Nicolas

“Nick, you shoulda seen the legs on this girl. Man, they went on for forever! She almost looked like Baby Girl’s twin!” said Chico as he looked over the menu. Every Monday, Chico and I met for lunch at TGI Friday’s to recap our weekends. “If I wasn’t with Meeka and if that girl wasn’t an employee, I woulda tried to hook up with her myself.”

“She sounds nice,” I replied. I was only half listening to my boy because I was still thinking of Layla. Chico’s comment about long legs made me think back to Layla’s pretty caramel stems. I couldn’t wait to see her again at our dinner date tonight. I was so lost in thought I barely heard him calling my name.

“Earth to Nick. You gon’ order or what?” my friend asked urgently.

Our previously nonexistent waitress stood by the table impatiently. Popping her gum, she asked, “Did you need more time, sir?”

“Nah, I know what I want,” I replied. “Just bring me a large Coke, please.”

As the waitress walked away to put in our orders, I noticed the look Chico shot my way. “Is that all you want, man?” he asked.

“I’m saving my appetite for my date tonight,” I grinned.

“Date?” Chico sat back in disbelief. “Mr. Celibate-Til-Marriage is going on a date?”

“Are you saying that I can’t go out with a beautiful lady?” I asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Nah, man,” said Chico in his defense. “It’s just that I’ve been trying to hook you up with somebody… anybody for the longest. Then the one time I leave you alone, you go off and find someone on your own! So when do I get to meet this young lady?”

“Can I get past the first date, please?” I said with a smile.

“Sure. And if things don’t work out, I can try to hook you up with our new girl, Layla,” Chico suggested.

My eyes nearly popped out of my head. “Layla? Layla Michaels?”

Chico looked at me in surprise. “Yeah. How did you know her last name?”

“That’s the name of the young lady that I’m meeting tonight. Well, we’ve already met. I fixed her flat tire this morning. She said she was late for her first day at work.”

“Yeah, she was late,” said Chico with a chuckle. “Man, as big as St. Louis is, sometimes it seems just like a small town.”

“I feel ya, bruh,” I said as our waitress returned with our drinks.

After the waitress walked away, Chico said, “So, you two are going out tonight?”

“Actually, she’s coming over for dinner with me and Kya,” I said before sipping on my Coke.

“How is my little goddaughter doing?” asked Chico. “I’ve been meaning to come and take her off your hands so she can spend some time with Meeka, Meechie and me.”

“She’s good,” I said before gulping my drink down to the ice. “Growing like a weed. Looking more like her mother every day.” A melancholy smile briefly touched my lips as I thought of Kya’s mother, Malia, who died shortly after giving birth.

“Why don’t Meeka and I keep her tonight?” Chico offered. “That way you and Layla could have a nice quiet evening together to get to know each other without interruption. Besides, are you sure Kya’s ready to see you with a woman?”

“You’re right, man. I was so excited about seeing Layla again that I didn’t stop to think of how Kya would react,” I admitted. “Thanks for the offer, Chico. I just wish I had Layla’s number so that I could call her and tell her about the changes.”

“Call the office. Leave a message with Lisa for Layla to call you,” suggested Chico.

“Won’t she think I’m stalking her?” I said with concern. “How would I know where she worked if she never told me?”

“Good point.” Chico rubbed his chin while he thought for a moment. “Let me see your phone.”

I held up my phone and waved my hand over it. In a high-pitched imitation of a spokesmodel’s voice, I said, “See. It has buttons with numbers on them. And if you push them in the right sequence, you can call somebody.”

“Ha ha, Mr. Funny Man. Give me the phone,” Chico said as he held out his hand.

After I slid my phone across the table, Chico picked it up and made a couple of calls. The first one was to his girlfriend, Meeka. As he pushed END, Chico said, “Meeka said she’s cool with Kya coming over tonight. Now let’s see if Layla is at the office.”

While Chico was on the phone, our waitress arrived with his food. Before she walked away, I touched her arm and said, “I’m sorry about earlier. I realize you are very busy and didn’t need me taking up your time.”

