Charlotte
Two seconds after Aidan drives away, I bolt down the street to Little Bennett’s, the town’s bar.
Water soaks into my shoes as I splash through puddles, but I don’t register it.
Within moments, I’m across the town square and bursting through the doors.
It’s always quiet on Monday evenings in this cozy bar, but it’s practically dead with today being Memorial Day.
There are only a few patrons huddling in one corner.
Nicole is leaning on the bar, scrolling through her phone. Georgie, her uncle and the owner, is sitting in the corner watching an episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation on one of the wall-mounted TVs.
“I have a date with Aidan!” I exclaim, except it comes out in a worded garble because I’m out of breath and too excited. Water pools on the floor
Nicole frowns. “What?”
Holding my hands above my head, I gulp in air before repeating, “I have a date with Aidan Talbot.”
Her frown vanishes, and her eyes light up as she jumps up, clapping her hands. “I’m so proud of you. You finally asked him out.”
I slide onto the barstool. “Why are you assuming that I asked him out? Maybe he asked me out.” I pause. “Actually, no. I think we asked each other. It was kind of weird.”
She rests her chin in her hands on the bar. “Start at the beginning. You guys set up a bunch of signs today, right? How did that go?”
“Pretty uneventful, we got the signs all set up.”
Nicole’s eyebrows rise. “And now have a date with Aidan. How did that happen? I’ll make you a drink. What do you want?”
My mouth parts. “I don’t know. Something yummy. My brain can’t think right now.” My mind is racing. What am I going to wear on Saturday? What topics should we talk about? Where should we go after we go to Triple C? Should I whiten my teeth? Should I shave my legs?
“Tell me while I make you something good,” Nicole remarks and starts pouring liquids. “I need to know everything.”
“It’s actually pretty boring,” I remark.
“I just sort of asked him if he liked getting coffee with people, and he asked me if I wanted to go with him. Now we have a date for Saturday.” I grip the edges of the bar.
“Wait, what if he didn’t think that I was asking him out on a date?
What if he thinks that I just wanted to hang out and drink caffeinated beverages?
” I palm my forehead. “Oh god, Nicole. I never said it was a date. What if he gets the wrong idea and brings Xander with him? What if he thinks this is just a friend hang out?”
She slides a tall glass filled with something pink in my direction. “He knows it’s a date.”
“Does he though?” I ask, sniffing the rim of the glass before taking a sip. “Because I never explicitly said it was. Oooh, what is this?” The drink reminds me of a fruit punch with no hint of alcohol.
“Hawaiian crush,” she replies.
“This is dangerous.” I take another sip and pull out my phone. “Should I tell Aidan that coffee on Saturday is a date?”
“Hey Georgie,” Nicole calls over to her uncle. “Come over here and give us an expert opinion.”
He groans and steps over to us, leaning on the bar next to her. Standing next to Nicole, the resemblance is clear. His red hair is streaked gray, and he has the same green eyes. “What do you want to know?”
“Charlotte has a question for you. A guy question.”
I peer at her. “I do?”
“Fine, I’ll ask.” She turns to him. “Let’s say a beautiful, intelligent, funny woman asks you to get coffee with her. Do you consider that a date?”
He scratches his bald head. “Do I know her socially, or is she my lawyer?”
Nicole takes another sip of her drink. “Socially.”
He shrugs. “Maybe. I wouldn’t want to assume anything, though, ya know. She might just want to be a friend. I don’t assume nothin’. You know what I say about assuming things.”
“It makes an ass out of you and me,” Nicole repeats in her gruffiest impression of his voice. “But would you at least hope it is a date?”
“Sure,” he replies. “Especially if I liked the lady. Why?”
She smiles and sings out, “Charlotte asked Aidan—”
“We asked each other out for coffee,” I interrupt. “But I didn’t tell him it was date.”
His brows knit and he crosses his arms and peering down at me. “Wait, he also asked you to get coffee? At the same time? How does that even work? Did y’all just speak at the same time?” He scrunches his nose. “How would you even hear each other?”
I nod. “We sort of just finished each other’s sentences. Does that make a difference?”
“Yes,” Georgie replies. “It sounds like a date to me. Especially if he likes you.”
