TiredFingers
Spraying far'n'wide
- Joined
- Apr 1, 2017
- Posts
- 438
Explanation: This is a conversation/interaction primarily between two characters from the roleplay, "Helping Out". We are writing this here because it is easier, to both write and read.)
Charlie Reed with Claudia Owens at dinner at The Modern Hotel, in the Town of Toland
Saturday, March 22, about 7:30pm:
(OOC thread for the main story. You can find profiles and more here.)
Charlie was verbally silent at dinner. At the same time, voices were screaming in his mind about what had happened yesterday, had happened earlier today, and with any luck might happen tonight. Claudia had practically attacked him with her lips in the basement of the hotel, then again at the top of the stairs. And he'd thought the kiss at Roxanne's Cafe had been all the intimacy he might ever get from the beauty.
"You're getting good at that," she'd told him.
Charlie's face had exploded in red as he meekly responded, "Thanks. I'm trying." He didn't know whether or not to tell her that everything he knew about kissing had come from her or not. It made him sound like a sad, naive virgin. Sure, he was one, but he wasn't going to confirm that with her, was he?
She'd excused herself to get ready for dinner, and Charlie had run outside, mounted his bike, raced home, and done the same. He returned to The Modern slower, not wanting to break out in a sweat. He'd put on too much of his father's aftershave, even though he himself didn't yet shave, and had had to shower again to get the overwhelming stench off him. Even after the second bathing, he could still smell it, but his mother had told him he'd be fine.
Now, for the past half hour, he'd sat next to Claudia in total panic. She'd told him "I have to make myself pretty before we go out." Go out, she'd said. They were going out, on a date. Right? Was that what she'd meant?
Charlie had hoped so, and for the last thirty minutes he'd nibbled at his food and limited his fluid intakes to prevent needing to pee and leave Claudia's company. The dinner was still going strong, with some of the regulars and two guests who hadn't been here the previous two nights. That was one of the wonderful things about Maxine's dinners: you never knew who might show up.
"We need to go," Charlie suddenly blurted out right in the middle of a conversation between some of the adults. When all eyes shifted to him, he continued, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to interrupt, really. But, well, they're showing a movie in the Community Center at City Hall tonight, and it starts at eight, so, we need to go if we're going to get good seats."
"How?" Mark asked. He clarified his inquiry, "How are they showing a movie? You don't mean on a big screen TV."
"No, on a wall ... or a screen, I mean," Charlie said. He explained that someone had bought a WiFi/Bluetooth units that connected to laptops and projected movies onto any vertical surface. "It's only two bucks, and I hear they dug out the popcorn machine from the high school concession stand and they're gonna have--"
"Go, go!" Mark cut in, shooing the boy from the table. Charlie had already shyly told him that he was going on a date with The Modern's housekeeper. "Go get your seats."
Charlie hopped up, exchanged farewells with the others, waited for his date to do as she needed before leaving, and headed out to the public area of the lobby. It was only now that, a bit embarrassed, he apologized, "I'm sorry, Claudia. I didn't tell you what I had planned. My mother--"
He stopped, drawing a deep breath at his further embarrassment of bringing his mother into his explanation of his dating plans. Charlie grimaced, then continued, "I was told that, as the man, I should make the plans. But if that's wrong, you can decide what we do."
Charlie understood more than most men and guys did that this was no longer just a man's world. Men might like to think it was, but his mother had raised him better than that.
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