Black New World Ch. 22 - Day 110

---This one turned out to be longer than expected. Thanks for reading this far into the series. Please upvote and write your thoughts in the comments. This episode will have a bit more action/story to it. Hope you enjoy it!---

Chapter 22: Day 110 -- The date

I walk nervously back and forth in my apartment. From the bed to the table and then to the kitchen and back to my bed again. I have been circling like this for almost an hour now, waiting for the clock to turn 6.30. The time where Khalon is supposed to pick me up. I get to the kitchen again. This time I head to the bathroom to look at myself in the mirror. My make-up still stands just as perfect as Ashley left it. I'm stunned at my own appearance. I actually look like girl. I spin around and cannot stop to smile. I walk back in the apartment and take another round. I'm too excited to sit down. I laugh a bit about myself. I'm acting like a schoolgirl going to her first prom. But I don't care. I cannot keep my boiling emotions down.

"What is he going to think when he sees me like this?" I wonder.

Once again, I stop in front of the mirror. Each time I'm just as surprised as the last. My ass looks super tight in the black stretchy pant. I have side-tucked the dusty-pink blouse into the pants to reveal the curve of all of my hip. My stomach bubbles in a cheerful way. I walk back into my room and check my phone. 6.15.

"Fuck it!" I think to myself, as my body is on the edge of imploding from the nervous excitement. I check my make-up and cloths one last time. Then I put on my white sneakers and grab my jacket as I head out into the common room.

"Jules!" Khalon yells from the common room as he hears my door slam from the hallway. I jump as I hear his voice. He has apparently been waiting for me.

"So you are ready too? I didn't want to rush you if you were still preparing yourself."

As I approach him, his face turns pale. But then he suddenly smiles

"Wow, you look absolutely stunning!"

I blush from his compliment, and my knees suddenly feel weak like rubber. I smile shyly at him. He gets up from the sofa and walks towards me. He is wearing a tight black shirt and a beige pair of chinos.

"Damn! This cloths really suits you. Honestly, you just look amazing!"

My insides melt as his words light a fire in my stomach which burns away the last hour of doubt and nervousness.

"Thanks Khalon! You look good too!" I stammer in excitement.

As he gets near me, he reaches out for my hands and looks down on me. His eyes shines while he gazes at me. Finally, after what feels like hours of silence where both of us are speechless, he asks:

"May I kiss you?"

Surprised that he is being so gentle and asking me, I just smile at him and hold my breath in anticipation, before I at last move my lips towards him. We kiss passionately for a little while. He seems utterly speechless and just holds me close in his arms.

I suddenly burst out in a giggle, since I have never seen him like this. He then suddenly wakes up from his daze.

"Hey! Who are you laughing at?!" He says and spanks my ass gently.

"Oh, I almost forgot!" He grabs a wrapped present from the counter-top.

I excitedly open it and find a small feminine shoulder bag made out of leather and with a golden chain. I has a classy look and sign with the letters Y, S, L.

"Wow, it really pretty," I say shocked.

"I read at the paper tag: 'Saint Laurent'... That must have been really expensive!"

I kiss and hug him. I swing the bag around my shoulder. He smiles at me in approval.

"We should get going," he then says, and we walk next to each other down the hallway.

I sit in his SUV curious about where he is taking me. Khalon turns the car onto one of the main roads that heads downtown. He then put the car on self-driving mode and looks at me.

"I can't get my eyes off you. I mean you also looked good before, but this just really suits you."

"Thanks Khalon. I guess, I should start wearing this kind of cloths more often."

I'm suddenly glad that I let Ashley have her way with me. I have to remember to thank her tomorrow.

"I wouldn't mind," he says.

"And your hair is really gorgeous! Your face just shines... Sorry, I'm being too much," he laughs and smile embarrassed.

"No, keep them coming! Please continue! I don't mind," I say in a jokingly way and giggle. I just suck up his compliments like a dried up sponge.

We sit for a moment in silence, and he turns on the radio. A news debate is on.

"Rightful measures have to be made! For all of us. For the great good and for the future. We seek to protected with these restrictions, to lower the infection rate!"

"Argh... These laws, I can't stand them... I'm sorry, I shouldn't get started. Let's not ruin the mood by this," Khalon says and quickly changes the channel to some pop music.

