Love At First Sight
This is the story of my first date with the lovely women who is now my wife, I commissioned Skatelian to write the events of the night as they happened. The story is property of Skatelian and Myself.
Dedicated to my Duckie. I love you.
The young grey wolf looked around impatiently, trying to spot a face in the crowded cinema. He was waiting just outside the door, as the mild wind of early December ruffled the fur on his head slightly. He glanced at his watch and noticed with despair that the second handle seemed to be moving through water. He didn't know exactly how she looked, since people on dating sites seldom look like their pictures, but something told him that he would know. So many things rushed through his mind as he waited: how would she look like? Would she like him? Would she notice that one of his shirt's buttons was missing? Would she like his choice for dinner?
All that went by his mind as the clock ticked away at the seconds. He turned around to see inside and as he looked back he saw her. It would be unfair to say that his heart skipped a beat, it probably skipped more than just one. This girl's beauty struck him so hard he realized who she was a second or two later than expected, right when she greeted him.
"Hi! I'm Mel" she said. His ears perked up in the spot. Some people had voices that vaguely resembled them. Not this girl, her voice was exactly the same as her whole self: simply gorgeous.
"Hi! My name is Jesse... Nice to finally meet you" he said, looking at her. He was unsure as to wether he should shake her hand, or give her a kiss in the cheek or just stare at her awkwardly, before she solved his dilemma by giving him a nice soft hug. It took him a fraction of a second to wrap his arms around her back in return, and even through her clothes he could feel her impeccable plumage, soft white feathers that covered her body. She smelled nice, a strange mix of vanilla and fresh mountain air, a scent that he couldn't recognize but he immediately discovered he loved it. All this happened in the few seconds it took for them to pull apart. He took a second to look into her eyes, those two brown gemstones that flashed in the afternoon glow.
Across the road, the small silhouette of "Lusso Italian" shone through the street lights. It was a nice cozy place, and Jesse had chosen it for dinner due to its proximity to the cinema. The walk there went off in a flash, as if time was making up for its earlier lack of speed. Jesse had met her through RSVP, a dating site. Mel had agreed to go on a date with him after rejecting him at first, and then asking again a month later if he still wanted to go out. They sat down in the table and a feline server came to them.
"Would you like something to drink?" He asked with a polite smile.
"I'll have a beer please" Jesse said, before turning to his date, and immediately regretting the fact that he had ordered first. It was generally a social norm to let women choose first when on a restaurant, and the young wolf made a mental note not to forget that for the main course meals.
"Excellent. And you miss?" The server asked asked, turning to her as well.
"Actually I can't have alcohol, so I'll have a lemonade" she said with a smile. Jesse blushed embarrassed and looked at her. He knew for a fact that she was two years older than him, since she had been reluctant to date him at first due to her last boyfriend being way too immature.
"I'm on a provisional driving license" she said, as if snatching his unspoken question right out of his head. That made perfect sense, since provisional licenses didn't allow for any alcohol at all while driving.
"S-sorry" he said, slightly embarrassed. He was unsure as if he had offended her someway, and tried to find something to say when she once more broke the ice by giving a soft, lovely giggle. Without thinking he too let out a chuckle, and they laughed it off merrily while they got their drinks.
"So, ready to order?" The server asked, producing a pen and a small notepad.
"Ladies first" he said with a smile.
"Oh, thanks... I'll take the gnocchi please" She said with that downright Angelical voice of hers.
"One gnocchi... and for the mister?" He asked.
"I'll go with the Mexican pizza" he said, folding his menu and handing it to the server.
"Absolutely. I'll be right back with those. Another lemonade?" He asked, pointing to Mel's half empty glass.
"Yes please, thanks" she replied and with that they were left alone once more.
"So, 2012... If it looks at all like the posters it's gonna be massive" he said with a smile. That sparked a lengthy and quite nice conversation about special effects, casts and deviated into random topics, which kept them entertained until the server came with the food. The gnocchi smelled as delicious as one could imagine, and the Mexican pizza was simply breathtaking.
"Bon apetit" He said and without further ado, both furs dove into their food. Mel took a small bit of gnocchi and savored it for a couple seconds, before letting out a soft "mmm" of delight and grabbing a bit more.
"This is delicious... I can't believe I have never been here before" she commented. Jesse smiled wide, he had thought a lot about the food choice for the night, and he was more than glad that she had enjoyed it.
