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chapter ➝ thirteen type➝ real life ❝ definitely not a date ❞
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"HOW DO YOU KNOW ABOUT this vintage coffee shop?" Francine questioned as her hand stirred the spoon delicately, eyes scanning the entire place in awe. "It's really pretty."
The brick walls of brownish red and the semi-finished gray cement tiles as well as the old-fashioned stuff scattered around the place, making it even more classic.
The one thing that made her immensely fascinated with the place was the small library located at the back of the shop. Francine actually had an interest in reading books because other than it was the easiest activity to be a mere getaway from wrestling, it could also make her loosen all the muscles that have been working all week.
This week was pretty much tough for her. Francine got a shot to compete for SmackDown's Women Championship against Carmella, but she failed miserably after the match was interrupted by The IIconics. Even though it was also a part of storyline, nobody said that she was scheduled to lose.
Francine was absolutely bitter about that for the entire week, not until Chris asked her to visit New York. She realized that she needed some time to clear up her mind over the weekend and it was a perfect opportunity.
It took them almost a month later to finally be able to meet up again since both had their respective occupations, but secretly deep inside, they felt it was worth waiting.
Chris let out a quiet chuckle and stared at the woman across him. "Pretty sure I know New York better than you."
Francine's mouth shaped into an O as she placed a hand on her chest, pretending to be offended by his words. "Excuse me, you're this close to being cut out of my buddy list."
Chris laughed heartily before asking. "How's life?"
"Tough." Francine answered with a pout. "I was supposed to be a new champion, but the match was interrupted."
"Ah, honestly I rarely watch WWE before, so I mostly don't know anything about it." Chris admitted sheepishly. "I tried to catch up, but then again, I realized I was already very far behind."
"You've missed big time then." Francine joked, taking a bite of her Red Velvet cake before stating. "So, I took it that night you came because of either between Ivory or Calligenia's obsecration."
"Definitely not Calligenia, she's three months pregnant and wrestling is not her main thing." Chris responded, a laugh escaping out of his lips. "Ivory, on the other hand, is a huge fan. She was on a filming break that day, that's why she asked both of us to come with her."
"All your friends seems fun, makes me want to snatch them away from you." Francine told him playfully.
"Well, they were born to be fun." Chris replied, shrugging nonchalantly. "But, I'm much better than all of them."
They spent the whole afternoon asking about each other's life, getting to know each other further. Chris lied if he said he did not enjoy his time with Francine because frankly everything about her only attracted him even more. Maybe it was too soon to say that, but it was called feelings for a reason — no one could ever control and see it coming.
Every sentence molded out of Chris' lips, every breath he exhaled to make a smile prettify her lips, for some reason giving Francine an undefined comfort. A heart that no longer believed in the bravado of men seemed to have dissipated by his presence, and seeped into the splendor of his oceanic eyes somehow felt so right.
The spillikins of blissfulness hardly ever grazed herself after her breakup with John and since then, her life felt hollow and pointless because she had thought he was the man who would escort her to her old age. How could Francine not feel that way when at first John seemed so determined to spend the rest of his life with her? To sum it all up, Francine was completely a fool for believing that kind of false gesture.
But all of a sudden, this guy in front her came into her life. He wasn't invited, never — but, he managed to find a way to her, unwittingly awakening Francine's dying heart.
Chris was the book she never read, but surely he was the type of book she would keep on her nightstand every single day and night.
And the thought of it did put a sweet, genuine smile on her lips.
"So, was that a date?" Chris questioned after they both arrived at Francine's rental apartment.
Chuckling lightly, Francine glanced at him as she leaned on the counter in the kitchen. "Definitely not."
"Why?" Chris asked and dragged his feet to stand across her, imitating her pose on the other counter.
"I still barely know you."
"Okay." Chris breathed out, hands tucking inside the pocket of his jeans. "Who do you want me to be?"
"How about a friend?"
Chris laughed softly at her question for he knew it reminded him of his own movie, a sense of déjà vu directly flanking his mind as he stared deeply into her eyes. "There's a chance you might be in the wrong business, Lane."
Francine grew silence for a brief moment, furrowing her eyebrows in confusion before it hit her. "Did you just pull a Natasha on me?"
At the end of the day, the room was clamorous with their thunderous laughter. A situation that warmed her heart in ways a heater couldn't, a situation that made her lips exhausted because of the amount of smiles she excreted out all day.
Something that Francine Lane greatly longed to experience and out of nowhere, Chris Evans brought it for her.
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note! i know that this story takes place on 2019 but i'm still writing it based on what happened this year, so just imagine that carmella's been crowned as a champion again (quick fyi: carmella is still the current champ up to this day)
and also this fic will probably have only fifty chapters or sixty maximally because i have other books to work on and tbh having four on going books is enough to make me overwhelmed and drain all the ideas out of my brain, so this fic is going to have a bunch of time jumps, i'll let you know in every chapter
