She looked at herself in the mirror one last time. Helena applied just a touch more of lipstick before she was finally satisfied with her appearance. She was wearing a long black skirt, deep purple sweater, black stockings and black boots. Her naturally wavy dark brown hair was pulled up on the sides, but she left some curly tendrils on their own. Her friends had called her earlier and asked her to go out with them for dinner and maybe to a club after. She hadn't had any other plans for the evening, so she decided to go.
She drove into the restaurant parking lot and found most of the spaces filled. "Dammit," she thought to herself. After driving for a few minutes, she came upon an open space only to have someone else drive up to it at the very same moment. Helena put her directional on a moment before the other car and slipped into the space before the other had a chance.
"Ha...try to take my spot, I don't think so Mr. SUV." She said out loud to the reflection in her rearview mirror.
The other driver sat there and when Helena got out of her car, she noticed the window of the SUV roll down and the driver stuck his head out.
"Hey! You took the spot I was waiting for." He was pissed off.
"Oh, I'm sorry...I didn't see anyone's name on it, how silly of me." She was sarcastic in her remark and kept walking. The other driver sped off in search of another parking spot.
She got into the restaurant, checked her coat and made her way to the table her friends were at. "Well, better late than never. We were about to send a search party out for you Helena." Her friend Anne said jokingly.
"I had to fight for a parking space here. Next time, let's carpool, okay?"
Jacob, Anne's boyfriend said, "No kidding? We didn't have any trouble."
"Well, I beat some asshole to the last spot and then he yelled at me for it." She shook her head at the memory.
Matthew and Lisa walked over to the table with drinks from the bar. "Hey, I told you guys she'd make it. They all thought you weren't going to show up." Lisa gave Helena a hug.
"You look scrumptious Laina." Matthew had always been a huge flirt. He and Lisa invited everyone to dinner to announce their engagement. Everyone toasted to their friends and they went on to have a wonderful dinner.
Helena excused herself and walked to the ladies room. She was turning the corner when all of the sudden, someone else turned from the other side and bumped right into her. "Oh, I'm so sorry." Helena looked up to see the SUV guy staring at her.
"You?"
"You!" She stared right back into his chocolate brown eyes and thought they were the most gorgeous she had ever seen. "Excuse me." She walked around him and to the ladies room. While she was washing her hands, she looked in the mirror and noticed herself blushing. "What the hell is that about?" she thought to herself. "That guy is rude, and obviously doesn't look out for anyone but himself. Stop acting like a schoolgirl!"
He was standing there when she walked out of the ladies room, leaning against the wall. Helena felt butterflies in the pit of her stomach. She went to walk past him and back to her friends when he reached out and touched her arm. Helena looked up at him with a surprised look. "Can I help you with something?"
The SUV guy smiled. "Yeah, you could tell me your name."
"Why would I want to do that?" She gave him her most snobbish attitude.
"Because I'll need to know what to moan when we have sex."
Her eyes opened wide. "Excuse me?"
He laughed. "It's a joke. I'm Chris." He reached out to shake her hand and waited for her to do the same, only to be left hanging. "And you are...?"
"Not interested." She turned and walked back to her friends.
"Laina, how do you feel about going to The Grog?" Lisa asked her when she sat back down at the table. Suddenly, alcohol seemed to be a good idea to her.
"Sounds good to me." The group headed out and Helena felt someone stare at her when they were waiting for their coats. She looked over and saw Chris at the bar with some friends. He was looking right at her, unabashedly. Anne and Lisa looked over to see what had Helena's attention.
"Oh my God Laina, he's staring right at you." Lisa said.
"I know, don't look back at him. That's the guy from the parking lot."
Lisa hadn't heard her story of the parking lot rumble, so Anne told her about it. "Well, Laina he may be a rude son of a bitch, but damn, he's handsome." Lisa said, giggling with Anne.
Matthew and Jacob walked over with their coats and the five of them left. Helena looked over her shoulder one last time to see Chris smiling at her and raising his drink to her. She felt herself blush from head to toe when his group of friends all looked over at her. The quicker she got out of there, the better.
Helena got a ride to The Grog (a local pub she and her friends went to often) with Anne and Jacob. She could not get Chris out of her mind and it was really starting to piss her off. Anne turned around to ask her, "So, what's his name?"
Helena was shaken back into reality. "Whose name?"
"The SUV guy." Anne smiled at her, knowing that was who Helena's thoughts were on.
"What makes you think I know his name?"
"Because I saw him follow you from the bathroom. There must have been some sort of confrontation, or he wouldn't have been staring at you and you sure as hell wouldn't be blushing like you are right now."
"Chris." Helena looked back out the window, regretting that Anne knew her so well.
"Laina, he's cute. And he seems to be attracted to you."
Jacob added his two cents worth. "Anyone who isn't blind would be attracted to her. Even when she has that sour expression like the one she has right now." He laughed.