Jewell was having dinner at a small, intimate restaurant near his town. Not in his town, but close enough for her to think about him. Shaking her head to clear thoughts of him, she tried to focus on her date. Her date, Lowell, was very attentive and excited. Lowell should probably be upgraded to boyfriend instead of just date. They had been seeing each other for over six months and he was definitely into her. She often felt pangs of guilt thinking of just how much more he felt for her than she felt for him. It was just that obvious. She wondered if it were obvious to all their friends and family too. So once, she asked one of her besties.
**********
"Angie, I have a question. Do you think Lowell is too into me?" she asked.
Angie was in mid-sip of her tea and spit it across the room, laughing. "Girl his nose is soooo up your ass, if you have any news, he will be the very first to know!"
"ANGIE!!!" she howled back.
"Girl let's face it," Angie started, "this relationship is just rebound. You can't make it more than it is. I'm sorry. Lowell is a nice guy, but he has to know he's rebound man!"
"That's just it...I don't think he does." Jewell said remorsefully.
**********
Back to the present, she made herself nod and try to listen to whatever Lowell was saying. She had zoned out a little too long. Lowell was definitely excited about something and he kept promising her a surprise later on in the evening.
Just as the waiter brought their food, she paused to say her grace and froze with her hands in prayer position. He was here! In the restaurant. She knew it as she knew her name. She had often felt him, but when she looked he was never there. This time he was there. Just as she was about to convince herself that it was just her imagination, she felt someone at her back, over her left shoulder and looked at Lowell as he looked up to their visitors.
"Chikara." He almost whispered.
She closed her eyes. It had been over a year since she had seen or heard him. Chikara was his pet name for her. She wanted to sink under the table as Lowell's eyes bore a thousand questions to her.
In an attempt to regain her cool, she cleared her throat and spoke his nickname clearly. "Sli." It took all in her not to say "Master."
That is what he had been to her. Her Master. Now he'd "caught" her over a year later, with her ultra vanilla boyfriend. She had asked for her release, saying she couldn't cope with the intensity of the relationship. He assured her that she would be back. However, she swore she never would. Swore she could deal with vanilla and find a way to be happy with it.
"Wow, funny seeing you here. We used to love this place. Introduce me to your friend." Sli said with a hint of laugh in his voice.
HI, I'm Lowell, her boyfriend." Lowell stood up and put extra bass in his voice.
Even at Lowell's full height, Sli managed to tower over him. A fact that wasn't lost on Sli by the smirk on his face when the vanilla boyfriend stood.
"Hello Lowell. My name is Sli, I am Chikara's former...err... boyfriend." Sli held out his right hand while looking at Jewell. "This is my sub Tracie."
Sli moved slightly so Tracie could be seen. She nodded but remained silent. Jewell tried not to let her jealousy show. She was, however, pleased to hear him say sub and not slave.
"Your sub?" Lowell questioned.
"Yes. You're not familiar with the term? I'm not surprised. Ask Chikara to explain it to you. Nice meeting you my man, but our table is ready. Chikara, good to see you again. Later." and Sli walked away with Tracie following closely behind.
As soon as Lowell sat back down the questions began. "Why did he keep calling you that name? How long did you two date? How close were you? When did you last see him? What is a sub?"
Jewell sighed, suddenly not hungry anymore, she began, "Lowell we ended our relationship over a year ago. This is the first time we've seen each other since then. And Chikara was just a pet name he had for me."
Jewell looked down at her plate, hoping those answers would pacify Lowell. Lowell looked down at his plate in an effort not to ask anymore questions. He could tell she was annoyed and didn't want to ruin their evening and his plans.
Jewell managed to make small talk throughout the rest of dinner. Very aware Sli was somewhere in the restaurant, she knew he was somewhere he could watch her. She felt his eyes on her. Lowell had ordered a chocolate dessert for the two of them to share and he began to get really antsy. When the dessert arrived she noticed a twinkle near the cherry and realized it was an engagement ring sitting on top of their death by chocolate.
"OH Damn!" was the first thought that crossed Jewell's mind.
Just when she looked up at Lowell's shit-eating grin she heard a clearing of the throat. Saved by the bell, she turned her head hoping it was their waiter. No such luck. It was Sli.
"I hate to interrupt my man. But I wonder if I could talk to your lady for a second? I promise not to hold her long."
Jewell heard the sarcasm in Sli's voice. She knew he'd seen the ring too. "Lowell, I will be right back. This will be a very short conversation." Jewell was up and walking away before Lowell could object.
Sli gently guided her by her elbow to two seats near the end of the bar area. "Your timing couldn't have been any worse Sli." Jewell said sadly.
"My timing seemed to be perfect. I bought you some time before breaking that man's heart." He chuckled.