Nicole gestures to me with an “I told you so” look. “Aidan does like you. He knows this is a date.” She sounds so certain.
Georgie peers at me over his reading glasses. “Who’d you ask out?”
“Aidan Talbot,” I reply. I hold my hand aloft to a height that might reach Aidan’s ears. “He’s tall, cute, wears glasses.”
He nods. “Doesn’t ring a bell. You got a picture of this guy.
” I take out my phone, and within a few seconds, I’ve pulled up a photo of Aidan from the Summerville High website.
Georgie squints at the screen before saying, “Oh yeah. This is the guy that comes in with Xander sometimes. Real quiet. He seems ok. Not like that old boyfriend of yours, Stephen Gott.”
Nicole and I simultaneously roll our eyes.
“Fuck that asshole,” she groans. “You know, he came into the café today. It was some surprise PR bullshit. Asked for the most complex drink ever conceived and demanded some picture with us. I may have snuck in some bunny ears.”
My eyes grow wide, and I stare at her before grimacing.
Georgie bangs the bar. “How dare he show his face here in this town! After all the shit he’s done. He came in here last week, and I nearly yelled at him. Especially after he blessed us in his name.”
“Wait, what?” Nicole gawks.
“Oh, he did that to you too?” I take a large gulp of my Hawaiian crush. “I might need another if we’re going to talk about Gott.” I lift the glass. “This is dangerous by the way.”
“Thank you.” Nicole snorts at my joke. “Yes, but hold up, what do you mean, he’s blessing people in his name?”
“You know how normal people say, ‘God bless you’ when someone sneezes?” I explain, and she nods. “Well, this jerk is going around saying, ‘Gott bless you’ when someone sneezes. He did it to me when I saw him. Like what in the actual fuck? I should’ve called him out on it.”
Georgie steps over to us, toweling down a bar glass in his hands.
“He did it when he came here. Weird as fuck. Charlotte, I love you like a daughter. Your father was my best friend, and I would bury a body for you. But I swear to God, if this Aidan is anything like Gott, I will be—I will be—” His voice trails off as he thinks, tapping his fingers against the bar. “I will be very disappointed.”
Nicole points at me, “She’s dating Aidan, now! He’s so much better than Gott.” She giggles. “Maybe Aidan is the blessing.”
I cackle, the alcohol warming my skin and making me feel lighter. “Oh, so much better. Aidan doesn’t bless people in his own name.”
Georgie raises an eyebrow. “When is the wedding?”
I wave him off. “We have a date on Saturday. A first date, so please don’t go planning my wedding.”
Georgie nods. “We only did that once and it was a disaster. Both the wedding and the marriage. Hey, do you want nachos?” He dips into the kitchen before I can reply in the affirmative.
Nicole snorts. “I love this town.” She whirls back to me. “But I am so happy for you, Charlotte! When was the last time you went on a date? Like a date that you were actually excited about.”
I shrug. “I have no idea.”
“It’s not cobwebs down there, is it?” she asks, her eyes dropping.
I push her shoulder. “That’s so icky. No woman would allow spiders to go anywhere near her vag.”
She rests a hand on my shoulder, caressing it gently with her thumb.
“But this is different. I can feel it. There’s something about the two of you.
I think you guys are going to be great together.
You should name your first child Nicole.
Or Nicola. Xander might demand the honor, but intervention was my idea. ”
“I’m not having babies.”
“Uncle Georgie, do you think Charlotte and Aidan should name their firstborn child after me?” Nicole asks when Georgie drops a heap of nachos in front of me.
“No. I don’t need another niece who thinks they’re a pop star every time they drink vodka,” he says with a snap before adding, “Eat, or else you’ll feel hungover in the morning.” He walks away.
“Nachos fix everything,” I moan as I practically inhale a chip. “I wonder if Aidan likes nachos. He likes pancakes. And he likes tea now.”
Nicole touches my arm. “Oh, that man is so cooked. You’re definitely naming your first kid after me.”
“Can I name my next cat ‘Nicole’ instead?”
“That’s what we were talking about, right?” She scrunches her nose and makes a face. “Wait, you didn’t think I was talking about actual children, did you?”