The first time I laid eyes on Amber Tate, I knew I wanted her. The short-haired, curvy, somewhat masculine white chick with the short dark hair, large breasts, wide hips and big round butt simply took my breath away. Clad in a short-sleeved white T-shirt, blue jeans and a baseball cap, the twenty-something tomboy looked hotter than most of the women I'd seen in town. Of course, I had only been in the beautiful State of Alaska for a month and the people up here were an odd lot but I still know a pretty lady when I see one.
Tasty-looking dame, I thought, and licked my lips in anticipation. Then I saw the rainbow flag sticker on her backpack, and sighed in disappointment. Of course, I thought, shaking my head. The gal just had to be a lesbian. And a rainbow-flag sporting one too. Probably militant as hell. Great. Now, don't think I'm a homophobe. Hell, I am a bisexual man. I find both women and men attractive, I just happen to prefer the ladies. That's all.
I don't know why, when I am drawn to a female, I often feel attracted to obviously unavailable women. The last crush I had, a hijab-wearing Muslim gal named Fatima Al-Zahran, was both married and out of my league. Why do I do this to myself? The woman was forty years old, and I met her in my university library. We became friends, and flirted a lot, but nothing ever came of it. That's it for me and the ladies. When it comes to guys, I like them tall and masculine. Unfortunately, annoying effeminate bozos tend to be attracted to me. I avoid them like the plague. I just can't have what I want. Story of my life.
Oh, snap. I guess I forget myself sometimes. You must be wondering who this is. My name is Stephen, a big and tall young Black man living in the City of Juneau, Alaska. I moved there after graduating from Carleton University in the City of Ottawa, Ontario. After earning my bachelor's degree in Criminology, I felt like getting out of Canada for a while and somehow, I ended up in Alaska. In a town where people of color are rare, I get stared at a lot. That's okay, though. A lifetime in Canada's Capital region, which is whiter than snow ( with the exception of the Greater Toronto area of course ) pretty much prepared me for it.
Anyhow, back to the story at hand. I've always had a thing for tomboys, masculine women, butch chicks, whatever they want to be called. Like a lot of brothers, I find white women quite appealing. I guess it's true what they say about opposites attracting. I approached the lady casually as she walked into my corner of the supermarket, and asked her about fresh fruits. Smiling at me, the butch gal asked me if I was the vegan type. I couldn't keep a straight face. Not even to save my life, I replied, laughing.
Grinning, the lady nodded and told me she felt the same way. I smiled and nodded. The gal was even better-looking up close. Dark brown eyes, short spiky black hair, and a round, animated face. Friendly eyes, too, and not the stern gaze I expected. Oh, and she smelled sweet, too. Her perfume was strong, and very feminine. I don't know what I expected a butch woman to smell like. I guess I expected her to wear Old Spice instead of whatever girly, fruity and flowery scent she was sporting. Nice accent, the butch lady said, snapping me out of my reverie. Where are you from? she asked, licking her lips.
My name is Stephen and I'm from Canada, I said proudly, extending my hand for her to shake. The butch lady smiled faintly, and shook my hand. Her grip was firm, but not unusually so. Nice to meet you Stephen I'm Amber Tate, she said. I smiled and we bantered a bit. Amber was not what I expected. The lady had a thousand questions about Canada. We just stopped in the middle of Aurora Foods, one of Alaska's biggest grocery store chains, and chatted each other up. Hot damn.
Well, I was happy to talk to Amber about anything, especially my homeland. In an odd way, Alaska reminds me of Canada, especially the Prairies. Lots of white folks, lots of Natives, lots of people with guns. That's how Ontario used to be before immigrants from Africa, the Middle East and South Asia changed its demographics and the Liberal party took over its politics. Of course, Americans tend to know very little about Canada so I found it refreshing that Amber Tate was genuinely curious.
Always wanted to visit the great white north, Amber said, grinning. Not for the first time I noticed that she had a lovely smile. I smiled and winked. Sometimes I push my luck and overstep my boundaries but, dammit, I'm new in town and don't know anybody besides my landlord Mr. Moffatt and Lester, the old dude down the hall from me in my apartment building. I'd love to tell you more over a cup of coffee, I told Amber. The lady took a deep breath, and I braced myself for rejection. And it never came. Sounds good to me, Amber said, grinning, then she told me her digits. I nodded casually and punched her number into my Blackberry. Cool, I said, and wished her a good day.