Main Players:

 Cassandra (Cassie) Mitchell 

Lucas (Luke) Carrington

Their Friends:

Jade 

Alexander (Alex) Wilson

Danielle (Dani, Dee) Matthews Wilson 

 Sean Adams 

This Might be all of the characters. But with me, you never know. 

Luke was running late, what else was new. His impromptu meeting at the firm lasted longer than expected and he hardly had enough time to shower and change before dinner. He arrived at his friends’ apartment twenty minutes later than he planned.

Before Luke could even knock on the door, it swung open. Standing in the doorway was his best friend. Her brown hair was pulled into a messy ponytail and she was giving him her patented ‘you’re late’ look.

“You’re late!” She said, one hand on her hip, the other on the door knob.

“I’m always late, Dee. Now are you going to let me in, I’m hungry?” Luke asked.

“I don’t know...”

“Dani, babe, let the man in, you know he hasn’t had a proper meal since the last time he came over.” A voice called from behind her.

“See, your husband thinks you should let me in so...”

“Fine, fine come in.” Dani smiled widely and pulled Luke in for a hug. She stood on her tip-toes to kiss him on the cheek.

“Thanks Dee. So what are we eating for dinner?” He asked seating himself on the couch.

“Is food the only thing you think about? No ‘hi Dee,’ or ‘how’s my godson Dee.’ It’s just ‘what’s for dinner Dee.’ Sometimes I wonder how we are even friends.”

“Well, since you greeted me with a lovely ‘you’re late’ and you send me pictures of AJ every time he even blinks, I thought food was a good topic to broach.” Luke laughed. He and Dani had been friends since college.

Dani shook her head. “Fine, you win. We are having food, cooked food.” She smirked.

“Really Dee, I had no idea, thought we were going to eat chairs.”

“Well, Alex is cooking tonight,” Dani said,  “and I’m not allowed in the kitchen when the master is at work,” she yelled.

“Hey, you always want to add unnecessary seasonings when you come in the kitchen.” Alex said wiping his hands on the half apron he wore and joining the two friends in the living room.

Luke stood up and walked over to shake Alex’s hand. “How’s it going Alex?”

“Wait, that’s not fair. He,” Dani gestured to her husband, “gets a ‘how’s it going?’”

“Yes, because I like him more, and he’s nicer to me.”

Alex shook his head and smiled. The two of them had an interesting relationship. When Dani first told him her best friend was a guy ten years ago, Alex was worried her best friend would get in the way. But he soon realized Dani and Luke were more like siblings than best friends. And over the years, he began to value Luke’s friendship to the point where Alex considered him his best friend second only to his wife.

“Things are going good. The restaurant is doing extremely well. In fact I’m trying out a new recipe on you two tonight.”

“I’m sure it will be good.” Luke said. “Hey Dee, where is AJ anyway?”

“So now you’re concerned about my toddler?” Dani laughed.

“I asked right?”

“He’s in his room,” Dani said. “I’ll go get him, he should be up from his nap now.”

“It’s kind of late for a nap isn’t it.”

“Yes well someone didn’t put the little guy down earlier like they were supposed to,” Alex said leaving the room to check on the food.

While his friends were out of the room, Luke looked at pictures he had seen a thousand times. The two of them made the oddest looking couple. Dani was pale, very pale and had fairly long, thick brown hair. Alex was the complete opposite. He had dark skin that made ladies swoon whenever he and Luke went out together and a very shiny bald head. But what was on the outside did not matter to the two of them; it never had. Luke knew that Dani and Alex were perfect for each other, and he was always happy to be around them.

“Look who’s here AJ,” Dani said interrupting Luke’s thoughts.

“There’s my favorite toddler,” Luke said meeting Dani in the middle of the room.

AJ reached his small hands toward Luke who took the one-year-old into his arms and immediately began to play with him.

“I think Lucas, you need one.” Dani said crossing her arms.

“You’re funny.”

“Come on Luke, I know you want kids. We just have to find you the right lady friend to have them with.”

“Dani, you are forever trying to fix me up with someone.” Luke said.

“I am not. I just want you to be happy.”

“I’m happy, and it will happen when it happens Dee. You can’t rush fate.”

“You and your fate thing.The women fate has brought you to so far are annoying gold-digging skanks. Sometimes Luke you have to make things happen.”

“Dee I don’t date skanks,” said Luke

“Sorry to interrupt your conversation but dinner is served.” Alex said coming out of the kitchen, now apron-less.

The friends sat down at the table and began their meal. “So, Dee how was that meeting you were telling me about?” Luke asked.

“It went very well. Jade wants me to help head up PR for her foundation.”

“That sounds like a great opportunity.” Luke said.

“Yeah it does. How did she find you anyway, you weren’t actively searching for a job?” Alex asked.

“It kind of just happened. She said she was calling around and apparently my name popped up a number of times, so she googled me, liked my credentials and offered me a job.” Dani explained as she fed AJ.

“See fate.” Luke smiled.

“No, not fate. It was luck and the fact that I am brilliant.”

“My wife is brilliant,” Alex smiled.

Luke shook his head, “so what is her foundation for?”

“She’s still in the planning process. She said she wanted to make sure to get me on board from the beginning. Jade said there’s so much she wants to do, she just needs some help narrowing it down. She also said she’s going to try and convince one of her friends to work with me as well.”

“Look at you, doing big things.” Luke smiled.

“Luke, how was you’re trip?” Alex asked.

“Uneventful, well the whole Iceland part of it was.”

“Uneventful? I thought Iceland was supposed to be gorgeous?” Dani asked.

“I’ve been there so many times now, I wouldn’t mind if I never saw the country again.” Luke took a sip of wine. “Dee do you remember Cassie Mitchell from college?”

“Yeah, the three of us kind of ousted that guy from our row.” Dani laughed. “What about her?”

“I sat next to her on the flight from Iceland.”

“Really, what’s she doing now?”

“She was writing songs but she said she’s not really doing anything right now.” Luke said.

“Who’s Cassie again?” Alex asked trying to keep up with the conversation.

“We went to college with her. Luke had multiple classes with her; I just had the one.”

“So what are you talking about. You ‘ousted’ a guy from your row.”

“Well there was this guy,” Luke started

“He was older, smelled like cigarettes and was way too into the class. He always had some comment and ugh, he was just annoying.” Dani clarified.

“Anyway, he always sat between me and Dani. We didn’t like it. I always came late, Dani was right on time but Cassie, Cassie always arrived early.”

“She felt the same way about the guy as we did.”

“Yeah, so we convinced her to move the chairs around so there was never enough room for him to sit with us, in our little group. It was a pretty brilliant idea.” Luke said leaning back in his chair.

Dani smiled and AJ made a noise lifting his hands in the air trying to gain someones attention.

“You guys were nefarious.” Alex said.

“We didn’t like him, babe. We had to do something.”

“Right.” Alex said gathering dishes.

“I’m going to go give AJ a bath and leave you two to your customary ‘manly’ talk.” Dani got up, picked up AJ and left the room.

Luke grabbed the remaining dishes and brought them into the kitchen where Alex was putting away left overs.

“I think you have a winner on your hands, as far as the recipe goes.”

“You think so?”

“I wouldn’t have said it if I didn’t mean it.”

“That’s good to know,” Alex said. “So, this Cassie that you sat with on the airplane, any romantic feelings for her?”

“No, first of all I practically just met her. And she seems like she has a lot going on. But it would be nice to catch up with her. We weren’t really friends in college, but when we did talk we had interesting conversations. That and she remembered me.”

“Guess, you weren’t forgettable to her then.”

“I guess not.”

“So was it fate? You sitting next to her?” Alex asked.

“I think so. I feel like I need to help her. Granted I didn’t really know her that well, but she didn’t seem like the person I remembered.”

“Was she attractive?”

“Alex, seriously.”

“Yes, seriously. I want to know if she was hot.” Alex said getting two beers from the refrigerator.

“I mean yeah, there’s something about her that is extremely attractive, but she’s not my usual type.”

