Hold Me Daylight, Kiss Me Night-time

[3] Cruel Dawn.

NIGHT

Cruel Dawn.

I practically ran the two blocks home, my head skimming over everything. Even thought I had finished work; I stayed and talked to Isaac longer than I had been planning. Surprisingly the topic moved past him and Harper being twins after a matter of minutes. I shouldn’t have snapped judged Harper after that, for not giving me the whole story. Why should he have? He had just met me. But I was curious as to the way that Isaac had gone around discussing it though, I was curious, I was and eager, to see how he would react if I was to bring it up tonight on our date.

By the time that I had finally left work it was too late to go into the city or even down the street to find out some appropriate to wear. Everything from today was running through my head so much that I couldn’t think straight, so in the end my outfit came from my own closet and not from over abuse on my credit card.

I slid my earring in place and my ensemble was complete. A quick once-over told me that I was acceptable to go out. I picked up my bag on the way out, and my coat. It was early November and the weather was already obscene. As soon as I got outside I could feel the harsh temperature of the wind pushing against my coat, it seeped through the fabric to  my skin it burned and dripped away. I walked up the street, pulling the collar of my jacket tighter around my neck. I made my way to the subway when my phone vibrated in my pocket, it was Ava, I hit the ignore button as I entered the subway. I scanned my card and waited to the L train.

I stood on the platform amongst the patrons, the train pulled into the station and I get on.

My seating choice was limited by and old man coughing, a woman meowing and a man watching me over the top of his paper. I sit at the back so I can get a full view of the train-car so I didn’t miss anything suspicious.

When I was first considering moving out to the city, my mom got me a brochure, not the kind that gives statistics about the number stabbings. It was the kind of brochure that displayed a bird’s eye view, but actually standing within the city surpasses anything that you see from up above. Something, however doesn’t, central park. There’s just something about it at night that creeps me out, maybe  it’s the trees to lamp post ratio, there’s just so many trees for the middle of Manhattan, my mother always told me to stay near light crowded places at night so that people can see me. But on my way to the Swedish Cottage Marionette Theatre I couldn’t shake my mother’s voice from my head ‘stay in the light, that way murders and rapist couldn’t get to you.’ It’s a great thing that the Swedish Cottage Marionette Theatre was surrounded by light and parents with little children. So I felt a little at ease, from my subtle thoughts of a poetic murder taking place by the Swedish Cottage Marionette Theatre, I mean who seriously picks that place for a first date? If it actually is a date. But Harper did have that kind of shiny hair and smile that could make a girl die over, not literally I hope. So when my mother gave me that brochure about Manhattan I went out and bought one myself, the kind that had stabbing statistics in it. Knowing they weren’t as high as I first thought then I felt as ease. Especially since I could see the Swedish Cottage Marionette Theatre ahead, and more importantly I could see Harper leaning against a lamp post. My eyes travelling slowly away from his handsome face, his tailored suite and Hugo Boss shirt, to something small, red and delicate in his hands.

A rose.

As I approached, and he saw me, the steps he took away from the lamp post closed the distant between us.

I leaned in and kissed him on the cheek, not hesitating showed him that I was fine with the situation, the closeness of him and the fact that we were out in public.  It was something I had read in a magazine when I was 15 something about how-to-ace-a-first-date, it had worked for me in the past. And so-far it seemed to do me well, he didn’t flinch and my maneuver earned me a smile.