dance on my tongue and shimmy down my throat. It was so cold and crisp, I normally hated beer, but this beer was like drinking liquid heaven.
We talked about the things we wanted to achieve during the summer before our inevitable return to our normal lives and school. Simon was twenty-one years old and already working on his master’s degree in molecular biology at
Birkbeck. So his summer was just to blow off steam after a grueling semester. I didn’t dare mention to him that I wanted to use him in my experiment to fall in love over the summer; I didn’t really know how he would react to something like that. So I told him my summer was just to have an amazing time abroad with my best friends; which wasn’t a lie or anything.
After twenty minutes of laughing and sipping on our beverages the stunted blonde waitress returned with another tray, this time it had four plates with food.
“Here we are, enjoy.” She set a plate in front of each of us and was gone just as quickly as she came. If it were up to me she wouldn’t be getting a very good tip.
I stared at my plate that was so graciously placed in front of me and it held a very greasy burger and a pile of thickly cut French fries, and it looked delicious. I could see looks of confusion on my friends' faces, and too be honest I was a little puzzled myself… I mean, we didn’t order anything this whole night but we still received beers and now burgers. I couldn’t help but wonder if Simon had possibly called ahead or something. I looked over at him for an answer, hoping he could read my mind.
“I guess I should’ve explained. I can see you’re all a bit confused at the moment. Burgers and chips are the only thing that good old Howie will serve here, but like I said before, you’ll love em. So go on, dig in.” Simon expertly explained, and we all trusted him by devouring every morsel on our plates.
I had eaten all kinds of gourmet foods and French cuisines, but this burger had to be the most delicious thing to ever pass through my lips. It was char broiled to perfection, just slightly pink, juicy as can be, and so fresh that I th
ought I heard the cow mooing as I took a bite. And as for the fries, well they were the most sublime fried potatoes I had ever savored. That meal was amazing, Simon was amazing, and I could tell that my friends were feeling the same way as we all ate in silence; the occasional “mmmmm” followed by a head nod.
Before we finished our meals, Simon gathered our pilsner glasses and headed up to the bar. He said we couldn’t finish up without some more beer because it really
complemented the burger. As he walked away I caught myself staring at his ass, the sexy way it moved as he strutted in those jeans. Suzette caught me staring as well and kicked me under the table, a little too hard in fact.
“
Ow!” I shouted and returned the favor, but I gave her a much lighter kick then the one she bestowed upon me (later I found a bruise).
“I thought you needed to be snapped out of it before you began to drool,” she whispered leaning in close to me. “Not that I blame you for staring.” A coy smile stretched across her face. I was glad she agreed.
“Dude, he totally has my vote. This is the best burger I have ever tasted,” Adam cheered with a mouth full of meat. I was glad he agreed with my choice as well. I thought to myself as I sat there and watched my potential new suitor lean against the bar, laughing with a few of the people who occupied the red and gold steel framed bar stools, I could be happy, we could be happy, and that is what I wanted… right?
****
The pub was great, and the club was ‘brilliant’ as Simon called it, but the best part of the evening was the bridge…
Now, all four of us had a quite bit to drink, but none of us were as sloshed as Miss Suzette, who was stumbling down the sidewalk and attempting to pole dance on every street lamp we passed. Adam pried her off each one and pleaded with her to stay focused and walk with us. Simon was taking us on a midnight stroll to the famous Tower Bridge. I was so excited to be able to visit the bridge, let alone with the hottest guy in London. But I kept my cool as we walked hand in hand down the sidewalk, ignoring my fumbling friends behind us. I knew I shouldn’t have been omitting them, especially since Suzette was in such a ridiculous state, but I couldn’t help it.
My hand felt like it belonged in his, like it was that puzzle piece you would search hours and hours for only to find that it was actually right there all along and that amazing feeling you get when you finally put the two pieces together. I absolutely loved the way he held my hand, and the way his thumb drew circles in my palm. My skin felt alive, like it was dancing, and I was afraid it was going to take over and then I would be the one dancing on the street lamps.