“Yeah your type is model-like gold-diggers.”

“Hey my last girlfriend was not that bad, she was smart.” Luke defended as the two of them walked into the living room and sat down.

“Comparatively smart. You know Luke, maybe fate isn’t all its cracked up to be. The last few girlfriends you brought over were not winners and you said ‘fate led you to them.’”

“I was just misinterpreting the signs. This time, I know I’m supposed to help her. I just... I can’t explain it Alex but Cassie needs my help.”

“And if she doesn’t want it?’

“She needs it.”

“Right, but what if she doesn’t want it. What will you do then?”

“I’m sure fate will step in. It always does.” Luke smiled.

Sitting in a neighborhood deli with the classifieds in one hand and a blue highlighter in the other, Cassie scanned the newspaper for available apartments. She wanted something in the same area where she already lived and she wanted something she could afford. However, the second requirement would be hard to find. Cassie could not keep living off of her savings. Soon, she would have to find some way of making a living.

Luke was determined to eat at his favorite deli for lunch, or at least attempt to eat. His break would be another working lunch. Try as he might, Luke could not deny it. He was a workaholic. His strategy was to stop in, pick up his usual order and head back to the office. But, as Luke would say, fate had other plans.

Luke paid for his meal and turned around to head back to work. As he headed out the door, a familiar face caught his eye.He backtracked, and looked more intensely at the person who caused him to pause. Sitting alone in  the corner of the deli was Cassie. She was poring over the newspaper with a highlighter. He watched her for a few minutes and observed how every few seconds she seemed to sigh in frustration.

Making up his mind, and pushing work to the back of his brain, Luke walked over to her table.

“I didn’t realized people still used those,” Luke said.

“Use what?” Cassie asked. Her head remained bent over the table.

“Newspapers,” Luke said pulling over an unoccupied chair and sitting down across from her.

The scraping of chair legs across the floor caught Cassie’s attention. “Hey, you can’t just sit down here. There are plenty of other...” Cassie stopped mid-sentence when she realized who was sitting across from her. “You, again.”

Luke smiled as he emptied the contents of his deli bag. “Yes, me again. Looks like fate is up to something.”

“Or, the more likely scenario is that you’re stalking me.” Cassie said.

“Trust me, I’m not stalking you. I came in for my favorite sandwich and then I was going to go back to work.”

“Was going? What’s stopping you from still going?” Cassie asked.

“Fate, and you.”

“Right, so fate has you tied down to the chair?”

“Look, so you don’t believe in fate but seriously two times in two weeks? Someone in the universe is saying hey, let’s see what happens when we stick two old classmates together.”

“Really? Does that line even work?” Cassie inquired.

Luke’s smile grew as he caught the faint hint of a smirk on Cassie’s face and a glint in her eye. She was amused, and for some reason he felt like he had accomplished something.

“It’s not supposed to be a line.” Luke said before taking a bite of his sandwich. “Do you remember the class we had together?”

“Which one? There were quite a few.”

“The one where you moved the chairs around so that guy, what was his name?” Luke began to rack his brain to remember their classmate’s name.

“Frank,” Cassie supplied.

“Yeah, so Frank didn’t sit on our side of the room?”

“As I recall Luke, that was all your idea.”

 __________________________________________

_________________________ 

“It may have been my idea, but you went along with it,” Luke said. “So what are you up to?” Luke asked fingering the newspaper that lay on the table in front of Cassie.

“I’m looking for a new apartment.”

“Is that part of your whole ‘new perspective on life’ thing?” Luke asked. He watched as Cassie’s once warm eyes instantly cooled.

“I think you should go back to work.” Cassie said.

“Why do you do that?”

“Do what?”

“Push me away? All I’m trying to do is be a friend, and every time I ask a personal question you get defensive, build walls and shut down.”

Cassie slammed the highlighter onto the table, “You want to know why?”

“Yes. I wouldn’t have asked if I didn’t.”

“A year and a half ago my boyfriend died.”

“I’m sorry, Cassie I didn’t know.”

“Yeah, well that’s not the half of it. He didn’t just die; he was murdered. Someone wanted him dead so they killed him. They shot him in the abdomen and left him in the alley to die.”

“Cassie, that’s not your fault.” Luke said trying to comfort her.

“It feels like it is. And what’s worse is the things I said to him before he died...”

“You couldn’t have known he was going to die that night.”

“That’s the funny thing. I should have expected it. He was a hired gun, worked for some of the slimiest low-down rotten people in New York. I should have expected it. I’m sorry I’ve got to go.” Cassie gathered her things and left quickly.

Luke was not expecting that. He was too upset by Cassie’s obvious pain to finish his lunch. So instead, he threw away the rest of his sandwich and headed back to work. On the cab-ride to the firm, Luke began to contemplate how he could help Cassie overcome the past.

“Okay, I get it. Can we please stop analyzing my relationship with Sean and get back to the foundation?” Jade asked bending her head down in embarrassment.

“Fine. Foundation, go.”

“As I was saying, Dani, Sean and I have yet to meet together as a group. I was holding off on that. I really want you to be apart of this Cassie. You’re my best friend, and you need a job anyway.” Jade explained. “I have a ton of ideas about what I want the foundation to be, but I can’t decide how that’s all going to play out in the end.”

“It sounds like a good thing you’re trying to do Jade. I just don’t know what I would do?”

“You liked PR once, well at least enough to major in it in college. Dani is a PR specialist so the two of you could work together. She can help reacquaint you with everything, and you can still use your creative outside-the-box thinking.”

“I’ll have to think about it Jade. But I still want to know how you got Dani to leave the Gates’ Foundation.”

“She likes working with the Gates’ foundation, but she wants to do more. Right now, Dani doesn’t have the power to do anything more than what they ask of her. Working with us, she’ll have a say in how the money can be best spent. She’s very excited about that. But basically, Dani thinks she’d be able to work for a cause she believes in more directly because she has a say in what direction our foundation is going in.”

“That makes sense. Did you come up with that logic yourself?”

“Most of it, yeah. So are you in?” Jade asked.

“I told you, I’ll have to think about it. I’m going to go now.” Cassie said getting up.

Jade walked Cassie to the door, “you do realize you’ll eventually just say yes right?” Jade asked as Cassie got on the elevator.

Cassie just smiled and waved as the doors closed in front of her.

After Cassie left, Jade called Dani and Sean to set up a meeting for the following week. She was sure her best friend would agree to work with the foundation.

Jade came home, a few days after Cassie’s visit, from working in the studio. She set her bags in their proper places and started to get comfortable. She made her way into her office to check both her e-mail and her voice mail. Sitting down at the computer, she opened an Internet browser and then pressed play on her answering machine.

There was only one message, and that was from Cassie.

“Hi Jade, it’s me. I suppose I’ll help you with the foundation. Give me a call back so we can work out the details. Talk to you later.”

Jade smiled to herself, picked up the phone and dialed Cassie’s number.

“Hello Jade,” Cassie said on the other line.

“Hi, I got your message. You want to work for the foundation.”

“Yeah. It’s something to do and it’s non-profit work so I’m happy.”

“I knew you’d give in.” Jade laughed.

“Don’t gloat. So what’s the plan are you going to set up a meeting?”

“That’s already taken care of. We are meeting with Dani and Sean next Thursday at 3:15.” Jade said jotting down notes on a post-it.

“Oh really?”

“Yup.”

Cassie sighed into the phone, “Sometimes I hate that you know me so well. Where’s the meeting going to be?”

“Have you heard of  Elves?” Jade asked.

“Of course I’ve heard of elves. They’re Santa’s little helpers.”

“No, the restaurant Elves.”

“I think so. Are they even open at 3:15? I thought most places closed around that time to prepare for Happy Hour and dinner.”

“Dani suggested the place. I think her husband owns it.” Jade explained.

“Alrighty then. Three fifteen Thursday at Elves. I’ll see you then.”

“Okay Cassie, I’ll see you later.” Jade hung up the phone and continued checking her email and jotting down notes.