"No, it's fine. It is what is it. Maybe it's better to let it out. Everything is so crazy these days, but I rarely get to talk to anyone about it... And beside, I should know about these laws if there is any new one... I don't want to get arrested again just for you to come and pick me up again," I say with an ironic tone.

"Hah! I wouldn't mind, and next time I'm not letting them off that easy," Khalon says and laughs.

His face then turns serious.

"They are talking about all kinds of restrictions towards the white population -- jobs, housing, traveling, healthcare. All excused and covered up as laws to protect the infected and sick people. It's pure Orwellian dobble-thinking. I'm pretty sure that is has been proved that the S4B7-virus can spread among all ethnicities, although it's only you whites who get the flu really bad. So the targeted restrictions don't make any sense. Luckily, they haven't been able to get more through the parliament than the ban on driving. But I'm afraid of what's the next to come."

"Wow, that's crazy."

"Yeah, the parliament is turning more and more extreme every day."

I'm completely shaken by the news, but also glad to hear how he is being critical.

"Well, I'm glad that I have you to protected me," I say with a smile, trying to lighten up the mood a bit.

"Of course!"

He straighten his back and smiles confidently while he caresses my shoulder. He then turns of auto-drive and guides the car through some smaller city streets with a lot of cars parked along the sidewalks.

"Almost there," he then says.

I still haven't asked him where we are going, and he hasn't said anything. I just assume that he wants to keep it as a surprise.

We walk next to each other over a long red carpet that leads us from the sidewalk into the restaurant. The red carpet is framed by the typical red robes and golden poles. Along the sidewalk small birch tree stands with hanging lanterns from their branches, shining a cozy light over the street. As we stand in line, I nervously look around at the other guests. The restaurant looks super fancy, and most of the other couples are wearing suits and dresses. Khalon doesn't seem to care. He just confidently stares straight ahead, but he seems to notice my nervousness.

"Don't worry. You look gorgeous... I don't give much about these uptight people. They are all just trying to hide something. But the food is supposed to be amazing here."

He puts an arm around my waist, and I relax a bit. As we get closer to the entrance, I notice a white couple who argue with the gatekeeper of the restaurant. They both look well-dressed. The guy has a tight suit. He looks fairly small. The women wears a fancy white dress that matches her skin. She has jewels around her neck and wrists.

The big bold door man shakes his head.

"Sorry, sir. Can't do that. New regulatory rules. Put into work yesterday. You should know that. Now please step out of the line," the gatekeeper says, faking a polite tone.

The couple looks distressed at each other. The man straighten his back and point at the gatekeeper with an angry face, just about to say something, but the woman grabs his arm and pulls him away from the line.

"You'll here from my lawyer!" The man mumbles and shakes in anger while they quickly leave the restaurant.

I stare at the whole scene perplexed.

"So there is some new restrictions after all? Or did they just not have a table booked?" I wonder.

"What was that all about?" Khalon whispers to me.

The queue moves quickly now.

"Good evening sir" The host approaches Khalon.

"Good evening. I have a reservation for Khalon Nkosi Kimutai.

He scans both of us with his eyes and glances at a tablet on the stand next to the door.

"This way please." He guides us through the door.

We enter a big room with many round tables covered with white tablecloths. Most of the tables are already taken, and the room is filled with a low humming from the voices of the many ongoing conversations. The tables are decorated elegantly with small red roses, many wine glasses and plates of different sizes. Again, I'm a little daunted by the luxury of this place. Luckily, the atmosphere is fairly dim as the room is only lit up by a few wall sconces and some pleasant pendants, hanging above each table.

"How are you two doing tonight?" A black young woman greets us with a polite smile.

The hostess takes us to our table somewhere in the middle of the room. We left our jackets in the car because of the hot summer evening, so the hostess just brings us the menus and leaves us again. I sit down and relax a bit as I take in the atmosphere of the place. Our table seems intimate enough as they have put a decent amount of space in between the tables. The windows are covered in red curtains, and the floor is made out of shiny wood tiles which are put decoratively in small squares and surrounded by marble tiles.

I scan the food menu, but I don't understand a single word of the exceedingly elaborated descriptions.

