Birthday Girl Ch. 05

"I'll get you Brian," she glowered as I sat back down, ready to run again if necessary.

Sally came and sat next to Bill, still laughing, "You're really an asshole Brian, that was just plain mean."

Melissa sat beside me and smacked me on the arm, "You need to stop bullying her,"she told me sternly, "what she has ever done to you?"

It was as if the gods had answered Jenna's prayers. She went on to cry about all the times I picked on her as if she was a right little saint. She played the part of the victim really well, drawing sympathy from all the others except Nick. He knew how she could mess my life up but wisely remained quiet, not wanting to get on her bad books. Smart boy.

I ended up getting a lecture from all three girls on how to properly treat a lady. Yeah, that was going to happen. Jenna kept giving me evil smiles whenever the other two weren't looking. Bitch.

As the afternoon wound down people started leaving one by one until it was just the six of us left. We cleaned up everything, everyone changed from their swimwear and we went back out to sit for a little while before we parted ways. The sun was low in the sky and a cool breeze had picked up. Melissa sat close to me this time, our thighs touching.

We finalized on last details the trip. Nick and I had originally planned to hire a four by four but Bill said he could borrow his dads Land Cruiser V8. We would drive up on Friday morning, probably taking around five hours to get there, and return on Sunday evening. I would call up the park tomorrow and book the cabins since all the girls refused to camp. I didn't get what was so bad about peeing in the bushes, I did it all the time when I was drunk.

As the sun finally disappeared, we walked to the cars, prepared to leave. I still hadn't taken mine to the garage so Nick had picked me up. Melissa lagged behind with me as the rest went ahead, walking alongside me with her arms crossed under her chest. It was the first time we had been alone together, the whole day someone or the other had always been around, not giving us a chance to be by ourselves.

"I enjoyed myself today," she said.

"Are you sure about the trip?" I questioned.

She nodded, "Yeah, it's been a while since I've gone somewhere like this and let loose a little, it should be fun. Besides, I've heard there are endangered species being rehabilitated there, someone has to make sure you don't feed Jenna to them."

"Thanks for the idea,"

"Brian, I swear..."

"Relax Mel, I'm not going to feed her to a T-rex or anything."

We were almost at the cars. I didn't want her to leave, we had spent so little time with each other today.

"Do you really have to go?" I asked, "you can stay for a little while, I can drop you with Nicks car later," I tried.

"Not today Brian, I have to babysit for Amber tonight," she said, "Amber's my oldest sister," she added when she noticed me trying to figure out who Amber was.

"Ah, Ok,"

"We'll do something during the week ok? I promise," she said, putting her hand on my arm.

Bill hooted and I flipped him the bird.

Another quick peck on the lips and she was in the car and on her way. I heard something behind me and turned to see Jenna coming out of the house with a baseball bat. Damn it. Time to pay the piper.

****************************************

I was at work on Thursday afternoon, staring in despair at the humongous pile of paperwork in front of me, when my phone rang and I smiled as I checked the caller id.

"Howdy there, sexy thang," I said in a southern drawl.

She giggled on the other side, "Can't you ever just say Hello like a normal person?"

"I could, but where's the fun in that?" I said as I leaned back on the chair and stretched my arm out behind me.

"Listen, what are you doing tonight?"

"Nothing special, just going to go home after work and maybe watch a movie on Netflix, I've been putting off watching The Martian for a while." I lazily wrote the word Martian on a paper on the desk.

"I have a better idea,"

"I'm all ears,"

"Dinner, my place,"

Watching a space movie versus spending time with Melissa. That was a tough one.

"I'm sure Matt Damon can wait another Sol for me, what time?"

"Shall we say seven? Oh, and I need you to do me a favor, can you get some things on your way here?"

"Of course. What do you need?"

She listed out the items she wanted and I wrote them down on a piece of paper.

"What are you planning to cook?" I asked as I finished the list.

"Who said I was cooking?" she asked playfully.

"If you're not... then who? Is Kelly going to be joining us?" I was confused.

"Nope, it's just me and you."

"But then if..." the penny dropped. "No way."

"Oh yeah."

"Lissy there isn't an antidote in the world that can help you if you eat what I cook."