"It's one of my favorite places, I... I just love it, the ambience, the food, the music..." He commented. "And the price is quite decent as well" he said, trying hard not to sound cheap. It wasn't anything out of ordinary on the price, but it was leaning on the expensive side.
"I bet... By the way, we're splitting the bill, right?" She said. That was a good sign, girls who simply assumed that their date had to pay weren't very good in Jesse's eyes. However, he would have none of it.
"Tell you what, to make things simpler ill pay for food and you pay for the movie tickets" he suggested with a smile, one ear half down giving him a cute wolfie look.
"That sounds okay, deal" she said, returning to her gnocchi.
"Great..." He said, his left hand slightly tapping the back pocket of his pants unconsciously. Inside were two movie tickets he had bought before she had arrived. "Perfect indeed" he added, and returned to his pizza.
"Sneaky! That was totally sneaky!" She called him out, laughing. They had finished their meal, talking pleasantly while food disappeared from the table. Jessie's pizza had not been as good as usual, probably because he was focused so much on his date. Anywhere he looked he found beauty, and she seemed to know the right answer to everything. He had then paid the check as agreed, and just as they went out he had fished the tickets from his pocket. Her reaction had been quite odd, she tried hard to pretend she was angry but he saw a slight glint in her eyes, something telling him that she wasn't angry at all.
"No it wasn't..." He said laughing, but knowing that she was right. That had been sneaky. They walked into the theater, a pretty nice place full of children, teens trying to sneak into rated movies, and other happy couples.
"Here, lemme go get some popcorn" he said with a smile. Before she could protest or even think about paying for it he had bought it and was carrying a tub for them both.
"Thanks!" She said with one of those moonbeam smiles of hers, and they walked into the dark screening room. They found some nice seats, not too close nor too far away, and sat down. They fished popcorn idly while the movie started, watching several trailers and commercials. The movie finally began, and the whole place went dark. Jesse had seen the movie before, so he wasn't paying much attention to it. He was waiting patiently, and with every bright light from the screen he would glimpse at the girl that was siting next to him. He couldn't stop thinking about her, about the words she said, about the depth of those beautiful eyes she had... Her face was a perfect mirror of her personality. It was gorgeous, balanced, naturally beautiful and with a certain aura of mystery around it. The young wolf had to go to a great extent of willpower not to begin wagging his tail about, since that would make a tremendous lot of noise.
As the movie went on and on with its horrible cliche-filled script, he found that every touch of her coat on his was electrifying. Their hands would often rub if they reached for popcorn at the same time, which usually ended up with one of them blushing and carefully retreating the hand so that the other could have some snacking material. However, much like all sweet things in life, it came to an end. Popcorn, that is. With the tub now empty save for the tiny little grains of un-popped kernels, they placed it under the seat, and lowered the armrest between both seats. They both placed their hands there, their pinkies barely rubbing against each other. He wanted to move, to grab her hand, but not while there was a risk of her pulling her hand to her lap again. Luckily, she broke the ice. Her hand moved a bit, and found its way under his own, and the young lupine wasted no time in curling his fingers into hers. It was bliss, a soft touch like that of an angel, the wildest of hearts threatening to beat right out of his chest... They just stayed like that, both content on sharing this small piece of intimacy and closeness. He would simply watch her, the random patterns of lighting making her face look beautiful with a soft mysterious aura, that soft and perfect arrangement of subtle gestures that was giving him a constant fluttering in the top of his belly and made him feel as if his heart had suddenly migrated up to his throat, creating a lump that stopped him from breathing properly.
He knew she was aware of his gaze. She didn't look at him directly, focusing on the screen, but she seemed to blush a bit whenever he looked at her. He could almost feel her heartbeat through her hand due to their stillness. Then it happened. She turned to look at him, their eyes locked in a wordless exchange of feelings, and the young wolf took his chances and leaned in. She leaned in a bit, and their lips locked softly, barely brushing each other's for a good five seconds, both of them releasing some of the romantic tension through the intimate contact. They split up soon, looked at each other in the eye for just another second, and then turned towards the screen. What followed were several minutes of silent looking at the screen, hands still interlocked. Jesse couldn't control his heart, and his stomach was all but somersaulting. There was a slight tingle on his lips that he couldn't quite describe, but it was the most amazing thing ever. But then he began to feel a bit afraid, like all males on a first date. Was it a one time thing? Would she do it ever again? Was she right now regretting it? Was he annoying the people behind them with the constant wagging of his long, bushy tail?
