The Soldier And The Cabbie

Waiting For The Right Guy

January 20, 1942 ~

          The bar was hopping, even though it was pretty well out in the boondocks, and the music was booming. Bucky had been dragged away by a pretty girl with blonde curls who, once again, had plenty of energy and plenty of friends to trade him off to. Steve didn't mind so much this time, however, because he knew Elaine was coming. She was a bit late, but the girl kept her word whenever possible, and she always found a way to communicate if she couldn't make it. She did not disappoint, walking in about five minutes late decked out in a yellow dress and black heels. Yellow was her favorite color, and it was definitely growing on him. Had been since she pulled up in that cab months ago.

    "You made it!" He called, catching her eye, which had been roaming the bar looking for him. Elaine smiled, walking over to sit at the high-table he had grabbed for them to sit at.

   "I said I would, didn't I? You picked a good joint to party at, too!" Steve chuckled.

    "Well, I just picked whichever party had the least people who ever beat me up. To be fair, most of them were fights I started anyway." Steve laughed, and Elaine tried her best to join in, changing the subject almost immediately. She hated how much he got hurt, even if she knew he had a good reason to be fighting in the first place.

    "Where'd Bucky get dragged off to?" Steve rolled his eyes.

   "Some blonde who really likes to dance. I guess her friends do too." He pointed to where Bucky was trapped in a sort of circle of the blonde girl and her friends, looking both tuckered out and a little freaked out by how much energy the girls had. The pair laughed at their friend, staying off the overly-crowded dance floor for now. Eventually, Steve turned back to Elaine. "You want something to drink?" She thought about it for a second, then nodded, smiling.

   "Yeah. Yeah, sure. Why not?" Steve smiled, amused at her almost hesitant answer.

   "I'll be right back. Don't wander off, ya hear?" She laughed, saluting.

   "Yes, sir!" Steve rolled his eyes, chuckling as he walked toward the bar. Elaine smiled at his retreating back, turning back to watch Bucky's attempts to leave the circle, only to agree to another dance. She rolled her eyes at his antics, looking at the army leaflets on the table. When she looked back up, a tall boy with reddish-brown hair and brown eyes slid next to her. She ignored him for a while, assuming he was waiting for someone, until he spoke.

   "Hey, sweetheart. You here with anybody?" She nodded curtly, already annoyed at the slimy tone of his voice. It was the sort of tone every girl has a sort of built-in alert system for.

   "Yes." The boy gave a sort of chuckle, one that made her want to cringe.

  "You wanna head out with me instead?" 

  "No." The guy blinked, taken aback by the simple response.

  "Why not?" She rolled her eyes.

  "I don't owe you an explanation, pal. I said no, so get lost." The boy tried to pull back to his smarmy attitude, smirking as he looked at the disinterested female.

  "C'mon, doll-face. Who's the guy you're taking over me, huh?" She returned the smirk, though in a much different attitude. She turned towards the bar, where she could see Steve waiting for the bartender's attention, unfortunately right out of his sight. 

   "He's gettin' drinks." The guy followed her gaze, laughing when he saw Steve. 

   "That's him? The scrawny thing by the bar?" Elaine nodded.

  "Sure is, and I'm damn glad about it. Now, if you'll excuse me, he's coming back, and I don't want to deal with you anymore." Steve walked up to them, ignoring the guy next to her.

   "Bartender's busy, and kinda rude." He eyed the guy out of the corner of his eye, already disliking him. A burst of confidence filled him, and he spoke up again, looking directly at Elaine. "You wanna dance?" She grinned and, much to his surprise, took the hand he offered her.

   "Let's go!" As they walked off, the guy called after her.

   "Don't you want my name or something? In case you change your mind?" Elaine didn't look back as she answered.

   "Nope!" The pair walked to a corner of the dance floor, laughing lightly at the previous situation. Steve turned to Elaine after a moment, confused, and spoke as the bartender changed the record.

   "Why'd you even agree? You never dance with anyone, and I know it wasn't 'cause of that guy." She smiled softly, looking up from the ground and into his eyes as the music started up again, a slow song they began to sway to without really noticing.

   "None of the others caught my eye. I guess I was just waiting for the right guy." The pair didn't break eye contact as they swayed to the rhythm of the music. Steve smiled back, his confidence keeping intact.

   "The right guy, huh?" She nodded, and the pair both smiled again. Steve took a deep breath, and decided it was high time he said what he felt. "Laney, I'm no ace at this sort of thing, so I'm just gonna come out and say it. I'm crazy about you, have been for a while, and I want to ask you on a proper date if you wanna go." She grinned at him, her eyes lighting up like they always did when she was happy.

  "I'd like that. And by the way, I'm pretty crazy about you, too."