"Why don't you let me worry about that. Besides, I'm going to guide you, we'll cook together."

"I've never cooked before, not even putting coffee in the machine."

"There's always a first time for everything."

I gave up, "It's your funeral."

"In that case, let's make it a tasty one."

We spoke for a bit before hanging up, me promising not to be late. I stared absently out of the window at the dark clouds gathering in the distance. I had to cook? And eat what I cooked? I'd rather sample rat poison dipped in the venom of a pit viper. How the hell did she convince me to do something I absolutely hate? I nearly burn the house down when I try to cook, boiling water was a problem for me and here I had gladly agreed to cook with her. I had it bad, real bad.

I turned back towards the stack of papers and pulled out the topmost one and stared at it without really seeing anything. I just hoped the fire brigade didn't have to be called tonight.

*************************************

The weather was getting increasingly worse as I drove to Melissa's place, one of those freak storms that pop out of nowhere, when least expected. It couldn't have been in greater contrast to last Saturday when the sun was shining down on us, turning us golden brown. I was driving a replacement old model Taurus supplied by the garage since my Celica was still in repair. The damage was quite extensive, the radiator was leaking, the intercooler was busted, the fan-belt was almost torn, and the Turbo was a little messed. That was excluding the bodywork, headlight and windscreen. It was going to cost me a small fortune to fix it up and I hadn't told Melissa about it. She was feeling bad as it was and I didn't want to add to her guilt.

I ran to the door with the groceries just as the rain pelted down, the first large drops of water splattering the ground, giving off that wonderful earthy smell. Putting the grocery bags down I shook myself off as I waited for Melissa to open the door. I wiped a few drops of water off my glasses, and looked out at the rain. It was just a moderate shower at the moment but if the clouds approaching were any indication, it was about to get a lot worse.

I didn't hear the door but felt warmth behind me and her arms snake around my waist as Melissa propped her chin on my shoulder, joining me in looking at the rain. I could feel her soft form pressed up against my back, feeling wonderful.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" she said after a while.

In a span of a few minutes the ground was soaked and small rivulets of water were running down her driveway to join the stream on the main road. Her swing stood like a lone soldier, swaying slightly in the middle of the garden, being pelted from all directions by the rain. A fine mist was picked up by the wind and sprayed us with countless thousands of tiny droplets.

I turned and placed a kiss on her temple, "It sure is," I said looking directly at her, hoping I didn't sound too corny, and then back at the rain.

Her arms tightened around me and she bit my earlobe, "Someone's learnt flattery," she said softly in my ear as she blew gently over where she bit me.

I tilted my head and tapped her lightly, "Just saying it the way it is."

She released me, took hold of my arm and pulled me in, "it's getting chilly out here, let's get inside."

The sound of the rain got muffled as I closed the door behind me and followed Melissa into the warmth of the house. She was wearing a dark green halter top that left her arms bare and a pair of snug fitting blue jeans that framed her cute little ass perfectly as she swayed her hips in front of me. I followed like a donkey following a carrot on a stick. I had come directly from work so I was still in my formals of a shirt and pants. We walked to the kitchen and I deposited the goods on the counter and turned to face her.

Before I could say anything she spoke up, "Don't even try it, we are cooking, that's final."

"But-"

"No buts. Don't worry, it's nothing complicated."

"What are we making?" I asked, curious.

"Sandwiches. I figured we should pop your cherry with something simple, ease you in slowly so you don't make a total mess your first time," she said wryly.

The double entendre wasn't lost on me but I didn't have any response to that. I just blinked, trying to find a smart enough retort.

"Oh my god, you should take a look at your face," she laughed, "you look like a deer caught in headlights-"

She stopped laughing abruptly as she realized what she had just said and I burst out laughing instead.

"Are you going to crash into me by any chance?" I asked, still laughing. The tables had turned.

She nudged me on the chest with her right shoulder, "Wham!"

I clutched my chest, pretending to be mortally wounded, "Oh, the agony!"

She started removing the items from the grocery bag, "By the way, how's your car coming along?"

"Not bad, I should get it back next week," I said, joining her in unpacking, our hands brushing each others occasionally.

"You're never going to let me drive your car again, are you?" she asked, not looking at me.

