Outlaw Queen Shorts

First Dates

If you'd asked him a month ago where he imagined he'd be working, it would not be as a waiter in a blind date restaurant. But beggars can't be choosers, and with Christmas fast approaching and a nearly-six-year-old to buy presents for, Robin was willing to take any opportunity he could get his hands on. It was good pay, too. Good enough, at least, to cover the bills and still have some left over for the remote control helicopter Roland had been absolutely obsessed with ever since he'd seen it.

"How many stand ups tonight?" John popped his head out of the pass through and asked the same question he did every night. It was a game they had, the three of them - him, John and Ruby - guessing how many no-shows they'd have during the evening. The track record had been better in recent days; only one last night.

"Three!" Ruby called over from the bar before she turned and wiped down the back counter. Robin chuckled and shook his head, straightening his tie ready for the shift.

"Robin?"

He thought for a second.

"One."

"Someone's optimistic," John mused and backed away into the kitchen. He had a good feeling about tonight. As much as he hated to admit it, he actually became quite invested in the couples he served, willing some to get together and praying others didn't.

5:32. First hopeful through the door. He was a short-ish man, with shoulder length hair greying at the temples. His suit was smart, well tailored, and he carried a cane with a golden handle. Robin eyed him up from the back of the restaurant, guessing he was some kind of business man, a rich one at that. The man had a smugness to him as he was shown to his table by Mal, the manager. She seated him at table 4, not Robin's section, and he found himself grateful because he assumed that while wealthy, the man wouldn't be a generous tipper.

Robin began to light the candles on the tables, something he did most evenings because Ruby usually forgot. He moved his way round the tables and clocked the second dater to enter. A woman, late twenties, with blonde curls and a red dress, holding a clutch bag as she was shown to table 19. The first half of his first couple, it would seem.

"Good evening madam, would you like to order a drink while you wait?" He pocketed the lighter and took out his notepad and pen.

"Just water's fine for now," she said, smiling up at him. He nodded, and hoped the guy would show.

---

7:09. The restaurant was buzzing. Almost all the tables were now occupied (by one member at least) and Robin was running plates of food from the kitchen and drinks from the bar, stopping every now and then to discuss the clientele with Ruby. She was rooting for the blonde who'd sat down at the start of the night and the dark haired, stubbled - "leather jacket guy" as she'd called him - to get together.

And that's when she walked in. The most beautiful, angelic woman he'd ever seen. Her eyes were molten brown, lips a deep plum, and her hair framed her face in raven waves. Mal greeted her and god when she smiled it felt like his insides had been replaced with liquid. She led her to table 23, one table out of his section. Robin sighed, although it was probably for the best given that she was here for a date.

---

7:58. The point for most people in the restaurant when they accept their date isn't showing is around an hour after ordering their first drink. Robin had been glancing at his watch and then the door every few minutes, hoping that brunette-from-table-23's date wouldn't leave her stranded. He'd started going the long way round to the bar when he picked up drinks just so he could smile at her as he passed, and she'd smile back every time, but the later it got, the further away it was from meeting her eyes. Being stood up really did look as shit as everyone said it was.

He was putting drinks for table 20 on a tray when Ruby came over and leant across the bar, chin propped up on her hand and an eyebrow quirked.

"What?"

"She's been stood up." She said as if it was Robin's fault. He didn't reply, just continued to look at his colleague with a mixture of confusion and slight annoyance. Ruby always spoke as if the things she implied were obvious, and if that was the case then Robin was clearly oblivious. She let out exaggerated sigh and rolled her eyes, "so go speak to her!"

Robin sucked in a breath.

"Ruby--"

"Oh come on, you've been going well out of your way to smile at her all night," she was smirking now, her eyes flicking over to the woman in question who stirred the ice cubes round in her drink sadly. "Why don't you be her date?" Robin scrunched his brow but smiled - she'd been thinking up this plan since the half hour mark he guessed.

"I'm in the middle of a shift." He said, lifting his hands up in defence when she stared daggers at him.

"So? Just go ask Mal, she'll love the idea." Robin opened his mouth to tell her he wasn't sure if it was a good idea when she cut him off, "If you don't, I will. If that woman is as 'lovely' as you keep telling me she seems, then doesn't she deserve a date?"

Damn Ruby Lucas and her persuasive speeches.

---

8:12. Robin stepped back onto the restaurant floor stripped of his tie and apron, clad in jeans instead of his slacks and the top button of his white shirt undone. Ruby had been right - obviously - Mal had loved the idea. She was a romantic, and she hated to see her guests leave alone, so she told Robin to get changed and hurry up about it if he didn't want the woman to leave.

She was tracing the lines of the wooden beams running across the ceiling with her eyes as Robin made his way over to her table. He managed to pull out the chair and sit half way down before she noticed him, and a smile returned to her face.

"So you're my date?" She asked, her voice husky but smooth, like velvet.

"Not technically," he grinned back at her, "but I would very much like to be." She considered him with a bemused look on her face. "The manager let me finish early so I could be your blind date, and fill in for the tosser who decided not to turn up."

She laughed at that, ran a hand through her hair, and Robin wondered if it was a nervous gesture. She was even more beautiful up close. Stunning, in every way. The flickering light from the candle added highlights and shadow to her face, her jaw sharp but the curve of her lips soft. The perfect contrast.

"A pity date, thanks."

"Anything but." He countered, "I was jealous of the mystery man as soon as you walked in."

She tilted her head at him before holding out her hand across the table.

"Regina."

He took it, her skin soft and warm within his grasp, and he held her hand for a moment longer than probably necessary, but she didn't pull away.

"Robin."