Date Night

"Right on." I agreed absently as he left the break room, scrolling through my cell phone and opening a new text.

No words, just a photo realistic oil painting of Amanda fully nude and splayed out on some kind of animal hide, bear maybe. My prick twitched as I slowly drank in what I saw, eyes stopping briefly on the honey blonde bush between her smooth glistening thighs.

"Andreia." I called to the old Portuguese waitress who had laughed at me earlier. "Do you know if my date arrived while I was in the men's room?"

"Honey you need to relax." She advised playfully snapping me with her hand towel. "How late is she anyway?"

"She's about my height, shoulder length brown hair, beautiful face." I described. "She wanted to meet at seven. So about twenty minutes late I guess."

"What, that's all?" Andreia snickered. "She's just taking her time to get beautiful for you."

"Yeah, you make a lot of sense." I nervously agreed, thinking back to David's earlier premonition, fearing that any minute Amanda would storm through those diner doors in all her seductive glory.

"This your first time out with this woman?" The waitress asked, bringing me out of a dreadful down-spiral of anxiety.

"Yeah." I shyly admitted while avoiding eye contact, flicking the red and pink cardboard hearts they taped to the napkin dispensers on the counter. "We worked together for years, and would talk to each other at least once a day, mostly gossip. She even let me eat lunch with her sometimes if our breaks lined up. But I never would have thought I had a chance with her. I mean she's fucking gorgeous, pardon my french."

"How do you know she didn't feel the same thing about you?" Andreia asked, grabbing my cup and turning to refill it with Pepsi. "If you would have only asked her out years ago. So much time wasted."

"Thank you." I said as she set the drink in front of me. "Naw she was dating some asshole in sales when I first started working there. I remember the day they broke up, had a screaming match right there in the showroom. Later that day I stumbled across her in our break room behind the repair shop. Sorry I'm a mechanic at a car dealership. Anyway, she was crying but they were angry tears. Crystal has always been nothing but sweet to me but you could tell she's got a mean-streak hidden inside. Got the impression she won't break easy."

"You love the fiery women don't you?" She asked, matronly patting my cheek. "They compliment your gentle nature, no?"

Instead of answering her I inwardly sighed with relief as I spotted Crystal Montgomery's pink Nissan Cube turn into the parking lot.

"Either you're having a stroke or your lady friend is here." Andreia laughed. "Be a good boy and make this night special for her."

I didn't know how to respond to that so I didn't, brushing the old lady off while I straightened my tie and swept a few stray hairs off of the sleeves of my suit jacket. Crystal sauntered past the front window, head down and bundled up in her signature wine red, wool, hooded trench coat. My eyes followed her all the way around the front of the building and I raced to hold the door open for her.

"Sorry I'm late Allen." She said with a quick peck on my cheek as she entered the diner and immediately followed Andreia to a private booth, somewhat isolated from the other patrons.

Crystal flipped her hair behind her ear before shrugging off her wool trench coat and revealing to the world as a whole her immaculate curvy figure squeezed into a sleeveless mock neck black dress, that stopped several inches above her knees yet still managed to have a generous slit up the right side, stopping just short of where her panty line would be. The Portuguese waitress standing behind her stretched her old face in the universal now that's what I'm fucking talking about look. I nodded my head in agreement while standing frozen with a shit eating grin on my face like an excited mare, fighting to keep my eyes above the diamond shape cut out on the chest piece of her dress revealing the tiniest peak at her shiny cleavage.

"Allen?" She called, breaking the spell she momentarily held me under.

Andreia stood over us smiling with her cupid's arrow shaped pen poised over a heart shaped notepad as we took our seats. "Tonight's special is the three course Lover's Deluxe." She proudly announced. "Cupid's Caprese salad for starters followed by bacon wrapped chicken cutlets in a spiced tomato risotto, and our famous strawberry shortcake for dessert."

Crystal wrinkled her nose in distaste, flicking her eyes over to me. "Sorry, I was thinking porterhouse steak, rare." She said brushing her fingers against mine. "And strawberry shortcake on Valentine's Day is just too trite for me to stomach, so no dessert please."

Slowly turning my head to face Andreia we shared an uncomfortable look before I dumbly nodded my consent. "Yeah that sounds good actually, I'll have the same. But make mine medium well please."

