Destiny's Three Stars

11

Michael was definitely trying to impress me. Not with his money but in other ways. He took me on a walk in the park and to dinner and met my friends. You don't do that if you're just friends.

So we sat in a pizza restaurant with a medium pizza between us. He told me to get whatever I wanted. That money wasn't an issue. I couldn't believe he was going to so much trouble just for me. I wasn't used to it.

He told me all about his job and the surgeries he did to save people's lives. He talked about it with such a passion. He wasn't someone that just went to work for the paycheck. He was a neurosurgeon at a local hospital, putting in serious hours, too. Meeting me was taking him away from his work and while I hated to get in the middle of it all, I was grateful I was with him. I needed something new and different and something... exciting. The girls were nice and all but they were predictable.

"What do you want to do after you leave the car dealership?" He asked, taking a sip of his soda.

"What makes you think I'm leaving my job? I like it there."

"No one wakes up one day and says 'I think I'm going to work as a secretary for the rest of their lives.'"

"Right. People don't wake up and say things like that." I said, laughing.

"You know what I mean."

I shrugged. "I like my job and it pays well. I haven't thought about leaving it."

"I'm glad you like what you do."

"I like going into work and not worrying about accidentally killing anyone."

He smiled. "I understand. It's hard but it happens."

"How do you deal with it?"

"It helps knowing how life and death works, you know? If someone ends up in Hell then maybe it was a good thing. If not then it was just their time."

Just their time. That was hard to grasp. When my parents died, it was hard to accept that it was their time. I hated when people said that to me or when they told me they were 'angels now.' Sure, I believed in God but not everyone was good enough to be an angel.

"I'm glad I ran into you tonight." He said, changing the subject.

I smiled. "Yeah. This is a lot better than sitting by myself."

"You don't have to sit alone." He said, finishing his drink then sliding it to the edge of the table so the waiter would give him a refill. "I'm either at work or my apartment and neither are much fun if I'm alone."

"I don't want to 'overstay my welcome.'"

"Believe me, if I can deal with my dad, there's not much that could bother me."

The waiter came and grabbed the cup, stopping our conversation momentarily. Nothing freaked people out more than talking about the devil or the fates as if they were actual... beings and not just fictitious creatures.

"I'm sorry if Nona's been a little... aggressive lately. She's..."

He laughed. "It's okay. She means well."

"Don't you have patients in the morning?"

"You want me to go? Already?"

"I just don't want to read about people who died because you overslept."

"Don't worry about me."

"Oh, I'm not. I'm worrying about your patients." I said with a smile.

"You're funny, Destiny." He took a sip of his drink and I noticed the bill was on his side of the table. So far so that I couldn't even reach it. I wanted to put some money toward the meal and not make him pay for too much of it.

"How much is the bill?" I asked, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear.

He waved me off. "Don't worry about it. You drove us here."

"You don't have to. I have money-"

"I insist." I held his gaze and he was serious. I knew I wouldn't be able to sway him so I just had to accept that he would pay.

"Thank you."

He nodded and put two twenty dollar bills on the table. The waitress stopped by and he told her to keep the change. Judging by her expression, it was a large tip.

"Are you ready?" He asked me, standing up from the table.

I nodded and followed him from the restaurant.

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I pulled up outside of an extremely nice looking apartment building with a connecting car garage. There was even a bellman waiting outside to hold the door open for people.

"Wow." I said softly, trying to pry my gaze from the building and to Michael with minimal success.

He laughed. "Do you want to come inside?"

The clock read 9:23 and I knew Nona would be waiting up for me when I got home. If I was home too late, she'd really be pissed.

"I can't tonight. I don't want the girls to worry about me."

"You're welcome any time. If you need some place to go for a while, feel free to call."

"Thanks. I really appreciate that."

He opened his door and put one leg out. "We should do this again. It was nice."

"It was."

"Bye, Destiny."

"Bye." He got out of the car and walked into the apartment building and I really didn't want him to go.