All I Want for Christmas is a Ph.D.

November 21st - Part 4

"DAMN, THIS MAN!!!"

DeeDee stared at Erik's latest response. How many more times was she gonna say that tonight? What was she supposed to do with what he said? The man wanted to see her as is, and she did not share anything about how she looks. It's not like she wasn't curious about what he looked like now or even how he might sound. Because that has crossed her mind plenty of times as they exchanged email after email. Especially what his face looked like when she switched up his name.

"UGH...why do you have to be like this?"

And he left the final decision in her hands. Why didn't he just try to video call her? You know, see what happened. "Because he knew you wouldn't answer." She nodded. Of course, there was no way she would have picked up a surprise call. She sighed, "No pressure, my ass."

DeeDee reached for her phone. Maybe if she spoke with Phyllis and Beverly, she would gain some clarity. She started typing out her S.O.S. message and then stopped. "Shit, I can't call them. Then they would know I was lying about the book." And what a great book he turned out to be. She huffed and tossed the phone onto the coffee table.

Her playlist was still blaring and when 'Silver Tongue Devil' by Masego came on, she rolled her eyes. It was an appropriate sentiment about the man who she has spent the past few hours chatting with. The decision to drop their conversation for the night was ultimately in her hands thanks to him.

She wrung her hands and looked at the coffee table. The wine bottle was next to her laptop. DeeDee popped up and went to the fridge. She grabbed a bottle of water, returned to her seat on the couch and set it on the table. If she was going to do this, she needed to sober up a bit.

---

Erik walked out of his bathroom, he tied his towel around his waist. His tablet buzzed and rang on his bed. He walked over to it and pressed the screen to answer the call.

"Hello."

"Uh, Mr. Erik?" The melodious voice rang out from his tablet.

He picked it up, "DeeDee?" Erik was greeted by a hooded figure with glasses, wide eyes and a flushed face.

DeeDee looked down and away before she addressed him. "And here I thought you would be in a hoodie and sweats, like me."

He saw her reach forward and twist the top off a bottle. She looked away from the camera while she drank from it. When she finally returned her gaze to him, he smiled at her.

DeeDee choked on the water and abruptly stopped the video.

Erik checked to see if the call was still connected, "DeeDee, you ok?"

"Do you have clothes on?" She squeaked out.

"Not yet." He could hear her take a deep breath. "Give me a moment."

---

DeeDee muted herself, kicked her feet up and screamed.

It took her a whole half an hour to get up the nerve to make the call. She curled up on the couch and threw her hood up. She knew the overhead light would still allow him to see enough of her until she was ready for a full reveal.

Nothing prepared her for what showed up on the screen. At first, she saw the ceiling and heard his smooth, deep voice greet her. But when he called her name and lifted up the tablet, DeeDee looked respectfully and then closed her eyes.

This man had the audacity to answer the video call shirtless. Not just shirtless, but straight out of the shower. She could still picture the water droplets across his shoulders and chest. So, he was basically naked. Just from that not so sneaky peek, she knew he was a well-built man.