The Fire and the Phoenix

SEVEN | ROSALIE

Momma and daddy climbed into their car so they could take Chris home. I watched them pull away and grimaced as Chris stared at John. He had a deep scowl on his normally chipper face. I was perplexed. I had never seen Chris react that way to anyone.

"Sorry about that," I said hesitantly as I clasped my hands in front of me. "I'm not sure what got into him."

John bumped me softly with his elbow. "Nothing to worry about," he replied. "What would you like to do?"

I smiled shyly. "Dinner?" I asked.

John smiled back. "Sure," he said. "Let me call my driver."

"Um…driver? Like your Uber?" I shook my head and pointed to Old Bessie. "My car is over there. I can drive us."

I saw John's eyes widen, a normal reaction to the appearance of my pride and joy, Old Bessie. She was a beautiful, albeit rough looking Jeep Renegade. Her red paint had faded in spots and there was a little rust, but she ran like butter and could traverse the most difficult off-road courses north Georgia had to offer. I hadn't had a chance to wash her after my latest escapade through the Curahee Mountain course in Toccoa, so she was a bit dirty.

"Is that thing road legal?" John gulped.

I gasped. "Thing? Thing?!" I chastised. "That is Old Bessie, thank you very much. She has been my unwavering companion through thick and thin for almost three years now." I folded my arms and glared at him. "I can put the cover on if you'd prefer to not mess up your hair."

John stared down at me, and smiled in acquiescence. "My hair can survive the wind. Lead on, my lady."

He seemed to stare off at nothing for a second and then grimaced before gesturing toward Old Bessie.

We climbed in the old girl and I clicked my phone into the holder. "You don't mind Linkin Park, do you?" I asked as I thumbed through my Pandora stations and connected the Bluetooth to my stereo system.

"One of my favorites," John replied.

"Oh, awesome. We'll get along fabulously then," I chirped as I latched my seatbelt. "Seatbelt, please."

John's seatbelt clicked and he grabbed on to the handle above the door. He looked over at me and made the sign of the Cross.

"Really?" I groused as I narrowed my eyes. He flashed me a grin and I couldn't help but smile back. I cranked Old Bessie and her engine roared to life. Shoving her gear shift into reverse, I pulled out of the parking space and shifted to first to begin driving out of the lot. The crisp fall air whipped through the open cabin as we pulled onto the road. I glanced at John, who was relaxing in his seat, and a small smile played across his full lips.

"Pretty awesome, right?" I asked.

"Hmmm..." John murmured back as he settled further back into his seat. "I'd say so. I love the weather this time of year."

"You should come off-roading with me some time," I offered.

He glanced at me. "You do that?" He grinned.

I waved my hand around Old Bessie. "How do you think she got into this condition? Driving in Atlanta?" I asked.

He shrugged. "You never know around here," he responded.

Nodding, I laughed. "True that," I said. "So where to?"

John sat up and looked at me. "How about Vortex?"

I frowned. "I can't," I griped. "21 and older only."

John chuckled. "Trust me," he said. "Let's do Vortex."

"Um...ok..." I said hesitantly. I pulled over and pulled up the map app on my phone. "Which one, Midtown or Little 5?"

"Little 5," he said.

I set the directions and pressed play on Pandora as I pulled back onto the road. "Crawling" blasted out of my speakers, and I began to belt out the lyrics.

"Crawling in my skin/These wounds, they will not heal/Fear is how I fall/Confusing what is real..."

John joined me. His smooth baritone voice melded with my contralto as we followed along with Chester Bennington's emotional tenor.

We sang along to several other songs as I navigated Atlanta's busy streets. As "Wicked Game" by Theory of a Deadman started playing, we were pulling into the Vortex parking lot. I pulled into a space and reached to turn off Old Bessie when John's hand caught mine.

"Keep it on," he said. "This is one of my favorites."

We sat for a minute listening to the song, and John started singing quietly.

"The world was on fire, and no one could save me but you/It's strange what desire will make foolish people do/I never dreamed that I'd meet somebody like you/And I never dreamed that I'd lose somebody like you..."

I stared at him as he sang. His eyes were closed, and he moved his head back and forth in time to the music. My heart fluttered in my chest as I watched him lose himself in the lyrics.

Too soon, the song was over, and I turned Old Bessie off as he sat up. He looked over at me and smiled.

"That was really good," I said.

He shrugged noncommittally. "My mom sent me to lessons when I was younger." He shifted his body so he was facing me and took my hand gently. "You have a good voice, too."

I smiled shyly and looked down. "Thanks. School choir for me. No solos, though."

