Chase Me

1

I walked over to the mirror and stared at myself..... I had really let myself go. It didn't help that I was starting to develop bags under my eyes from lack of sleep. I know it was my choice to switch to working nights only but it was starting to take a toll on my body.

"Krystal I'm telling you for the hundreth time, you won't meet a man in your apartment, you need to go out, and going to work doesn't count!"

"Shut up! I said I was going...but it's going to be awkward as hell."

Imani laughed, we've had this conversation before and it always ended in me saying I would try going out on my own but never did.

Imani and I have been friends for the last 5 years and she is the only friend that I could trust with my life. She was the first person I met when I moved out here. The story of how we met has always been funny to me; my key fob wouldn't let me in through the main entrance for the new apartment and she walked me through the entire process and then gave me her number. I texted her that night and we've been friends ever since.

"You'll be fine. Here's what you're going to do. Go to the french lounge on 90th Avenue, Mark always goes there with his buddies for lunch, all you have to do is show up there looking pretty and let nature do its work."

"I'm supposed to go to an upscale restaurant by myself? Do you even know me girl?" I rolled my eyes with the thought of how this would turn out.

"Who's the stay at home wife doing pilates now hoe? I'm trying to put you on. Just trust me on this." Even though we were on the phone I could sense her smiling.

"Okay, you win, when I show up looking like an idiot, what do I do next?" I belted. Walking over to the closet, I started to contemplate if I really wanted to go through this.

Let me see, I've been single for the last 6 years, no luck on dating sites, only creeps and hookups. I'm always at work and when I am off I just chill with Imani. It doesn't hurt giving this a shot and even if I don't meet anyone at least I dressed up for once.

"You're going to go straight to the bar, if you go to a table, everyone is going to assume you came there with someone. Secondly, you can't be on your phon-"

"You can just stop there Imani, if I cant be on my phone what am I gonna do? Stare into space? Into a wall?"

"Will you just shut up and listen, you can't be on your phone because it won't make you seem open to approach. What you can do is bring a book, either to read or to write in and before you interrupt me, the book is going to make you look mysterious, and it's going to be a conversation starter, you know like 'oh hey what you reading' It's not gonna be weird once you're there, trust me. Technically you could be on your phone but people will automatically think that you're preoccupied."

"Understood?" Imani continued. I heard her loud and clear and I understood exactly what she wanted me to do but I didn't know if I was capable of doing that.

I cleared my throat "Yes Mani, I got it, understood, comprehende, I'm gonna do it but only if you come with me, you know, to bail me out if after half an hour literally no one comes up to me."

"Okay done!" she squealed, "but I'm not coming in with you, I'll stay outside in my car and if you need me I'm there. I don't think you'll need me though, I'd snatch you up in 30 seconds. Try and be ready for 1pm, that's usually when all the hotties arrive and Krystal, for the love of God please wear some heels, not those cheap looking ones from Walmart you got last week though. Bye love you!"

That little voice in my head kept screaming 'desperate'. It was right but I was 28 and I wanted to be married and have a family of my own, I wasn't getting any younger. I would just make myself be seen. I mean nothing wrong in that, I'm not doing the chasing, I'm just putting myself where I can be chased.