Through the veil of confusion that started to settle over me I could have sworn Crystal rolled her eyes at the waitress as she disappointedly shuffled off to put our orders in.

"You know I'm really glad you showed tonight Allen Bates, I've really missed you." Crystal confided in me as she took my right hand between both of hers and began stroking my palm with her black manicured nails. "Did you miss me?"

"You mean since I last saw you three hours ago at work?" I asked flinching as one of her pointed nails pinched my skin. "Are you alright Crystal, you seem a little different from when your at work?"

"You silly boy." She laughed softly running her nails over my wrist, and winking at me.

My heart stopped both figuratively and medically as her right eye turned from soft hazel brown to cold piercing blue after she winked.

I instinctively pulled my hand back and jumped to my feet. "I gotta... I gotta... Shit..."

"You have to defecate?" She laughed.

"What? Yes." I answered over my shoulder as I raced toward the men's room, clawing at my jacket pocket for my cell phone.

Stumbling into Andreia I didn't even think to stop, just inadvertently pulled her into the bathroom with me while fighting off a full blown panic attack.

"What's the matter your girlfriend not what you expected?" She started.

"Shut up, shut up, shut up." I snapped while dialing David on my cell phone. "That woman out there is not my girlfriend, that's not Crystal."

The wise ass smile slowly slid off her old wrinkly face as she took in my sweaty demeanor and panicked tears. "What the fuck are you talking about Jack?" She demanded, putting her fists on her hips.

"What?... Hello?" I turned away from her as David answered my call. "That bitch is here!" I hissed.

"What? Allen are you drunk right now?" He asked, still jovial. "Wait until Crystal gets there and let her kick that blonde bimbo's ass. Two hotties fighting over you."

"No. Crystal is here but it ain't fucking Crystal." I fought to keep my voice steady.

There was silence on the other end of the line.

"What are you saying? Why are you hiding in the men's toilet?" Andreia asked.

"Who the hell is that Allen? Also I need you to clarify what you just said buddy." David said in a sobering tone of voice.

"It's Andreia the waitress!" I hissed again. "Crystal showed up almost a half hour late dressed like a hooker, getting real flirty and handsy with me..."

"Well sometimes when a woman likes a man and is considering sleeping with him..." David began with a sigh.

"Okay dumbass then why did she refuse the strawberry shortcake? She said her father used to bring her here sometimes specifically for the strawberry shortcake, but no she shot it down. The chicken risotto thing too that sounded fucking delicious."

"Take a deep breath you sound like you're going to pass out." David said, attempting to placate me. "I don't know maybe she's counting calories now. Tracy from HR said they both started sharing these prescription weight loss pills, and who the hell still eats strawberry shortcake? Does it come with a sippy cup of pink milk too?"

"Tell that babaca I heard what he said." Andreia huffed.

"What's her deal, why is she there with you?" David asked.

"Accidentally knocked her into the bathroom with me trying to escape, and I'm pretty sure she just called you an asshole." I explained. "Shut up and listen to this next part. Crystal has brown eyes, Mandy has blue. The woman at the table winked at me and now has one brown and one blue eye."

The old Portuguese waitress backed up against the sinks crossing herself like the good Catholic girl her mother raised her to be.

David remained silent as he ran the data through his big brain and eventually came up with "Huh."

"Come on man I'm freaking out. Like when I got Covid during the first go around. Remember?" I asked.

"Yeah you shit the bed and I had to throw the whole damn mattress away. Don't shit yourself now." He recommended. "Phil's Deluxe over near Printer's Alley right? I'll be there in twenty minutes."

I stood with my ear to the men's room door listening and silently praying, Andreia was right on my shoulder behind me whispering benedictions in Portuguese. There was the comforting sounds of normalcy; clanking silverware, hurried footsteps, and muted conversations. Then all went deathly quiet all at once.

"Allen you alright in there sweetie?" Crystal's warm and concerned voice filled the void.

I looked to my new geriatric sidekick who offered nothing but a confused shrug of her shoulders.

"Yeah, just need another minute." I shouted through the flimsy wooden door. "I'm fine really. Go back to the table and wait on our food."

"Okay, whatever you want." She convincingly said, almost making me doubt the entire situation.