"Their loss. Hungry?" he asked.

"Very, but I don't think they're going to let me in..." I complained.

"Leave that to me," he reassured me.

He let go of my hand and we climbed out of Old Bessie. I locked the steering wheel with my Club since the doors were off from off-roading. Grabbing my phone and backpack, I followed him to the off-beat entrance of the Vortex. The huge skull that surrounded the door was glowing red from the swirling neon lights in the skull's eye sockets. John opened the door and gestured to me to enter. Loud music echoed out of the door, and the greasy smell of burgers and fries wafted out towards us.

"Hey Chadwick," John said to the huge bouncer sitting on a high stool just inside the door. He and the bouncer grasped hands tightly, and I almost gasped when I saw the taught muscles in John's arm as they strained against his shirt. Damn, I thought. What am I getting in to?

"Alpha," Chadwick said.

I looked at John quizzically. "Alpha?" I asked.

John grimaced. "Just a nickname," he said quickly.

Chadwick pressed his lips together and nodded.  "We used to call him that at...school." He stared at me briefly and glanced over at John. "She's underage, isn't she?"

I felt a blush creep up my neck and I frowned as I looked away. "Told you," I muttered quietly, thinking there was no way John could hear me over the pounding music.

John smiled at Chadwick and clapped him on the shoulder. "I vouch for her," he said.

Chadwick smiled. "Sure thing, Al...I mean Johnathan. Miss?" he said as he gestured inside the Vortex. My mouth must have fallen open because the next thing I knew, John had put his finger under my chin and gently closed it. "Told you," he whispered into my ear. My blush deepened as I followed him into the funky interior of the restaurant.

"Enjoy yourself, Rosie," Chadwick said.

"Thanks," I said quietly, hardly registering he had used my name when I hadn't been introduced.

John grasped my hand gently and led me over to the hostess. I gaped at her. She was amazingly beautiful. Her heart shaped face was dominated by her huge eyes which almost appeared silver in the light of the restaurant. She was shorter than me, and much curvier, but very tone. Her long black hair was streaked with purple, and she sported several piercings and tattoos. Not much was left to the imagination because of the skimpy shorts and tight t-shirt she wore. Her black combat boots were laced all the way up her calf almost to her knee. She smiled broadly at him and sauntered over. "Alpha!" she drawled. "What brings you here?"

"Hello Brandi," he said.  "This is Rosie. We'd like a table please. In the back, away from the noise if possible." He grasped my hand more tightly and brought it to his chest. My breath hitched in my throat as I looked at him.

Brandi looked at us for a second and smiled broadly. "Oh goodness! Sure thing, John!" she said. She grabbed a couple of menus and motioned for us to follow her.

John led me through the main dining area toward the back and into a nearly private room. The music was much more muffled here, and I sighed in relief when I realized we wouldn't be shouting over it at while we talked.

"Here you go," Brandi said cheerfully, and set the menus down on the table. As she turned away, she winked at me. "He's a good one," she whispered as she sauntered off.

I slid into the booth and dropped my backpack on the chair next to the wall. John slid into the other side, grinning.

 I smiled back and looked down with the pretense of staring at the menu. I could feel John's eyes on me and began to flush furiously as my nerves got the best of me.

"So, what do you think you might want," he said huskily.

"Um, probably just a burger and fries," I said. I glanced up at him. His eyes, which looked golden again, were focused intently on me, and I squirmed uneasily under his gaze.

"What?" he asked, furrowing his brow.

"You're staring," I murmured.

He looked down and blinked. "Am I?" he asked quietly. When he looked back up, his eyes appeared brown again.

I shook my head. "What is with your eyes?" I c****d my head. "That's so bizarre."

"What do you mean?" he asked.

Before I could answer, we were interrupted by a perky blonde asking for our order. I gawked as John ordered what seemed like half the menu.

"Are we sharing?" I asked.

"I figured I get a little of a lot of things so you could try them. I hope that's ok," John answered.

I smiled and nodded as the server sauntered off to get our drinks. John stared at me again. "What was it you were asking?"

Why am I so nervous? I thought. I gulped quietly and looked at John's brown eyes. They were twinkling in amusement.

I shrugged helplessly. "It was just bizarre. I thought I saw your eyes change color."

John sat back in his chair and rubbed his face. "I've been told that before," he said. He sighed. "I think it's just the way my eyes reflect the light." He frowned a little. "I've never had anyone call it bizarre though."

I looked down. "Sorry," I murmured.

