Blind date (n.s)

2

"You are joking, right?", I said, straight-faced. "You had better be damn fucking joking!"

Shawn and Louis exchanged looks over the canteen table.

"Why would we be joking?", Louis said and raised an eyebrow. He winked at Shawn. "Do I look like I'm joking?"

"Absolutely not!" Shawn replied, even though he was laughing.

"See, we're really not joking- Shawn stop laughing like a disabled horse, it's fucking annoying!- we really have set you up on a blind date, in two days, that means on Friday in the KIWI at seven." Louis explained.

"Hi guys!", Julia greeted as she set on a chair next to me. Eleanor just nodded as a replacement for a hello and set down too.

"Judging from his face, I would say you have already told him about our big master plan!" Julia said and I nodded. But in my opinion this was not a master plan.

"So are you excited or what?", Eleanor squealed and bounced up and down in her chair as she spoke.

Eleanor is the kind of person who gets very excited over nothing much at all. I secretly put it down to her for not having any kids. If she had kids she'd be too knackered to get excited about anything.

I was really pissed off.

"You have not set me up on a blind date", I said firmly, looking at Louis. I was trying to show him how angry I was. But in all the years I've known him I've never seen Louis afraid, least of all of me.

He tipped his chin back as far as it would go and blew smoke into the air above the table because he knew that too much smoke in the air would make me need my blue inhaler. He seemed to have forgotten that stress makes me need it too. Louis can be such a dork, really. Sometimes I could just slap him in the face for being a dumbass!

"It'll be great!" Louis said, as he leaned forward over the table and stubbed the butt of his  fag out in a tinfoil ashtray. "When have I ever let you down?"

I had to admit he was right. Louis had been with and there for me from the first day we'd met in school until now.  He was always there even when I quit school and became a ruthless fuckboy. He hadn't turned away from me when I had told him that I was pregnant. He stayed with me. He had been my best mate through thick and thin. Mostly thick as it turned out. Which is why he should know not to set me up on a blind date.  He should know how much I'll hate it.

Julia looked at the clock on the canteen wall.
"Come on, break's nearly up and I've got to get back. Sulky Barbara wants me to re-stock feminine hygiene before dinner. Lucky me. A whole morning of stacking tampons"

She and the others started to get up but I didn't. I just sat there and stared at them. I couldn't actually believe that my best friends, the ones I trusted the most, really did set me up on a blind date. I don't like decisions that include me when they've been made behind my back.

Julia sat down again. "Look", she said, starting to latch onto the idea that I was not happy at all.  "It'll be a laugh! You turn up looking hot as fuck-"

"That's not even possible, I am not hot as fuck. I'm not even pretty, I'm just more like the opposite of both!"

"Ni, let me finish. And yes you are pretty. You've got the most beautiful eyes a human could have and you're smart and caring and loving. You are special in your own unique way and whoever doesn't find you amazing is truly sick. Don't you ever put yourself down. You've got more power in your heart than others have in their whole body. You're strong. You are one of the kindest and best humans I've ever met! Don't you even try to fight me in that! But back to my main speech... He'll buy you some drinks and if you don't like him you can just leave. Nobody will hold you back. But please at least try and take this as an opportunity."