"If you're done being crazy I need to get back out there and check on my customers." Andreia said, gently pushing me away from the door. "You should go home. Besides if anyone saw me come in here they might confuse me with a prostituta."

"No wait, I'm not ready." I vainly reached to stop her. "It's not safe."

"Go home Allen." She repeated sternly, placing her hand on my chest to calm me. "Besides she doesn't give a shit about me it's you she wants."

The waitress threw the bathroom door open and froze in the presence of absolute darkness, all the lights were out. I followed closely behind the frail five foot Portuguese woman with my hands on her shoulders, shamelessly using her as a human shield as we both turned the corner toward the dining area.

A scream died in my throat and escaped my lips as a short squeal, Andreia mercifully keeled over, fainting in shock. The dining area was bathed in stark moonlight with what was once Crystal standing on the table in the center of the room, surrounded by half a dozen dark robed figures. Francis was among them, hood pulled back and grunting with exertion as he finished sawing through the thick neck muscles of the male vagrant that enjoyed a slice of pie earlier with his sweetheart. The head finally came free thudding to the floor with a sick, wet sound.

Francis dropped the bloody machete he wielded and turned to face me with a sheen of maddening sweat glistening across his balding head. "Gotta understand I really didn't have a choice Al. Just want my wife back." He muttered with a blank almost pitiful look on his face.

It was at that moment my vision panned out and I finally comprehended the full carnage before me. There were a total of three couples dining earlier on a once romantic evening, all butchered now. Hacked, slaughtered and pieces of them splayed across the floor. Blood, so much fucking blood.

"Allen?" Crystal called to me from her perch up on the table.

My eyes were stuck on the headless carcass of the younger waitress draped across the counter, right beside just the head of the once cheerful chef with a meat cleaver sunk into what was left of his face.

"Allen!" Crystal shouted, demanding my attention.

Through the haze of tears I witnessed in full horror the blood dripping from her angry distorted mouth as two piercing blue eyes bore into me, shattering all sense of reality, ravaging the last of my sanity. Dorothy stepped from behind me suddenly, blowing a handful of bitter dust into my face. Three hooded women looming over me was the last thing I saw before falling from consciousness.

The pleasant smell of wood smoke stirred my brain followed closely by the soft crackling sound of an open fire. Opening my eyes the grim realization of being naked and strapped to a battered kitchen chair dawned on me. There was a huge bonfire in the center of a clearing in the woods somewhere, I was planted right outside the radius of it's heat. Climbing out of the thick drug induced fog forced upon me I openly trembled at the sight of the crowd circling the roaring fire. At least thirty women stood shoulder to shoulder, some in hooded robes, others dressed like farmer's wives or Midwest chic. They frantically chanted in unison, everyone focused on something just on the other side of the blaze.

Shaking off the remnants of whatever they gave me my head began to clear, and I craned my neck to see what the shouting mob was focused on. My stomach clutched as through the dancing flames I was able to make out my boss Francis also naked and strapped to a chair, and it looked like his wife of thirty-seven years was fucking him while the masses cheered her on.

Dorothy's flabby ass jiggled and shook as she fervently bounced up and down on her husband's lap. The chants were unintelligible as their voices rose in tempo with Dorothy's humping, then her arm shot up over her head. A large butcher knife gleamed in her hand pointing toward the moon. I had just enough time to register the sparkle of her wedding band before she slammed the six inch blade down into her husband's neck. Oddly Francis didn't scream or struggle, the only note of his passing was a few angry spurts of blood shooting out and bathing his wife's plump sweaty body. It was all cheers and mad cackling as they watched Dorothy grind her hips on her husband's erection, as if prolonging her orgasm as poor Francis rained down on her with the last of his life blood. A tall rangy woman in a terrible wig emerged from the shadows behind the once loving couple. She produced a really fancy dagger from the folds of her robe and unceremoniously began removing Frank's fucking eyes. I only hoped that his lack of reaction meant the poor bastard was already gone.

The woman in the wig held the severed eyes, complete with blood dripping tendons to the sky like some morbid trophy as they all howled in victory. She kissed them before dropping the eyeballs into a bronze chalice a stockier woman held out to her. Then they both turned and bowed to their knees in front of someone I couldn't yet see but somehow knew who it was.

