Cortana groaned in frustration as she read the message from John.
How much more obvious can I make things for him, she thought angrily.
Cortana had hoped telling John that she would be having a few drinks with Locke would arouse enough jealously in him to get him to leave Infinity. Apparently though, that had been an incorrect assumption.
I have never met a more oblivious, hard headed man in my life, Cortana thought furiously as she reread his message again.
In response to her telling him that Locke was buying her a few drinks at a bar, John had simply responded with...
Okay. Have fun.
The next message he had sent her made things a thousand times worse.
Since you're okay without me, I'm going to spend an extra day on Infinity. I'll meet you groundside tomorrow evening.
"That's most of our weekend together you jerk!" Cortana nearly yelled into the datapad. "Another man is hitting on me, and all you can think about is more training?"
Her voice was a low growl, and for a brief moment she considered going back into the club and taking Locke up on his offer.
Reason regained control after Cortana took a few moments to calm down.
That's alright, Cortana said to herself. It's just one more day, and in the mean time I'll get home and finger myself into oblivion.
Cortana messaged back, hitting the screen perhaps a little harder than she meant to.
Just make sure you don't miss our reservations for tomorrow.
Cortana closed the messages, mumbling a few choice words about John underneath her breath as she pulled up the app for the cab company.
"Come on," Cortana mumbled to herself as she was waiting for an automated message to be sent to the cab that had dropped her off.
But fate decided to take another turn. A turn that would change Cortana's life forever.
The app sent back a message.
We're sorry, but the automated taxi you have reserved as encountered some mechanical difficulties and is currently unavailable. Would you like us to find you another automated taxi near you?
"Yes, yes fine," Cortana grumbled, jamming her finger at the screen. It was an agonizing two minutes before the app finally messaged her back.
We're sorry, but there are currently no available automated taxis near you. The current estimated wait time is one hour fifteen minutes. We are apologize for any possible inconvenience this might have caused.
"Oh that's just perfect," Cortana groaned. She felt like throwing the datapad on the ground for all the good it was doing her. She was mentally calculating whether it would take longer to walk back to the apartment or just wait, when a midnight black luxury car pulled up in front of her. The paint on the car was shiny enough for Cortana to see her reflection in it. When the window rolled down, Locke was smiling at her from inside.
"Having a bit of trouble there little lady?" he asked. Cortana was so annoyed with his smile that she felt like hitting him.
Cortana crossed her arms over her chest and huffed. "My taxi broke down, I have to either walk or wait over an hour for another one, and my Spartan boyfriend has decided to be the most thick headed man in the galaxy. On top of that, I'm currently being stalked by his smooth talking rival who's determined to get into my panties. Does that sound like enough trouble for you?"
Locke nodded his head slowly. "So I take it you need a ride?"
Cortana rolled her eyes. "What part about being stalked by a horny Spartan IV did you not get?"
"Well its either hitch a ride with me, wait an hour, or take a hike." He shrugged. "But I suppose that's your choice."
Cortana tapped her foot several times, and made a wayward glance up the street, again making a mental calculation of just how far of a walk it could be.
"Well?" Locke asked.
"Fine," Cortana said in a huff. Her heels clicked sharply on the pavement as she walked around Locke's car. The passenger door unlocked as she approached, and Cortana slid into the vehicle, her soft blue dress sliding pleasantly along the black leather seats. She stared straight at the road ahead, not daring to make eye contact.
"So..." Locke started. "Where to?"
"Home, I guess," Cortana said unconvincingly. "Not that it makes much of a difference now."
Locke seemed surprised. "Would have thought John would be waiting for you there."
"You would think," Cortana spat. "But apparently, he cares more about training than he does satisfying me."
"What happened?" Locke asked, seeming genuinely concerned.
Then Cortana told him. She told him everything. It simply slipped out of her in one long angry rant. How John had decided to stay on Infinity. How her hormones had been running rampant for days and she was anxiously desperate for sex. How she had cooked up a plan to make John jealous and simultaneously humiliate Locke. How John had completely ruined those plans by not getting jealous and deciding to spend another day on Infinity. Most of all, Cortana talked about how Locke had completely invaded her mind.
"Then there's you," Cortana spat at him angrily.
Locke cocked an eyebrow, taken aback by the sudden and seemingly inexplicable accusation. "What about me?"
"It's like I'm going rampant again," Cortana said, a hand gently pulling on her short dark hair. "I just can't stop thinking about you okay? Every time I close my eyes. Every time I try to get off, the only person that comes to my head has been you. That was the whole point in all of this. To get you out of my head. Give John a chance to show me just how much better he is than you, but instead he decides to blow it."
Cortana seethed. Perhaps it was the alcohol. Perhaps it was the hormones, or perhaps Locke's words at the bar had affected her more than she was willing to admit.