___________________________________________________________________________________________ 

Cassie walked up to the restaurant and looked around. She did not see anyone sitting down inside. It was only three o’clock. She was early. After standing at the door for a couple of minutes, Jade walked  up.

“Hey Cassie. You’re here.” Jade said.

“I said I would be. So, how are we supposed to get into the restaurant for our meeting?”

Jade pulled out her cell phone and began to dial a number, “Dani said to call when we got here.”
She talked for a few seconds on the phone before someone came to the door.

Cassie and Jade entered the restaurant and were escorted to the back by a host. They sat down and waited for a few more minutes before they watched Sean being ushered to their table.

“Sean, so glad you could make it,” Jade said standing up to hug Sean.

“It’s not a problem, Jade. You know this is something I want to do,” said Sean sitting down.

Jade smiled. “Have you met Cassie Mitchell before?”

“No, I haven’t had the opportunity, but I really do enjoy your work,” said Sean shaking Cassie’s hand.

“Thank-you. It’s nice to meet you as well.” Cassie said.

“I’ve actually been hoping to get the chance to work with you at some point. I’ve talked to a few other artists you’ve worked with. They say you’re attentive to their vision and you know how to write songs that are perfect for them and not another artist.” Sean explained.

“Wow, I’m flattered. But I’m not writing right now; I’m taking a bit of a break. That’s part of the reason I’m here now.”

The conversation between Sean and Cassie would have continued, but Dani arrived a few minutes into the discussion. Cassie sat with her back to Dani. Jade, who sat across from Cassie, had the perfect view of the brunette walking up to their table. Both women smiled at each other, before either spoke.

“Here’s Dani now,” Jade pointed out as she stood to greet the other woman.

Sean and Cassie stood as well. Sean instantly stretched forth his hand and greeted the new addition to the table. Cassie, on the other hand, stood shocked. Dani was the last person she expected to see.

“Wow. This, is unexpected!” Dani exclaimed as she sat down to the table.

“Do you two know each other?” Jade asked Cassie and Dani as she sat down.

“Yeah,” Cassie said as she shook herself out of a daze, “we went to college together.”

“That’s an interesting coincidence,” Sean pointed out.

Jade smiled, “Yes it is. Isn’t it Cassie?”

“I still can’t believe this. I just talked to Luke the other day. He’s told me he’d run into you a couple of times, and he told me you were a songwriter. I guess I never thought to ask who you wrote songs for.” Dani said.

“Yeah,” Cassie snorted. “He would say that this was fate.”

“Yes, you’re right. He would.” Dani smiled. “You and I can catch-up later,” she suggested, “why don’t we get started with this foundation?”

Sean and Jade both nodded their heads in agreement. Jade, Dani and Sean  began to brainstorm ideas and statements about what they wanted the foundation to be and what it meant for each of them. As the three of them diligently worked, Cassie became lost in her thoughts. She was trying to figure out ways to back out of the project. It was not that Cassie did not like Dani, in fact Cassie always thought Dani was a nice enough person. The problem was that Dani maintained some type of relationship with Luke, and Cassie just did not want to deal with the Luke situation.  But, Cassie knew she needed the job not just because of the money, but also because it was something to do. As much as Cassie had enjoyed her year off, she really wanted something to do. She felt like she needed some sort of purpose. After fifteen minutes spent tuned out, Cassie mentally jumped back into the conversation and put her other thoughts on the back burner.

They worked for an hour before they decided to call a quits for the evening. The restaurant was going to open up soon for dinner, and the table was needed for paying customers.

As they stood up, Sean stopped the group. “I know that this has nothing to do with the foundation, but I am dying to know why the restaurant is called Elves?”

Dani laughed. “That is all my husband’s doing. He wanted to name the restaurant after me, but he also wanted something catchy. One day he got tongue-tied trying to say my name he called me ‘Daniellves, and Elves kind of came out of that.”

“That’s cute,” said Jade picking up her bags.

“Thanks, I’ll let him know you thought so. I think this meeting was productive. What do you think about next week the same time?” Dani asked the group.

“That’s fine with me. I’ll make it a standing meeting in my calendar.” Sean said.

“Great.” Jade said.

While Sean and Jade were saying their goodbyes to Dani and each other, Cassie attempted to leave without being noticed. But she was unsuccessful.

“Cassie, we really should catch-up. I would love to hear what you have been doing and how you got into the music industry at some point.” Dani said, thwarting Cassie’s escape attempt.

Cassie put on a fake smile and nodded her head, “right, we should definitely get together and do that. Jade I’ll call you later. Sean it was nice to meet you. Bye Dani.” She waved her hand, made her way to the front entrance and left Dani, Sean and Jade talking in the restaurant.

“Wow, she got out of here fast.” Sean commented.

“Yeah she did.” Jade said.

“Well, Dani it was very nice meeting you. I’ll have to come back and actually try the food one day. Jade,” Sean smiled as he squeezed her hand. “I guess I’ll see you both next week.” He let go of Jade’s hand and wave as he exited the building.

Jade turned to Dani with a mischievous grin on her face. “So, how close are you and Luke?”

Dani laughed. She had an idea of where this conversation was going. “Why don’t we sit down at the bar and we can talk.”

They walked over to the bar and sat down. Dani ordered a couple of appetizers before the two women began to talk. Well it was more like conspiring.

“So your relationship with Luke,” Jade grilled.

Dani smiled, “he is actually one of my closest friends and he’s my son’s godfather. But trust me, I am an extremely and regularly satisfied wife to one of the sexiest chef’s in New York.”

Jade laughed, “good to know I guess.”

“I’ve known Luke since college and he’s a good guy who’s kind of just waiting for things to just fall into his lap. He’s had a number of disastrous girlfriends, but of course he doesn’t see it that way. I just want the guy to be happy, and right now I can tell he’s hung up on Cassie. What about you and Cassie. How close are you two?”

“Very, we’ve known each other for years now. She’s written like 85% of my songs. The woman is talented and actually has a killer singing voice.” Jade explained.

“What happened to her?” Dani asked.

“What do you mean?” Jade took a sip from the glass the bartender had sat in front of her.

“She just doesn’t seem like the same person.”

“Are you the same person you were twelve years ago?” Jade asked.

“Well, not exactly the same. I’d like to think I’m wiser. But I don’t believe my personality has made a complete 180. I remember Cassie always tried to look for the best in people. She would say she’d try anything once and that philosophy extended to people too. She always looked for the best in people and gave them a chance to prove themselves to be one way or another.”

“I thought you two didn’t know each other very well in college?”

“You learn a lot about a person when you sit next to them twice a week for five months. You learn even more when you have to work together on projects. We may not have been the best of friends, but we knew each other slightly better than acquaintances.” Dani explained.

“Cassie, has been through a lot the past couple of years. Her boyfriend died about a year and a half ago, and you know how relationships can be a roller-coaster ride. So she actually spent the last year doing some soul searching.”

“I can’t imagine what that must have been like for her, losing someone so close. I guess that would make a person jaded.”

“Yeah, it can. But I think this, working with us and the foundation should help. And I think running into Luke has been good for her.”

“Really?” Dani asked surprised.

“Yes, he’s really gotten under her skin.”

“Well, then. Maybe it’s time some well meaning friends started meddling then isn’t it?” Dani suggested.

“I think so,” Jade smiled. “I’ll keep pushing her about Luke.”

“And, I think I can make a few well meaning suggestions to Luke.” Dani smiled.

The two women began to laugh with each other.

“What are you doing over here?” Alex asked as he came up behind his wife and wrapped his arms around her waist.

“Nothing, Alex. Nothing at all. This is Jade by the way. Jade this is my husband Alex.”

“Very nice to meet you Alex. Love your restaurant.”

“Nice meeting you too Jade. But I think you and my wife are up to something.”

“Like, she said. We aren’t doing anything at all.” Jade smiled. She was happy to have found an accomplice.

