#wrong date

Lucille had a nice voice. Other than her job and where she originally came from, she had not outed herself very much. Well, maybe that was more a face-to-face thing. Well, then. Still, he was glad that he didn´t tell anybody about this. Not to think how teasing his family got about him meeting a girl on a blind date. And he could not even believe that he was really doing this… but Sven got at him too many times and Kristoff got fed up with fighting against his friend´s worry of him staying single. Though he did not mind being single… And was Kristoff supposed to follow Sven´s advice…? Well, here he was and guessed that he couldn´t retreat now, could he? He could stil write a message he was still at work.... No, that was a lie and lying was truly a bad base for a relationship…

He wondered what she looked like. Why was he getting nervous? There was no reason to be nervous, it was simply meeting somebody, doing some conversation and seeing how they got along. Right? Right!

And the restaurant chef knew for certain… That knowing grin and too much of understanding a nod when he showed the customer to his seat. That was the worst, sitting down at that table for two, and the place opposite was vacant… Certainly, he was too early…

Kristoff ordered a water to at least have something to hold is hands quiet for a moment.

And suddenly it didn’t matter if there was a restaurant full of people or if he was the only living soul on earth when there was this breathless girl standing before him and reaching out her hand to him, her voice so cheerful and her face all flushed.

“Hi! I´m so sorry for being late. The bus didn´t come so I thought I walk, but then I realised I´d be late so I started running, and then I noticed I started sweating so I rather slowed down to a faster walk as not to get all messy and that´s the cause I am late… please forgive me.”

She stared with widened eyes, such lovely blue eyes and the freckles around her nose and covering her heated cheeks danced like bouncing points upon her still heavy breath.

“Hi.” Kristoff wanted to rise to greet her but she had rushed already to the chair across the table and put off her coat and hung it up over the backrest. She quickly checked on her hair, which was set into a lovely style of twisted braids pinned into a twirled bun at the upper back of her head. The auburn mass of wild locks must have gotten roused by the wind and her rush, and her fingers shakily adjusted some pins while she sat down and then kneaded her hands in her lap.

“Did you wait long? It´s awkward to wait alone and I hate the thought of making you wait on our first…”

“Date?”

“Yeah…” the lovely girl nodded slightly blushing.

The waitress came around and asked if they´d like to order anything else. And the girl across from Kristoff ordered a cherry coke with a glinting smile. Apparently she was a very cheerful person.

“So…” Kristoff cleared his throat and thought hard of starting some sort of conversation, but he noticed that this seemed no problem, when his table partner continued with a gallant question for him.

“Did you come directly from work?”

“Yes, and you?”

“Uhm… no, I had the chance to go home first and get myself ready a bit more appropriate. You know…” she chuckled and rand a slender hand along the base of her hairstyle.

“Well, I hope you don´t mind I didn´t come in suit and tie.”

Her eyes grew wide, and she shook her head feverishly. “Oh no! That´s not what I meant. I just needed some time to gather my nerves… I mean, not that I was anxious coming here, or not liking it… no… I was just… You know…”

“A bit nervous?” Kristoff could not restrain a fair smile upon her chatter which he assumed of the same reason as the one for him being quieter because he simply lacked the words.

She nodded, bit her lips, and then shrugged.

“This is somewhat the first time that I try this you know…”

“Me, too. So… I guess we´re in a fair pool position?”

The bell-like laugh that escaped her throat was something the young man had not heard before and it made him laugh himself. Two grownups, both nervous and then relieved to find out the other was in the same boat…

“Oh, you know I´m so glad you´re saying this because I really didn´t know how to show up tonight. Should it be sportive casual, or sexy naughty? No, that would be so pushy and Elsa, you know, my sister, scolded me for going for something so hot on a first date, so I decided for casual elegant. Do you think that´s appropriate? Oh no, I should not talk about dressing up. Elsa told me a hundred times not to chatter nonsense so much. But I am chattering, am I? I am so sorry…”

She frowned upon herself and kneaded her fingers in her lap and bit her lips. Kristoff wondered if this was even harder for her than it was for him and he chuckled relieved to realise that he was the one to give her some comfort, as if he was an expert on such things and that made him laugh. Upon which his opposite looked up with sparkling eyes.

“No. You don´t bother me with this. And to be fair, I think you´re dressed nicely. The sunflower look suits you. Underlines your shining eyes.”

“Oh… thank you.” She blushed slightly, but seemingly relieved and flustered.

Then crooked her head and seemed to study his features, and she straightened and gestured wildly with her hands, like trying to find some logic explanation to her detection. Was something wrong? What if she didn´t like his looks.

“I don´t know… please don´t mind me saying so, but I have imagined you looking somewhat different, you know?” she blinked at him with a cute smile. “I thought your hair is shorter and more into brown…”

“Sorry if I don´t meet your expectation.”

“Oh, no, no, no! That´s not what I am saying. To be honest, I am… uhm… rather surprised on the positive side. Oh, not that I would have mind if you looked like what thought first, but I appreciate the present prospect.” She smiled genuinely, and Kristoff felt his own face heating up now. Nobody had ever spoken about his features in such a manner.

“Glad you´re not disappointed. I am… uhm… positively surprised myself to mention your own words.”

“Oh… thank you.” And her hands wandered up to check on her hair again, as if she didn´t quite believe this to be true.

