Chapter 5 - Declan
The show is about to start.
There was no need for me to be so presumptuous about her appearance tonight but… a dress and a ticket to one of the most exclusive shows to get into should be enough to get her interested in seeing me another time. She should be here.
As people settle in their seats, I hear shuffling behind me. People trying to see if they can sneak their way into the private boxes, or if they can bribe the usher. But I gave that usher very specific instructions to only let one person through. Besides, he shouldn’t allow anyone up here that doesn’t have a ticket for it, that’s just his job, so I should hope that my instructions were nothing too outside of the ordinary for him.
I paid too much for these seats.
I should have bought tickets to whatever hit movie is out right now. Who likes opera? I sure as hell don’t. I figured she’d be more enticed to see me again if I treated her out to a night filled with culture and exclusivity but the fact that she’s not here yet is making me think I needlessly threw money down the drain.
“Right this way, ma’am”, the usher whispers.
The usher parts the red curtains behind me and allows Callie entry to the private box. She’s wearing the red dress I gifted her. And she looks as spectacular as I thought she would. I quickly wipe away the beads of sweat that were starting to take shape on my forehead and welcome her in a volume much higher than intended. The usher asks me to keep my voice down, to which I quietly nod, looking fairly embarrassed.
Callie doesn’t say anything. She just nods and sits down next to me.
The audience below us clap as the curtains are drawn to reveal three members of the cast of this opera.
“Thank you for coming”, I whisper.
I feel the hair on the back of my neck stand to a point as I wait for Callie’s first word of the night. It stays that way as I watch her lips remain closed and her head nod in response. I take a deep, quiet breath and accept that she may have just accepted the gift as an excuse to see an opera for what I assume would be the first time. Not much time passes until I start panicking a little.
I’m speechless. The right thing for me to do is apologize but I can’t bring myself to do it. There isn’t anything for me to apologize for, really, since all I did was offend her by stating my true intentions, albeit at a poorly timed moment.
My foot starts tapping the floor. I shoot a quick glance and see that the tapping is starting to annoy her. I make myself stop but instead of my foot, my fingers start bouncing on the arm rests.
“Are you going to be like this throughout the entire show”, she whispers without making eye contact with me. “Will you relax?”
Relax? I’m relieved that she’s finally broken her silence but I’m far from relaxed. She seems more irate than she should be. Or more so than I think she should be.
“What, you’re into opera”, I ask trying to seem more relaxed.
“I don’t know yet. This is my first time at an opera, but I’d like to make an opinion if the rest of the show isn’t scored by you tapping your feet or your fingers.”
I know this would be her first opera. Still, I have to calm down. Not just appear calm. We’ll have a chance to talk during the intermission. We have a bit over an hour before then and I can use that time to find the words she needs to hear. Acting like an over confident playboy isn’t going to work this time around. But there may be the possibility that she’ll want to do some talking first. She’s clearly got a lot on her mind and some minor animosity towards me which may need to come out before I can say anything.
I’ll have to listen to every single word she says before I can say anything in retort.
The opera drags on long enough for me to regret ever learning about them, and for the intermission to finally commence. I turn to Callie but her seat is empty. She walked out during the applause.
I run out to the hallway and find her, not walking away from the private box, but leaning against the wall right next to it.
“So… who should go first”, she asks.
“Uh, ladies first”, I offer. My nerves are getting the best of me, and I’m coming off as more of a little bitch than I intend.
“Smart choice. ‘Cause I have quite a few things to say and ask. Firstly, what is this? The dress, the tickets?”
I stutter, “it’s… I’m apologizing.”
Callie chuckles and shakes her head. “No, no, no, Declan. That’s what most people would call a bribe. See, I’m not easy to bribe. I’ve been lucky enough to get by pretty easily, and don’t have a want for many things. I have dresses. One of the few, or only things I’ve found myself wanting as of late, is a relationship. You made me think I was going to end up in one only to shoot me down. So, if you’re going to apologize, say it.”
“I… I’m sorry, but I just didn’t want to lead you on”, I tell her truthfully.
“That’s not an apology. And I’m guessing you’re not apologizing because you don’t even realize what you did wrong. So, if that was an apology, it’s not one I’ll be accepting.”
Taking a deep breath, I pick at my brain for an appropriate response. “I am sorry. I am. I hurt you and there’s no excuse for that. What I did was poorly timed and worded badly. But I didn’t want to not see you again.”
Treading carefully, I reach for Callie’s hand and hold it with both of mine. She doesn’t pull away.
