CHAPTER 6
Eva was holding a mug of hot water, cupping it with both hands as she sat in the corner café a block beyond The Double Pub. There weren’t any large windows in the building, but that didn’t matter to Eva, she chose to sit between two small windows along the wall with no view of the street outside. The expression she held didn’t quite seem to fit her face, it was a look of patience and serenity; but on Eva, at least in the waitresses’ opinion, it appeared blanker than anything else. Eva wore a conservative dinner dress with a shawl that was more practical and comfortable than intriguing; the warmth of the mug seeping into her body was a comfort but didn’t change how she felt as her eyes simply looked forward at nothing in particular, Eva was waiting.
Time warp
Relieved she was able to get a babysitter on such short notice, Mallory held Allen’s arm as they walked with Adam toward the pub. Allen was famous for leaving Mallory with short notice, and as much as it frustrated her, it gave her a small sense of pride to always come through prepared even if Allen didn’t notice or necessarily appreciate it; to Allen that was just Mallory. Adam knew Allen waited to tell Mallory about this afternoon, and didn’t like it, especially since he could hear the subtle tone in her voice when they met at the office. “I hope you’re not too uncomfortable about this Adam,” Mallory said softly as she tried to ease her own tension a little more. This was an opportunity for Adam to get out with someone and feel safe, but she remembered meeting Allen in a similar way and how strong the discomfort was at the time. Adam looked at Mallory and then over her at Allen and considered how things had changed within a week; how he hadn’t considered the idea of dating until after the night he was reprimanded by Officer Murray, Erin. “I’ll be fine, I’m not sure what bothers me more though, the idea of dating, or the fact that this, Eva, set up an apology dinner and Allen here turned it into an introduction,” Adam replied with only the slightest sarcasm, trying to tell the truth but keep the mood light. Mallory jabbed Allen with her free arm, finally letting all her anger fall away, and hoping this would just be a good night out after all. “Hey!” Allen shouted at the poke, a smile growing on his face, “Don’t make me the bad guy, it IS right and we ARE doing it,” he continued but now starting to laugh, feeling he’d made the right decision from the beginning. Adam laughed into a smile as he looked down at his attire, olive slacks and a mostly beige sweater over a shirt and tie that somehow suited him in a plain way.
Thankfully the dinner was scheduled at four Allen and Adam seemed to agree as they looked at each other, both noticing how quiet the pub was and how much nicer it seemed to be when not looking at it as a place to get “lunch” after a half day of work. Since they had been waiting a little while, Mallory ordered a small appetizer of brie, fruit, and bread; Allen quickly added a Martini to the order assuming Mallory would get them home in either event he played in his mind: the evening didn’t go well so they stayed through a difficult dinner, or everything went as planned and they’d leave early to let Adam and Eva get to know each other privately. As the time passed Adam eventually ordered a diet coke; he hated the idea of caffeine this late in the afternoon, but the pub didn’t offer caffeine free sodas and he wasn’t in the mood for anything else. After light conversation about Allen and Mallory’s kids, Megan and Ryan, and as the server delivered the bill, Allen finally offered, “I’m sorry things didn’t go as expected.” Adam smiled uncomfortably looking toward Mallory who had a similar expression on her face, then faced Allen. “I’m going to stay for a little while, but I’ll see you at work tomorrow.” Adam responded, trying to pull himself up and hoping to help Allen and Mallory leave without feeling too out of place for going.
Time warp
The waitress approached Eva, now feeling guilty for gossiping a little to her co-workers, and started to apologize, “I’m sorry sweetheart, and you look so beautiful…” Eva pulled a tip from her purse and handed it to the waitress, interrupting the apology. “Thank you for the water” she said without pain or any emotion other than gratitude. As the waitress walked away, Eva rose and went for the exit and straight toward the pub. Allen and Mallory were walking away from Eva as she approached the entrance. Without lingering on them, she opened the door to The Double Pub and spotted Adam at a table near the far end of the room.
Adam let out a small yawn of general exhaustion while leaving the table as he set down enough money for the bill and tip. Eva was nearly within arm’s reach, but Adam still hadn’t fully turned to focus on what was in front of him. Immediately Adam found himself holding someone up by their underarm and while quickly taking a survey of what happened recognized that the young woman, who was steadying herself now, had broken a heel. He found this strange, as if the situation was a myth he was seeing first hand, but lost focus on the thought as he devoured more with each assessment of the woman before him, now slightly below even eye-level and standing full height as she kicked off her shoes. Adam’s mouth was now slightly open without any words coming out, he wasn’t even sure he was trying to say anything, but knew he wanted to. The smile on Eva’s face as she brushed her hair back was rehearsed but Adam didn’t notice as he finally pulled individual inspection back to an overall evaluation of what all the pieces fit to become. Growing slightly impatient that Adam hadn’t said anything yet, Eva decided to breach the silence with modestly embarrassed gratitude, “Ahem, thank you for being there.” Eva looked into Adams eyes as deeply as she could while still forcing a look of thanks and general, almost ‘non’, interest. Adam was turning somewhat pink and could feel it, so averting his eyes and rubbing the back of his neck and head to think, he fell into a somewhat basic form which he loathed, “No problem, anytime.” Adam was now analyzing the words that escaped his mouth, her reaction to them, and how to bring himself back to himself. “I suppose I owe you a new pair of shoes since I wasn’t paying attention to where I was going,” Adam committed to the conversation. “Maybe,” Eva played along while directing things back to where she was comfortable being, “If you’re not leaving, I would appreciate some company though, I think the couple I was supposed to meet here couldn’t wait up for me.” Feeling entirely out of his element as he processed everything that was happening Adam agreed with a nod and somewhat awkwardly opened the path back to the table he was at with an outstretched arm. As he followed Eva the few steps to sit down, Adam satisfied his curiosity by finalizing a memory of her entire physical presence in his mind while starting to determine more about who and what she was, “I guess I’m the lucky one then since your friends are missing out on your company.” Eva was really starting to push the limits of her comfort as this progressed so she attempted a semi-restart, “I’m Eva by the way.” Adam was so lost he wasn’t able to make the connection and simply replied as he signaled the server, “Nice to meet you, even if your circumstances so far have been unfortunate … I’m Adam.” He started to pause then without effort or the ability to hold it back, he said her name out loud, “Eva … EVA” Adam laughed honestly, “I don’t suppose you were meeting Allen here?” This is where the conversation needed to be, so Eva was satisfied and nodded to an older man who was sitting alone at a small, high-table along the wall.
Time lapse
Adam glanced at his watch trying to determine how much time he was able to sit up and think. He started with his current mood and how it was the same as always when meeting new people but this time the curiosity was slightly different. “I was fortunate to have stayed,” Adam was building a puzzle for himself, “and I know I would have declined Allen had it not been for meeting Officer Murray…” Adam froze then relaxed, reassuring himself, “They looked too different.” Adam started comparing Eva to Erin, Erin had an officers build and looked a few years older than Eva, but so many of the facial features were almost identical…”penetrating eyes” Adam thought, now slipping back to the evening with Eva. “She seemed to have a good time,” his mind wandered thinking about how comfortable Eva was to laugh and touch his han
d while she enjoyed something Adam had said or surprised her with. Adam was never comfortable reaching out and invading others space, but generally didn’t mind when others did it to him since the intention was usually a positive one. “Just a different comfort level,” Adam supposed as he remembered how his hand felt each time Eva briefly held hers over his.