Midlife // Joji

Four

"You have to text me when you get there and when you leave and again when you get home from his house." George demanded.

I couldn't help but laugh, "Do you want me to text you the next morning too? Just so you know he didn't follow me home and kill me in my sleep." I said as I rub moisturizer into my skin freshly cleaned skin.

"I mean, yeah, if you don't mind." He answered through the speaker of my phone.

I laughed out loud again. "Why did you suggest that I try this, if you were gonna act like this?"

"I'm not against you meeting a guy from tinder, you just have to be safe when you do it. Make sure you share your location with me too."

"George I don't even know how to do that."

"It's not hard Ella, I'll walk you through it." Although I couldn't see Joji right now, I knew he wasn't smiling. He was completely serious.

I took a glance in the mirror. Today I chose not to wear makeup, I was wear a big 88rising hoodie that George gave to me and just a pair of jeans. It was nothing special but I felt comfortable enough in my own skin to wear this to go hangout with a guy from tinder.

"I'll be fine, Joji." I reassured him.

He sighed "I know you will. I'm gonna be in the studio pretty much all night, but I'm gonna keep my phone on me. If you need anything, Ella," he exhaled deeply, he was more nervous than me. "Just call and I'll be there as fast as I can."

I smiled, "okay. I'll call if I need anything."

"Thank you. I'm about to go in, so I have to go."

"Okay. Bye, George" I mumbled still checking myself out in the mirror.

"Talk to you later, Ella."

George hung up and I remained in my bathroom for many minutes after.

The more I stared at my reflection the more I wondered whether or not the guy I was going to meet would find my body type attractive.

I've always been a bigger build. My mother used to always say I had a good body for carrying children, wide hips with a good amount of meat on my bones. My boobs were pretty unimpressive, my thighs and butt are pretty hefty, I have a considerably curvy shape but all my extra chub isn't always viewed as attractive.

I huffed at the mirror and finally started heading out, after all there's no need for me to stress out over my body when the guy only asked me to hangout.

——

I stomped all the way from the idiots front door back to my truck, quickly crawling in and slammed the door behind me making sure to to lock it. I hadn't even been there for more than 5 minutes.

I pulled out my phone to text George.

8:37 pm

Ella: On my way home now. He was a total ass.

Less than five seconds later as I was putting my car in drive, my phone began ringing. I answered it without even looking at the caller ID, there's only one person whoever calls me.

"Are you okay?" He didn't even give me a chance to say hi.

"Yeah," I sighed.

"What did he do?" He demanded.

"Nothing really, he was just rude." I half lied.

George knew better though, "he had to have done something to get you to leave. Really though Ella, are you okay? Do you need me to do leave?"