“For the past year, I’ve thought that I can’t handle a relationship. I was hurt before and wanted to avoid feeling that kind of pain again. Sex is easy for me. And one night stands keep me from being hurt. But I felt something with you, Callie. Something I haven’t felt in a long time. I should have chased after you that night, but I didn’t because I thought I could just forget about you. But I can’t. I’ve been trying to do exactly that all week and I have been unsuccessful, for better or worse.”
Callie continues to avert my eyes until I step directly in front of her and look deep into her eyes. She looks back at me with reflective, watery eyes.
“If you decide to forgive me, I would like granted the opportunity to treat you better than I did before.”
Though I didn’t expect it, Callie cracks a smile.
“That’s an apology”, she jokes. “And… one I can accept.”
The theater lights flash signaling the intermission’s end. Callie and I return to our seats and sit much more comfortably than before. Any thick tension between us disappeared when we exited the hallway and returned to our pricy seats with a perfect view of the stage. During the performance, Callie leaned over to rest her head on my shoulder. I moved over to make her more comfortable and to grab hold of both of her hands.
“Would it be rude to fall asleep”, she asks.
“Maybe. But I don’t think you’ll be doing much sleeping. The big lady just walked out onto stage again and if there’s anything I know about opera, it’s that the big ladies tend to be the loudest.”
This makes Callie chuckle, but it fails to dissuade her from resting her head on me and closing her eyes.
An hour later, we walk out of the theater having entirely opposite opinions of the show we just watched. Callie seemed to have enjoyed the entire show, despite having been asleep for the second half. Whereas I found it quite droll and am now convinced that opera is not my go-to way of spending a night.
“Callie”, I ask, “would you be interested in a late night dinner date?”
“Sure. But I pick.”
I’m directed to a spot I’m very familiar with. It’s a restaurant I have visited on many dates with my former girlfriend. A gastro pub praised for its burgers and selection of wines to pair those burgers with. Despite the joint’s high prices, I feel we are far overdressed for this place. But it was Callie’s choice and I should respect it.
“How did you find out about this place? It’s kind of out of the way from your bakery, isn’t it?”
Callie shrugs. “Family get-togethers. They don’t happen often but whenever they do, they’re usually here. Do you come here often?”
“I used to. With my--”
Speak of the devil and she shall appear, they say. I can’t be sure of it, but I could have sworn that Miranda was in the establishment. But it couldn’t be possible. What are the odds that she would be here? Why would she come back to this place, knowing it was one of my favorite places to grab a burger. In hopes to find me and brag about her life since we went our separate ways? She would be petty enough to do that. That bitch.
“With”, Callie asks, hoping to hear the end of my sentence sometime this century.
I shake myself out my thoughts, but take a moment to make sure that what I saw was a mirage and nothing more. Thankfully, no sign of her actually being there. Just a horrible trick my own mind played on me.
“Just a few old friends I haven’t seen in a while”, I finally say. “I haven’t seen much of anyone so just being back here took me on a quick trip down memory lane.”
For whatever reason, Callie uncharacteristically doesn’t ask more on the subject. I was expecting an interrogation of who those friends were, why I hadn’t seen them in such a long time, but I suppose sitting through three hours of loud singing could drain somebody. It definitely drained me enough to start seeing visions.
Some fancy wine and a pair of overpriced burgers later, I drive Callie back to my place. Callie seems a bit buzzed even though she had the same, miniscule amount of alcohol I had.
“Thank you for the night out, Declan. And for your apology. As mad as I’ve been at you, I really didn’t want to stop seeing you. Even though that’s what I told everyone.”
Everyone? Seems odd that she’s been talking to people about me but still doesn’t seem to even hint at knowing about my past. But if she’s been discussing me, I don’t see how the people she’s talking to don’t bring up who it is she’s seeing. Everything was covered on the news, magazines, blogs. I’m still surprised that she herself doesn’t know more about me. It’s not like bakers are shut-ins. But that’s a conversation for another time.
“I didn’t want to stop seeing you either”, I tell her, hoping that I didn’t spend too much time in my own head before responding.
Despite being parked in front of my home, Callie reclines her seat and closes her eyes.
“Going to sleep”, I ask, genuinely curious.
“I’m just so comfortable right now. Really comfortable.”
So comfortable, in fact, that she spreads her legs and lightly traces her fingers on her thighs. The more she spreads her legs, the higher her dress rides up, getting dangerously close to showing the underwear she may or may not be wearing.
“I don’t want to go to sleep”, she says in a breathy voice, “unless I have someone to curl up with. Know anybody who’d be interested?”