We had not spoken much about the crash since it happened. Melissa's mood always turned sad when the conversation went in that direction so I made sure I avoided it as much as I could, I couldn't stand to see her down.

"You can drive it whenever you want to Lissy. I can even take you to the garage with me on Monday so you can drive it back," I said seriously. I didn't want her thinking I would ever hold it against her.

"Thanks," her mood brightened again and kissed me on the cheek. It must have meant a lot to her.

"By the way," I started as she directed me to arrange the huge slices of bread on a plate, "who taught you how drive like that again?" I tried to sound casual.

I continued my task and got no reply. After a long pause I dared to glance at her and found her leaning her hip on the counter, hands folded across her chest, with an extremely amused look on her face.

"You've just been dying to ask me that haven't you?"

"Of course not," I quickly went back to the bread, trying to sound as nonchalant possible, "It just crossed my mind since we were on the topic of the car and stuff..."

In all honesty, it had crossed my mind a few times. Okay, a shit load of times, but I couldn't think up of any innocent way of bringing it up without coming across as a nagging, suspicious middle-aged housewife.

"You're a terrible liar Brian," I could even hear the amusement in her voice.

"Yes, I've been told that," I said as I ran out of bread, "repeatedly."

"Will you grate the cheese for me please?" she asked as she removed a block of cheese from the fridge and handed it to me.

"No problem." I was glad I was being given such manual tasks. This I could do easily. "What sandwich are we making?"

"It's a special one me and Kelly came up with. The GMCT sandwich."

"GMCT?" I questioned.

"Grand Mega Cheesy Tasty sandwich. Patent pending"

I cocked an eyebrow at her.

"I was five and she was seven okay? Our vocabulary wasn't very refined at the time."

"So we're going to have something you concocted when you were five?"

"Obviously we've made a few changes since then,"

"And it never occurred to you that maybe the name needed a change as well?"

"Hey, do you want the Grand Mega Cheesy Tasty sandwich or not? One more word against it and you'll be eating raw cabbage from the dustbin," she waved the knife she was using to cut some peppers at me. What was it with people and shoving pointy things at me? Did I look like a pin cushion?

Whatever the case, I absolutely adored how she could act totally childish at times. As I looked over at her I noticed how her tongue stuck out at the corner of her lips as she concentrated on cutting the peppers in perfect proportion and how she blew away errant strands of hair that fell across her face as she worked. Not for the first time I thought about how I could spend hours doing nothing but simply looking at her.

"Done," I said as I finished grating the cheese.

"Onions, chop chop," she ordered.

"Are you a cannibal?"

"No," she was confused, "why?"

"Because if I chop the onions you'll find chunks of my finger in there for you to enjoy."

"Ughh, gross Brian," she screwed up her face. "Fine, would you set the table while I finish this up?"

The dining table was adjacent to the kitchen, separated by a low wall and one could see what was going on in the kitchen. It was a small square glass table with four high backed chairs, each on one side.

The rain still hadn't let up and if anything, it sounded like it had increased in intensity judging from the increased staccato from the drops hitting the roof. Driving back was going to be a bitch if it continued like this. I stared at the table and wondered what the hell I was supposed to do. For me, setting the table meant getting rid of the pile of junk on it to make enough space to put a plate on it. Either that or clear a spot on the floor in front of the TV, but her table was spotless and sparkling in the low light.

"Plates are on the top shelf," Melissa called out.

Right. Plates. We would need those, why hadn't I thought of that before? Might as well get glasses while I'm at it. Since we were being fancy, spoons and forks wouldn't hurt. Was I missing anything? Ah yes, tablecloths. After all, we didn't want to have food stuck all around our mouths. I was proud of myself as I surveyed my immaculate setting of our eating area, identical dinnerware set on opposite sides of the table. I adjusted a spoon slightly so it was perfectly in line with the rest.

Just as I was about to go back to the kitchen there was a loud crack of thunder that shook the entire house and suddenly complete darkness enveloped us. All that could be heard was the steady sound of the rain battering the house. The power was out.

"Lissy..." I called out.

"Wait for it," I heard from her direction.

There was a low mechanical rumble, distinct from the sound of the rain, that permeated the silence and the lights came back on for about five seconds before they flickered and went out again as the rumble slowly decreased to a stop.

