Jace was the office's most recent coworker. He had been there for 6 weeks and had barely talked to anyone. He was tall, lanky, and awkward. Definitely autistic.
I don't mean that rudely or in a way to put him down. Just matter of factly in that he did not always understand body language, tone, or gestures. His eye contact was limited, he was very particular in the way he did things, and he was socially anxious.
I was attracted to him. I don't know what it was. He was attractive for sure. Over 6 foot tall, with blonde shaggy hair, round glasses framed his bright green eyes, he had a cute crooked smile, a baby smooth face, long arms, and piano player hands. I couldn't help but wonder what his fingers could do.
My desk was nearest his, so I suppose I had the most contact with him, which was few and far between.
I did know that he was a year older than me, 29. I knew he wasn't married or had any children. I wondered if he had a partner but I was going to assume not. I also knew we liked the same music. One day I noticed his music player open on his desktop and they were all some of my favorite songs so I attempted to engage him in a conversation about music and concerts. It was a short conversation but I did learn we had seen some of the same bands or wanted to.
I knew we shared the same ideologies. I was surprised he was somewhat vocal about certain laws that were trying to be passed in our state.
To anyone else, my daily conversation attempts and mild flirting would have been noticed, but it was clear he had no idea. This was going to make my attempt to get with him harder.
I think given his barriers I needed to just swallow my humility and ask him out. I plan to ask him to a bar, hoping that a little liquor would loosen him up.
Today was the day. I was extremely anxious even though I felt confident in my outfit of choice. I had curled my brown long hair, used mascara and liner to bring attention to my large sky-blue eyes, and wore my favorite lingerie set that helped my b cup breasts stand out. I wore a snug black long-sleeve with a v-neck line paired with a red and black plaid skirt that stopped just above my knee. It hugged my curves just right accentuating my round ass. I even busted out a pair of red pumps that were collecting dust in my closet. They added almost an inch of height to my 5 foot 3 inches.
I saw Jace get up and go toward the hallway to head to the restroom. My mouth became dry so I took a long drink of my water and reapplied my lipgloss. I got up to follow him out.
The office was quiet, it was almost 4 pm on a Friday so there wasn't anyone in the hall. Luckily, I timed our encounter just right as he was coming out of the restroom. He was looking at his top, pulling down his sweater over his slacks, I caught him off guard.
I cleared my throat, "Hey, Jace."
I smiled at him when he looked up, "Oh hey, Ash."
It took him 3 weeks to not use my full name, Ashlyn. His face was unchanged but I noticed his eyes scanned my body so maybe that was helpful. Here goes nothing.
"So, um, I was wondering if you'd like to grab a drink at Millie's after work? I know it's last minute so it's cool if not." I gave a small awkward chuckle.
He looked at me for a long second, I could tell he was trying to make sense of the interaction. Butterflies hit my stomach.
"Yeah, that sounds good," he finally said, his voice seeming to raise an octave.
I think my face showed my surprise, "Awesome, great, it'll be fun, I can meet you there or we can go together..." I trailed off.
He continued to stare at me, he was now fidgeting with his fingers, "We can meet there, I only live a block away from Millies if you want to meet me at my place?"
Now I know my surprise was apparent. Maybe this wouldn't be as hard as I thought. "Sounds like a plan." I smiled at him again.
We both awkwardly went back to our desks. I couldn't stop glancing at him but I know he didn't look up once over the next hour and a half. I was squirming in my seat by the time the clock hit 5.
I closed out my applications and stood up. Jace was already pulling on his coat. I knew I was going to be cold in this skirt. The temperature had dropped to 45 degrees since the afternoon. I put on my black dress coat and wondered who would talk first.
Jace came over to me.
"You can follow me," he stated and turned around to walk out the door.
We walked to our cars quietly. He made sure I was behind him before turning out of the parking lot. I followed him for a while, I saw we passed Millies. Almost one block away, down a side street, was a small apartment complex. It was nice. Gated, a pool, gym, and dog park.
I parked in visitor parking, taking note of where he parked, I walked over to his car. He was standing outside of his black Dodge Charger with his hands in his pockets.
I smiled up at him, hoping he would say something first, and he did.
"Honestly, do you just want to come in? I have a full bar," he jabbed his thumb behind him pointing to his apartment.
The man kept surprising me. Now I knew this would be easy. "Sure, that sounds good," I giggled. It sounded awkward but maybe he thought it was cute.
I followed him to his door on the bottom floor. I didn't know what I was expecting. At work, he kept a tidy desk with no decorations.
Stepping in behind him seemed like it was someone else's apartment. It was a large open area separated well between the living and kitchen areas. The walls were lined with artwork and band posters, a lot with signatures. To the left was a bay window with the shades drawn. He had a brown leather sectional lining one wall and a large oak entertainment center lining the opposite. Bringing the space together was a large charcoal-colored rug with an oak coffee table in the middle.
On the right side of the open space was the dining area opening up into a decent-sized kitchen. Instead of a dining table, he had an oak bar. 3 barstools sat at the front and the shelves lining the back underside were full of liquor bottles.
He took his shoes off and sat them by the door. I did the same, happy to be taking them off. He hung his coat up on the coat hook on the wall. I stood there awkwardly but he reach his hand out, gesturing for my coat. I slid it off and he hung it beside his.
"Make yourself at home," he said shyly, running his hand through his hair.
God. He was so cute.
"What would you like to drink?" he asked walking toward the kitchen.
I thought for a second, forgetting everything I had ever known about alcohol, "Surprise me?" I smiled and shrugged.