“But what made you think I looked different than what you thought?” Kristoff was still curious about her studying efforts of before. Was it a female thing or was he simply unknowing of such matters?

“Well, your photo you sent once, remember? The one where you leaned against your car.”

Kristoff stared at the girl.

“I don´t have a car, and I never sent a photo. You didn´t want us to exchange any pictures, so the surprise would be more tense.”

Now the girl stared.

“You are… you are not… Patrick?”

“My name is Kristoff. And I assume, you are not… Lucy?”

“No… I´m Anna.”

They both glared at each other rather flabbergasted and then, Anna turned all red, covered her face with both hands, and then she jumped from her chair, almost nocking it over. She grabbed her coat and turned around to Kristoff.

“I am so sorry! I will sit… over there… and wait for…”

“Patrick?”

“Yes… and you… will have your date with….”

“Lucy.”

“Yes. Well, have a nice evening and good luck with your…”

“Date.”

“Yes!”

“Thank you, Anna. You, too!”

And then Anna made her way to a vacant table on the other side of the room.

Okay, if Kristoff had thought a blind date was awkward, this was the weirdest thing now… Why had he felt a slight pang at his side when she called him Patrick? They had hardly had what you could even call a conversation. But for some reason Kristoff had felt for a tiny beat of a second that this evening could indeed become very nice.

He waited, reached for his glass and wondered who that Patrick might be… And where was Lucy? This was so stupid now.

His mobile buzzed and he reached into his coat pocket, glancing at the screen.

Lucy had messaged, that she was sorry, but having given this all another thought she doubted this would work. And to be fair she rather told him than letting him sit all night. Wishing him all the best.

And that was the reason why Kristoff assumed it might be easier to stay single. All those fuss around feelings and doubts… It was all so complicated. Well then, he could just as well go home and make a clear statement to Sven that this was all no use for him.

He was about to turn and pay for his water, when he noticed Anna´s cherry coke still standing next to his now empty glass. Kristoff glanced unobtrusively across the room to see if Anna had got company by her date by now and his chest clenched briefly but sharply. She still sat alone, nervously balancing her own mobile in her hands. Was she anxious to ask this Patrick where he was about? After all, she had already been late. According to the plan, Lucy was long overdue to an hour now. And so, this man must be delayed just the same… Poor girl… She looked rather miserable…

Anna sat quite a distance apart from him, but Kristoff noticed out to the corner of his eyes that she had lost her jovial glinting aura. That was a shame! Nobody deserved to get treated that way. Maybe that man had an accident or excused himself like Lucy had? What if he didn´t message at all? That would be the worst and Kristoff felt some anger about such cowardness. But rather than dancing around suspicion, he could just was well be going over to her and ask if she was alright.

He ordered another glass of water, tossed his jacket over over his arm, grabbed both glasses and strolled over to Anna´s table. Sven would be so proud of him… Kristoff realised with a secret smile.

“Hey… “

Anna raised her eyes and blinked at him in surprise. It was not that she had not noticed Kristoff sitting alone all the while, but she had not expected him to come over to her.

“Hey…” Anna glanced behind him towards the table he had just left. “What about…”

“Lucy?”

“Yes.”

“She texted me, informing me politely about breaking up that…”

“Date?”

“Yes.”

“Oh…” Anna lowered her gaze. “I´m sorry.”

Then, she noticed the drinks in his hand.

“Oh, my coke! Thank you. Would you like to sit down?”

She motioned to the empty chair across the table and gratefully took the coke from his hand and the so slight and soft touch of her fingers briefly brushing his was like a warm soothing greeting gesture, secretly to them both.

“Thank you.” Kristoff sat down and adjusted his jacket over the backrest. Turning back to her he watched her for a moment.

“So…. You mind if I ask?”

“You want to know what happened to….”

“Patrick?”

“Yes…

“I called, asking if he was alright. You know, who knows if he got hit by a car and laid in the hospital?”

“And…?” Kristoff tried desperately to hide his hopes that the guy not necessarily was dead, but at least had vanished for some reason. Though he scolded himself immediately upon his selfishness because Anna looked obviously devestated.

“He said he was sorry, but something came in between and then…” she reached for her glass and emptied it with a loud gulp, the unladylike gesture rousing Kristoff´s adoration for that feisty girl even the more.

“There was a noise in the background, and I could clearly make out another girl calling him to come back to bed…”

Now Kristoff almost dropped his own glass.

“Okay… that is… uhm…”

“What I call a bloody bastard!”

Kristoff nodded in response. So totally a bastard. But what now…? And upon spotting the waitress at their neighbour table, an idea hit his grateful mind.

“So… now that we seem to sit here like two remnants… can I at least invite you to a glass of wine? To wash down the sour taste of being dumped?”

Anna´s eyes lit up and she formed the cutest smile the man had ever seen.

“Oh yes! Thank you. That´s the perfect idea! And uhm... to be honest, I feel like getting hungry after all. What about you?” and her heart hammered up her chest upon that bolt question. Elsa had told her not to throw herself at the man first thing… but after all, they had been sitting at the table before and it was over an hour now that they had met, and Kristoff seemed not the sort of guy to stand a girl up while at the same time be literally fucking around.

And did he just blush and smile back at her?

Oh…. She was doomed.

The waitress halted at their table and Kristoff did not take his glance of his lovely table companion when he ordered while he feverishly tried to contain his excitement in a controlled voice.