Categories > Celebrities > Fall Out Boy > We Could Be Perfect Strangers.
We Could Be Perfect Strangers.
5 reviewsMarina is stood up by her boyfriend on Valentines. Will two strangers be able to lift the mood of an otherwise depressing evening?
1Moving
One-shot? Maybe. Tell me what you think.
Marina sighed and glanced at the clock hanging above the opposite table. Nine o clock. He was late, not that that was much of a surprise. Of the three months they'd been together, Marina couldn't remember one instance in which Jason had actually bothered to turn up to one of their dates on time. He always arrived "fashionably late" (although one hour was pushing it, even for him) and after thirty or so similar scenarios, Marina was finally beginning to tire of it.
"Maybe I should just go home," she thought as she watched a happy couple leave the restaurant, hand-in-hand. She felt slightly out of place in this cosy, candlelit room, filled with swooning lovers and their numerous PDA's. It didn't help that it was Valentines Day, and her date had obviously stood her up.
She was just about to leave when two men entered the restaurant, joking noisily between each other. One of them had a funny-looking Afro and an annoying lisp, while his friend had unnaturally white teeth that contrasted well with his tanned skin. Marina narrowed her eyes as she watched them scan the room, then jaunt lazily over to her table.
"Hey pretty lady," the tanned one said arrogantly, "Mind if we sit with you?"
"Everywhere else is full," his friend added, almost apologetically.
Marina thought briefly about telling them to piss off before dismissing the idea and gathering her purse.
"Go for it," she sighed, " I was just about to leave anyway".
Afroman looked a little put out. "You're not leaving because of us are you? We can go somewhere else if you want."
That made her laugh.
"Don't worry, I'm not leaving because of you two. I'm leaving because I need to kick my soon-to-ex boyfriend's ass. He stood me up," she added when the two men didn't respond.
"OH!"
Marina laughed again. They were quite cute really.
"Your boyfriend stood you up on Valentines Day?" Shiny Teeth asked incredulously. "That's just cruel."
"Tell me about it. That's why I'm about to dump him".
Shiny Teeth smiled slightly, showing even more of his shiny teeth. "You wanna grab something to eat first? You must be pretty hungry."
"Yeah, it's like 9:30," Afroman was peering down at his watch.
Marina stared at the two men, weighing out the pros and cons. Her mother had always told her not to associate with strangers, especially in large cities like Chicago, but on the other hand the guys seemed decent (albeit a little forward), and she was hungry enough to eat a damn horse.
"Hell, we'll even pay for you."
In the end she re-seated herself hesitantly, unsure of what to do with her purse. She finally placed it in her lap, completely aware that two pairs of eyes were watching her every move.
"Y'know," she began, running a hand slowly through her long hair. "I really don't mind leaving. I mean, it's Valentines Day and I don't want to be intruding or anything..." She trailed off, glancing quickly between the two "friends".
It was Afroman who caught on to her insinuation first. His eyes grew so wide Marina thought they were going to pop out of his head.
"NO! No, it's not like that. See, we're just friends," he stuttered, blushing lightly. Shiny Teeth gave him a funny look, causing him to roll his eyes and add, "She thinks we're gay".
Shiny Teeth looked a bit shocked, but laughed it off, just like Marina thought he would. "Nah we're not gay. But Joe wishes we were, dontcha Joey?"
'Joe' rolled his eyes again and plonked himself right next to Marina.
"Whatever man. Just sit down and order, I'm fucking starving".
The next couple of hours were a blur of laughter, good food and interesting conversation. Marina learnt that Shiny Teeth was actually called Pete, and he and Joe were in band that had just arrived home after a massive tour. Because neither of them had girlfriends they'd decided to have a Boys Night Out, but found that almost every bar and restaurant in Chi-Town was packed, thanks to Valentines Day. They'd already been kicked out of six other restaurants before they found this one.
Just as Marina thought her stomach was about to explode (the boys kept ordering baskets of fries) she happened to catch a glance of the clock hanging above the opposite table. It was nearly 11:30. They'd been eating and talking non-stop for almost two hours.
"Holy shit guys, look at the time!" she exclaimed. "I've got classes tomorrow, I really should get going." Marina was studying law at a local university, and the timetable was pretty gruelling. Her first class was at seven in the morning.
Joe looked a little disappointed, but nodded nonetheless. "Yeah, me and Pete should be getting a move on too. That dude over there has been giving us the evils for the last half-hour. I think it's time we left." He motioned towards one of the waiters cleaning another table. He didn't look too happy.
Pete laughed carelessly, "He can wait little longer. I gotta take a piss first."
Like anyone really needed to know that.
