The Devil's Daughter

Talk

After the food arrived, Cassie and I sat on the couch and ate in quiet. I turned on the television to tone out the deafening silence between us. It felt nice to have someone here with me for once. The silence in this household felt like a tumor at times, completely unbearable. I set aside my empty boxes before standing up to collect the trash.

"Is there anything that I can take from you?" I asked her as I motioned toward the kitchen.

"Yeah, you can take everything. Thanks again for the food, but I wish you would've let me pay for my share." I grabbed her boxes before walking toward the kitchen.

"I told you, it's not right to let a lady pay. Besides, it wasn't that expensive anyway. Think of it as a way to pay you back for all of those drinks that night at the bar." Her lips curled back into a grin and I knew exactly what she was thinking.

"That was a good night. Buzz and all."

I shook my head as I finished disposing of everything before joining her back on the couch.

"Can I ask you something?" She asked out of the blue.

"Sure."

"Why haven't you ever had a girlfriend?" I cocked an eyebrow at her.

"I've had girlfriends."

"No what I mean is, why haven't you had a girlfriend in a while?" My cheeks grew warm.

"Is it that obvious?" She shrugged her shoulders.

"I mean, no. It's just that I noticed that you don't have a picture of a girl in here or in your bedroom. I would've at least figured there'd been some lady products in the bathroom. Plus, with the way you've been tonight says it all."

"The way I've been? What do you mean?" I asked her.

"You just seem tense. Almost like you haven't had someone else in your home." I nodded my head in agreement.

"I don't know. I mean I've dated girls, but never one that I've felt comfortable to take home. With the way my job is and the demanding nature of it, I guess I would rather spare the feelings of a woman than expect her to commit herself to someone who's never home on time. It's always been easier to stay single in my opinion."

I felt embarrassed to talk about this with someone like Cassie, but at the same time I felt like I could tell her anything for some reason.

"I can see that. It must get pretty lonely."

I could sense that she understood what it was like with the way she cast her eyes off into the distance.

"Yeah, it can be pretty lonely at times. Anyway, what about you?"

"What makes you think that I'm not already taken?" She turned to question me.

"Well, if you were with someone, then you sure as hell wouldn't be here eating Chinese food in your underwear with the likes of me."

She bit her lip as she leaned back against the arm of the couch, curling her legs underneath her.

"Touché. My situation falls along the same path as yours. With my job, it's complicated. No sense in putting someone through that when I'm not sure if I can be there whenever someone needs me."

"Have you ever had a boyfriend?"

I watched as she tore her eyes away from me. Her body tensed up in a way that told me everything I needed to know.

"Yeah, I've had several guys I've dated." I shook my head at her words.

"What I mean is have you ever had a boyfriend? Someone that you can go on dates with and spend your time with and all of that stuff."