"'Cause it's you and me and all of the people with nothing to do, nothing to lose
And it's you and me and all of the people
And I don't know why I can't keep my eyes off of you."
"You and Me" by Lifehouse blared throughout the house, waking me up. Drew was in the living room singing along as she dusted the bookshelf in the corner. I looked her up and down and realized that I no longer had any physical attraction for her. Not that she wasn't gorgeous, because she was, I just couldn't see myself being with her like that anymore. I opened the fridge and grabbed the almost empty jug of orange juice, finishing it off.
I hummed along to the music taking in every word. Nancy was embedded so deeply in my mind that I couldn't help but think of her. Just as my dream came back flooding my thoughts, the phone rang. Drew turned around to see me going to answer it. "I've got it!" "Well good afternoon, sleepy head!" She called from the living room. "Mornin'!" The caller ID read "NANCY". My heart raced as I answered. "Hello?" "Jimmy? Hey! How's it going?" "Hi, Nancy. It's going great! How are you?" "Oh, just busy as always." I smiled just listening to her sigh on the other end. "It's almost the weekend so at least you have that to look forward to." "You're right. Hey, I was wondering if you and Drew would want to meet up for lunch in about a half an hour." I jumped from the seat I was in and ran to the bedroom where Drew was folding laundry. "I'd love to. Let me ask Drew." I panted into the phone. Man, I needed to get in shape. "Hey, Nancy was wondering if you and I felt like going out to eat in a few. Are you up for it?" I raised my eyebrows in excitement, anxious for an answer. I felt like a little kid asking to go to a friends house over night. Drew looked up at me and back to her pile of clothes. "I'd love to but... I have a lot of chores to do today. Why don't you and Nancy go ahead?" She winked at me and spoke audibly enough for Nancy to hear. My eyes widened as I realized Drew had just set us up on a date. I put the phone to my chest. "WHAT? DREW YOU CAN'T DO THIS TO ME." I whispered loudly. "It's just lunch. Calm down Jim. Tell her yes." I put the phone back to my ear. "Hello? Jiiiiiiimmmmmyyyy? You there?" I smiled and looked to my socks, walking to my room. "Yeah, I'm here. Meet me at Kathy's Café in 20? Drew isn't feeling up for it but I am still game if that's alright with you." "Uh... yeah. Sure! Okay, I'll see you soon. Bye."
"Thanks a lot for that. You totally set me up." "Hey, you should be thankful for that. Now you have a shot with her." I stopped tying my shoe and looked up to Drew standing in the doorway. "What do you mean?" She shook her head and walked away. "What do you mean, Drew?" She laughed and kept walking. "Hey! Talk to me." "How can you not see it? She invited you and me to lunch. I said I wasn't going and she still agreed to go alone with you. It's so obvious that she's into you. If it were anyone else, she would've cancelled as soon as I said I was busy. But she didn't." I sat on the couch thinking it over. I mean, she did have a point. On the other hand, there's no way. Nancy was far out of my league and she barely knew me. Chances of her having more than a boss/employee relationship with me were slim to none. I put my other shoe on and looked in the mirror. My green and blue plaid shirt still had the tags on it and I contemplated whether I could pull off the untucked, unbuttoned flannel look. I decided to button it up and I ran my fingers through my hair. Drew walked up behind me and pulled a sticker off of my shoulder. "You forgot one." I laughed and looked back to the mirror. "Do I look stupid?" "No more than usual." I put my hands in my khaki pockets and looked at the clock. "I should probably get going. I'll see you shortly. Wish me luck." "Jim?" "Yesss?" I turned from the front door. "Good luck." I took that to heart as I walked off the porch.
Everything in LA was close together. No matter where you lived, everything was within walking distance from you. New York was the same way, partially. The streets were just so much more chaotic that walking from place to place would give you grey hair. The sun embraced my body as I walked down the sidewalk passed a few little shops. One had advertised in the window "Fresh Flowers - Only $5.99!" I stopped and backtracked. $5.99? I reached in my pocket and pulled out a 10. I can afford that. I walked inside and was recognized immediately by the female cashier behind the counter. "Hey, Mr. Fallon. How can I help you today?" I was surprised to hear my name come out of a total stranger's mouth. "Hi, uhh.. I don't know much about flowers. What's your favorite kind?" She pointed to a dozen pink and purple tulips in the front window. I grabbed them quickly, looking to my wrist for the time. I had 5 minutes to walk 4 blocks. "Thanks for your help." "No problem. She's a lucky girl." I turned a looked to the cashier and smile. "I'm a lucky guy."