Dani was in a good mood as well. It was time to teach Luke that fate could only get a person so far.

It had been over a week since Dani talked to Luke about taking the lead in his life and making things happen. She sat on her living room floor with her back against the couch and her legs stretched under the coffee table. As she watched her son bang a plastic toy on the floor, she smiled. She loved her life. Her husband was a kind man who put up with her somewhat neurotic plans. Her son made her laugh every time he discovered something new. And Luke, her best friend, was always there when she needed him. It’s time for me to do something in return. Dani thought to herself as she looked at the laptop screen in front of her.  

Luke’s conversation with Dani had him thinking. He knew he wanted to ‘make something happen,’ as Dani had put it, but he did not know where to start. In his previous run-ins with Cassie, he had not asked for any type of contact information, which made it kind of hard for him to ‘make something happen.’ He sat contemplating ways to get off his ass and put things in motion. Luke considered spending every lunch hour at ‘their deli,’ but he wondered if that would be considered stalking. I just need fate, or coincidence to step in one more time so I can take advantage of the opportunity.

Instead of fate or coincidence, Luke got a couple of meddling friends.

It was another late night at the office for Luke. Stacks of folders sat on his desk waiting to be reviewed. He let his office phone ring twice before answering.

“Carrington,” he said rubbing his eyes; he really did not want to be at his office at that moment.

“Another late night?” Dani asked.

“Yeah Dee, another late night. What’s up?”

“Two weeks from yesterday what are your plans?”

“My plans?” Luke asked. “I guess my plans have already been made for me haven’t they?”

Dani laughed into the phone. “Not necessarily, but you should have your assistant keep that evening blocked off. Alex has finished working on some new items for the menu, and you know the drill.” She explained.

“I know, I know. I’ll inform Sherri to put it in my schedule.” Luke said exasperatedly as he scrolled through his already full calendar on the computer.

“How are you doing Luke?” Dani asked concerned. “We haven’t really talked in about a week.”

“Work controls my life.”

“I think you let it control your life. You should take an evening off for once. How long has it been since you went out with Alex and the guys?”

“It hasn’t been that long only a couple of weeks. But some nights it feels longer than that.”

“You need to relax Luke.”

“Dani, I don’t have time to do that.”

“Right. I was just calling to let you know about the dinner invitation.” Dani explained.

“Yeah, thanks for telling me. I’ll call you soon.”

“You better, or else I’m revoking your godfather title.” Dani threatened.

Luke smiled, “Whatever you say. Good night Dani.”

Both Luke and Dani hung up the phone. Luke looked around his office. Work really was starting to consume him. From the open blinds of his glass walled office, Luke could tell he was one of the only people left at the office. Everyone else seemed to have plans. They seemed to have families to whom they went home. After signing off on a few files, Luke decided it was time to call it a night. He gathered his things and flipped the light switch, clothing the room in darkness.


Across town Cassie and Jade were spending the evening at Cassie’s apartment having drinks and catching up with the happenings of the past week.

“So, did you do anything interesting this week, other than our meeting with Sean and Dani of course?” Jade asked as she sipped a martini.

“I finished the book I was reading.” Cassie supplied.

“Okay, that doesn’t sound interesting at all. You’re telling me you sat here in this apartment by yourself reading a book all week.”

“Jade, you make it sound like a bad thing.”

“When did you become so boring?” Jade asked.

“I’m not boring. I just...” Cassie trailed off; she was not sure how she wanted to finish the sentence.

“You just what, Cassie?” Jade asked. “Ever since you’ve been home, you haven’t done anything. The only time you go out is to eat, or to attend the foundation meetings. It’s almost like you had your world adventures and then came home only to be stuck in the same place you were before you left. I thought you were moving forward.”

“I am. I just haven’t found anything that I’m interested in anymore. And at least I’m not still grieving Christian.”

“Yeah, instead you push people away because he broke your heart,” mumbled Jade.

Cassie shot a look Jade’s way that would have set her on fire if Cassie had telekinetic abilities. “I do not push people away!”

“Of course you don’t, Cassie,” said Jade sarcastically. “What about the friends you had before you left? They sure as hell aren’t here. You know as well as I do that it’s not because they don’t want to be, but because you won’t let them.”

“I can’t be around them. They remind me of what I can’t do anymore. I can’t sing; I can’t write!”

“You can’t or you won’t?!” Jade asked. She was getting tired of this game.

Cassie looked into her glass and swirled the contents around. The sound of the ice as it clinked against the glass reverberated throughout the apartment.

Jade rolled her eyes, “okay then forget about them. What about Luke and Dani? All they want is...” Jade stopped mid-sentence. “You know what, forget it.”

The two friends sat in silence, neither dared to say a word. Cassie had no response, and Jade was frustrated.

When the silence became too much for Jade, she decided to start a different conversation. “I talked to Dani last night.”

“Oh, were you discussing ideas for the foundation?” Cassie asked.

“No, she was telling me Alex has a few new recipes for the menu he wants to try out. Dani invited us to a get-together in a couple of weeks. It’s kind of like a tasting.” Jade explained, conveniently leaving out the fact Luke would also be at the tasting event. The two had already argued enough for the night.

“That sounds fun. I’m always up for trying new things,” Cassie said.

“Right, if that’s so, then why aren’t you up for trying new relationships?” Jade asked.

Cassie narrowed her eyes.

“Right, we shelved that conversation,” said Jade closing her eyes trying to remain calm. “Does that mean you’re going to come?” She asked instead of diving back into their earlier conversation.

“Yes, that means I’m going to come. Why wouldn’t I?” Cassie asked not thinking about who else might be in attendance.

Only because you obviously don’t want to let new people into your life, Jade thought to herself. “No reason,” said Jade Instead of voicing her opinion. She finished off her martini. “I’m going to make myself another drink. Do you want one?” She asked standing up from where she was sitting on the couch.

“No, I’m fine,” said Cassie as she watched her friend leave the room for more alcohol. While she waited for Jade to return Cassie began to seriously think about their earlier conversation. Despite what Jade said, Cassie had begun to realize how much she missed the company of others. Maybe Jade was right; Cassie was pushing people away and punishing them for what Christian did. But she only did it to protect herself, to protect her heart. Cassie refused to be hurt again.

Five weeks, it had been five weeks since her return from her world travels. Sometimes it felt longer; months some days and even years others. Cassie missed her world exploits. Being away was easy; she did not have to deal with her feelings. She could package them up in a neat little box and store it somewhere for later.

But now was later. And Cassie's defensive walls were trying to withstand a breech by both old and new people in her life, specifically Jade and Luke. Jade, being herself, was trying to get her best friend Cassie to open up to new possibilities, to new friendships. Luke was trying to be a new possibility. And Cassie was not appreciating either attempt.

What Cassie did appreciate was the invitation Dani extended, albeit through Jade, to dine and try new menu items at Elves. She was looking forward to a night away from her apartment. Though she would never admit it, Jade was right about Cassie being a bore. Since coming home, she spent most of her time alone in her apartment. She would either read or practice new songs on the piano. When she was not at home, Cassie was working on ideas for the foundation. Nothing exciting ever happened in her life anymore. She did not go out for drinks or entertainment. Most days, Cassie felt she had nothing to which she could look forward.

Cassie looked over herself in the mirror making sure everything was in place. Pushing a stray strand of hair behind her ear, she decided she was ready to head to the restaurant.

After a thirty minute cab ride through the city, Cassie arrived at the restaurant. She noticed the dining venue was crowded. Every chair at every table was being used; there was not even room to sit at the bar. She looked around the room for a friendly face, but she saw none. So she made her way over to the hostess who was busy answering the phone and taking reservations for later in the night.

"Excuse me," said Cassie trying to gain the hostess' attention.

The hostess, a leggy red head who seemed to have a perpetually annoyed look on her face, glanced up at Cassie and held up one well-manicured index finger as she answered another call. A few minutes later, the hostess decided to pay attention to Cassie. "What do you need?" she asked.