When Pete went off to do his 'business', Marina began gathering her purse, while Joe flicked food around with his fork.
"Um, I know I should wait until Pete gets back, but thank you so much for tonight." Marina found herself unable to look Joe in the face. "I felt like such a fucking dork, waiting that long for Jason when it was obvious he wasn't going to show up. You guys made tonight completely worth it."
"Eh, no biggie. You're a pretty cool chick, and it's nice to meet someone who hasn't already heard of Fall Out Boy."
"Is that your way of telling me I'm completely behind the times?"
"Nah, I just... never mind. You wouldn't understand."
Awkward much?
Marina glanced at the clock once more. She really needed to get some sleep, but she didn't want to leave without saying goodbye to Pete. That would just be rude, considering he payed for the whole meal. Joe caught her looking at the time and smirked.
"If you wanna go, just go. Don't worry about Pete, I'll tell him you had to leave. It's his fault for taking so long anyway."
Marina hesitated, but only for a few seconds. She really did need her sleep.
"Kay, thanks so much Joey. It was a pleasure meeting you."
"See ya."
Marina stood up and walked briskly towards the exit. She could feel Joe's eyes burning through the back of her head. The chances of her ever seeing him again were slim to none, especially with the amount of travelling his band had to do, and she found that surprisingly disappointing.
She had almost reached her car, which was parked on the other side of the street, when the restaurant doors burst open and the cranky young waiter came running towards her.
"Wait miss, you forgot your jacket!"
Marina paused, confused. She hadn't worn a jacket that night. All she had brought with her was a light, lacy cardigan, which was currently draped around her shoulders.
"There must be a mistake," she explained politely as the waiter approached. "I didn't bring a jacket".
Waiter-boy shrugged and held out the garment.
"Don't tell me that, I'm just following orders. That man with the curly hair asked me to it give to you," Marina followed his gaze towards the window of the restaurant. There she saw Joe, mouthing and gesturing wildly:
"Check the pockets. Check the pockets".
Puzzled, Marina checked the pockets as Mr Sunshine stalked across the street, muttering about pay-rises and high-maintenance customers. Inside she found a candy wrapper, a Borders receipt and a crumpled napkin, covered in a messy scrawl:
"Marina.
This is my favourite jacket. I want it back someday, preferably in the near future.
Call me, 028162114
- Joe."
As Marina read and re-read the note, a small smile tugged at her lips. She was bloated, tired and her boyfriend had stood her up on Valentines, but maybe tonight wasn't such a dead loss after all.
Marina sighed and glanced at the clock hanging above the opposite table. Nine o clock. He was late, not that that was much of a surprise. Of the three months they'd been together, Marina couldn't remember one instance in which Jason had actually bothered to turn up to one of their dates on time. He always arrived "fashionably late" (although one hour was pushing it, even for him) and after thirty or so similar scenarios, Marina was finally beginning to tire of it.
"Maybe I should just go home," she thought as she watched a happy couple leave the restaurant, hand-in-hand. She felt slightly out of place in this cosy, candlelit room, filled with swooning lovers and their numerous PDA's. It didn't help that it was Valentines Day, and her date had obviously stood her up.
She was just about to leave when two men entered the restaurant, joking noisily between each other. One of them had a funny-looking Afro and an annoying lisp, while his friend had unnaturally white teeth that contrasted well with his tanned skin. Marina narrowed her eyes as she watched them scan the room, then jaunt lazily over to her table.
"Hey pretty lady," the tanned one said arrogantly, "Mind if we sit with you?"
"Everywhere else is full," his friend added, almost apologetically.
Marina thought briefly about telling them to piss off before dismissing the idea and gathering her purse.
"Go for it," she sighed, " I was just about to leave anyway".
Afroman looked a little put out. "You're not leaving because of us are you? We can go somewhere else if you want."
That made her laugh.
"Don't worry, I'm not leaving because of you two. I'm leaving because I need to kick my soon-to-ex boyfriend's ass. He stood me up," she added when the two men didn't respond.
"OH!"
Marina laughed again. They were quite cute really.
"Your boyfriend stood you up on Valentines Day?" Shiny Teeth asked incredulously. "That's just cruel."
"Tell me about it. That's why I'm about to dump him".
Shiny Teeth smiled slightly, showing even more of his shiny teeth. "You wanna grab something to eat first? You must be pretty hungry."
"Yeah, it's like 9:30," Afroman was peering down at his watch.
Marina stared at the two men, weighing out the pros and cons. Her mother had always told her not to associate with strangers, especially in large cities like Chicago, but on the other hand the guys seemed decent (albeit a little forward), and she was hungry enough to eat a damn horse.
