20th Birthday Part 1
April 20, 2009
I slide the back of my hand against my saturated forehead. The warm May weather has everyone in a craze to soak up the start of the summer rays before it really hits us with a vengeance. Today was supposed to be my day off, it being my birthday after all, but with all the richies in town flocking to the country club, I find myself out in the heat with the sweltering sun beating down on me. I usually work in the dining room but more people on the course calls for more girls in the carts. At least my skin is getting a nice bronze before going out tonight, and I'm making a shit-ton of tips.
Especially from all the frat boy types. With spring term finishing up everyone is hitting the partying even harder, including day drinking on the golf course. I finished up the last term with a bachelor's in journalism. I couldn't afford to go away to school and took classes online instead. Although I did rack up some serious student loan debt, I was able to overload my credits and finished in two years. Of course, all of those AP classes I took in high school helped out immensely. I might have survived on caffeine those two years and pushed through deliriously, but I'm done. So tonight I finally get to celebrate finishing school as well as my birthday. Tomorrow? I get to live the terrifying life of trying to be an adult. I don't plan on staying a waitress forever.
I finish distributing drinks to the leering old men at the fifth hole, or maybe it's the sixth? I've been out here all morning they're starting to blur. As the last man, who's old enough to be my father if not older, slips a fifty into my front pocket, I instinctually tug down on the short hemline of my shorts. The tips out here are great, but I constantly feel like I need to wash their stares off my body. I do not miss being a cart girl in the slightest. I hastily get back into my cart, not missing the lick of lips that big tipper gave me. I involuntarily shudder and slam my foot down on the peddle, getting myself to the next hole as fast as this damn thing will take me.
The next hole comes up quickly with a group of much younger men. They're all closer to my age which could be a blessing or a curse. I slow down and with a sigh, park the golf cart and hop out. Only a few more hours until this horrible day is over, then it's celebration time with Kyle. I just need to keep telling myself that.
"Hey, baby can you bring me a Corona?" A husky voice asks breaking me from my thoughts and reminding me what I'm doing out here. Serving the rich and entitled. And where does he get off calling me baby? I'm no body's baby.
I reach into my cooler, tempted to slide one of the ice cubes over my stifling body. Heck, it will probably bring me a few more dollars in tips. I grab the beer as well as an ice cube and sigh with the first touch of it to my temple. Although I'd love to bath my body in the ice chest, I instead drag the cube down the side of my cheek and throat and slide it down my chest. I'm so lost in my sudden blast of ice to my body that I don't even realize who's standing in front of me. With a clear of his throat, I pause and look up into the most gorgeous blue eyes I've ever seen. The same ones I've been dreaming about for years. Parker Townsend is standing directly in front of me and by the intense heat in his eyes and the way his eyes are locked on my breasts, I can tell he's enjoying the show.
I hand over his Corona and in a low throaty voice say, "Here you go, Parker."
He shakes his head, my voice breaking him from his trance and a smirk crosses his face. He reaches into his pocket and hands me some cash. "There you go, darling." Bringing the beer to his mouth he takes a long pull and liquid works its way down his throat. Damn, is it possible to be jealous of a damn drink? I guess when it's attached to Parker Townsend's mouth, the answer is always yes. "How did you know my name, sweetheart? I haven't seen you around here before."
His eyes drop down to my boobs and desire shoots straight to my core at the naughty thoughts he must be thinking about me. I'm already sweating my ass off but if he keeps giving me looks like that I'll burst into flames. I lightly shove his shoulder and electricity shoots through my body from my touch.
"Very funny. Like you don't know who I am." His eyes go wide as he slowly shakes his head. Can he really not tell? "It's me, Erika Takai. We graduated high school together."
The lightbulb clicks on he trails his eyes from my head to my toe and back up again. "Erika? Is that really you?" He checks me out one more time with a sexily slow perusal. "You sure have changed."
I giggle like an idiot as my stomach does somersaults. I've waited years for this day and it's finally here. I plan on relishing in this opportunity for as long as I can. My tight size too small polo and my short shorts leave little to the imagination and accentuate the change he's referring to. The way his gaze continues to linger on my body and my new assets confirms he likes what he sees.
"So what have you been up to since we graduated? Besides working here?"
I wave my hand at the course in front of us. "Oh this is so not my end goal. Just what I've been doing to pay the bills. I actually just graduated."
"You always were one of the smart ones," he says with a nod of his head.
Yep, that's me. Erika Takai the smart Japanese girl. I never had a boyfriend in high school because that's who I was. The smart girl.I cringe at his assessment and try to play it off and add in a little flirting. "I hope that wasn't the only thing you remember me for. I liked to have fun too."
He tilts his head to the side and asks, "Yeah? I don't remember you ever having any fun. You were pretty closed off and didn't talk much."
"That had nothing to do with not having fun. More of a lack of confidence."
"So you're more confident now?"
Oh shit. I did not mean to make it sound like that. I'm so far from confident it's not even funny. I shake my internal dialogue off and plaster on a fake smile while upping the flirting to Mach 10, okay more like a five or a three. Shit, I'm bad at this game.
"I'm getting there. And I know how to have a lot more fun than I did back then."
"Do you now?" His eyes twinkle. Why did I not know that he was this easy back then? He seemed so unattainable and I assumed he would laugh in my face if I tried to talk to him. Then again I didn't have the rocking bod that I have now back then. So he probably would have laughed in my face. Fortunately, I never tried so I don't have any asshole memories of him and this whole conversation is an okay in my book.
"Sure, I do. I actually have plans later on to celebrate." I add on to make it sound like I actually have a life. It's more like Kyle and I will get Chinese food and she scored a bottle of vodka or Malibu from one of the dudes she works with. No different from any other Friday or Saturday night of the week. Hey maybe we'll get a little crazy and get some Indian food tonight. Woohoo! We're dangerous ladies. I can't even keep a straight face as I think that thought.
"What are you celebrating?"
"Graduating for one, and also, it's my birthday today."
"Is that so?" His eyes travel up and down my body again as if in the last five seconds since he did that it's suddenly changed. Either way he likes what he sees and I like seeing that look on Parker when it's trained on me.
"It is. I'm twenty now."
"Well, I think you should cancel whatever plans you already had and come out with me tonight. I can show you how to have a really good time."
Inside I'm screaming and freaking out. He just invited me out. I can't believe this is happening right now. I feel like a teenage girl all over again and my crush is taking notice. I don't let him see this though as I plaster on an indifferent expression and ask,
"Is that so?"
"Hell yeah, it is."
"I think that can be arranged." Part of me wants to jump up and down like a lunatic but I'll save that for when he can no longer see me. Until then I keep up my persona and play it one hundred percent as cool as a cucumber.
"Give me your phone." Confused, I slide it out of my pocket and hand it over to him. He clicks on a few buttons and then hands it back over to me. "I just sent myself a text. Now I have your number and you have mine. I'll text you the address of the party when I'm done here, but now I need to get back before the guys get too pissy. See you later, Erika."
Oh my God. I can't wait to get home later and tell Kyle all about this. We are so going to party it up tonight. And I will spend all night with Parker fucking Townsend. Hell yeah!