Cassie rolled her eyes at the girl's seemingly agitated tone. "I'm here for a tasting. I don't see anyone I recognize. Perhaps you can find Dani for me."

The hostess looked Cassie up and down before she responded. "Um, does it look like I have time to find Dani for you?"

Just as Cassie was about to tell off the rude hostess, Dani walked up behind her husband's employee.

"Cassie, I'm so glad you could make it," Dani said.

"Thanks Dani. I think you should look into hiring a new employee though. She's a bit rude." Cassie suggested.

"I would, but she's family. She's a relative on my mom's side that needed a part-time job while she's in school." Dani explained. "Lauren," she called to the rude hostess who then looked up. "If anyone else comes in looking for me or asking about a tasting, direct them to the back okay."

"Yeah, sure whatever."

Dani shook her head before smiling at Cassie and leading her away. "You're early you know."

"I hate being late," Cassie supplied.

"Oh, I remember that. You were always at least fifteen minutes early to class. Some things never change do they?"

Cassie smiled, "I guess not."

Dani led Cassie into a large banquet style room. There were three round six-person tables set up in the center. Along the room's back wall, there was a table with a flower arrangement and full glasses of ice water. A few people, no one Cassie recognized, had already arrived and were mingling by the back table.

"There aren't that many people here," Cassie noted.

"I know," Dani laughed. "I said you were early didn't I? Why don't you get something to drink? There's a bartender over in the corner." Dani pointed to a man standing alone behind a bar.

"I guess I'll get myself a drink then," Cassie said as she began to walk toward the bartender.

"You do that. I'm going to make sure my incompetent relative has not turned all the guests away." Dani turned around and made a swift exit.

After obtaining a drink, Cassie sat at a table by herself and waited for friendly faces to arrive, specifically Jade who swore she would be in attendance.

Eventually, more people seemed to wander into the room and find seats. Cassie was soon accompanied by Jade and Sean who sat across from her. As more people came, the tables became completely occupied. Three seats at Cassie's table remained open. She assumed the two of the seats between her and Jade were for Alex and Dani. But she briefly wondered who would sit in the third seat.

About fifteen minutes after the event was scheduled to start, Dani came back into the room and stood in front of one of the empty seats. "Hey everyone. Thanks for coming. We are so happy to have you all here to try out the new menu items. We'll get started in a moment. We are just waiting on one more person." Dani explained.

"Who's that?" Cassie asked curious as to who would sit in the empty chair next to her.

Outside of the restaurant Luke shoved his tie into his briefcase and undid the top button of his dress shirt. He rushed into the building and headed past the rude hostess and straight to the back.

"Excuse me," Lauren called after Luke. He stopped in his tracks and turned around. "You can't just walk through here. You need a reservation."

Luke waived a hand dismissively at the girl and continued on his path weaving through tables. When he made it to the designated room, he stopped and took a moment to catch his breath. Since he had left the office, Luke had been racing against the clock to get to the restaurant on time.

As he entered the room, he inspected his surroundings looking for an open chair. Instead, he made eye-contact with Dani who was smiling and waving him over. He continued walking through the room over to the only table with open seats.

Luke shrugged out of his suite jacket and placed it on the back of his chair. After being seated and storing his obtrusive briefcase under the table, he was greeted by Dani.

"It's about time you showed up. You're late." Dani accused.

"I know, I know. I had a lot of work to finish up at the office." Luke explained.

Dani just shook her head before she turned her attention to the rest of her guests.  

Luke looked to his left and smiled. Beside him sat Cassie dressed in a yellow sundress. She had tamed, what he had deemed, her often unruly curls and flat-ironed them into submission.

Cassie gave Luke a quick once-over before fixating a semi-annoyed look on her face. "You," she said accusingly. "I didn't think... I should have known you would be here."

"You make that sound like a bad thing, Cassie," Luke smirked. "And hello to you too."

Cassie rolled her eyes and began to open her mouth to speak, but she was interrupted by Jade.

"You must be the infamous Luke," Jade said somewhat excitedly.

"What gave it away?" Luke asked.

"Cassie's friendly greeting of course." Jade responded sarcastically. "I'm Jade." She reached her hand across the table introducing herself.

"I know. You're kind of famous." Luke smiled.

Before the three could delve into a conversation, Alex came out of the kitchen followed by three servers carrying trays of food. The servers each went to a different table and began to set plates of food in the center.

"Hi everyone," Alex said, "I know Dani already did this, but I want to thank you again for coming out. You all are some of our closest friends and your opinion is highly valued. Most of you have done this before but, some of you haven't." Alex glanced over to the table where his wife sat with her newest friends.  "Here's the deal. The food is laid out family style. Eat what you want and however much you want. All I ask is that you are honest when you fill out the comment sheets later in the evening. I hope you enjoy the food and the company."

After he finished talking, Alex made his rounds stopping at each table to greet his friends.

"Wow," Cassie commented. "This food smells great!"

"Alex is the best chef in New York City. Although, I'm biased. He's married to my best friend." Luke said adding food to his plate. When he was satisfied with the amount of each dish he put on his plate, he placed it back on the table. He then turned to Cassie and reached for her plate as well. "Do you want me to add some of this to your plate?" He asked pointing to the dish that was directly in front of him.

From across the table, Jade watched the interaction between Luke and Cassie. She was nearly giddy when she recognized a suppressed smile on Cassie's face. Luke was being sweet, a gentleman even. And in Jade's opinion, a gentleman was exactly what Cassie needed.

"Yeah, thanks." said Cassie giving Luke permission to take her plate and add food to it.

Luke smiled. "Not a problem."

The light chatter from earlier faded as people began to eat. Alex was finally able to pull himself away from an old friend and sit down at his wife's table. "So what do you think so far," he asked the table.

"The food is wonderful," Sean said.

"I agree. What I love most is how the flavors blend together perfectly and compliment each other." Jade supplied.

"I'm glad you're enjoying it. I still can't believe that you two, Sean and Jade music superstars, agreed to come to my restaurant and try my new dishes." Alex said.

"We're here every week working Alex, and I've had appetizers here before. There's no need for you to be in such shock about the whole thing. I'm surprised more people in the industry don't dine here. The food is always perfect and the service is great, well except for your hostess up at the front. But I do love the atmosphere." Jade said.

"Thank-you."

"Alex, babe, this is Cassie. I don't think you've met her yet," said Dani to her husband.

"It's very nice to meet you Cassie," said Luke. "I've heard so much about you."

"Good things I hope." Cassie said.

"Of course!" Alex laughed. "Luke and Dani told me you three were classmates in college."

"Yes we were. Though, we never really had the chance to get to know each other. We had classes together, but we didn't do anything outside of class." Cassie explained.

"So no good stories to tell then?" Alex asked.

"Nope. But, with these two," Cassie said pointing to Luke and Dani, "I would think you've heard them all already."

"What exactly is that supposed to mean?" Luke asked.

"Don't act so surprised Luke. Even in class you two were always up to something. It was hard to pay attention with the two of you scoffing at each other and having private conversations discussing the merits and faults of our classmates," explained Cassie lightheartedly.

"Really?" Dani asked. "Do you think anyone else noticed?"

"I don't think so. They didn't seem to notice the two of you scheming like I did. Plus they didn't really know you like I did either." Cassie laughed.

"I thought you said you guys didn't know each other well in college," Jade commented.

"We didn't outside of class," said Luke smirking and leaning back in his chair.

"The class was kind of clique-ish and the three of us always seemed to end up working with each other for in-class scenarios." Dani explained.

"And Frank, don't forget Frank." Luke added.

"Yes, we can't forget Frank!" Cassie noted.

"Do you remember when we had to do those presentations?" Dani asked as she began to recount a tale of their class exploits.

Jade, Sean and Alex watched as the three friends became engrossed in their own conversation, forgetting the others who sat at the table with them.

"Well, they seem to be enjoying themselves." Sean said.

"Yeah, they get like this sometimes. Well, at least Luke and Dani do. Who knew it would be worse when we threw in another member of their little clique." Alex laughed.

