The last sane bloke in Chicago

Fiends with Benefits, Part II

Auto-posted at noon while I am on a flight somewhere over the Atlantic. More auto-posts coming, and I'll be returning tomorrow evening.

This is a continuation of Part I.

Wednesday came without much excitement, although I was looking forward to taking out Kari. I hadn't dated many people in the service industry (retail, in her case), and she definitely was cute and she definitely had an interest in the Sane one. Win and win, at least so far.

Since I didn't have many high hopes, I decided to go as casual as I possibly could: jeans, a simple dress shirt (it was COLD still), my current favorite spring jacket (tweed) and a decent pair of shoes that I hadn't worn out completely yet. I promised her an 8pm pickup, and found myself running early, giving me time to get the car washed inside and out. I love a clean car. My car is a massive piece of shit: 10 years old, dings and dents and rust and all that, but most people who have ridden in it know I have pride in my car, she's like my secret lover. I own a small share of a local car wash company, so I can get it washed twice daily if I wanted to.

The car wash happens to be about 10 minutes from Kari's apartment, so I zipped through there, had them do a quick hand-wax, shine up the tires and vacuum the fuck out of the inside. Perfection in 15 minutes. As I sped down Halsted, I realized I'd arrive at exactly the perfect time.

I pulled up at 7:58pm and miraculously found a spot right in front. Her apartment is an older building, about 20 units. I tried her cell phone but it went to voice mail, so I hopped out of the car and rang her bell after navigating the buildings that don't have their addresses prominent. I heard her door slam closed upstairs and heard her hop down the steps. I can usually tell a person's mood by the way they walk, and it was obvious that she was in a good mood.

As she came down the stairs, I saw her through the glass door. She was beaming, and she was dressed casually but cute. It's obvious she works at a shoe store because she was wearing jeans and a dress t-shirt, but she had gorgeous flats on. My kind of gal.

She opened the door and immediately gave me a hug. Whoa, easy there vixen. My hands wrapped around her slim waist and accidentally bumped on her ass. Tight. Nice.

"You smell good." Do I? "Yes. Is that cologne?" Nah, just my body wash. She looked at me after she released me. "Thanks for picking me up and being on time. Which car is yours?" I point to my beloved vehicle and she squeals. "I LOVE THAT CAR. Is that the same car that McRae drives?" My eyes widen about twice their usual size. How do you know who McRae is? "I LOVE that guy." Umm, me too. Man-crush for sure. Few Americans have any clue who you're talking about, and yes that's his car. "That's SO exciting."

We wander down her step and I let her into the car. As I close the door and walk around the front, I notice her checking out my ass. I have a big ass, but I think it suits my body. I've been told by numerous women that my ass and my hair are my only two good physical assets. Well, that and Little Fire Hydrant, but not because he's big, just because he's pretty. So be it.

I hope in the car and rev up my sweet mistress. We take off as the car lurches forward down the rocky street, undisturbed by the bumps and potholes of winter. "It does drive well. Wow." She's excited about MY CAR. "So where are you taking me?" I was thinking sushi, but if you're not into fish, then burgers for sure. "Oh, I like sushi but it's too expensive. Burgers are good." Too expensive? I'm buying, I asked you out. "No, I think I asked you out." Well, maybe initially, but I called you, therefore it's my treat. "That's not necessary." Of course it's not necessary, but it's the right thing to do. How about this, if you don't have fun, then we split the tab and we move on. "Ok, deal." She squeezes my forearm and giggles a bit. Oh, how I love a woman's giggles.

We chat a bit in the car: she's 26, went to college and was finishing her master's degree in something to do with kids. She's surprised that I didn't attend college, but I explained that I was lucky enough to learn more during my high school years than most. She accepted that answer and even told me that I seem way smarter than most. I'm not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing.

So we finally arrive: Kuma's Korner. Outskirts of Roscoe Village, some of the best burgers in town, and a great beer selection if that's your thing. "Ohhh, I've wanted to come here for months, but it's out of the way." It's a good place to go, but it's getting ridiculously popular and busy. "That's OK, I'm in no rush. I snacked earlier." Me, too.

I assist her out of The Car and she grasps my forearm again as she stands. "You're stronger than you look." Maybe. She smiles at me and THEN lets go. Whoa, hott. I love a woman's touch, especially a casual/tease touch like that.

We wander into Kuma's and it's not too crowded. It's cold so the outdoor patio is closed, so we leave our name and wait for a table. It's PACKED for a Wednesday night, but a table opens up in 10 minutes. We chat during the wait, both of us restraining from ordering a drink too soon.

"So what do you do for a living?" I'm a writer. "What do you write about?" Whatever I feel like. "And you get paid for this?" Not well.

