Displaced

Timber - Fifty-Two

The dress code for the restaurant on the Roof was nice. No jeans or T-shirts, girls should wear dresses and guys, ties. Paul told me to look good. If there's one thing I'm good at, it's looking good. Not to toot my own horn or anything, but I know a thing or two about style. It got me teased in high school by the other guys. I also was the one all of their girlfriends lusted after, and not because of my career. A girl likes a well-kept man with class. I happened to enjoy not being a slob. Perhaps it's vain of me. There's also something fun about getting all dressed up to impress.

I didn't overdo it. I was ready long before Chevelle was. She was done in about an hour and walked out of the bathroom in a slinky red dress with her hair piled on top of her head in a messy bun. It suited her well. Even better, my classic black slacks, white shirt, and silver tie didn't clash with her attire.

"You look amazing," I said, standing from the dining room table where I had been waiting for her.

She spun around in a slow circle. "I did good? I'm not used to getting fancy without my mom's help. Lara picked out the dress."

"Kudos to her. She has good taste." I offered her my arm. After some hesitation, she took it.

When I gazed into Chevelle's eyes, I noticed they were full of fear. "Do you think he's going to like it?"

"If he doesn't, then there's something wrong with him."

"I'm so nervous I could puke," she muttered.

I laughed. "Man, you must have it bad for this guy if he's making you want to hurl."

Shooting me a glare, she put on a pair of matching high heels. "I haven't seen him since this whole mess began. Not outside of what happened on the TV. A lot of things could have changed. I don't know what he's going to think when he sees me and..."

"And?"

"He told me he loved me before he ran off." She gazed up into my eyes. "I'm not sure what I feel for him back. What if he has his hopes set high? Don't get me wrong, I want to help him, but he could be expecting a lot more than a rescue. And then I'm going to feel guilty as well because..."

"Because?" I pressed my lips together, already nervous for her. When she averted her gaze from mine, I knew. Shaking my head, I joined her at the balcony door. "You told him you felt the same way?"

With a heavy sigh, she opened the door. "Kind of, sort of, I don't know. Our relationship has always been weird. It could mean a lot of different things."

"What could? You've lost me."

"What I said to him." She waved her hands in front of her. "It's complicated."

I laughed. "Obviously." I glanced back at Paul and waved. "We'll try not to be too late."

"Take your time." He bounced Monique on his knee, making himself right at home in our living room.

Taking a deep breath, I stepped onto the balcony. I hadn't been nervous until Chevelle started spilling her guts. Now I was: for her, for him, and all of the fine details regarding our captivity. If they didn't love each other, would our plan to get out of here work? Even worse, if only one loved the other, then they'd be stuck in a whole lot of awkward mess. It'd be like Chevelle and I all over again, and a million times worse. Unrequited love was the worst kind of hurt.

She's young. They both are. I chuckled because they weren't all too younger than I was. The last time I had been in their position seemed like a lifetime ago, all the same. If she's never been in love before, she won't recognize it right away. Hopefully whatever is going on where he's being held hasn't changed him too much.