"I had no idea this place would be this fancy. To be honest, I'm not much into restaurants and the 'whole going out' thing. Jadyn knows his way around the city, so I asked him, and he recommended this place. I got to have a word with him about how he defines 'nice and cozy'!" Khalon says ironically.

I laugh.

"Don't worry! It's a lot... But it's actually pleasant! If your intention was to impress me, you definitely succeeded," I laugh and try to joke a bit to ease the tension.

He laughs a bit too.

"Well, my intention, to be honest, is just to have a nice time with you and to get to know you better," he smiles.

We order one of the restaurants standard three dishes menus along with the appropriate wine menu.

As we wait, we begin to chat, and my nerves settle as the conversation runs freely. Khalon tells me about his family. He has to siblings, a brother and a sister. They grew up in the city center where his parents still live.

"So how about you? How is your family doing?"

While he had been telling about himself, a nervousness had slowly built put in me because I knew he would ask this. As he sees my face turn dark, he quickly add:

"Oh, I'm sorry. Is it the virus? If you don't feel like talking about them, then let's just change the subject."

"No, no. It's fine... No, they didn't get to experience the pandemic... My parents died in a car accident two years before the pandemic hit."

"Oh fuck. I'm so sorry! I can't imagine how hard that much have been!"

"Thanks. I'm holding on. At least they don't have to live through these crazy times."

I wonder what they would think if they knew that I'm now dating a guy.

"And I guess, it was better to lose them before the pandemic than to lose them to the virus," I say with a morbid tone as a way to distance myself from the pain.

He reaches out to my hand and covers it with his own.

"Don't say that. Who wouldn't know, how they would have managed the flu... I'm sorry. Who am I to judge. I'm sorry for your lose."

He looks at me with empathetic eyes. I almost feel like crying as he caresses my hand. His sympathy creates a lump in my throat.

Luckily, we are interrupted by the waitress who brings the starters.

She presents a big plate with a tiny but elegant piece of food in the center. She reads out a memorized description from mind way too fast. Again, I don't get a single word of what she says.

She uses worlds like "hawaiian heart of palm", "sashimi", "purple shiso".

I'm on the edge of breaking into laughter as I see the face of Khalon staring at the dish, completely stunned in disbelief and not hiding his emotions at all.

"...adding a touch of elegance and sophistication, the dish is garnished with a mix of delicate microgreens and colorful edible flowers," the waitress finishes off.

"Thanks," I say and just smile at her. She leaves us.

"Well, bon appétit!" Khalon smiles and eats the tiny dish in one mouthful.

I finally break into a hysterical laughter as I'm surprised by his nonchalant manners, and how he doesn't give a shit about the overly elaborated dish.

He laughs a bit with me, but he still looks completely confident. A pleasant atmosphere submerges between us as we both relax.

The restaurant has maybe 10 to 12 tables and they are all full. Some sit in pair, like me and Khalon, while other sit in groups. There is several mixed couples where, from my judgment, the women could be transitioned females, just like myself, I guess. I'm a bit surprised to see that the appearance of feminine men is apparently starting to become normal.

"Maybe, that's what the doctor meant by 'normal'?" I think to myself.

Khalon also looks around a bit while we chat. He suddenly looks surprised.

"That guy behind me, I'm pretty sure, he is the minister of foreign affairs. I wonder what such a high up politician is doing here..."

Behind Khalon there is a group table where four people sit and chat calmly with low voices. Two black men, a black woman and a white, blonde woman. I assume they are two couples.

"Which one of them?"

Khalon doesn't look back again but just says:

"The guy with the navy blue suit and gray tones in his hair and beard."

Even though he has a few gray hairs, he still looks fairly young and well fit. He sits facing my direction, so I try not to stare. On his left hand side, the black woman sits which maybe could be his wife. In front of him, on the other side of their table, a younger man, also in a suit, sits with long dreadlocks. Next to him there is a slim white woman with boobs way too big for her size. She is wearing a chic glittering dress revealing most of her bosom. I notice that around her neck she has a thin black collar with a jewel. It looks a bit like a choker.

After a while the waitress brings the main course and gives us another long introduction. It's looks amazing but also a bit too polished for both of our tastes. It has some colorful grilled vegetables and a few pieces of meat, drizzled with a sauce around the edge of the far too big plate.

