Page 45 of Perfect Date
He reaches out and gently touches my face near my recently placed sutures, meanwhileI’m still half naked.
“Hm, no signs of infection there; your skin isn’t warm to the touch.”
“I’m okay-“
“Well…symptoms can come and go so let’s not be hasty.”
“Uh huh.” My mind strains to process what is happening. He sounds like Google. In the interim, I hold onto his arms and allow my eyes to take in the sight of Justin standing in my room. He’s still wearing the same clothes from last night, of course, but they’re slightly rumpled. His feet are bare and his shirt is unbuttoned all the way down, with nothing underneath, exposing a lot of bare skin and muscle. He looks… edible.
I’m positive I’m warmer now.
I slightly sway, and slightly shift my weight to balance myself.
“Oh, you might be a bit dizzy. Should I carry you?”
Stumbling to respond, I blurt “I can’t believe you’re still here.”
“Of course I am,” he shrugs almost shyly and unsure of himself. It’s endearing. “The doctor said someone needs to keep an eye on you, told me all the symptoms to watch for in case you show signs of a concussion, suggested I wake you every two hours, which I did by the way. I looked up concussion symptoms online – you know, just in case I forgot anything I was told…and you said something to me about calling your friend…”
“Kimberly?”
“Yes, that’s her. But I wanted to keep an eye on you myself,” and rushes to add for the second time, “I checked on you throughout the night.”
“It’s not a big deal; only a couple stitches,” I tell him though a tingly feeling covers me from the tips of my toes to the very top of my head and I wonder if it’s in response to my injury or the fact he was worried and didn’t leave me even though he could have.
I know the answer to that.
“Thank you, for taking care of me,” I say almost shyly.
A smile suddenly lights up his face, “You appeared to sleep well,” he says and I realize his hands are still on me. “I mean, if the snoring was any indication. Unless that’s a normal habit.”
Putting my hands on my hips, I declare, “I do not snore.”
“I beg to differ, sweetheart.”
And then, it’s like he suddenly realizes I’m in nothing but my bra and panties and his eyes drag down my body, from the top to the bottom, incredibly slowly. Then they make their way, back up.
My body now feels like it’s on fire. I surely have a fever now.
He takes a step toward me, “Charlie,” he begins his voice husky, “Can I-“
“Well, well, well, look what we have here!”
Justin and I practically jump apart, the unexpected voice startling us.
“Kimberly?” I ask surprised at seeing her, my eyes wide, “What in the world are you doing here?”
“What do you mean, what am I doing here? You told me,” she stops and starts to dig through her purse. Justin looks at me, brows raised in curiosity, but I’m too shocked to see her here that I can’t even find the words. She finally digs her phone out of her ginormous bag, “Aha!” She begins to touch the screen, “Here it is. You said, ‘you’ll have to see me to believe me. So, since I was already on my way to the store, I decided to make a quick detour, and swing on by to see what you’re talking about.”
“How did you even get in here?” I ask overwhelmed by the big presence of my friend and dying to know what Justin would have said if she hadn’t walked into the room.
“I used my key,” she states matter-of-factly.
“Your key?” I ask confused.
“Yeah,” she looks at me like I’m stupid.
“How the hell did you get a key?”