Complete silence, except for the raging bonfire that seemed to take on a life of it's own, before the coven of witches all turned and ominously stared in my direction.

The slightly shorter and stockier woman who was holding the chalice stood and quickly marched right at me, with her black over gelled hair sticking out in crude spikes. She slapped a meaty hand around my throat and squeezed, a menacing smile twisting her pale chubby face. Insanity reflected in her cold almost black eyes, shrouded in heavy mascara.

After easing up her grip she circled around behind me maintaining her hold on my neck. That gave me a view of the taller one fixing her wig before joining us in a few long strides.

"Lift up under his armpit Maleka." She instructed her cohort in a weird German accent, while laying her own ice cold bony hands on me.

"I know Adelheid, I have done this before." Maleka barked.

The tall German in a shitty Halloween grade platinum blonde wig just grunted her disapproval and effortlessly hoisted her half of my hundred and seventy pound body weight. I was dragged closer to hell literally and set down in front of the monstrous dancing flames that seemed to angrily chant it's own dark spell over us all.

Adelheid clapped her ice grip on my naked shoulder and smiled. "Relax meine liebe you might enjoy this."

There she was, nearly walking through the fire but staying just outside of it's searing kiss. Amanda, honey blonde hair and blue eyes stopped right in front of me but stared out at her ravenous audience who began to mumble and greet her with adoration.

"Forgive my enforcers Allen they're fairly new." She said looking straight down on me.

"Are they in a Papa Roach cover band?" I asked, giddy with fear.

Despite the temperature Amanda was dressed in only a simple white V neck t-shirt and a pair of tight well-worn jeans and cowgirl boots, but she still looked amazing. She bent at the waist to look me in the eye before roughly pinching my chin with one hand and kissing me full on the mouth.

"Did you kill her?" I mournfully asked, pulling away from her.

The self proclaimed succubus stepped back and studied me, twirling her honey blonde locks around her index finger. "I hope you realize what I went through to get you here Allen."

"Where is she?" I tried again, voice cracking with sorrow.

"She would have seduced you and stolen every ounce of your purity."

"How do you know that?"

"You think I haven't been watching you, watching who you interact with?" Amanda asked, taking my face in her hands. "I saw the way she looked at you, could almost hear her heart speed up whenever you two were together. Allen my love you are so important to me because of what you represent."

"What went wrong when your parents made you?" I spat. "I'm a thirty four year old virgin, an outcast, socially underdeveloped. What the fuck could you need me for, some of that deranged hate porn I just witnessed. Yeah, eat shit bitch."

Amanda turned to briefly address her audience. "Let us not forget to thank Dorothy Shumacher for her tremendous performance and sacrifice, welcome her with open arms to this sacred bond."

Dorothy was thankfully clothed in a dark hooded robe adorned with a bright red sash across the torso. She raised her hands in salute to all the shouted praises. Adelheid was one of the first to embrace her and kiss her swiftly on the lips, followed by Maleka then the others filed into a rough line to show their new blood sister their appreciation.

The blonde demon queen turned back to me, pleased by her own decree. "Love is strongly practiced here my sweet prince, and as you may know love is pure. Allen, you are pure. I knew it the moment I saw you in the flames right after I fled Richwood."

"I just wanna go home." I sadly admit to breaking down into child like weeping. "Let me fucking go!"

She actually looked hurt for a moment. "You say you're an outcast, but here I offer you purpose. There are some ancient ones here tonight who have promises to keep in order to remain on this physical plane, and you Honey can really help with that."

"You just want to fuck a virgin and cut out his fucking eyes, that's not purpose. It's murder."

Amanda sighed and turned her back to me in frustration. "Is this a sacrifice Allen? Yes. But some of us can't exist here without it, and it has to be a gift given out of love in this particular instance. It won't be that brutal initiation ceremony you saw Dorothy perform."

"They were married for thirty seven years. Francis was my friend!" I shouted.

"Was he though? Went through them to get to you didn't I?" She chuckled, turning back to me and running her hands across her huge breasts. "'Sides don't you wanna fuck me Allen? You did the first night remember? Just go back to that mindset, hold me in your arms and dance like you did before. Imagine what I can make you feel."

"I was foolish that night." I croaked. "Then I found Crystal, who I've always wanted."