When her alarm clock rang, Tory was prompt to get out of bed. She ate half a grapefruit and an egg white omelet. She then dressed in a pantsuit that accentuated her breasts but downplayed her 'everything else.'Looking in her vanity mirror, she styled her hair then set it with hair spray, applied lipstick and a bit of eyeliner. She looked at her watch knowing that she had plenty of time to catch her 'regular bus'...and then chose to relax with a cup coffee instead. Confidently, Tory slipped on charcoal pumps to match her suit and strolled down the street at a leisurely pace. She sat on the bench and actually waited for the bus to arrive. There would be no entertainment at her expense today!When she stepped onto the bus, the first thing Tory did was to look for her favorite bus passenger and wasn't disappointed. He was in his usual seat. She sat down next to him before paying her fare, pretending to search for change.He turned slightly in his seat. "Good morning." His voice was
The next morning when the alarm went off, Tory thought fleetingly of calling in sick. She felt sick; her stomach was empty from skipping dinner the night before, but more than that her heart felt empty. So what if a man that she barely knew wasn't flirting with her? Only that it had made her so happy to think that he was and now that the feeling was gone, there was nothing else.Big deal; except that it had made her think back to high school when she liked some stupid jock or some egotistical popular guy who wouldn't notice her in a million years. And that is why she had cried herself to sleep last night.Dragging her pathetic self out of bed, Tory showered, then ate some toast and drank some juice in order to stop her stomach from complaining. Go to work, Tory, she said to herself. You have been late far too many times to just take off over some self-pity crap!Moving into action she thought about the late bus and having to see Lee. She didn't want that! She didn't ever want to see
"I'm nice too. Stop trying to scare her away." He was joking but his words caused Tory's heartbeat to quicken. "Tory, this is my sister, Macey. And Macey, this is Victoria; Tory.""Sister?" Her mouth was hanging opened. If Macey noticed that she was acting oddly, she hid it well, asking if she wanted lemonade to which she just nodded silently. Macey hurried away with a slight bounce to her rounded posterior.When they were alone again Lee stared at her intently. "I have four sisters. Two of them own this restaurant and the other's work for them. I eat here almost every day." He smiled. "I grew up on this cooking, so I guess I'm addicted to it, I'm not sure if that's an endorsement or not." Sister. She wanted to kick herself. Lee's sister returned with fresh lemonade for her and an iced tea for him. "Do you know what you want?" She asked Tory who was trying to understand the question, her mind still addled at her huge mistake."Oh!" She hadn't even looked at the menu."Shall I
Maybe she would kick herself for this later, but the answer to that one simple question was the most important thing in the world to Tory right now. "What made you even notice me? I'm sorry if I'm putting you on the spot-""It's not that." He turned to face her again. "It's just that I'm not usually this forward. I mean, I don't know anything about you yet...and the answer to that question might offend you."Offend her? She didn't know if she should prompt him to continue, or not. But she remained silent. His hands clasped in his lap and he sighed deeply. "I noticed you because you run for the bus every day.""What?" She looked at him in confusion.He sighed. "You run for the bus every day and when you get on you sound like you've just made love...and have been thoroughly satisfied." Tory's heart jumped in her chest, her cheeks flamed. He continued. "The first time I heard that...I could barely stand up to get off the bus. I look forward to that sound every day, Tory. And then,
Tory chuckled. Lee had a sense of humor and he didn't seem to view his blindness as an untouchable topic. They came to the curb marking the end of the block and Tory abruptly stopped walking. "Okay, in about three steps from here we're going to come to the curb."Lee's lip curled in amusement."Thank you, Tory. Just take the step first and I'll follow." She did and smoothly he followed. She gave him an impressed look."What?" He asked, turning to her. She was speechless. Sometimes like this, it was like he could really see her. "How did you know that I was looking at you?"Once she had guided him back to the next curb and stepped onto the walk, he stopped and turned to her. "Close your eyes." She did, after a slight hesitation. "Are they closed?""Yes." He didn't speak. She concentrated on the darkness. Then she felt something move past her face and her head flinched back a fraction of an inch."Did you feel that?"Tory opened her eyes, "Yeah. What did you do?""What did it f
The next day, Tory intentionally missed her normal bus. She wore a dress that complimented her curves and slipped on comfortable heels. Even though her feet protested due to all of the walking she'd done this week, she figured it would okay since her bus stop wasn't far from any of her destinations. Besides, bigger girls looked great in heels; especially if they knew how to do a model walk, and she'd practiced perfecting that long ago.When she saw the bus rounding the corner, she stood up from her seat on the bench, her heart pitter-pattering in anticipation of seeing Lee again. Her cheeks grew warm as she remembered the fantasies that she'd had about him the night before. He was sitting in his regular seat and Tory hurried to grip the pole since she'd figured out the bus driver's game."Hi, Lee." She said shyly."Good morning." He smiled. "Let me put your money in and you can sit down here by me." His hand was held out and she dropped the coins into his waiting palm. His movement
"Yes. I paid online." Lee responded. He gave his name and she slid two tickets to them. Tory retrieved them and then led them down a short flight of stairs. The music was already loud before they had even entered the room and the beat was thumping! She liked it already. The club was popular, that was evident. Even at barely six thirty there were a lot of people on the dance floor. It was a mix of all kinds of people; black, Latin, whites and there was no specific age. She saw younger college age men and woman just as she saw more mature couples. The one constant is that they loved moving their bodies wildly to the Reggaeton beat. She led him to a small round table that wouldn't be large enough to hold her elbow.He sat down and briefly placed his hands on both sides of the round table before leaning towards her and speaking over the loud music. "Do you want a drink?"She didn't drink much since she didn't do much socializing and drinking alone was no fun. "A wine cooler would be
"May I have this dance?"She sputtered, expecting this but still not prepared to shake her 'stuff' on the dance floor with people watching. "Guys usually say that when there is something slow playing..." The current song had a funky, hiphop beat and the band members were chanting something in a foreign language. The crowd had picked up the chorus and was chanting along. She placed her hand in his and came to her feet."What are they saying?" She asked as she led them to the dance floor."I...uh...better not say.""Oh my goodness." She stopped when she found a place where she hoped they wouldn't get trampled. "Watch me." He brought his arms up, clapped his hands repeatedly and began gyrating to the beat...just like everyone else. His hips moved seductively, yet to the tempo of the music. Then he slowed his movements down a bit and reached out for her. She placed her hand in his and he put his other hand on her hips."Do what I do!" He yelled above the music.She watched the way hi