Cheeseburgers & Sweet Tea

T H R E E

T H R E E

kiss me -
the bareness of my neck
the fragility of my collars

trace me -
the curl of my ear
the geometry of my spine

choose me -
over &
over

                -anon  

................................................................

I now have an excuse to not go to the football game.

I need to get ready for my "date" with Jackson, according to Luce.

She twirls around my room, leaving a red blur in her wake as she squeals with excitement.

I swear she's more excited about this than I am. Then again, anyone is probably more excited for this than me.

"I can't believe you're finally going on a date with Jackson!" she falls back on my comforter. "After all these years of him pinning for you, Jenson finally cracks!" She sighs dreamily.

I get up and start to pick up articles of clothing that she threw out of my closet.

"This is not a date, Luce. This is simply an outlet for a free steak dinner." I say sternly, pointing a stiletto heel in her direction.

"Yeah sure." She sits up. "Tell that to Jackson's football jersey." She holds up the, now crumpled, blue and silver jersey that could double as a dress on me.

I snatch the shirt out of her hands and throw it underneath my bed.

"We will not talk of that."

"Fine," She sighs. "Then let's talk about what you're going to wear."

Luce perks up and starts rummages through the volcano of clothes sitting on my bed, messily thrown in my closet and littering the floor until she mumbled something about 'desperate times call for desperate measures.'

She pulls out a black strappy number from her purse and smiles expectantly.

The article of clothing is silky and clinging to my body all the way down to the ground where just enough material pools around my feet. There's a deep plunging v-neckline held upon my shoulders with two delicate strings. Not to mention the mile high slit running up the side of my leg aching to go past mid-thigh.

So not a dress I'm wearing on a date, especially with Jackson.

I voice my concerns.

"Just humor me, Jenson!" Lucy whines. "Pretty please with a strawberry on top!"

I roll my eyes.

.....

If there's one thing you should know about Jackson McCall, it's his horrible lack of taking a hint.

As soon as the doorbell rang all I could see were visions of $0.00 steak dinners prancing around. I didn't pay attention to the bouquet of dark ruby red roses that Jackson held in his hands, as I whisked by him to get in the car or the starry look he gave me as soon as he caught wind of the deep neckline and high slit in my dress.

I buckled up, beyond excited for this free treat.

"So I just want you to know" Jackson smiled as he maneuvered us out of my driveway. "I'm really happy that you're here."

I don't dare utter a sound as I focus my gaze straight ahead to keep the smirk from breaking through my lips.

And I'm happy you're here to pay for my meal.

"I didn't think you'd actually go out on a date with me, you know?" He cleared his throat and pushed his wavy hair out of his face. "But I'm glad, Jenson."

We pull up to the restaurant and Jackson rushes to my side to open the door, but I beat him to it, far too excited to eat.

He latches on to my hand and I'm about to break his wrist until I remind myself that a few more hours of this is worth it.

As we walk in, warm lighting engulfs us and the scent of spice and herb roasted meats swirl in the air, so different from Sweet Burger. Long rustic wooden tables cover the perimeter of the room and a brick fireplace is going in the background. Little globes of white light sparkle from the ceiling casting an inviting glow across the room, perfect for a date atmosphere.

I'm so entranced that I didn't realize Jackson had left my side.

I look around, trying not to get distracted by the sound of sizzling roasts and light care-free chatter. I spot him in a heated argument with a man who looks to be the manager.

"Is everything okay?" I mutter, surprising them both.

At the same time that Jackson is about to say nothing the man says that Jackson's card has been declined.

I raise my eyebrows in shock.

"I-I-I just don't understand." Jackson mumbles. "I've been working and my pay check goes directly to this card." He holds the small piece of plastic in the air.

I'm just as confused as Jackson is. The McCall's not having money is as absurd as pigs flying.

The manager gives his apologies as we leave.

"Sorry that um well you know." Jackson grips the steering wheel looking all types of embarrassed. His cheeks flush and he avoids eye contact.

I shrug, tucking a straight tendril of hair behind my ear. "It's no big deal." I mumble even though I'm beyond disappointed.

"I don't know if I told you tonight, but you look beautiful, Jenson." He looks straight into my eyes. "Although I do prefer your crazy curls." He laughs and starts driving.

.....

I sulk upstairs after Jackson drops me off at home.

"How was your date?" Lucy's fire-colored hair is a crazy mess as she sits up from a bean bag chair dragged in front of the television.

I fell down beside her and stole the bowl of popcorn she previously had in her lap.

"Well there was no steak dinner, Jackson was only mildly touchy-touchy, he apparently has a job and...oh! And McCall's card was declined." I stuffed a handful of popcorn in my mouth.

Lucy widened her eyes. "You mean to tell me that the Jackson McCall's credit card was declined?! And he's working?!"

"Yep." I picked up the remote-control and started to flip through channels. "I didn't even get to have my free steak dinner." I whined.

Luce muttered something about having to get home to feed her dog and I nodded absentmindedly.

I was still randomly flipping through channels until I realized something:

Lucy doesn't have a dog.