Mental Patience Ch. 02

Chance is a strange thing. Sometimes two people find each other sooner than expected, anticipated, or intended.

***

"You're too smart to just be a dancer."

"Excuse me?" Nicole was almost offended despite the feel of the small leather purse that he had purchased for her. He did not offer to buy it, she never asked. It was the most natural gift she had ever been bought.

Elijah saw his error in wording after the fact. "What I mean is you seem educated, like there is something academic in the way you are trying to read me."

Nicole had stopped walking towards the car, Elijah did not notice until he finished speaking. "You're not a shrink, are you?" When he turned to his right, he noticed she was not there. He was at least four paces ahead of her, and he was visibly confused at how that had happened.

"What makes you think I'm trying to read you?" Nicole asked the question with sex, but the nervousness was back, she was also trying as hard as she could not to be angry. Elijah was getting nothing but kicks out of her defense mechanisms. He was still winning.

"You're not?" Elijah knew he had hit the nail on the head. He reached into his pocket and flicked at his flip phone, staring at it for a moment before returning his gaze towards Nicole. "We've been together for over eight hours now and you are still trying to figure me out."

"Yes?" She was answering in question without answering the question, instead as a statement. Elijah had had enough of that trick.

"Is that a yes or a no?" Elijah was asking a question, killing her question with his gaze, a gaze that said: "If you don't knock that shit off, you can call a cab."

Nicole caught the unsaid.

"Yes, I went to school for psychology. I have a degree." Her arms were folded and she was looking at the asphalt of the parking lot. She hated losing.

"Oh, that explains a lot," he returned to closing the short distance, only a few spaces, to his car, Nicole followed at the sound of the alarm noting unlock.

"...And yes," she said as he held the passenger's door open for her. Nicole had stopped before getting in, only the car door separating her from Elijah. "I'm trying to figure out what the catch is. I want to know what's wrong with you."

"Hmm..." Elijah looked far away for a second, his performance faded just long enough for her to see he was trying not to say something. "Maybe nothing? Or maybe everything?" He had a huge smile despite his eyes still seeming to look at an answer. The stance of his eyes would remain looking mostly at a thing only he could see until they arrived in his driveway at the end of the evening.

***

It was a simple question after a day of walking around various stores of the year round endless strip malls of the shopping town next to the ocean in another state after a boat ride. It should have been no big deal, and by all appearances, it was no big deal, but Nicole could tell otherwise based purely on the amount of confusion. After nine wonderful hours she still could not label him. Every time she tried to add it all up, she would forget to add something in, and then would have to start all over, and then he would do something totally unexpected.

"So how did you do when you were in school?" Another simple question, his face and physical response replied to Nicole, and answered her simple question, but he still was not telling her something.

"I did very well. Good grades and all of that. I was in this 'Honor Society' bit for a while." His face glanced her way while his eyes stared at the road but looked at the thing he was not telling her all while he answered her question. He leaned into the armrest between them with his right hand deftly fingering on the shifter. His left hand lay towards the top of the steering wheel. Elijah remained calm physically while his mind was all over the place.

"What do you mean 'for a while'?" Nicole was amused at how he shrugged off such recognition; she thought his humble was sexy because it was genuine.

"Well... They sort of kicked me out by changing some rules and some information, after they had asked me to be in it." He wasn't smiling anymore. His face, for an instant, seemed to want to punch someone. "It's no big deal." He could feel her still trying to read him, like he wasn't just telling her the truth.

"Did you go to college or tech school or something?" she continued questioning, trying to find the edge to win, trying to explain everything.

"Yeah. I completed a few years of college, but I'm not really a fan of opinions as facts, and there is much of that in higher education. It's more stupidity than anything, lots of theories on theories, and experiments on the theories of theories, all with very few facts and lots of assumptions and exceptionless rules." A strange smile crossed his lips as if he were keeping a secret, or as if he were confused, like a hand in a cookie jar. Nicole could only call it a smirk.

If she did not know any better, she could almost think he was insulting her and her education, something she had worked very hard to get.

"So you think you are smarter than everyone or something? What, are you like a genius?" Her questions made him look directly at her again, since he had done the same thing before, she understood he was reading her intentions.

"No." His right index finger began to tap the shift knob in tune with the song, as if he were trying to ignore everything despite everything on his mind, and everything going on. He had rhythm, and the song, a good one, was from his selection. Elijah was fidgeting because she was making him uncomfortable, and she did not truly know why he suddenly appeared to be angry, or hyper, without actually being either.

Nicole sat into the comfortable black leather, hands laying on top of one another in her lap, her entire body turned towards him to her left with her legs crossed over and only one foot on the floor. She was still trying not to be confused.

She tried more: "Did you ever take the S.A.T.s?"

"All that thing does is test your ability to take standardized testing based on a standard." Elijah seemed to brush off the question, taking the response elsewhere in a mocking tone. "You scored in this percentile, therefore you are this good at being what we think is perfect."

