The Dreamer

Chapter 7

Sarah wore a tight red dress and her hair loose. Her bright red high heels felt tight; she hadn't used them in a while. For quite some time now, she had only worn black or gray to work; red felt festive and not professional. So she hadn't had a chance to use much of her wardrobe. Nights out with the girls was not something she did or enjoyed, although she had done when she was younger.

As the Taxi approached the intersection between Barrow St. and Bleecker St. she started feeling self conscious. Is the dress too short? What will he think of me? Is he there already? Should I greet him like usual? Are we here only as friends? What if I make a fool of myself because he thought it was just a friends' hangout?

The driver's stare in the mirror brought her out of her mind. She looked at him and then outside the window. "Oh, we are here already" she smiled nervously.

He nodded, completely unaware of the mental battle that was being fought in his back seat.

She thanked the driver and made her way to the front of the restaurant.

"Hi," the hostess said enthusiastically "Do you have a reservation?"

"Yes, Sarah replied. "Sarah Lewis. My colleague's name is Damon Wright." Colleague? Date? Friend?

"Follow me please," the hostess said as she stepped from behind her podium. "I love your dress," she said as she took a closer look at Sarah's attire.

"Thank you," Sarah replied and took a closer look at the girl. She was probably barely twenty, so full of life. It reminded her of her younger self before everything changed. No, don't go there. Don't ruin this night.

She followed the hostess until she stopped and pointed Sarah to a table just few steps ahead. The table was right by a large window, the moonlight filtered through, and illuminated Damon's blue eyes. He stood up smiling, his smile was sparkling. He extended his arms open. Are we hugging? She thought as she took a step closer. But then he put his arms down and moved to the side of the table to pull her chair open.

"Thank you, how gallant," she said while sitting down.

The place was gorgeous. There was a chandelier right on top of the table, filling the night with a unique magic. She reached to touch the flowers in the center of the table.

"Oh those are for you," he said.

"Really?" she smiled and grabbed the flowers.

"No," he shook his head smiling, "they are part of the table." He grew serious to see her serious face and furrowed brow. "I am sorry, that was childish."

She smiled. It wasn't the first time he had pranked her. They had built a relationship at work where they had the freedom to joke around with each other. The challenging part had been opening up about things that really mattered. That trust wasn't there yet.

"You look really well in red," he said after some seconds of silence.

"Thank you," she smiled. He was using his hair nicely combed back. She loved the few gray hairs among the black. He was clean shaven, and the white polo he wore was tight making his physique obvious. At work, he was always on a suit or at least a shirt. She knew he worked out, but had never seen the results first hand. Something within her ignited when noticing the veins in his hairy arms. She took a sip of water and looked away.

"How was traffic on your way here?" Damon said before taking another sip of water.

"Traffic?" She furrowed her brow and swallowed hard. This is not a date to him. It's just a casual hangout. She looked down at her clothes. "What was I thinking? This is suggestive. I am coming off as easy. RED? This is so obvious. What have I done?