John laughed, and I felt his finger under my chin. When I raised my head, he was staring at me intently and my heart fluttered in my chest again. "You don't need to ever say that you're sorry to me unless you have something you really need to apologize for," he admonished quietly. "You seem to say that a lot."

"Sorry," I mumbled again, and laughed. "Yeah, I do, don't I?"

John chuckled and nodded in agreement.

The server brought our drinks back and I took a long sip of sweet tea, sighing in contentment. I looked up to John to see him holding his beer up with his eyebrow c****d.

"Toast?" he asked.

I lifted my half-finished glass of tea and tapped it against the neck of his bottle. "What are we toasting?" I inquired.

"How about to finding each other again and being open to see where it leads," he said huskily and took a long swig of his beer.

I nodded and took a quick drink of my tea.

The food arrived soon after, and we began digging into the smorgasbord that had been laid out before us. I groaned in pleasure as I took a bite of one of the burgers. The tang of blue cheese spread across my tongue as the saltiness of bacon mixed with the hearty flavor of the beef. "Oh my God," I moaned. I looked up to see John looking at me with a mix of amusement and longing. My breath hitched in my throat and I choked a little on my burger. Grabbing my tea, I drank several swallows in rapid succession and coughed.

"Are you ok?"

I jumped at John's voice right next to me. I hadn't even seen him move from his side of the table to mine. His face was etched with concern.

"I'm good," I spluttered. "I always choke on the first bite."

He took his thumb and rubbed a tear off my cheek. "Are you sure? Your eyes are watering," he murmured.

I waved him away. "Yes, I'm sure. I don't need the Heimlich, Mr. Firefighter." I grinned up at him. "You should see me after my first swallow of a carbonated beverage."

I coughed a few more times as he moved back to his side of the table. He was still staring at me uneasily.

I narrowed my eyes at him. "Look, if we're going to be eating together, you need to understand a few things." I straightened in my chair. "I choke after the first bite of food just about every time I start eating. I hiccup after taking the first sip of a carbonated drink, which is why I usually drink tea. I tend to drip sauce on my clothes," I said, pointing at my newly stained sweatshirt, "which is why I always keep a spare shirt in my backpack. I love food and am not shy about eating in front of anyone, so don't expect me to eat daintily if you take me out again, regardless of where we go."

John had started chuckling at this point.

"No salads. If I'm going to eat a salad, it better be on top of a juicy burger with all the fixings. Good barbeque is the manna of the gods. I don't do Starbucks, unless it's to get a plain latte. I'd rather have Waffle House coffee than a Starbucks frou-frou drink any day of the week…"

John raised his hands. "Ok, ok! I get it. You're not a foodie, but you love food, am I right?"

I grimaced. "Do not ever," I enunciated, "ever, get me avocado toast."

At that point, John lost it. His laughter rang around the room and I joined him. After a minute, he wiped his eyes and looked at me, grinning.

"And another thing," I said, smiling slyly. "If you want to win my heart, good seafood is the key."

His eyes widened as he leaned forward on the table and reached for my hand. "That can be arranged," he promised.

I curled my fingers around his offered hand and smiled. "Crab legs."

John pressed his lips together. "With clarified butter?" he teased.

I nodded and licked my lips. "Cooked in plenty of Old Bay," I murmured. I grabbed a French fry and ate it as he stared at me. His eyes briefly changed color again and I shook my head. "So weird…"

John blinked and smiled. "Let's finish. It's getting late."

I glanced at my phone and my eyes widened. "Crap. It is, isn't it. I still have to drop you off at your house," I said. "Crap, crap, crap!" I grabbed another fry and downed my tea. "I have to work in the morning," I complained.

"I'll get a ride from your house," said John. He waved our server over. "Can we get some to-go boxes and a to-go tea?"

"Sure, hon," she said. "I'll grab your check on the way."

John fished a card out of his wallet. "No need. Just run it," he said.

She nodded and trotted off.

"What do you mean, you'll get a ride from my house?" I asked. "No way. I kidnapped you from my school and drove you down here. The least I can do is drive you home."

John grinned. "It's really not a problem. My driver can meet us there. What's your address?"

I sighed and gave him my address. He pulled out his phone as the server came back and dropped off the to-go boxes and my tea. She handed John the check stub, and he signed it while I filled the boxes with our uneaten food and put them in the bag the server had given us.

"Ok, meet you there in 45 minutes," John said, and hung up. "Ready?"

"Yep," I acknowledged. Can you carry the to-go? It's pretty heavy."

John grabbed the bag with one hand and held his other hand out. "My lady," he teased.