"Shit..." I heard Melissa curse.

I switched on the flashlight on my phone and joined her in the kitchen.

"I think the generator is out of fuel," she said apologetically.

"It's okay, I think this is better anyway, where do you keep the candles?"

"Really? A candle lit dinner? Do you want me to wear a corset as well?"

"With high heels?" I asked hopefully.

"You men are impossible!" she huffed as she walked past me and got candles from a drawer.

"You started it..." I said in a small voice.

"It's a good thing the sandwiches are done," she handed me the candles and took the food to the table. "Hurry before they get soggy."

Placing the two lit candles in the middle of the table I joined her, taking a seat opposite her.

"Dig in!" she said attacking her sandwich like a ravenous wolf.

She ate like a pothead who had the munchies. Strings of cheese extended from her mouth to the sandwich as she took a bite and pulled away, sauce dripped down onto the plate and she made delicious moaning sounds as she chewed. I was staring open-mouthed, my sandwich forgotten.

She noticed me looking and smiled, a pickle stuck on her cheek, "There is no dainty way of eating a GMCT sandwich, so don't expect civilized behavior from me, this is the way it's meant to be eaten." She took another sloppy bite.

I grabbed my sandwich in response and took an enormous bite with similar results as hers. I had to keep myself from moaning as well. It was simply delicious. There was just enough bread to match the splash of different sauces. I detected sliced boiled potatoes between strips of ham and other stuff I couldn't identify and didn't know when she added them. All this capped with a flooding of melted cheese. This is what heaven must taste like.

"How is it?" she inquired.

"This is officially the best sandwich I have ever had, "I said between mouthfuls, "we should open a restaurant, you should go onto Master-Chef, you should travel the world sharing this delicacy, people need to know about this!"

"Easy there Tiger," she laughed, "that's the cheese talking."

I couldn't believe I was eating like a rabid dog in front of Melissa. Wait till Jenna gets word of this. She had painstakingly schooled me on the do's and don'ts of eating with a date and here I was violating each and every one of her rules, and the best part was, it wasn't even my idea. Never in my wildest dreams would I have imagined Melissa being this cool. That's the only word I could describe her with right now. Cool, with a bob of the head.

We finished eating and I sat back in the chair, content with life. Across the table Melissa gave a tiny burp and immediately her hand shot up to cover her mouth as she mumbled Sorry.

I couldn't help laughing, "That's the sign that the tank is full."

She patted her tummy, "Oh yeah, I'm stuffed, nothing's going in me now."

I gave her a naughty smile.

"Get your head out of the gutter Brian."

We cleared the table and I went and sat on the couch with one candle as she finished putting the remaining food in the fridge. Then she came over and sat right beside me, leaning forward to place her candle on the coffee table. She wrapped her legs under her, put her arms around mine and leaned into me, resting her head on my shoulder as we silently listened to the thrum of the rain on the windows. I was glad we could sit like this in silence and not be uncomfortable, each just enjoying the presence of the other.

"We dated for four years," she started quietly.

Even though it was out of the blue I knew what she was talking about but chose to remain quiet. She would tell me at her own pace.

"He was a pilot, one of the big airlines, in a different city almost every day."

Shit. A pilot? Couldn't he have been a janitor or something?

"We were pretty serious, I knew he was going to pop the question any day," she was tracing patterns on my arm with her finger, "I was head over heels into him, enough to look past his constant flirting with other women. I thought it was just harmless banter. He was tall, handsome, well spoken, and could charm the pants off a girl with just a smile, and he was mine. What more could a girl want?"

Great, I had the love-child of George Clooney and Brad Pitt to live up to.

"I was going to move in with him but he was always away in some other country so I never got around to it," her tone was even and level, like she had accepted what had happened and moved on, but I knew it must have hurt a lot at some point in her past.

"He had a Carrera GT, a gift to himself. That's where I learnt how to drive a stick."

I was going to hang myself. George Clooney and Brad Pitt had a threesome with Vin Diesel. Screw hanging, I was going to douse myself in petrol, light myself on fire and jump off a cliff into a freezing ocean below. I couldn't hold myself any longer, I had to say something.