Post by Gem on Jun 26, 2014 17:16:35 GMT -5
A wreck.
Sitting nervously on the stool at the diner, I attempted to collect my thoughts without disturbing those around me. It had to be an interesting sight; a young girl like myself in a perpetual cycle of looking down after glancing toward the door. Maybe this was a bad idea after all. The horror stories were pretty ubiquitous by this time, but I still hadn't found the courage to approach anyone in public yet. Then again, what gave me the idea that I'd be able to talk to anyone this way, just because I didn't initiate the conversation?
This was a terrible idea. Sliding off the stool, I left the waitress a five dollar bill, even though I hadn't ordered anything. Father wouldn't tolerate me not taking care of waitstaff. Heading toward the door, someone locked eyes with me, and I knew it was the person who offered to meet me here. He stood a few inches taller than me, dark hair, big brown eyes, and a half-smile that was honestly pretty adorable. Still, I couldn't escape the feeling that I shouldn't be talking to him.
"Aren't you Gem?" he politely inquired while still holding the door open for me.
Should I nod, or just move on? He seemed comforting, but I still wasn't sure. Father taught me to always treat everyone like a threat until they proved otherwise. It wasn't in my nature to lie either, however, and I quickly shook my head in the affirmative.
"Well then, where are you going?" He smiled again. Damn, I still couldn't answer, but I felt more comfortable being around him. "We can go outside if you like."
Gently nodding again, I let him lead the way. He leaned up against the brick building, casually swatting away a spider web, and giving the driver going by a nod of recognition. I wondered if he knew a lot of people around here. Leaning against the building myself on my left shoulder, just to make sure I could run if necessary, I kept my eyes locked on his.
"These South Carolina summers, I tell ya," he mused. "Enough humidity to slice into." That at least confirmed that he'd been around here, or at least traveled here a lot. "The name's Grant."
Shaking his hand that he offered, he pulled it toward him and gently kissed the top of my knuckles. I wasn't expecting that, but I wasn't about to show the horror I was feeling inside. Not so much because of the gesture, but because I wasn't sure how to take it. After all, I'd been training for several years. Father certainly never taught me anything about dating or simple human interaction. I was beginning to resent that a bit.
"Relax Gem, I'm not going to bite," he laughed. "Besides, your father would kill me if I did."
Shooting straight to my feet, I nearly fell off the curb. He grabbed my wrist just before a passing car would've likely made me a hood ornament. As his arm curled around the back of my shoulder blades, I felt safe around another man besides my father for the first time in my life.
"Are you all right?" He asked, genuinely concerned. I meekly nodded once again, still not able to muster the words I wanted to ask. How did he know my father? How did he know I was his daughter? How did he know we were connected? Was he following me? Was this a trick? "You are allowed to talk, you know." He swung me back to my standing position, and let me go easily. A tiny part of me wished he hadn't.
"I... I... I..." squeaking, my own voice seemed caught.
"Yes, Gem? It's okay, I promise."
"I... How do you know my father?" Finally, got the damned words out. Could I just go back in time and learn how to interact with people before I was expected to on a daily basis?
"It's all right, Gem," he explained. "I worked with him a few years ago. You don't think I'd forget your face after seeing pictures of you all the time, do you? He never stopped talking about you."
I flushed a little, being glad that Father's affection still held true, even back then. "I never thought he'd let any men see me. You know how protective he is."
"You're a woman now, you've gotta strike out on your own sometime. Wanna walk with me?"
Nodding again, I followed his lead. Along the sidewalk, we were hopefully safe from me being awkward and falling out in front of another car, though if he were there to lift me up, I supposed I could live with that.
"...And that's when I went back to my regular job, for a while anyway. I may go back someday." Damn, I realized he'd been talking and I was too busy imaging another falling scenario that I'd completely spaced. What the hell was wrong with me?
"Do you like your regular job?" I managed to ask.
"Of course, always have. Pay's not the greatest, but I work with my two best friends, and you can't put a price on that."
Sweet, sentimental, and quick reflexes, he was a nice guy. I was coming to an understanding of why Father would let this guy close enough to see pictures of me when I was younger. With Dad being such a recluse, I was under the impression he'd had little-to-no social interaction at all.
"So you've got yourself a pretty big deal coming, don't you?" he inquisitively asked.