It's been a goal of mine to downplay my income severely. I drive an old car, live in an old, tiny apartment, and wear designer clothes that aren't flashy or logo-oriented. Money can either attract gold-diggers, or it can turn off those who have none. It's important to downplay it, especially when dating.

"I hate working at the shoe store, but the pay is great, I'm treated like a manager, and it never gets too busy." Retail is hard, especially now. "I know, business is down, but we have so many regulars. It's a cute shop." I like it. Lena likes it.

"What's her story, anyway? Why don't you date her." We're not physically compatible, but I like her company. "Physically compatible?" Lacking chemistry and mutual attraction. "Oh, what doesn't she like about you?" It's not that direction. She laughs, a lot. Another touch.

I don't ask, but she offers that she isn't seeing anyone. I ask why not. "Guys either want to treat me like a slab of meat, or they get too lovey-dovey too quickly. No one knows how to take their time and just have fun." I heard that often. Do you at least date a lot, try different things? "When I meet someone, which is rare to none." Try internet dating? "Yes, and it's a failure. The guys are all so desperate for SOMETHING that they try too hard." Right.

We sit and look over the menus. She orders a draught beer, I order vodka on the rocks. "No beer?" It doesn't sit well with me. I casually check out her body without making it obvious and she's got a nice one: 5'5", great figure, good skin, nice eyes. Her teeth are imperfect, which drives me CRAZY. Sadly, no glasses and no jewelry. I love earrings and finger rings on a lady.

We talk more about a lot, with her leading the conversation and me prompting her to talk more. She doesn't pay attention to the crowd around us. I'm surprised that she doesn't pay attention to the 4 strapping gorgeous guys at the table next to us. Interesting.

She orders her burger, I order mine. They arrive in about an hour (it's THAT busy) and we both gobble them down, hungrier than we had realized. The conversation is smooth, there's a good amount of laughter but we cover some of the deeper topics. Politically we're 180 degree apart but neither has a problem with the other. Family-wise hers is quite simple and basic: mom and dad still married, a brother and a sister with her in the middle. Parents live in burbs with her older brother.

We cover her school schedule and she said she wants to finish her master's the next semester if time allows. I asked her if school got in the way of her dating. "Definitely. I just don't have time for a 'real' boyfriend I guess." I nod my head and she smiles. There's a definite understanding here. As the night progresses and the alcohol fills my head, it has the opposite of the usual effect: she's looking cuter and cuter. Alcohol usually makes women LESS attractive in my head, but I'm seeing things about her that I find absolutely adorable. She's fidgety on questions about dating, but completely confident on everything else.

We wrap up around 11pm, the bar jumping and the music blaring. "Want to go somewhere else?" she asks, also obviously annoyed by the masses around us. Sure, drinks or coffee?

"I have coffee at home, we can hang out on the couch and find a movie." Uh oh. Coffee and couch? This girl wants the Little Fire Hydrant, maybe. I hope not, I really can't handle another woman looking for a one night stand, something I'd never done yet.

Coffee is fine, couch is fine, movie is fine. "Just fine?" No, I mean it sounds like fun. "You're a hard one to penetrate, aren't you?" I don't think so. Do you take me as cold? "Oh, no, you're really passionate about things, for sure." PASSIONATE. There it is. My NUMBER ONE attraction in a person.

The tab comes and she lets me pay it without a fight. She does thank me, though, and I tell her I appreciated her company, so there's nothing owed in either direction. Her eye brow raises at that and she sends me an evil grin. Uh oh, trouble.

We wander to the car and she has her arm looped in mine. *swoon* She walks tall for her height, and she's beaming as we get to my car. I'm getting a little nervous, unsure of how I should handle myself if she tries to jump me. Even if it's just a person I fuck, I still like to get to know them a bit better. I hate to be used for just sex, thrown away. So far it's never happened, but there's always a first.

We zip back from Roscoe Village to her neck of the woods, and again there's a parking space right out front. 3 for 3 today, parking-wise. Again I help her out of the car and let her lead the way up her staircase towards her door. As she stops to get her keys out of her purse, she turns to face me, mere inches from my face since her stoop is small.

Then she kisses me. Hand in her purse, hand on the doorknob. Out of the blue. Whoa, good kiss, too. "I wanted to get that out of the way." Oh? She blushes. "Not that I expect anything, but I've been wanting to do that since dinner." Why? "You're good looking and I wanted to make sure you found me attractive." Would I have stayed at dinner for almost 3 hours if I didn't? "I don't know. Men are so odd, either total players or total losers." Women are the same. "I guess. I had fun, I just needed to know." I smiled, and then I blushed. She grabbed her keys and popped the door and we hopped up to the second floor, both of us happy from what was a really good, albeit short, kiss.

Wrapping up in Part III.

Posted by ChicagoSane at 11:15 AM

Labels: burgers, dating, kissing