Built For Failure

Chapter 5

I press the answer button. "Hello?"


"Hey beautiful, I was just calling to see how you are doing. So how are you?"


"I'm doing pretty good, just out shopping with some friends. How are you doing and what are you up to?" I hear something shuffling in the background.


"I'm alright, not up to much today since it's my day off. Shopping with your best friends? That's pretty dope, what are you shopping for?"


I see Aspen concentrating on me and asking about who I'm talking to. "We're getting what we need for homecoming in a couple weeks."


"Ah, okay. I have a question. I know it's last minute, but how about we go somewhere for dinner? Just you and me."


"Hm.. Alright, I'll take you up on that. Do you want me to just meet you there?"


"No ma'am, I'll come by and pick you up so that you don't have to drive there. Just text me your address. I'll be there to pick you up at 7 PM, if that's alright?"


I smile. "Yes sir, that works for me. I'll text you my address in a moment. See you then?"


I can hear a smile when he speaks. "Yep, see you later, alligator!"


"After a while, crocodile." We hang up the call.


I see I've gained Raelyn and Aspen's attention. "So, miss thang, who was that? Was it Alex?"


I make a zip signal, saying that my lips are sealed. "Nope, not saying anything until I see where things go."


Mom walks over and gives me a knowing smirk. "Was that who I think it was?" I nod in agreement.


We walk to the checkout area and I pay for my dress and shoes while the others pay for their items. Picking up my bag, I push the cart over to where the rest of them are and stand at the door while I wait for everyone else to finish up.


We walk outside and mom unlocks the car, popping the trunk so we can stick our bags back there and have more room in the back seat. We hop in the car and I'm drilled with questions again.


"So is it a date?" Mom asks.


"Who was that on the phone? A date? Tonight?!" Raelyn asks.


"What the hell girl, you've been keeping secrets from your besties? I am OUTRAGED." This came from Aspen.


I look at them all. "I wouldn't necessarily call it a date, I'm still with Alex. I'm just taking this chance to get to know the person. And yes, it's tonight, at 7 PM. It's nothing fancy! It was someone I met when mom and I went to Fridays."


Mom pulls out of the parking lot and we head to our house. Glancing at the time, I see that it's 5:30 PM already. Time sure does fly when you're having fun!


Aspen wants us to make a stop at Starbucks, so we end up being there for 15 minutes, due to the line and the fact we had no idea what we wanted. Well, of course Aspen knew, but the rest of us? Not so much.


After getting my order, I send my address over to Luca, that way he has it. He sends back a 'thanks ♥' and a small smile comes on my face.


We're back en route to our house and we pull into the driveway 20 minutes later. Putting the car in park, mom turns it off and we start unloading our bags.


"Hey Rae, did you want me to drop you off back at your house? You know you're just right down the road from me." Aspen asks while she sticks her bags into her car.


"Uh, actually.. Kai is coming to get me. We have a little date to go on."


We stop what we're doing and look at her. "And when were you going to spill the tea with us? Leaving us hanging?!" My mouth hangs open.


She looks at the ground. "I'm sorry, I just wanted to see how this would go and then I was going to tell you, I promise!" I walk to the house and mom unlocks the door, letting us walk in.


I head straight to my room and take my dress out of the bag, hanging it up in my closet until I wash it. I'll probably have to take it somewhere, just so I don't ruin it.


Come to think of it, Alex hasn't texted me at all today. I wonder what he's up to? I sent a quick message, telling him what color the dress is and asked what he's doing. However, I don't get a reply.


Aspen walks in and plops on my bed as Raelyn takes a seat in my desk chair. "So, who is this mystery person? I'm curious!"


"I'm not spilling anything until later. I don't want to jinx anything and I certainly don't want this to blow out of proportion."


Aspen lets a breath blow out of her lips. "Alright, well, I'm going to hit the road. Especially since you hot bitches have dates tonight, I'm going to have to contact Jax to come over. Maybe get some action in, you never know."


I look at her flabbergasted. "Ma'am, you never said you slept with him! When did this happen? Wasn't going to tell us?" She shakes her head.


"Nope, no details until you guys tell me everything!" She walks out and grabs her bag, popping her head back in before leaving.


"I love you bitches, stay safe, have fun, use protection!"


I yell back at her. "Likewise! I love you too!"


The front door shuts and it leaves Raelyn and I in my bedroom. "Are you prepared for your date with Kai? Have any clothes to wear?"


She pulls out a simple, pink tank top with ruffles and a pair of ripped jeans. Putting them on and finishing up with a pair of pink vans. "Well, that's cute! I'm glad you're prepared. Where are you guys going?"


"He hasn't really told me yet, but where are you going?" I sift through clothes hanging in my closet, stopping on a cute, ruffled black shirt and a pair of blue jean shorts. Grabbing a pair of converse, I complete my outfit with a ponytail.