"Hell, we'll even pay for you."
In the end she re-seated herself hesitantly, unsure of what to do with her purse. She finally placed it in her lap, completely aware that two pairs of eyes were watching her every move.
"Y'know," she began, running a hand slowly through her long hair. "I really don't mind leaving. I mean, it's Valentines Day and I don't want to be intruding or anything..." She trailed off, glancing quickly between the two "friends".
It was Afroman who caught on to her insinuation first. His eyes grew so wide Marina thought they were going to pop out of his head.
"NO! No, it's not like that. See, we're just friends," he stuttered, blushing lightly. Shiny Teeth gave him a funny look, causing him to roll his eyes and add, "She thinks we're gay".
Shiny Teeth looked a bit shocked, but laughed it off, just like Marina thought he would. "Nah we're not gay. But Joe wishes we were, dontcha Joey?"
'Joe' rolled his eyes again and plonked himself right next to Marina.
"Whatever man. Just sit down and order, I'm fucking starving".
The next couple of hours were a blur of laughter, good food and interesting conversation. Marina learnt that Shiny Teeth was actually called Pete, and he and Joe were in band that had just arrived home after a massive tour. Because neither of them had girlfriends they'd decided to have a Boys Night Out, but found that almost every bar and restaurant in Chi-Town was packed, thanks to Valentines Day. They'd already been kicked out of six other restaurants before they found this one.
Just as Marina thought her stomach was about to explode (the boys kept ordering baskets of fries) she happened to catch a glance of the clock hanging above the opposite table. It was nearly 11:30. They'd been eating and talking non-stop for almost two hours.
"Holy shit guys, look at the time!" she exclaimed. "I've got classes tomorrow, I really should get going." Marina was studying law at a local university, and the timetable was pretty gruelling. Her first class was at seven in the morning.
Joe looked a little disappointed, but nodded nonetheless. "Yeah, me and Pete should be getting a move on too. That dude over there has been giving us the evils for the last half-hour. I think it's time we left." He motioned towards one of the waiters cleaning another table. He didn't look too happy.
Pete laughed carelessly, "He can wait little longer. I gotta take a piss first."
Like anyone really needed to know that.
When Pete went off to do his 'business', Marina began gathering her purse, while Joe flicked food around with his fork.
"Um, I know I should wait until Pete gets back, but thank you so much for tonight." Marina found herself unable to look Joe in the face. "I felt like such a fucking dork, waiting that long for Jason when it was obvious he wasn't going to show up. You guys made tonight completely worth it."
"Eh, no biggie. You're a pretty cool chick, and it's nice to meet someone who hasn't already heard of Fall Out Boy."
"Is that your way of telling me I'm completely behind the times?"
"Nah, I just... never mind. You wouldn't understand."
Awkward much?
Marina glanced at the clock once more. She really needed to get some sleep, but she didn't want to leave without saying goodbye to Pete. That would just be rude, considering he payed for the whole meal. Joe caught her looking at the time and smirked.
"If you wanna go, just go. Don't worry about Pete, I'll tell him you had to leave. It's his fault for taking so long anyway."
Marina hesitated, but only for a few seconds. She really did need her sleep.
"Kay, thanks so much Joey. It was a pleasure meeting you."
"See ya."
Marina stood up and walked briskly towards the exit. She could feel Joe's eyes burning through the back of her head. The chances of her ever seeing him again were slim to none, especially with the amount of travelling his band had to do, and she found that surprisingly disappointing.
She had almost reached her car, which was parked on the other side of the street, when the restaurant doors burst open and the cranky young waiter came running towards her.
"Wait miss, you forgot your jacket!"
Marina paused, confused. She hadn't worn a jacket that night. All she had brought with her was a light, lacy cardigan, which was currently draped around her shoulders.
"There must be a mistake," she explained politely as the waiter approached. "I didn't bring a jacket".
Waiter-boy shrugged and held out the garment.
"Don't tell me that, I'm just following orders. That man with the curly hair asked me to it give to you," Marina followed his gaze towards the window of the restaurant. There she saw Joe, mouthing and gesturing wildly:
"Check the pockets. Check the pockets".
Puzzled, Marina checked the pockets as Mr Sunshine stalked across the street, muttering about pay-rises and high-maintenance customers. Inside she found a candy wrapper, a Borders receipt and a crumpled napkin, covered in a messy scrawl:
"Marina.
This is my favourite jacket. I want it back someday, preferably in the near future.
Call me, 028162114
- Joe."
As Marina read and re-read the note, a small smile tugged at her lips. She was bloated, tired and her boyfriend had stood her up on Valentines, but maybe tonight wasn't such a dead loss after all.
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