Right Here

Chapter 10

"I hate it when women wear clothes like that." He said with a scowl. "I mean, can you have a little respect for yourself?" He laughed and I just stared at him blankly. This was my third date from that app in two weeks. I was hesitant to agree this guy in particular because something about him seemed a bit off and clearly, I was right. The entire night he had proven to be the poster boy for misogynists which begs the question of why he wanted to go on a date so badly when he clearly hates women. "No one is going to want you if you-."
"Excuse me for a moment." I couldn't take it anymore. "I need to use the restroom." I feel like he would have had a conniption if I said "ladies room".
"I.e., you want to gossip about me to your friends." He smiled slyly. "I personally think it's a bit rude in the middle of dinner, but you're cute so I'll give you a pass." I stopped myself from speaking in order to not hurt his feelings and cause a scene, even though he did not deserve that courtesy. I tucked my clutch under my arm and walked up to the hostess.
"Hi, I'm leaving. I would like to pay for my meal please." I said. She looked at me a bit bewildered. "My server was Amy." I handed her my card.
"Um, uh, okay." She said taking it. She walked back to I guess where the servers were stationed then soon returned with my half of the bill. I signed, thanked her, got my jacket from coat check, then left.

[Baek]: Hey, sorry for the late response. Still need help?
[Brielle]: You are so fake. ☹
[Baek]: haahaha I really am sorry. Was working ┐(￣ ヘ￣)┌
[Brielle]: I'm going to need you to stop working every weekend.
[Baek]: Long week
[Brielle]: Need a break?
[Baek]: yes please

I smiled and ordered my ride. We hadn't done anything since my birthday. It was the right distraction. When Monday came, we were back to how we always were. I was starting to be glad for our little arrangement. Now it was time for me to return the favor.

"Was it really that bad?" He lay on his side, propped up on his elbow with his head resting on his hand as he stared down at me.
"When I told him what I did for work, he said that women are terrible with numbers so it's surprising I held a job this long."
"What the fuck?" His jaw fell open.
"Exactly."
"Why didn't you leave after that?"
"Because someone didn't text me back." I teased. He laughed and flopped on his back.
"I'm sorry. But you ended up walking out anyway." He said looking over at me.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah." I rolled my eyes. "I wasn't trying to be rude but I had enough."
"I'm surprised you didn't have some choice words for him."
"He left me baffled. Plus, he wasn't worth it." I said. "Even if I cursed him out, he would have something stupid to say about women. He didn't listen to me all night so it wouldn't make a difference." I shrugged.
"I'm sorry you had to deal with that." He said.
"I think I'm done with online dating."
"I think you should keep trying. You never know."
"How about you practice what you preach?" I challenged.
"Fair point, but I'm not the one looking for a relationship." He shot back.
"Whatever." I playfully shoved him and he laughed.
"Oh, I almost forgot." He sat up and pulled on his briefs before walking over to his closet. He disappeared into it for a moment then reappeared with a garment bag. He stood at the end of the bed as I sat up curiously. He smiled and unzipped it. When I saw what was hanging inside, I couldn't help but laugh. "I couldn't really remember how yours looked exactly, but I thought this was close? And nice?"
"You did not buy me a blouse." I giggled.
"I told you I would." He said nonchalantly.
"Baekhyun, return that."
"No, I was serious." I had a feeling arguing wouldn't do anything to change his mind so I conceded.
"Thank you." I said. He smiled and laid the bag down at the bottom of the king sized bed before climbing back on and under the covers. "So what has you all stressed out this week?"
"Potential new client." He said. "We're trying to figure out if we can even take them on or not so we've just been diving into their company and we're starting to find things we don't like."
"So don't take them."
"They could bring in so much money though."
"And you'll have to be defending them every week if their history is as bad as you're making it seem." He ran his hands through his hair and sighed.
"You're right. And we know this. I guess we were just weighing the pros and cons as heavily as we can before we make a decision."
"Well, I'm sure you'll make the right one." We smiled at each other, just staring for a moment before I broke the silence. "I should get going." It was late and if I waited any longer, I would have fallen asleep. His bed was really comfortable. Plus, it was warm.
"Yeah, okay." He sat up with me. "Thanks for coming over."
"Thanks for the shirt."
"Oo, this exchange kind of sounds like something it shouldn't." I tilted my head at him in confusion as I pulled on my dress. He came behind me to help zip it up. "The exchange of goods for...you know." I took me a moment to register what he was insinuating.
"Oh my goodness. Stop it." I couldn't help but laugh and he joined.
"I'm just saying." He picked up my shoes and handed them to me.
"Should I be insulted?" I put a hand on his shoulder to steady myself as I slipped my pumps on.
"I didn't actually mean it. I just thought it was a...funny coincidence."
"Well, stop trying to be funny." I said. He pouted and I gave him a kiss on the cheek, smiling at him. He chuckled softly and walked me to the door. "See you Baek."