31 Days

Day 6

Day 6 – Write a scene where you absolutely love the outfit one of the characters is wearing.

Object of Desire 

            On this particularly gloomy, rainy day, some would say that she was foolish for wearing such a lightweight summer dress. Cole, on the other hand, thought she was the most intriguing woman he had watched in years. Usually by this time he would have done a bit of digging to find out about the personal details of his object of desire’s life, but not this time. To make things different and interesting, he decided to keep this new woman mysterious. It was a challenge for him to simply observe when all he wanted to do was find out her name. It would be so easy to do. He could do it that moment if he wished, but his mind was already made up. These strict rules he had set up for himself somehow made it all the more fun. So, Cole held himself back and watched the nameless woman from across the street.

            Her dresses in this awful weather were what had first drawn him to her. Today’s dress was bright yellow and short, the skirt hitting just above her knees, showing off her long legs. Cole admired how her dress moved with every step. Gorgeous. She was simply beautiful. The yellow of her dress made her look sweet and innocent. At the same time, there was something off about her. He knew there was something special about this woman. Maybe it was the way she carried herself, or the way she scanned the perimeter before sitting down in the diner, or her strange clothing choice, or perhaps he was looking for something that wasn’t there.

            He could clearly see her through the window as he sat on a bench, pretending to read a book. She was across the street in a booth at the diner. Her menu hid her face as she read it. Cole anxiously waited for her to put the menu down, so he could study her flawless face once again. He imagined their eyes meeting from across the road. She would want to talk with him because he would surely be familiar to her, comforting even. She would start to gather her things so she could go meet him, but he would disperse into the shadow by that point. Soon, but not now. They would meet in time, and he would finally learn her name as well as everything else about this intriguing creature.

            His daydream instantly broke as soon as he realized what was happening in the diner. A man had come out of nowhere and was sitting across from her in the booth. What was the meaning of this? How dare this man try to pursue his woman? Cole wondered how the offending man would react when his object of desire told him to leave her sight. But, wait. He squinted to make sure his eyes weren’t deceiving him. She was smiling rather than telling the man off.

            For a half hour he stared at the two of them, grinding his teeth together. It was ridiculous what she was doing. It seemed as if she didn’t care that he was watching this betrayal occur. The two of them stood up after paying for their meal and walked out of the diner hand in hand.

Enough was enough, he thought. He started following them as they walked, making sure to keep a good distance between them. Soon she and the man entered her house. This only fueled his anger. He didn’t want to cause a scene, so he decided to wait for the man to exit the apartment before giving him a stern talking to. He had to realize his mistake and Cole would make him pay for it. His woman would be excused, but just this once, and only because it was too soon to meet face to face.

To Cole’s dismay, the man hadn’t left several hours later. It was dark now, and he was not sure what to do anymore. Horrible thoughts crossed his mind as he sat on the wet sidewalk. What if she allowed him to stay the night? What were they doing now? He could hardly keep himself back from breaking into her house.

Just as Cole was standing up, the woman emerged but without the man. Cole hid behind a parked car, confused, as he watched her open the trunk of her car. He grew even more curious when she went back into her house, dragging a large object on her way outside again. The object, he realized, was a rolled up rug. He was close enough that he could hear her softly humming as she stuffed the rug into her trunk. It was a lovely sound that made him want to hear more. Cole was amazed at what he was witnessing, and not just her humming. What an interesting secret his object of desire was keeping. And now both of them knew her secret.

She drove away without noticing him hiding behind the neighbor’s car. It was at that moment when he knew it was time. Cole was going to finally learn his woman’s name, just as soon as she arrived home again. He entered her house smiling, walking past the bloodstained carpet. He happily waited on her living room couch for her return. Just a little bit longer, he thought.