Oh right, wrestling... That job I did. "Yeah," I responded. "This guy, Corey Steel... Calls himself a bear and apparently has a ton of money to throw around."
"I saw that, about the accident and everything. That's a real tragedy," he commented.
"I didn't know any of them, but I feel for their families. It's really cool what he did, giving them that kind of money," I continued. "I haven't been there long enough to make anything substantial. At least I got off that damn losing streak."
"So I noticed," he replied. Was it weird that he was aware of who I was? Or was it sweet? Or was it creepy? Dammit I wasn't sure. "The Bear's a tough guy, but you've already proven you got what it takes to compete with him."
"I never take any opponents lightly. He wants to crush me, or so he rambled. I'm not about to be put on anyone's ring, if you know what I mean."
"Of course I do. With a beautiful name like that, you've got to be used to dealing with the puns of the morons," he laughed. "I'm sure your Father has trained you well, anyway."
"He has, and I seem to finally be getting the hang of it. Made a bit of a name for myself, even though I lost that damned battle royal. But the first mistake I made at the time has been rectified, so I think I'm finally on the right track. I'm just sick of being looked at like this little girl who is only some inconvenience to their existence. Stacy, Majors, Tyrone, everyone in that battle royal that looked down at me, and now Cory Steel again. They have no idea what I can do, what I'm capable of, and how I've been trained. They're gonna find out though, that's a promise."
Grant returned to that half-smile that was becoming harder to resist. "You'll do just fine, Gem. I have no worries about you."
"So I have to ask," I responded, transitioning, "Why did you respond to my ad in the first place?"
"Ad?" He suddenly became confused.
Damn, it wasn't him! Shit, where was I? I frantically looked around, and realized we'd been walking long enough that I no longer recognized by my surroundings. "I gotta go!" I screamed, not thinking.
"Gem, whoa, hold on," he grabbed my shoulders before I could move. "It's all right. I didn't respond to any ad, and truthfully, it's probably better that I ran into you than some creeper on the Internet."
"So, you aren't Neal Henderson?"
"No," he laughed again, "but I wouldn't worry about finding out who that is. Least he could do was take you to a better diner."
"Hey," I giggled, "you were going there too."
"Lucky me. I was just stopping by to say hi to a friend, and it seems I've met a new one."
So it seems indeed.
Sitting nervously on the stool at the diner, I attempted to collect my thoughts without disturbing those around me. It had to be an interesting sight; a young girl like myself in a perpetual cycle of looking down after glancing toward the door. Maybe this was a bad idea after all. The horror stories were pretty ubiquitous by this time, but I still hadn't found the courage to approach anyone in public yet. Then again, what gave me the idea that I'd be able to talk to anyone this way, just because I didn't initiate the conversation?
This was a terrible idea. Sliding off the stool, I left the waitress a five dollar bill, even though I hadn't ordered anything. Father wouldn't tolerate me not taking care of waitstaff. Heading toward the door, someone locked eyes with me, and I knew it was the person who offered to meet me here. He stood a few inches taller than me, dark hair, big brown eyes, and a half-smile that was honestly pretty adorable. Still, I couldn't escape the feeling that I shouldn't be talking to him.
"Aren't you Gem?" he politely inquired while still holding the door open for me.
Should I nod, or just move on? He seemed comforting, but I still wasn't sure. Father taught me to always treat everyone like a threat until they proved otherwise. It wasn't in my nature to lie either, however, and I quickly shook my head in the affirmative.
"Well then, where are you going?" He smiled again. Damn, I still couldn't answer, but I felt more comfortable being around him. "We can go outside if you like."
Gently nodding again, I let him lead the way. He leaned up against the brick building, casually swatting away a spider web, and giving the driver going by a nod of recognition. I wondered if he knew a lot of people around here. Leaning against the building myself on my left shoulder, just to make sure I could run if necessary, I kept my eyes locked on his.
"These South Carolina summers, I tell ya," he mused. "Enough humidity to slice into." That at least confirmed that he'd been around here, or at least traveled here a lot. "The name's Grant."
Shaking his hand that he offered, he pulled it toward him and gently kissed the top of my knuckles. I wasn't expecting that, but I wasn't about to show the horror I was feeling inside. Not so much because of the gesture, but because I wasn't sure how to take it. After all, I'd been training for several years. Father certainly never taught me anything about dating or simple human interaction. I was beginning to resent that a bit.