"Yeah, who knew?" Jade said contemplatively as she watched Dani, Luke and Cassie talk.

Jade was happy. For the first time in a while, she could tell Cassie was truly enjoying herself. What made the sight even better was the way in which Dani, Luke and Cassie were interacting with each other. Dani had leaned in closer to Luke and Cassie, with one hand remaining on her husband's lap. What Jade found the most interesting was Luke and Cassie. The two had gravitated closer to one another. Luke's arm rested on the back of Cassie's chair while Cassie's chair sat almost on top of Luke's own chair. It was quite obvious that the two had unknowingly invaded each other's space, and the both looked completely comfortable with the arrangement.

While Alex and Sean started their own conversation beside her, Jade continued to watch the scene unfold before her.

"The landfill scenario, I think that one was my favorite," said Luke.

"Oh my god I was so embarrassed!" Cassie exclaimed. She bent her head down as she felt the familiar heat of embarrassment wash over her face.

"Oh come on it wasn't that bad!" Dani said.

"It was. It was so bad. I was nervous enough as it was, standing up to speak. I was getting the facts all wrong and then to top it all off, I said the name wrong. What kind of last name is Comfunkerwitz?"

"I don't know but it was funny," said Luke making no attempt to suppress his laughter.

Cassie hit him on the chest.

"What, Dani is laughing too!" Luke pointed out.

"Yeah, well I like Dani." Cassie smiled as she stood up from the table. "If you'll excuse me, I have to go to the ladies room."

Luke watched her as she walked away.

"You know what, I'll be right back," said Jade interrupting Luke's train of thought as she followed Cassie.

Jade entered the bathroom just as Cassie was coming out of a stall to wash her hands.

"Oh, hey." Cassie said surprised.

"Hey, to you too." Jade said leaning against the wall.

"The food was really great don't you think?"

"I think the food was good. But you look like you're enjoying the company more." Jade said.

"What do you mean?"

"Nothing, it's just nice to see you having a little bit of fun."

Cassie finished washing her hands and walked over to the paper towel dispenser. She pulled out two and began to dry her hands. Looking at Jade she said, "I know what you're thinking."

"I don't know what you mean."

Cassie threw the used towels in to the trash and started to walk out of the bathroom. However, before she exited, she turned to Jade. "It's nothing, just a trip down memory lane."

"This could be good Cassie, new friendships. Promise me you'll just stay open to the possibility that maybe it's time to let go of your fears and open yourself up."

"I'll think about it." Cassie smirked as she grabbed her friend's wrist. "I think we better go back out there before some of Alex and Dani's friends decide to flirt with Sean."

Once again, Jade found herself smiling. She missed this Cassie, and hoped she would stick around for awhile.

When Jade and Cassie got back to the table, there were women crowded around Sean trying to get his attention. One woman was bold enough to sit in Jade's seat. However, upon their return to the table, the women dispersed.

As the evening wound down, guests came up to the group's table and complimented Alex on a job well done. There were few people left when Jade and Sean said their goodbyes. Alex left the table and went back into the kitchen. Cassie, Dani and Luke were left sitting at the table.

"This was fun. I don't understand how the three of us didn't become good friends after that class," said Dani shaking her head in disappointment.

"I agree. We need to do this again, maybe with just the three of us. I think everyone else felt a little left out." Luke suggested.

"Yeah, that sounds fine." Cassie gave them a small smile as she stood up. "I'm going to get going. Dani, I'll talk to you later."

Both Luke and Dani recognized the change in Cassie's demeanor. She had gone from lighthearted and fun to somber in a matter of minutes. Luke looked at Dani who just shrugged her shoulders.

"I'm going to go back in the kitchen. I'll see you later." Dani left, but Luke's attention was still on Cassie's fast fading figure.

"What am I doing?" Luke asked himself. He grabbed his bag from under the table and his jacket from the back of his chair. He then walked quickly, weaving his way between tables, to catch up with Cassie.

Luke met Cassie outside the restaurant where she was about to get into a cab. He gently grabbed a hold of her upper arm. "Hey," he said.

Keeping one hand on the door of the cab, Cassie turned around. "Luke, what do you want?"

"You're phone number." He stated simply. This was him being proactive.

"What?" Cassie asked slightly confused.

"It's not hard, Cassie. What's your phone number?" Luke laughed at her dumbfounded expression.

"Why?" Cassie asked.

Luke watched as the walls that seemed to disappear during dinner came back up.

"So we can do this again. Dani, you and I have a meal together and talk." He was making an effort and hoping she would too.

Cassie bit her lip as she contemplated whether or not to give him her phone number. Pushing strands of hair behind her ear, Cassie made a decision. "How about you give me yours. That way if I want to do this again, I'll arrange it."

Luke nodded his head in defeat as he fished in his briefcase for a business card. Finding one, he pulled out a pen and wrote on the back of it before handing it over to Cassie. "On the back is my home number."

Cassie took the card and put it in her pocket. "I guess I'll see you around then," she said as she got into the cab.

For the second time that evening, Luke stopped her. "Cassie," he said.

She turned and stared at him, "yes Luke?"

"You know you can call me any time."

"Okay. Bye." She closed the door and the cut its way into city traffic.

Luke stood on the sidewalk. The ball was no longer in his court. He did not have control over the situation, a feeling he had felt many times before. But this time, fate was not at play either. This time, it was all up to Cassie. Whether things moved forward or not, depended on Cassie.

In the weeks following the dinner party at Elves, things were starting to get better for Cassie. Unlike when she first returned from her travels, she had something to do, something that helped keep her mind off of the songs she was not writing. Working with Sean, Jade and Dani meant she had a purpose. As things progressed, she found herself becoming more involved with the foundation. Her previous hesitations had faded.

However despite how well things were going, Cassie was still bored. Throwing herself into the foundation was one thing, but becoming completely consumed by it was another. She needed to spend time thinking about other things. Cassie needed entertainment. The lack of fun she was allowing herself to have was beginning to disturb her.

In the back of her mind, Cassie thought about calling Luke and setting up another get together. But the fear of letting her guard down was still somewhat greater than the need for excitement.

Three weeks had passed since her last night out, dinner at Elve’s. To top it all off it was one o’clock on a Wednesday. Cassie had already finished the work she needed to do for the foundation. She now sat cross-legged on her sofa, bored out of her mind. She looked over to the corner where the piano lived and shook her head playing was not an option. The kitchen seemed to call her as well. Her last online shopping spree had resulted in new kitchen appliances. But Cassie was not in the mood for baking.

Cassie’s boredom was slowly getting the best of her and winning the battle against her fear. She stared at her cell phone and Luke’s business card, both of which were on the coffee table in front of her. Jade would tell her to call him, she would insist. And he had told Cassie she could call him any time. But he probably did not mean in the middle of the workday. He was probably working; and interrupting his work because she was bored did not sit well with Cassie. She decided to wait until later in the evening to give him a call. But that still did not solve her current predicament of being bored.

Time moved slowly for Luke. The few weeks that had passed felt like an eternity to the lawyer. Depending on fate meant that Luke rarely handed out his phone number. And while he waited for Cassie to call, it seemed like he spent every waking moment close to the phone waiting for it to ring. He was sure she would call. The nights Luke spent working late at the office, which lately had become most nights, he checked the voicemail of his home phone every thirty minutes.

By four thirty, Luke knew it was going to be another late night. He did not have anything or anyone waiting at home, so he decided to get a head start on the next morning’s work.  He was about to pull files for another case when his cell phone lit up with an unknown number.

“This is Luke Carrington,” he said into the phone.

The person on the other side said nothing.

“Hello?” Luke asked. “Look if this is a prank call, I don’t have time for this. How did you even get this number in the first place?”

There was still no reply from the caller.

Frustrated, Luke closed his eyes and ran his fingers through his hair. “This is not funny, goodbye.” He took the phone away from his ear but before he could end the call, a voice finally piped up on the other end.

