Ninja at First Sight

Part 7: What do you get when you cross a ninja?

I never did discover what Greg had planned as a surprise for our first date.

After my mother left, I went back upstairs and waited for the tow truck driver. Just as the man called, Greg showed up in my suite, looking scrumptious in pajamas and boots. He told me to hand over the rental car key. I changed while Greg went downstairs to deal with the man.

Greg didn't come back to my room. I waited for an hour and a half and was just about to walk to his room when he called me on the phone.

"Sorry I didn't come back up straightaway. I stopped by the boxes to check my mail." He sounded distracted.

"No problem. Do you want me to head over to your room?"

"No, don't do that. Sasquatch is here with a bird and, uh..." He hesitated and cleared his throat before continuing, "This week will be completely mad. I'm going to call it a night."

"Okay. For the record, I had a great time on our date."

"Even though I abscond with your food?"

"Yes. Even though you're a dirty food absconder." I paused, then added, "Sorry about my mother."

I heard him chuckle. "We shall discuss her Royal Horribleness at length tomorrow. I'm miffed you didn't tell me the truth about her. Is your father an ogre too?"

"No." I glanced at the clock, saw it was past midnight, and all of the sudden I was tremendously tired.

"Would you tell me if he were an ogre?"

"Probably not." I yawned and turned down my covers.

Greg was silent for a beat; I could tell he was thinking, considering his words. At length, he asked, "Seriously, why did you say your childhood was fine?"

I was glad he wasn't here, in my room, for this conversation. "Because it was fine. Like I said, I had a roof over my head, food, safety-"

"Yes, but a child requires more than the minimum, Fe. You deserved more than merely shelter, food, and safety. You deserve more than that now."

Inexplicably, my bottom lip trembled, so I bit it and closed my eyes.

"Fiona? Are you there?"

When I was quite certain I could keep the tears from my voice, I said. "Yes. I'm here. I'm just tired. How about we discuss her Royal Terribleness-"

"You mean her Royal Horribleness."

"Yes. Her Royal Horribleness, we'll discuss her tomorrow."

He hesitated again, but in the end he agreed.

However, I didn't see Greg the next day, or the day after that, or the day after that. It was the week of finals and I reasoned, as a junior, his schedule was likely crazy. Whenever I'd stop by his room he was gone—at the gym, library, computer lab. And several times I'd returned from class to learn he'd stopped by while I was out.

He left me short notes on my bed, just a few words scrawled on a post-it note,

Are you hiding from me? –Greg

I'll be at the computer lab in engineering all day, come find me if you have time. –Greg

Have you once again succumbed to the call of the hermit lifestyle? –Greg

I miss you. –Greg

I missed him, too. I missed our debates. I missed kissing him and touching him. I missed the cuddling. In truth, I pined for him and was verging on pathetic by day three.