"No idea. I'm just making sure that I'm ready. It's almost 6:30 anyway, so I have 30 minutes to prepare myself." I hear a car horn honk and peek out, seeing Kai's car in the driveway.


"Your mans is here, I'll walk you to the front door. Don't forget anything and remember: no glove, no love!" Raelyn lightly pushes me and blushes, grabbing her bags and walking behind me.


I give her a quick hug. "Good luck, I love you! Stay safe."


She hugs me back. "Good luck with your date babes, I love you!" She walks out the door and I see Kai getting out to open the passenger door for her. What a gentleman. She gives him a peck on the cheek and slides in after he grabs her bags to stick in the back seat, closing her door for her too.


He looks up and I wave at him. "Hey Kai, keep my girl safe!"


He smiles wide at me. "You know I will, V. Stay safe! Have a great rest of your night."


I close the door and walk over to the couch, unlocking my phone and scrolling through Wattpad to kill some time. Mom comes over and sits next to me.


"Excited? Is this the Fridays waiter you're going to see?"


"Yeah, he asked me to go with him, so I don't see any harm in what I'm doing. I'm not a bad person, am I?"


She looks over at me. "You're not a bad person, Vera. You're keeping your options open, and who knows, this guy might just be the one for you."


"I know, I just worry that Alex may overreact."


"If he overreacts, then that's his problem. You're not dating the boy, you're just going to get to know one another."


A knock on the front door sounds throughout the living room, causing me to jump up and open the door, seeing Luca standing there. He smiles at me and waves his hand.


"Hey." I look up at him.


"Hi."


Mom comes over and smiles at him. "Hi young man, what's your name? Where are you taking my daughter?"


He looks at her timidly. "I'm Luca, I just want to take Vera out and grab some dinner, then possibly a movie, if that's alright?" She smiles wide at him and gives him a hug, which he returns.


"Of course! Sorry if I scared you there, I just wanted to try to be hard on you. Nice to meet you, Luca. I'm Elizabeth, but feel free to call me Liz. Take good care of my daughter and stay safe."


I give mom a hug. "Thank you, I'll make sure to be home soon. I'll try not to stay out too late."


She hugs me back and puts her hands on her hips. "Excuse me? Live your life V, I was young once too. It's okay, I know you're responsible. And if you need anything, just shoot me a text or give a call, I'll be here."


"Okay, I love you." I grab my wallet and walk out with Luca, turning my head to see my mom standing at the door with a hand over her heart. I give her a wave and Luca opens the passenger door for me, allowing me time to slide in the front seat and closing it once I'm inside.


He quickly walks over to the driver's side and slides in, starting his car up and backing out of the driveway.


"I'm sorry again for asking on such a short notice, I just wanted to hang out with you and get to know you."


I glance over at him. "It's completely okay, Luca. I wouldn't have said yes if I didn't want to go. I'm happy to get to know you."


He smiles and continues his drive, pulling into a local diner and turning his car off. He gets out and walks to my side of the car, opening the door for me. I thank him and get out, closing the door and seeing him at the front door, holding it open for me again. Walking in, the hostess leads us to a booth for us to sit down.


She places the menus on the table and informs us that our waitress will be right with us. Looking over the menu, I try to decide what I want.


"I'm thinking about getting a sweet tea with lemon and a cheeseburger with curly fries. What are you thinking about getting, Luca?" He continues to look over the menu.


"Maybe a coke and the same as you, would you like an order of mozzarella sticks? I know you liked them when I waited on you and your mom the other day."


"Aw, you remembered! Yeah, that works for me. Sounds delicious."


Our waitress comes over and gets our order, taking the menus with her as she goes to grab our drinks. Luca's looking at me and I look back at him. "What?"


He smiles. "Nothing. You're just so beautiful and you don't even realize it."


Heat rises to my cheeks as I glance at my hands. "I don't always feel like I am. I think that I'm just- I'm not the best looking I guess. I don't get what people see. I don't see it. But thank you."


His eyebrows furrow together. "Vera, don't say that. I understand what you mean, I don't find myself to be the most attractive person. My tattoos make me less likely to find a decent job, I get judged for them and I'm just not in the best place right now. But people see more in me than what I see. You are beautiful, I can tell you're smart and funny as well. Your personality radiates and you give off this aura that has this loving, caring vibe to it."


The waitress places our mozzarella sticks on the table with two extra plates and we thank her. Grabbing two sticks, I cut them up and dip them into the marinara sauce. While chewing, I ponder my thoughts about the man that's across the table.


I look at him, realizing that this man is actually real. He is such a sweet person, it's unreal. A true gentleman. He's said these things, things I've hardly heard from Alex. This is a possibility. I want to get closer to Luca, I want to be able to actually get to know who he is, as a person, outside of his body.