"Relax Gem, I'm not going to bite," he laughed. "Besides, your father would kill me if I did."
Shooting straight to my feet, I nearly fell off the curb. He grabbed my wrist just before a passing car would've likely made me a hood ornament. As his arm curled around the back of my shoulder blades, I felt safe around another man besides my father for the first time in my life.
"Are you all right?" He asked, genuinely concerned. I meekly nodded once again, still not able to muster the words I wanted to ask. How did he know my father? How did he know I was his daughter? How did he know we were connected? Was he following me? Was this a trick? "You are allowed to talk, you know." He swung me back to my standing position, and let me go easily. A tiny part of me wished he hadn't.
"I... I... I..." squeaking, my own voice seemed caught.
"Yes, Gem? It's okay, I promise."
"I... How do you know my father?" Finally, got the damned words out. Could I just go back in time and learn how to interact with people before I was expected to on a daily basis?
"It's all right, Gem," he explained. "I worked with him a few years ago. You don't think I'd forget your face after seeing pictures of you all the time, do you? He never stopped talking about you."
I flushed a little, being glad that Father's affection still held true, even back then. "I never thought he'd let any men see me. You know how protective he is."
"You're a woman now, you've gotta strike out on your own sometime. Wanna walk with me?"
Nodding again, I followed his lead. Along the sidewalk, we were hopefully safe from me being awkward and falling out in front of another car, though if he were there to lift me up, I supposed I could live with that.
"...And that's when I went back to my regular job, for a while anyway. I may go back someday." Damn, I realized he'd been talking and I was too busy imaging another falling scenario that I'd completely spaced. What the hell was wrong with me?
"Do you like your regular job?" I managed to ask.
"Of course, always have. Pay's not the greatest, but I work with my two best friends, and you can't put a price on that."
Sweet, sentimental, and quick reflexes, he was a nice guy. I was coming to an understanding of why Father would let this guy close enough to see pictures of me when I was younger. With Dad being such a recluse, I was under the impression he'd had little-to-no social interaction at all.
"So you've got yourself a pretty big deal coming, don't you?" he inquisitively asked.
Oh right, wrestling... That job I did. "Yeah," I responded. "This guy, Corey Steel... Calls himself a bear and apparently has a ton of money to throw around."
"I saw that, about the accident and everything. That's a real tragedy," he commented.
"I didn't know any of them, but I feel for their families. It's really cool what he did, giving them that kind of money," I continued. "I haven't been there long enough to make anything substantial. At least I got off that damn losing streak."
"So I noticed," he replied. Was it weird that he was aware of who I was? Or was it sweet? Or was it creepy? Dammit I wasn't sure. "The Bear's a tough guy, but you've already proven you got what it takes to compete with him."
"I never take any opponents lightly. He wants to crush me, or so he rambled. I'm not about to be put on anyone's ring, if you know what I mean."
"Of course I do. With a beautiful name like that, you've got to be used to dealing with the puns of the morons," he laughed. "I'm sure your Father has trained you well, anyway."
"He has, and I seem to finally be getting the hang of it. Made a bit of a name for myself, even though I lost that damned battle royal. But the first mistake I made at the time has been rectified, so I think I'm finally on the right track. I'm just sick of being looked at like this little girl who is only some inconvenience to their existence. Stacy, Majors, Tyrone, everyone in that battle royal that looked down at me, and now Cory Steel again. They have no idea what I can do, what I'm capable of, and how I've been trained. They're gonna find out though, that's a promise."
Grant returned to that half-smile that was becoming harder to resist. "You'll do just fine, Gem. I have no worries about you."
"So I have to ask," I responded, transitioning, "Why did you respond to my ad in the first place?"
"Ad?" He suddenly became confused.
Damn, it wasn't him! Shit, where was I? I frantically looked around, and realized we'd been walking long enough that I no longer recognized by my surroundings. "I gotta go!" I screamed, not thinking.
"Gem, whoa, hold on," he grabbed my shoulders before I could move. "It's all right. I didn't respond to any ad, and truthfully, it's probably better that I ran into you than some creeper on the Internet."
"So, you aren't Neal Henderson?"
"No," he laughed again, "but I wouldn't worry about finding out who that is. Least he could do was take you to a better diner."
"Hey," I giggled, "you were going there too."
"Lucky me. I was just stopping by to say hi to a friend, and it seems I've met a new one."
So it seems indeed.