“Wait, don’t hang up.”

Hearing the woman’s voice, Luke put the phone back up to his ear.

“Luke it’s…”

“Cassie, yeah.” Luke finished for her.

“How did you know it was me?”

“I know your voice. I’m surprised you called.”

Luke could hear her take a deep breath from his end of the conversation.

“Me too,” she said.

“So…”

“So…” she repeated his words.

“You called.” Luke said.

“I did.”

“In the middle of the week.”

“At least I didn’t call in the middle of the day too.” Cassie defended.

“What?” Luke asked confused.

“I was bored. I am bored. And you said I could call you any time for any thing. So, I’m calling you.”

“That was three weeks ago Cassie.” Luke was happy she called, but it had taken three weeks for her to do so. Who waits three weeks, he asked himself.

“Was there a time frame?” Cassie asked accusingly. “Because you really should have explained…”

“No, no.” Luke interrupted. “I’m just surprised that’s all.”

“You said that already.”

“I know, I did. But that’s not the point. What do you need?” He asked.

“I’m bored Luke.”

Luke leaned back in his chair and smiled. “Yeah, you said that already.”

There was a pause in the flow of the conversation. Luke wondered what she was doing, what she was thinking.

“I didn’t have to call,” Cassie said.

“But you did.”

“But I didn’t have to,” she repeated.

“But. You. Did.” Luke said emphasizing each word.

“Are we going to continue talking like this?” Cassie asked. Luke could almost see her rolling her eyes at the way the conversation was going.

“I don’t know,” he laughed, “are you going to tell me why you called?”

“What are you doing tonight?” Cassie blurted out.

“Cassandra Mitchell are you asking me out on a date?” Luke joked, knowing it would annoy her.

“No, I’m not asking you out on a date! I was going to invite Dani as well, but it seemed like it would be too late of a notice. She has a husband and kid to think of, so I didn’t call her. Therefore, I’m asking you if you want to do something. As friends, do something as friends.” She paused for a second, but not long enough for Luke to respond. “I was thinking a movie. Movies are safe. There is this new action movie that came out this past weekend that I wanted to see. Movies are good. I can’t really go to the movies with Jade. It’d be weird. People would stare at her and come up and ask me to take pictures for them. They’d ask for autographs. People are just rude.” The words began to tumble out of Cassie’s mouth. Because she was talking so fast, only parts of what she was saying made sense to Luke.

“Wait a minute there Cassie, slow down. I get it. Not a date, but two friends going to the movies.”

Cassie took a deep breath. “Yes, two friends going to the movie. What do you say?”

“I’m still at the office now but I can meet you in a couple of hours. How’s that sound?”

“Great. I’ll look up times and call you back with the information.”

“Alright Cassie. I’ll see you then.”

“See you then.”

Luke hung up the phone and smiled to himself. This would be fun.

Three hours later, Luke found himself running through the city trying to be on time meeting Cassie at the movie theater. She had called him back a half-hour later to tell him a time and place. The theater Cassie chose was not too far from his office. 

Luke had really wanted to get a head start on work for the new case he received earlier in the day. So instead of trying to run to his apartment and back to the theater, he stayed at the office and worked. It was an interesting case dealing with a problem Luke had not encountered before that required creative out-of-the-box thinking. Working on cases like this, reminded Luke why he became a lawyer in the first place. 

As the minutes turned into an hour, Luke became engrossed in the case. Luke did not mean to work for another two hours and forty-five minutes after he ended the call with Cassie. He just did. He had intended to be early, not rushing across streets just to make it on time.

When he arrived at the theater, Luke saw Cassie facing the street. She had pulled her hair into a ponytail and the wind played with her curls. Her hands were shoved into a brown leather jacket. Luke could not help but stare. There was something about the simplicity of the way she dressed that had Luke captivated. In the past, the women he dated always did themselves up with gobs of make-up, perfume and short skirts or skimpy dresses. Of course, this was not a date.

 “Cassie,” Luke said stopping next to her.

She looked away from the street and turned to face Luke, “You’re,”

“On time actually. See?” Luke said thrusting his wrist under her nose so she could see the time on his expensive, fancy watch.

Cassie rolled her eyes, smiled and shook her head. “Okay then, you’re not late. I didn’t get my ticket yet.”

“Why don’t we get in line?” Luke suggested. He extended his arm gesturing that she should lead the way.

After they bought their tickets, separately of course because this was not a date, Luke and Cassie went inside. They still had a few minutes to kill before they would be allowed into screen five where the movie was scheduled to play.

“Cassie, the movie isn’t scheduled to start for another thirty minutes.” Luke complained.

“Well, I know how you are about being late, so I told you an earlier time.”

“Wait a second. Men usually do that to women, not the other way around.”

“I can’t help it if you are chronologically challenged and need help with time management.” Cassie said seriously. If it were not for the small glint in her eye, Luke would not have known she was joking.

“That’s not funny.”

“I think it is. I just don’t understand how anyone could possibly be consistently late to everything. It’s rude and inconsiderate.”

“Right, remind me to never be late when I’m meeting you somewhere.”

Cassie smiled and changed the subject. “I think the theater is open, we can go inside,” she said.

A large number of people started moving from where they were lingering in the lobby towards the designated theater.

“You know what, I’m going to get some popcorn. Did you want anything?” Luke asked.

“This is not a date,” Cassie stressed, “I can buy my own refreshments.”

“I know it isn’t, but I’m going over there anyway. And it looks like there are a decent number of people going into the same movie as we are. I was being practical. I’ll get food and you can get the seats.”

Cassie tilted her head to the side and looked at him suspiciously before agreeing. “Okay. I want a small popcorn and a Pepsi.”

“What if they don’t have Pepsi?” Luke asked.

“Then, I want a Dr. Pepper.”

“Alright, I’ll see you in there.” He turned around and headed to the concession’s counter.

“Wait,” Cassie called.

Luke stopped and turned around. “Yeah?” He asked.

Cassie handed him a ten-dollar bill, “for my drink and popcorn.”

He nodded his head and she walked off. “Because this is not a date.” Luke said to himself.

Cassie found seats in the theater, that to her, were perfect. They were located in the middle of the theater—not too far from the top, but not so far down that they would strain their necks looking at the screen.

A few minutes after she was situated, Cassie spotted Luke walking into the theater looking around. She raised her hand and waved him over. As he got closer, Cassie noticed he had a tub of popcorn in one hand and a tray of two drinks in the other.

“You couldn’t sit any further down could you?” He asked sarcastically handing her the tray with the drinks.

“What, you like to sit in the nose bleeds?”

“You can see everything from back there,” he childishly complained.

“Well we aren’t moving.” Cassie stated.

“I didn’t say we needed to.”

“Good cause we weren’t.”

Luke smiled and laughed to himself as he sat down. He could tell that some of his boyish actions slightly annoyed Cassie. But she could be just as childish.

“What’s with the tub of popcorn?” Cassie asked handing him his drink from the tray.

“I wanted popcorn too, and I didn’t think you would like it if I ate from your small bag. So I got a tub.”

“You could have bought a bag for yourself.”

“This was the better deal.”

“Wow, never pegged you as being frugal.”

“I’m not frugal, I’m practical.” Luke explained.

“You can call it whatever you like,” said Cassie in a singsong voice.

“But…”

“Shh! The trailers are starting.”

Luke grinned. He did not meet too many people who enjoyed watching the trailers as much as he did. He settled into his seat and ate popcorn from the tub sitting in his lap.

The movie lasted for two hours. By the time Luke and Cassie left the theater, the tub of popcorn was empty and the ice in their drinks turned to water.

After discarding the unwanted trash, Cassie looked up and down the street.

“What are you doing?” Luke asked amused. It looked like she was thinking hard about something.

“I’m hungry.”

“You just ate the majority of a tub of movie popcorn. Besides, that still doesn’t explain what you’re doing,” he laughed.

“First of all, that was not real food. I want real food, so I’m trying to decide where I want to go eat.” Cassie explained.

