recognize / b.simmons

4

ben saw amari the moment she walked in. he saw their intertwined hands, saw how that dress cling to her body and wished that her date, kyle kuzma, was him. wished that he was taking the dress off.

ben knew kyle from playing in the NBA, and the moment he saw them together, he made a promise to himself that he'd dunk on him every chance he got during the following season.

amari and bens eyes locked and bens eyes scanned her face, looking for a sign—anything— that would tell him something.

he saw nothing.

what amari saw was confusion and hurt and, jealousy, written across his face. and she felt guilty. she felt like she wanted to get up and walk over to ben and explain to him, but instead she turned around and acted like she was just taking in the room.

the plus side, was that kyle hadn't noticed ben and amaris stare down, that would've been awkward to explain and to witness, on his behalf.

the waitress comes back with their wine and pours each of them a glass and leaves the bottle on the table before she leaves. amari takes a much needed sip and rolls her shoulders back. she was on a date with a cute guy, not with ben, and this cute guy, kyle, deserved her attention, not ben. but she could feel bens stare lingering on her backside, which made it hard for her to completely focus on what kyle was currently saying, but she tried her best.

"and then i was like, "for what?" can you imagine that happening?" kyle asks, shaking his head and laughing. amari couldn't believe that, simply because she had no idea what he was talking about. her mind was somewhere else— on ben. oh how she tried to ignore him, but he was like fly, buzzing all around her.

she wanted to get out of here, away from ben, and into the car with kyle. she'd do anything right now to completely get over and ignore he fact that ben was sitting behind her, staring at her back.

it was getting harder to listen to kyle talk, the more she was focused on ben, she needed a way out. "pardon me, but i need to use the restroom," amari says politely before grabbing her purse and excusing herself from the table, nearly sprinting to the restroom.

once she was a safe distance away from her table, she pulled out her phone and immediately started texting nia.

amari: bitch..

amari: you won't believe who's here. txt me back when u see this!!!!!

she was so engrossed in her phone, that she almost bumped into a waitress, barely missing her by millimeters. thankfully, on the waitresses behalf, amari wasn't able to see the dirty look she had given her.

when her phone is safely back in her purse, it suddenly dawns on amari that she'll have to pass ben to get to the restrooms. fuck.

whoever is controlling her simulation must hate her.

amari takes a deep breath and puts on a confident walk; chest out, shoulders back, head up, and the slit on her dress showing some leg. it was her skill.

amari, by no doubt, is gorgeous, and everyone around her knows, as well as amari herself. she catches the approving stares of middle aged men and the scowls from their wives. young girls in the restaurant looked at her in awe, their brains already coming up with ways that the can embody amari.

but the one stare that's lingered a little too long, comes from the 6'10 guard sitting less than 30 feet away. his eyes haven't left her since she got up, and she knew it. she could feel it. time to face the music.

amari passed by his table with confidence only one could achieve. she acted like she didn't see him, or know him, for that matter. ben made t obvious that he was looking at her, which prompted his table to look amari's way. the more stares, the better amari thought.

amari successfully makes it the restrooms, which are behind a wall and across the way from each other. she quickly peeks around the wall to check on her date, and to her luck, kyle is busy messing on his phone.

she sighs and then pushes the bathroom door open, and her phone buzzes simultaneously.

amari walks over to the bathroom sink and digs her phone out of her small, white chanel bag that was gifted to her a few months ago by someone so unspeakable that it hurts amari to even think about. you'd think that she'd burn the bag or something, but when she sees it, all she sees is two C's. anyway.

nia: who??

nia: is it ben?

nia: it's probably ben huh..

amari: YES!!!!!

nia: OMG BITCH... wtf u gon do now??

amari: idk, but i need to get the fuck asap

amari puts her phone away when nia doesn't reply and then pulls out a tube of lipgloss. she unscrews the lid and then applies the gloss in a few quick swipes. good as new.

amari preps herself to see ben for the third time tonight, and pushes the door open with a deep breath, and to her surprise, ben is standing right there.

her eyes nearly bug out of her head. she wasn't expecting this. "what are you doing?!" she whisper yells, still half in the bathroom and half out. ben just looks and her with narrowed eyes.

"so, you can take other dudes out but can't go with me?" he asks, obviously hurt by amari. she bites the inside of her cheek to keep from saying something out of hand.

"so what? i'm not your girlfriend and you're not my boyfriend. go ahead and go on a date with some girl for all i care," amari says instead. ben scoffs and shakes his head.

"you're a trip, you know that?" he asks rhetorically, pushing off the wall and taking three quick strides to cross the distance between him and amari. she was still half in the restroom.

for some reason, bens close proximity makes her nervous, and it shouldn't. amari doesn't get nervous. "what?" is all she could manage. ben smirks and dips down so he's right next to her ear.

"i could do you so much better than he can."

——
A/N: AHHHH SORRY FOR THE FOOKING 4 YEAR WAIT