You wrote "Don't Forget"

Chapter 9- That's What Friends Are For

That night when I went back to my apartment, I was looking forward to many things. I was looking forward to a good night's sleep, some home-delivered meal and finally taking a long, hot shower.

What I wasn't expect was a very determined Jane opening the door for me before I could even ring the doorbell.

I jumped back, holding a hand to my heart. She just grinned at me.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?" I bellowed, still trying to calm down my thundering heart.

"You gave me the spare keys for the apartment, can't I just come here if I wish so?" She asked, cocking an eyebrow. She spoke that sentence as if she dared me to say no. I gulped.

"That key is for emergencies!" I hissed, stepping into the apartment and closing the door behind me.

"This is an emergency!" She said, wearing a sly grin. I raised my eyebrows.

"Really? What kind? I neither see any fire nor a homicidal man chasing you."

"This is a heart emergency." She said, smiling innocently. Only a fool would believe that smile.

"Well, you don't appear to be having a heart attack."

"How very observant of you." She said, smacking my hand lightly. "This is a love emergency. You, my dear Tetris, are going on a date tonight."

"WHAT!" I exclaimed, my eyeballs almost popping out of their sockets.

"I'll take that as a yes." She said with a wink, moving into the kitchen - leaving me in the hallway, gaping after her.

"I- No! Jane!" I protested following her inside. She just rolled her eyes, grabbing an apple from my fridge.

"Tetris, save it. You are going on a date with Alejandro whether you like it or not. If you do not text that boy, asking him out right now, I will make sure that your towel picture is all over the internet." She casually threatened me, biting her apple. "And since you are no Calvin Klein model and have an army of vengeful ex-es, I am curious to see how that turns out."

"YOU WOULDN'T DARE!" I exclaimed, my eyes going wide.

"Try me," She said.

I knew Jane well enough to know that she would definitely do it. I swallowed and took a deep breath.

"Okay," I breathed out. "Okay." She gave me a satisfied grin.

"Ask him out today. I guess Regent should work."

"REGENT IS EXPENSIVE!"

"Do you want me to send the picture then?"

"Okay, okay I will comply with your stupid request even if it does cost me half my paycheck."

She patted my cheek. "I knew you would, honey."

She watched me closely as I texted the guy I had a one night stand with. She would have preferred if I called Alejandro but none of us wanted me to stutter or get lockjaw as soon as he picked up. So instead I sent this:

Hey, it's Tristan. Remember me? Well, I was wondering if you'd like to grab dinner today at 9 at the Regent.

Please say no, please say no.

Alejandro: Of course :) How could I say no?

Dammit. I was about to type 'meet you there' but Jane took my phone out of my hand before I could do so.

Jane (with my phone): Pick me up at my place?

Alejandro: Sure

She texted him the address.

"Why did you call him here?" I asked, panicking.

"Because my dear Tetris, I want you both to share the scenic late-night drive to Regent. And also because I wanna see what car he has, cars are a good way to judge someone. If he spent crazy amounts of money on a vehicle when he could have had a perfectly fine one at a cheaper rate, I'd say he isn't the man for you. Wouldn't want you marrying a spendthrift now, would we?"

I hoped to God that he owned a Porsche. 

"What are you waiting for? Get your butt in some fancy clothes."

Seeing as my best and only coat was still stained with soup, I put on a simple black button-up shirt and some decent dark pants. No tie, who the hell wore a tie at a date-nope- dinner. Nope, it wasn't a date. Definitely not a date. Just a dinner with an acquaintance.

An acquaintance you have seen naked, my brain helpfully chimed in. I shook my head, trying to get rid of the hazy memories which made my cheeks flush pink.

I couldn't do this, I just couldn't. Before I could full-on back out, Jane barged into the room and after spraying me with generous amounts of cologne gave me a once-over.

"Not bad." She said.

"Thank you, that definitely makes me feel good about myself." I said, rolling my eyes.

"Hey," She said, all the humor and sass had disappeared. She hugged me. I was taken aback but hugged her back, nonetheless. I had no idea how she knew that I needed that hug. Maybe she was some sort of mind-reader. I made a mental note to censor my thoughts in front of her, just in case.

"It will be okay, Tristan. Just don't think about it. Everything will be okay." She whispered, holding me tightly. I nodded, taking a deep breath.

"I believe you." I said, with a smile.

The doorbell rang and immediately, I lost all my belief and confidence.

Jane pushed me towards the door before I could do anything. She stationed herself at the window where she had both a clear view of the door and outside, but no one could see her. She was sneaky, you had to give her that.

I gripped the handle. My mouth went dry.

"Open it!" Jane whispered. I didn't do anything. I just stared at the door, a thin trail of sweat starting to drip from my forehead. I couldn't do this...

"Tetris, do it now or else-" Jane said, through gritted teeth. That did it.

I turned the doorknob and pulled.

I breathed in, looking at the man who stood before me. I hadn't looked at him clearly before. I had been drunk and hungover and embarrassed. This might have been the first time I actually, really looked at him. My mouth hung wide open.

His light brown hair were a bit on the longer side, locks spread all over his head like a crown. His cocoa brown eyes were melting into mine, twinkling as he looked at me. A rugged trail of stubble covered his face. 

Why the hell was it suddenly raining hot men in my life?

"Hi," He said, with a big grin.

"H-Hi." I mumbled.

"Shall we?" He asked, gesturing outside. I nodded.

Together, we left my house. My heart sank when I saw his car.

A Toyota Corolla....too reasonable. Oh no..oh no no no. There was no hope left for me.

This meant this could actually turn out to be a thing. I couldn't let this happen. Nope.

So, as I climbed into his car which smelled like strawberries, I decided that I would make this the worst date of the century.