1
Janet
How long had I been waiting? Looking at the time on my wristwatch, I could see that it had been ten minutes already. While I knew he couldn’t exactly let me know ahead of time that he was going to be late, it would have been nice to be aware of the fact.
Letting out a sigh that had been trapped in my chest, I turned my attention to the drink in front of me. As many times as I had been to this bar, I always found myself getting the same thing— a Shirley Temple. Whenever it came to these blind dates that Candice enjoyed hooking me up with, I never wanted to have any deciding factor change my decision on the person who could be in front of me. I definitely didn’t want to get drunk and make a mistake that I would regret.
Finding myself checking my wristwatch again, I frowned. This guy was already making a bad impression on himself. Deciding to distract myself with the drink in front of me, I nibbled on the cherries that still remained floating on top.
Candice was my best friend. When she had learned that I had been single for far too long, she insisted on helping me out. Being the kind of person who struggled to tell people no, I found myself agreeing before I knew it. If only I had known how extreme she could get. After my own attempts at meeting someone new, she made my effort look like child’s play. Weekend after weekend, she constantly had someone ready to introduce me to. I wasn’t even sure how she knew all of these people. But I would always receive a text telling me what time to arrive and as always, this bar would be the meet up. Apparently, bars were cool for people my age. That, or she just really wanted me to get laid.
After all this time, I was beginning to think that love was just not made for someone like me. Why else was I struggling this much?
“Are you Janet?” a voice suddenly asked behind me.
Being as lost in my thoughts as I had been, I was spooked. Jumping from the stool I was sitting on, I turned towards the voice to see who knew my name.
It was a man, one who wore a smile and owned a pair of dimples. He was cute, attractive enough to bring a layer of heat to my cheeks.
My tongue felt thick in my mouth, making it hard to find my words. “Mark?” I asked curiously as I tried to maintain the strength in my voice. How in the hell how did Candice manage to send such a good-looking guy my way? Never mind him being late, this was a god-sent opportunity for me.
His smile stretched as he took the stool next to me. Calling over a nearby bartender, he ordered himself a beer before turning his attention back to me. He had soft blue eyes that took in my appearance. My stomach tightened as I prayed that my curves wouldn’t matter to him as he looked me over. While I was pretty self-conscious about my appearance, he didn’t seem to mind what he saw.
Just like all of the other blind dates I had been on, we started off with an introduction type of conversation. It was the first step in deciding if I even wanted to give this guy a chance.
So far, I learned that he was a pet lover. Owning a cat myself, I was always up for listening to people talk about their fur babies. While he hadn’t really asked me much on my end, I could see that he enjoyed talking about himself. In all honesty, I didn’t really mind. Everything that came out of his mouth went along with a happy grin, he was growing more excited as he continued filling me in about facts about himself.
So far, the date was going off without a hitch. The more I listened to him, the more my heart felt full. It made me believe that maybe there was a chance at me finding my second half. If it was this guy, I wouldn’t complain. He could have been exactly who I was looking for all of this time.
After finding myself halfway finished with my drink, he managed to finish off two bottles himself. Because he had drunk so much in such little time, he had to excuse himself to go to the bathroom. Thinking nothing of it, I gave him a smile as I watched him disappear in the crowd of people. Once he was gone, I turned my attention back to my drink.
Playing with my straw, I found myself fighting off the smile that was glued to my face. I shouldn’t be this happy, not this soon. Just because one date was going perfect, nothing was set in stone. Here I was acting like some girl with a dumb crush.
Reminding myself that this could change at any moment didn’t help calm my heart as it pounded away in my chest. Keeping to myself, I hoped to calm down by the time he returned. Sipping lightly at my drink, I waited for his return. As each minute passed, the blossoming feeling that had exploded in my chest was slowly transforming into a bitter one.
Glancing behind me, my eyes searched the crowd as I held only a slither of hope that he had just gotten lost. As much as I wanted to believe that to be the truth, I was smarter than that. The reality was clear, Mark wasn’t coming back. Where had I gone wrong? What did I do? Biting my lip, I felt my brows scrunch together in frustration as I turned my attention back to my now empty glass.
Just when I thought there was a chance of happiness for me, reality had to come crashing in. I was never going to meet the man I was meant to be with.
I was done. There was no reason to continue putting myself through this painful reality anymore. Candice would just have to accept that I was meant to be alone.
“Here’s your drink,” a new voice appeared in front of me, pulling me away from the thoughts that were eating at me.
Lifting my eyes from my glass, I noticed a differently shaped cup in front of me with thick fingers still wrapped around it. Continuing to look up, I realized it was a bartender, and he was talking to me. It was a man who had made my drink countless times from all of the different amounts of dates I forced myself to attend.
“Oh,” I started before looking back down at the reddish color in the glass. “I think there’s a mistake, I didn’t order this…” I wasn’t even sure what it was.
“I know,” he started as he slid the glass more towards my way. “It’s on the house,” he assured me before taking my empty glass away.
I forced a small smile on my lips as I tried not to believe that this guy was doing this because he felt pity for me. Did he constantly see women get abandoned by their dates? Or was I the only pathetic one?
“As much as I appreciate it, I don’t drink.” I tried to turn him away, not even sadness bringing me to want the alcoholic beverage.
“I know,” he repeated, not seeming like he would be moving away anytime soon. “It’s non-alcoholic, you’ll like it,” he promised, his confidence rubbing off on me. “Aren’t you tired of drinking the same thing every time? Don’t you want to try something new?”
While I knew he was talking about the drinks, his questions felt more than that to me. It had me thinking about all of these blind dates I had been on. Despite them being completely different men, they were all the same. Nothing changed no matter who I met through Candice. “I am tired,” I confessed to him as I eyed the drink. Eyeing the thicker liquid, I bit my lip. “What is it?”
“It’s a Cinderella,” he explained as he crossed his arms, leaning against the bar as if waiting for me to try his mixture. I noticed his eyes lingering on me, making me feel heavier. He was giving me the kind of attention that made me forget about Mark. All I could do was fight the urge not to lean in and meet him halfway. Of course, I was just letting my imagination run there.
I couldn’t help but laugh at the irony, taking the glass, I grabbed the straw and stirred the drink. I’d love to be a beautiful princess who found her prince charming, however, my destiny didn’t look like I would end up having a happy ending like that fairy tale.