All these thoughts made it impossible for him to really focus on the movie, and it was over before he could even realize it. He turned to look at her just as the movie began to flash the credits, and noticed that she was looking at him as well. He wanted to say something, but an invisible force inside him pushed his head forward. She too leaned in again, and Jesse's whole body relaxed a bit as it appeared that she indeed wanted to kiss him again. He pressed against her lips again, softly at first but then a bit firmer than the first time. It was sublime, simply perfect, and from that moment on he knew he didn't want to kiss any other pair of lips again. This one lasted a tiny bit more, both of them apparently more comfortable with it, but it too ended. They left the theater holding hands, talking idly about the movie.
Upon exiting they walked to a nice looking fountain where they sat at a small bench, and began to watch the almost hypnotizing display of water jets, illuminated in various colors that seemed to dance in the air with no regards for earthly physics. He held her hand warmly and didn't let go for the reminder of the conversation, as if afraid that this beautiful being would vanish into thin air if he let her go. They talked about random things, that sort of pleasant conversation where topics just come and go, wafting like the waves on a beach. And none really cared, the reality was that the real pleasure of the conversation was not found in topics, but in the act of talking, of communicating, of simply being.
It began to get chilly, evening winds blowing into the large open space. He felt her give a tiny shiver, the most faint of all movements, and without a thought he leaned his body against hers. She seemed to soothe down, their shared cuddle infusing warmth into her feathered body, and let out an almost imperceptible sigh.
"I wonder when the new cafe will open..." He whispered softly.
"Hmm?" She made out softly, telling him to elaborate.
"The new Cafe? Theobroma?" He replied.
"Ooh that... I dunno. It seems pretty close to ready" she commented, and he nodded softly. Then they went silent again. In any other situation that silence would've been easily classified as awkward, but not here, not for this pair. They just sat, sometimes they moved a bit, looked at the fountain, then talked some more... At one point they even found themselves sitting on a turtle statue. They would've kept going for the whole of eternity, but the sun had taken its plunge into the horizon, and the air was getting cold.
"Call it a day?" She asked in that angelical voice of hers.
"Yeah, it's getting late. Come on, I'll walk you to your car" he said and got up, and with a quick motion offered his hand for her to get up. She did so with the grace of a feline, like all her movements, and refused to let go of his hand from there on. Of course, he wasn't going to complain. They walked into the parking lot and she led him towards a red corolla, where she turned around to face him. This time he didn't hesitate, he knew he wasn't letting her go without a goodnight kiss. He held his lips against hers basking in the amazing feel of their third and final kiss for the night. As she finally pulled away he felt himself out of breath and a bit dizzy, and yet he leaned in and gave her a nice strong wolf hug, squeezing their bodies in a warm embrace, and reluctantly letting her go.
"Thanks for a great night... I had lots of fun" he said with a sheepish smile and a barely noticeable blush on his cheeks.
"I did too, thanks for everything..." She said, blushing slightly as well. They might've been adults but at that time they turned into teenagers before prom once more. "Would you... Like to do this again sometime?" He asked nervously. He knew he wasn't asking for just another date, this was the most important question of the night.
"You know what, I would definitely like that" she said, and although neither noticed, both their bodies slumped a tiny bit with relief.
"Great! Uh... Have a safe trip home!" He said politely as she got into her car.
"Thanks Jesse, you be safe as well. Bye!" She said, and without further ado she closed the door, which echoed in the parking lot. Jesse walked away a bit, slowly, and stopped. He wanted to wait until she left, and she should've done that already. The seconds again passed slowly, with him halfway to his car and she still didn't move. Unknown to him, she was talking to her mother through her cell, telling her all about the night with enthusiasm. Just as the male was about to walk up to her car and ask what was wrong, the unmistakeable purr of the engine appeared, and the car seamlessly drove out and away, taking within the girl that had stolen the poor wolf's heart. He walked back to his car, as he debated what to do with her next. By the time he had reached his old Mazda he had decided on the small mini golf place in Ermington and was already thinking of her. The drive home would be quick and uneventful, and he would grin like a silly pup the whole way. He'd get home, text her to make sure she'd made it home safe, and then go to sleep or at least he'd try to get some sleep, but would end up rolling awake in bed; staring at the ceiling and thinking about Mel... There was something about that girl, something he couldn't describe but now knew he couldn't live without.