Chaos In The Flesh

Chapter 26

Friday, January 13, 2023: 6:42pm

"You're such an old man."

"Would you actually shut up? You're literally older than me."

"Yeah, but like, you're still older?"

"How does that make any sense?"

"It makes perfect sense if you think about it."

"No, it doesn't."

"Yes, it does."

Tim's phone buzzed in his pocket as Cassie continued prodding her fingertips into his side. Shoving her face away, Tim reached into his pocket and answered the call.

"Where you at?" Jordan asked on the other end of the phone. Tim could hear Sarah and Jonathan arguing in the background.

"My fucking limit." Tim growled, shouldering Cassie into a bush as she tried to grab the phone.

"Alright, well we're pulling into the parking lot, so we'll meet you inside. Anasi already grabbed us a table." Jordan said. Tim could hear a swift slap in the background and a yelp from Jonathan.

"Ok, we'll be inside." Tim chuckled, ending the call. He turned to the side and watched Cassie struggle to climb out of the bush.

"That's what you get for trying to take my phone." He said, striking out his tongue. He continued walking down the sidewalk as Cassie stumbled and shook ice and snow off her butt.

Cassie laughed and pinched his thigh before racing into the restaurant. But instead of slamming the door in his face, she held it open and let him walk in first. Tim patted her head twice before walking into the warmth of the small area.

The group chose to drive 30 minutes away to celebrate in a town that had authentic Arabic food. Tim's favorite on his birthday.

Anasi was already sitting at a small table in the corner of the dimly lit room. Around her sat couples and groups of friends, chatting and eating. When the server was notified of their situation, Cassie quickly led the way and Tim followed close behind.

"Happy 17th, Tim!" Anasi squealed, standing up and giving him a hug. She wore a long and dark purple dress. Her long hair was beautifully braided in a fishtail pattern that was thrown over her shoulder. She wore little makeup, but Tim could still see a bit of gold on her eyelids. Cassie took off her coat and hung it on the back of her chair while Tim hugged Anasi back.

"Thank you, Ana," Tim replied after a moment. "And thank you for making the reservation here. I'm grateful for the time and effort it took to search and find a decent place."

Anasi waved the comment away. "Are you kidding? You deserve this! Now take a seat, the others should be coming soon."

The table was set for six people, with a bench against the wall and three other cushioned, dark brown chairs set up on the other side. Cassie sat in the middle of the bench while Anasi sat on her right.

Tim nodded and stripped his own coat off and hung it on the back of the chair in front of Anasi. He wore a simple pair of black slacks and a black turtleneck with a simple silver watch and clean, black dress shoes which were slightly wet from Cassie's shenanigans.

Cassie, the devil be damned, did not seem to notice Tim staring at her. She looked very nice tonight. A large, thick knit cream colored sweater paired with dark blue skinny jeans was both comfy and chic. Her dirty-blonde hair was thrown into a half-up and half-down style. She wore concealer under her eyes (from what he could tell) and some mascara with a touch of lip gloss.

"My face does not have the menu on it," She suddenly said, not looking up from what she was reading.

Tim blinked and muttered a slight apology. Cassie hummed her acceptance and continued searching for a meal for the evening.