“My office isn’t too far from here.” Luke said.

“That doesn’t solve my hunger problem.” Cassie stated unsure of where Luke was going with this line of thought.

“Well I left some things at work. So, why don’t we go to my office so I can grab them? Then we can decide where to eat.”

“Sounds like a plan.”

They walked to Luke’s office building. Neither said a word the entire way. When they got up to his office, Cassie leaned her back against the wall between the door and the bookshelves. She folded her arms as she watched Luke shuffle things around.

“Let me check my email and shut down my computer; then we can go.”

“Sounds fine.” Cassie said quietly. She was paying less attention to Luke and more attention to his office space. On the wall to the left of her hung Luke’s Bachelor’s and Juris Doctorate degrees. Underneath the degrees was a low bookshelf with all of his awards and accolades for the work he had done with the firm. It was a spacious room. A mahogany desk and what looked like an orthopedic chair sat in front of a large glass window. “You got a bad back old man?” Cassie asked lightly.

“You’ve got jokes,” he said looking up from his computer.

Cassie shrugged her shoulders and picked up a figurine that sat on the end table by the door.

“I don’t have a bad back. I just think the chair is comfortable. And you know what?  I’m the same age as you. So watch who you’re calling old.” Luke said.

Putting the figurine down, she smiled and rolled her eyes. Cassie moved to look at the legal texts in the bookshelf. When she heard the sound of the computer powering down she turned around.

“Are you done?” She asked.

“Yeah,” said Luke throwing the last files still sitting on his desk into his open briefcase. “Did you have a taste for anything specific?”

“I kind of want a really good hot-dog, or maybe a hamburger and some French fries,” said Cassie as she walked toward the elevator with Luke. “Oh, and a milkshake.”

“Really? Popcorn is not real food but hot-dogs, hamburgers, French fries and milkshakes are?” Luke asked disbelievingly.

They stepped onto the elevator.

“Do you have something against those foods?” Cassie asked.

“No. I just don’t consider them to be real food.”

“Well they aren’t snacks like popcorn.” Cassie defended.

“Yeah…” Luke’s sentence dropped off. He tilted his head to the side and laughed, “but do you seriously consider hot-dogs ‘real’ food?”

Cassie suppressed a smile, “shut-up.”

Luke opened his mouth as if to say ‘what.’

“If you’re going to make fun of me, close your mouth and shut-up.”

Cassie’s words alone would make people assume she was seriously offended, but Luke was reading her body language and not into her words. There was a glint in her eye indicating she thought their conversation was as ridiculous as he did. And the fact she was biting her lips meant she was trying hard not to laugh or smile.

Luke did not say anything the rest of the ride down to the lobby, or on their walk through the lobby. When they got outside, he turned to Cassie. “If you really want that ‘non-real, real food,’ I know this diner that’s not too far from here. They make a good hot-dog and have some of the best milkshakes.”

“What about their fries? Are the fries any good?” Cassie asked.

“Yeah they’re good too.”

“Fine with me, lead the way.”

They arrived at the diner not too long after they left Luke’s office. Luke picked out a booth near the back of the restaurant. They slid into the seats across from each other and began to read the menu.

“They have a lot of milkshake choices.” Cassie noted.

“I know. I’ve tried almost all of them. The only milkshakes I haven’t tried are the ones with strawberries.” Luke said.

“Why, do you have something against strawberries?”

“I’m allergic to them.”

“Oh.” Cassie continued to peruse the menu. “So, what’s good here?”

“I thought you wanted a hot-dog or hamburger?”

“I did. But once I got here and saw that there are so many options, I changed my mind. People do that you know, change their minds.”

Luke shook his head, “women.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Well, the meatloaf is pretty good.” Luke said avoiding the question. From the corner of his eye he could see Cassie smirking, but he ignored her and continued to talk. “They use a brown sugar ketchup sauce with it. I know it sounds gross, but it’s really good.  However, I have a thing for breakfast. It’s my favorite meal of the day, but I’m usually going so fast I miss out on the good stuff. So, when I come here for lunch I try and order from the breakfast menu.”

“Really?” Cassie asked intrigued.

“Yeah. They use challah bread for the French toast. They also make a French toast casserole type thingy.”

“A ‘French toast casserole type thingy’ is that the official name of the dish?” Cassie laughed.

“For someone who doesn’t like to be made fun of, you do a lot of teasing.” Luke accused.

“I can’t help it. You just make it so easy.”

Luke picked up a sugar packet and threw it Cassie.

“Hey!” Cassie squealed.

“Welcome to Rango’s diner can I get you started with a drink,” asked the waitress that had walked up to their table.

“Yes, I want a banana pudding cupcake milkshake and a water.” Luke said.

“I would like a strawberry cheesecake milkshake and a water as well.”

“Alright, I’ll be right back with those waters.” The waitress walked away and left the two friends alone.

“You threw a sugar packet at me!”

“Sorry,” Luke said smiling.

“But you’re not!” Cassie accused.

“You’re right I’m not.” Luke’s smile grew even bigger as Cassie picked up four sugar packets and threw them across the table. One hit his ear; another hit his nose and the other two landed in his lap. “Okay, okay. Truce” Luke held up his hands surrendering.

The waitress came back and set their waters on the table. She gave Cassie and Luke a look before asking if they were ready to order. After the waitress left, the two of them sat in silence for a few minutes.

“What did you mean when you said movies are safe?” Luke asked. He was curious to know what was running through Cassie’s mind during their earlier phone conversation.

“I never understood how going to the movies made for a good social activity, especially with groups of people. Think about it. You meet say hello to each and then promptly walk into a dark room and sit silently staring at the screen for two hours. And the type of discussions you could have about plot points or poor editing and graphics etc. are strongly frowned upon because you’re not supposed to talk. How does anyone get to know someone in that type of setting?” Cassie explained.

“I never thought about it that way.”

“Of course you didn’t,” Cassie said leaning back as the waitress sat the milkshakes and food on the table.  After the waitress left, Cassie continued with what she was saying. “It would be better to just go to the movies by yourself. But you can’t do that either. People would look at you funny and wonder why you’re being anti-social. Which just brings me back to the point I made on the phone about people being rude.” Cassie finished.

“You have some strong opinions about this don’t you?”

Cassie shrugged her shoulders as she took a bite of her hot-dog. “I’ve had a lot of time to think about things like this over the past year and a half,” she softly said after she had swallowed her food. She kept her eyes on the plate and focused on eating her hot-dog and French fries.

Luke stayed silent for a while as he ate his steak omelet. He was not quite sure how to respond. It was a simple statement. But the way she seemed dethatched from it concerned him. He could tell it was a defense mechanism. He had seen it before, whenever she felt people were getting to close; he could see her walls go up.

“What do you think of the food?” Luke asked. The evening had been going well. He could tell she was enjoying herself, and he did not what things to go badly now.

“It’s a pretty good hot-dog, but I’ve had better. This milkshake though, this milkshake is good. How wrong is it that I’m tempted to get one to-go?”

Luke laughed, “do what makes you happy.”

Cassie smiled as she sipped the last drops of her milkshake through the straw.

The waitress came by and left their checks. After they paid the bill, Cassie and Luke exited the restaurant.

“So,” Luke said.

Cassie stood in front of Luke with her hands in her pockets. She raised her eyebrows questioning him, asking what he wanted.

Luke just smirked, chuckled and shook his head. “Okay Cassie,’ he paused for a moment,  “you should come out with Dani and me on Sunday. We’re going to teach AJ how to play putt-putt.”

“Isn’t he a little young for that?” Cassie asked amused.

“It’s never too soon to learn how to golf.”

Cassie rolled here eyes and began to walk away. “Bye Luke.”

“So I’ll see you there right?” Luke asked.

Cassie turned around and walked backwards for a few steps, “I’ll let you know. Good night Luke.”  She waved before she turned back around and headed to the subway station.

Luke watched as the crowd swallowed her. When he could no longer see her figure, he hailed a cab and went home.