Nicole could not understand why he was seemingly becoming ignorant, and beyond the slightly prophetic nature of his response, he had not answered her question. "So, did you take it?"

Elijah just turned towards her and shrugged. His face said: "Please stop."

"You did, didn't you? What did you get? It's no big deal, you can tell me." Nicole was smiling, she could tell she was pushing his limits with a simple personal question, and all because he was holding back and not bragging. "At least I think he's not gay," she thought to herself, slightly glad that his inability to match had come to her attention while they shopped for nothing in particular.

Elijah appeared to not notice her silent continuance, and he clearly was not going to answer anymore, almost like he was ignoring her. The sun was going down, and somehow, at some point, his sunglasses had ended up on the top of his brow. As a test to see if he was paying attention, Nicole kicked off her sandals, and crossed her legs in the seat - still in the seat belt - forcefully splitting her cleavage inside the open sweatshirt while sitting up straight.

Elijah sat up straight in his seat, almost in unison, suddenly making the car appear to be built just for him, still looking straight ahead. He was paying attention. To Nicole, that meant that he was trying as hard as he could not to finger fuck her as they drove.

If he was as amazing as he was trying not to say he was - which he appeared to be to Nicole - then that was why her touch froze his movements, because his natural response would blow her mind, either that, or he had a tiny penis.

"So, do you want some dinner? Or do you want to just skip to the coffee and pie?" Elijah almost begged for pie when he spoke the word, it made Nicole smile.

"Coffee and pie. Where did you have in mind?"

"It's a surprise." His smile was still made for Hollywood; his eyes were still trying not to say something.

"How did I know? You mister, are trouble." Nicole decided to sleep with Elijah at that moment, even if he was ill-equipped.

"Momma says trouble is as trouble does..." His Gump voice was flawless, her laugh echoed it's perfection.

***

"Check this out." His breath smelled like the peach pie he had eaten in the diner. Nicole had just clicked her seat belt when he spoke and then turned on the car's lights. The headlights had a bluish tint, and the majority of the gauges were an even darker shade of blue. Ever single interior light matched his eyes save for the red needles for accuracy, they instead reflected in both Elijah's and Nicole's pupils.

"Very nice, did you do that?" The car was already a little louder than usual, a little faster than usual, all of the additions just enough to get your attention, but only when in use.

"Indeed I did, had to take the whole inside apart. I even did the lights on the seat buttons." Elijah pointed to the floor next to her door, the light just accenting his skin and making him appear to be a ghost. When Nicole turned, she saw that the lighted buttons matched.

"Want to do something cool?" His words brought her attention back to his smiling face.

"You want to drive fast, don't you?" The road outside of the railroad car diner was long and lonely. "Ok, just don't get me killed." For some reason Nicole was staring at the clock on the dash, it changed to 7:42 PM against a blue LCD surface in time with the end of her words.

The tires chirped, and Nicole was thrown into her seat just as "Deal" was spoken by Elijah. The sound of the exhaust became harmony, and the pressure against the leather only ceased four times, mere instants, as he shifted the gears.

Her vision moved from Elijah, to the road, and then back to the clock, where it stayed until it changed to 7:43 PM. Elijah let off of the gas, shifted into neutral, and allowed the car to coast down to normal operating speeds before he put it back into the last gear. Nicole glanced at the gauges she could see when he let off of the pedals.

"How fast did we go?" Her heart was pounding and her pussy was wet. Her attention was turned on his smile as he answered. She was amazed how the car had gone from quiet luxury to screaming racecar.

"At least one hundred and sixty miles per hour." He continued to smile after he spoke, memorizing the look of natural on her face. The look on his face was the same as when she had walked away from him at the airfield, though he had a smile instead of a dropped jaw.

"At least?" Her jaw went down, and she was sitting cross legged in the seat again, with her sandals off. This time though, she was on the arm rest leaning his way like he was reading a story in kindergarten class. She wanted to touch him, but instead put her right hand stealthily in her own lap, and grabbed the end of the center armrest with her left. Now he would have to touch her if he shifted, she was tempting him to do the deed.

"That's where the speedometer stops displaying, so, at least." Nicole could almost think he was lying, and would have, had she not been in the car. They were once again going a normal speed, the quiet luxury had returned.

"You may be trouble, and I'm pretty sure you are, but I've never gone that fast, I've never done that before." She almost felt proud of herself, all thanks to his reckless stunt and bravado. Only her jeans separated her private wet spot from the fingers on her right hand. Her nipples were making an appearance below her tank top and bra, as well.

"Few have," was Elijah's humble reply as he leaned comfortably into his seat for the duration of the ride, trying as hard as he could not to finger fuck the woman in the passenger's seat, the one whose arm he kept rubbing whenever he shifted.

***

"That was the best date I have ever had...." Nicole was leaving the words to hang in the air, trying to mirror his tactic and failing. "So what happens now?" She was smiling, making it his move.