While we chat I slowly begin to get drunk as I'm trying to keep up with the continuously wine servings. Khalon tells me that he is about to start on his second semester of his master in physical activity and health after the summer vacation. I share that I'm about to start a masters in computer science.

Time flies and soon the waitress bring the dessert. It's a beautiful layered piece of cake with a shiny top and some scoops of ice on the side.

"I hope the food has been great so far. And here we have your Gateua Opera. I hope you'll enjoy!" The waitress says while she pours the dessert wine. As I'm about to put my teeth into the cake, I notice that the minister is walking towards me, and that he is smiling strangely at me. Baffled, I look up, but he just passes me, turn around our table and heads towards the toilets. The waitress leaves our table.

As she begins to attend our neighboring table, the table of the minister, a girl in a long dress passes me. It looks like she is heading towards the bar. But as she gets close to the waitress, who is now serving wine to the woman with the choker, she clumsily tumbles into her back. The blonde woman screams as red wine splashes all over her thin and shiny dress. The waitress almost falls into her before she catches her balance, but meanwhile the red wine pours down the blonde woman crouch and down her cleavage and onto her big fake boobs. She whines in hysteria and everyone at the table gets up to help her. Khalon, who sits right behind the accident, helps the clumsy girl on her feet again. The waitress is awfully sorry, and the girl, who was the culprit of all of the mess, also excuses herself loudly. She acts awkwardly and begins to tap the wet breast of the crying lady with a cloth, in a strange attempt to clean the mess she has made. Everyone in the restaurant looks at them.

But then I notice something strange. Another young, girly woman approaches the scenery from the bar. She walks with long, decisive step with a jacket in her hand. Her long brown her dances around her shoulders as she walks rapidly. Her long dress waves around her thin legs. She has a stern look in her eyes. The eyes have a strange familiar look to them, but I can't tell why. Everyone else is focused on the accident, even Khalon, but I can't get my eyes of her. In the next moment, as she passes the table of the minister, she quickly bows down in her knee, still with a straight back, and she then quickly grabs something next to the minister's chair. A suitcase. She covers it with her jacket and keeps walking, unnoticed by the crowed. I gaze at her in astonishment. As she gets close to me, she suddenly notice my stare, and her stern and decisive attitude flicker for a moment. I see doubt in her eyes, but she then puts a finger in front of her lips and quickly keeps walking.

As she passes me her face turns frightened, but she doesn't look at me anymore. She is staring at the hallway to the bathroom. I follow her line of sight and see the minister approaching the dining room. Yet another woman stands ready, as he enters the room, and awkwardly bumps into him, clearly on purpose. She talks to him apologetically and waves her hands in front of him. But he doesn't seem to care as he notices the mess around his table. So he gently pushes her away. But he then stops in disbelief.

"Wait, hey you! What's that in your hand!" He yells across the room.

The brown hair girl with the suitcase stops for a millisecond but then runs towards the exit.

"Guards!..." The minister yells.

But he suddenly freeze as the woman who bumped into him points something at his back.

"She has a gun!" He then yells.

A confused murmur arises in the restaurant. A woman at a table close to the toilet repeats his words in fear.

"She has a gun!" She screams.

The guards at the entrance pull their big handguns, but so does the brunette. Out from the long dress she pulls a gun and also points it directly at the minister.

"Drop your weapons or I'll blow his head off!" The brunette screams with a surprisingly deep voice.

The guards hesitate.

"Do it for gods sake! She going to fucking shoot me!" The minister yells.

The guards drop their guns.

"Kick them towards me."

"Everyone on the floor. Now!" She yells as she approaches the minister.

I look at Khalon as I'm jumping to the floor. He moves towards me, and he is just about to crouch down, but he is then stopped by the clumsy girl, who has been standing next to him during the whole ordeal. She just look around and grabs the person closest to her, and that being Khalon. Suddenly, she also has a gun and points it at Khalon. She grabs the collar of his shirt and guides him backwards towards the minister and the two other women.

Shivering, I stare up from beneath the table, and to my big surprise the three women pull of their hair one by one.

Wigs?!

They all have short pointy hair like a crew cut.