"I think we're going to be the best of friends. Like. You're already making me feel things and you're pushing me to be better and see myself as I am. You're sweet, Luca. I'm so glad I was able to befriend you and even texted. My anxiety kicks in, it's going hard right now, but you're making it chill out. Thank you."


The waitress stops by and places our burgers in front of us. "Do you guys need any sauces? Ketchup? Anything?" I make eye contact with her. "Ketchup is fine for me." Luca agrees with me. She comes back and puts it on the table. "Enjoy."


We dig into our food and I instantly moan over how juicy my burger is. Luca looks at me suggestively and my cheeks burn with embarrassment. "Sorry, this is just so good."


"Nothing to be sorry about, I'm glad you're not picking at your food like you're a bird. You're normal. I love that." I glance at my phone screen and see no notifications. Weird, not letting this ruin my night though.


We continue eating until most of our food is gone, then when the waitress puts the check on the table, we battle to figure out who will pay. Our hands touch and I feel a weird shock feeling, like there's electricity running through our touch. It's that feeling I've read about in the books I've read on Wattpad. It's a unique feeling.


After a few tugs of the receipt, I'm quick to grab it and run to the counter. Quickly, I pay with my card while having a somewhat upset Luca behind me. Signing my signature, Luca walks over and holds the door open for me. Thanking him, I make my way to the car, and he comes over to open the car door for me.


He slides into the driver seat and looks over at me. "How about we head to the drive-in theater? I can pay for the tickets since you paid for dinner. I could have paid, you didn't have to do that. But thank you."


"It's no biggie, I wanted to pay. I wanted to give something to you for now, since you've gone out of your way for me already. What movie do you want to see?"


He pulls out of the parking lot to sit at a red light. "I'm thinking it's the lady's choice since I chose where to go for dinner. So your choice."


I Google the movies that are playing at the drive-in and I instantly get excited because there's a Fast and Furious movie playing at 9. "Can we go see the Fast and Furious movie? It's number 9."


"You love those movies too? I knew we would connect. Sure." He pulls off and we arrive at the drive-in by 8:30. Paying for our tickets, we pull into the correct parking spot and get comfortable.


"Thank you for tonight by the way, I really needed it. This means so much to me." I informed him.


"It's no big deal, Vera. I wanted to do something and decided to ask you to come out with me." The previews start playing, so we pay attention to all the different movies that are coming out.


The drive-in becomes packed the closer it gets to 9, so they start parking on either side of us. Turning the volume up on the radio, I lean my seat back and the movie starts. I can feel the adrenaline already pumping as Vin Diesel pops up on the screen. If things don't work out for me, I'd be dating him or Channing Tatum, because hot damn- Okay Vera, focus.


I glance over at Luca and see he's focused on the movie. He's adorable, it's unreal. Turning my attention back to the movie, I let it consume my mind.


The movie ended around 11:30 and it was one of the best of the movie saga. We make our way to my house and I look over at him as his left hand is on the wheel, his right is on the gear shift. "Thanks for taking me out Luca, I appreciate it and we've got to do this more often."


He glances over and jokingly says. "I agree, same time next week?" I chuckle. "How about we do something soon? I will get the game plan together this time. I'll be treating you."


He sighs. "Vera. I am not letting you pay for things. That's my job."


"No. I am paying and that's final. No arguing about it, I'm stubborn and I'm not budging."


We drive in silence and pull up into my driveway in about 30 minutes. He steps out of the car and walks around, opening the car door for me. I step out and look up at him as he looks down at me. We don't move, just standing and watching one another.


He sticks his hands in his pockets. "So. In the books, this is where the guy kisses the girl. But I'm not pushing you to do anything."


I smile at him. "Maybe one day, Luca. Maybe one day." I wrap my arms around his waist and hug him. He hugs me back and places a kiss on the top of my head.


"Goodnight, Luca. Sweet dreams."


"Goodnight beautiful. Sweet dreams." We pull away and I look at him one last time for the night.


"Drive safely, okay?"


"Always."


I smile and walk towards the front door, unlocking and opening it. I turn back and make eye contact with him as he sits in the driver seat, waiting for me to get into the house safely. I wave at him and lock the door once he leaves.


Shutting the door behind me, I head to my room and plug my phone in. Changing into my pajamas, I slip into my bed and the night replays in my mind as I drift off to sleep.


Goodnight handsome.

~~~~~~


I love them together already, awwweeee. I'm hoping things go well for these two!


So, are we liking Vera and Luca together?


What about Alex? He's gone missing in action.


Was this a friendly date? A date date? No idea.


I hope this chapter met expectations, don't hesitate to leave a comment or a vote!


Thank you for reading this chapter!


♡ Miya