Her face softened. “That’s ok. It wasn’t that big a deal. I figured you’d want your usual order but I didn’t want to assume.”

I raised an eyebrow. “My usual order?”

“Yeah,” she said blushing. “I serve you guys every Monday. You usually get a bacon double cheeseburger, no onions, no pickles, large fries, large Coke.”

“That’s me alright.” I took a good look at her. She was petite. Maybe five foot three. Slim, athletic build. Very attractive. Why did I never notice her before? I looked at her nametag: Selena.

“I always see just you two,” said Selena. “Never anyone else. No other guys. Or lady friends…”

Catching on, gesturing toward Chico, I said, “Before you ask, he has a girlfriend.”

“And you?” Selena asked with a grin.

If I wasn’t so dark, Selena could’ve seen me blushing. “I don’t have a girlfriend.”

“Well,” said Selena as she wrote on her order pad. “Maybe we can change that. That’s my cell number. You can catch me after nine.” Selena winked before she walked away.

“What was that about?” asked Chico after he got off the phone.

“She gave me her number.” I showed Chico the paper Selena handed to me.

“Man, please. That’s a cell number,” said Chico. “One of the oldest playa moves. If she were single, she would’ve given you her home number. When did she say you could call her?”

“After nine,” I replied.

“A broke playa. She probably has unlimited minutes after nine,” Chico quipped.

“It doesn’t matter anyway,” I said. “I never even noticed her before today.”

“Plus you’ve got a date with Layla tonight,” said Chico. “And she said that you can call her at the office. I talked to Rachael and she told me that Layla told her about you. They got to talking and Rachael put it together that the Nicolas Hayes that Layla was talking about was you.”

So, I was on her mind. Maybe this will work out.

Just then, Selena returned to our table. “Can I get anything else for you, gentlemen?”

“Yeah. Get me a bacon double cheeseburger, no onions, no pickles, large fries, and another large Coke,” I said as I held up my empty glass. “I’ve got my appetite back!

As Selena left to put in my order, Chico and I couldn’t help watching her round apple bottom sashay away from the table.

“Speaking of appetites, what are you making for dinner?” asked Chico.

“Lasagna,” I replied. “From the reaction that I got, I’d say it’s her favorite.”

“Not bad, not bad. First date and you’re making her favorite dish,” Chico commented. “Next thing you know, you’ll be rubbing her feet after a long day at work and she’ll be begging to marry you!”

I thought back to Layla’s sweet smile. “If I can just get a kiss tonight, I’ll be fine. I’ll have to work up to the feet rubbin’ thing. Remember Lela Rochon’s feet in Boomerang?”

“Eww!” Chico cried. “Don’t remind me! For a while there, I thought all pretty sistas had jacked up feet so I never even let them kick off their shoes at my place. If I didn’t take Meeka to the nail shop myself and saw the end result, I woulda thought the same about her!”

Selena returned with my order. Suddenly, I had an urge to go grocery shopping for my date with Layla. Before she turned away, I caught Selena’s arm. “Could you be a sweetheart and put this in a To-Go box?”

“Only if you promise to call me later,” she said with a wink.

My only response was a smile as I handed the plate back to her. When I looked back at Chico, he was shaking his head. “What?” I asked innocently.

“Great, Nick! Now we’re gonna have to find someplace else to hang out cuz you won’t call Selena, the psycho-cell-phone-number-giving waitress.”

“I’ll call her right after we leave. When I get her voice mail, I’ll leave a message to let her know that I called. That way I won’t be lying. Besides, she doesn’t even know my name.”

“For someone who’s been outta the game for a minute, you still have some playa moves of your own,” chuckled Chico.

When Selena arrived with my food wrapped and in a bag in one hand and my Coke in a large To Go cup in the other, Chico and I stood up. As he paid the tab, I retrieved my food. “Thanks, Selena.”

“Anytime,” she replied with a wink. I was beginning to think she had something stuck in her eye or her contact was slipping out.

As Chico and I walked toward the door, I could hear Selena behind us. “Hey! I don’t even know your name!”

We continued to walk on, pretending not to hear Selena over the roar of the lunch customers and the music.