"I know it was, and since you do not know why, what happens now. Then I'm going to insult you, even though I do not mean to." Elijah's voice was flat, emotionless.

"Excuse me?" His rudeness was triggering mechanisms.

"I said: 'What happens now.'"

"That's what I said."

"I know."

"I don't understand what the hell you are talking about. You're going to insult me?"

"I know you don't, and I don't need or expect you to, that's the point." Ever since he had shut the vehicle off, making the interior overhead light come on, he had appeared overly sad again. He was still wearing his seatbelt and was slightly turned in her direction, one of his hands was still on the wheel.

"Why are you being an asshole all of the sudden?" Nicole was pissed.

"I'm not. I simply said: 'What happens now.' You are the one who seems to be livid."

"Ok, fine. So you're telling me that what happens now?"

"Yes."

"...but what can be anything..."

"It can also be everything and something and nothing."

"What?"

"Exactly. I deal primarily in what and truth."

"You're not making any sense." Nicole was pissed and confused.

"You're not understanding."

"Fine,asshole. Explain it."

"I have to insult you to explain it. I have to make you feel stupid." Elijah braced himself for what was to come. He had heard and felt the words many times from confused humans. He still flinched when she said it, despite the bracing.

"Are you gay or something?"

"No, this is something you can't explain." If she stayed in the car, and did not storm out, he would continue. As chance would have it, she was too angry to let the situation go.

"Then why would you insult me?"

"It's unintentional, like I said."

"Finethen, doit." Nicole's anger was infecting her voice.

"I'm not going to sleep with you unless you wise the fuck up."

"Excuuse me?! Who the fuck do you think you are?"Nicole was about to slap Elijah, he could feel it. He continued anyway.

"I think I'm smarter than you, and I think I know what's really going on."

"What!?" Nicole pulled her left hand back in reaction to his words, as if he couldn't possibly know who she was. She was going to slap him across the face, but his next statement froze her in place.

"You think I don't know you're still married to a husband who is deployed in a foreign country? You really think I didn't know this was the best date you have ever had?" The look on his face was the same as after she had accused him of practicing speech, this time it was not fleeting, this time it was only frightening.

"I... I... We were separated before he deployed. He hasn't spoken to me in a year..." She wasn't lying this time.

"You do realize what kind of position that puts me in? What if he dies over there, what then? Do you have to leave and play the concerned wife? Are you going to take all the benefits of that situation? Does his family even know you two are on the outs? Were you even going to tell me?"

"I.. I..."

"That's why I'm not going to sleep with you, that's why what happens now. To me, it's not just sex. I care what kind of person I am intimate with."

"If you didn't like me, then why did you take me out today."

"I never said that I didn't like you."

"That's how you are acting..."

"Yes, by your perception, I am, but that's not my intentions."

"Please stop..." Nicole was about to cry. She felt weak, and she had lost the game that was never a game in the first place. It was a slaughter. His words were making it worse.

"I can't, that's the problem. I think you are one of the most fascinating creatures I have ever met, not to mention you are the most attractive woman I have ever met. I like almost everything about you that I have learned. We are just not on the same level." Nicole sat in silence, confused while listening to him continue. "Look, I get that you are intelligent, sexual, strong, and beautiful. I wouldn't have even spoken to you otherwise, but you need to listen to me when I say that you can never understand me."

"What do you mean?" Nicole spoke in almost a whisper; she had tears on her face.

"You were so worried about S.A.T.s earlier. Who cares about S.A.T.s? I got my first high school diploma when I was eight years old, and my penmanship was more than acceptable. I have three high school diplomas, actually. I took that particular test you referred to twice. It's just simple multiple choice and an essay within limited parameters, and it is far from standardized. The college I completed was when I was twelve. I obtained sixty credits in two semesters. To me it was simple. To me, it means nothing. It's just a drop of water in a bucket of water." With that, Elijah stepped out of the car after unclicking his seat belt.

Nicole was so deep in thought absorbing what he had said, that she did not notice he had opened her door until he offered his hand to assist her exit. She took his hand, and allowed the escort to her car. Whatever Elijah had her feeling mentally, physically she could still not get enough. He was too different, an uncomprehendible genius athlete or something. resembling it.

Elijah spoke when they reached her driver's door. "If you can stop trying to get to know me or figure me out, give me a call one day before you go to work atStorytellers. I'll buy you some pie and coffee at that little diner up the street, and then we can continue past the what. I'll answer the phone, for you, no matter what the circumstances, unless it doesn't ring."

Nicole viewed him with a teary gaze as he kissed the fingers on her hand. He took a few steps away, stopped and turned to her. "Thank you for the wonderful day. I hope you give me a call. Have a pleasant evening, Nicole Smith." With that he bowed, walked to his front door, unlocked it, and disappeared within.

Elijah's phone rang on Monday, two days after the date. It was Nicole on the other side.