21st Century Knight

Chapter 3 What is This, a Date?

"Madison Blake, long time no see," Brandon rolled his tongue disinterestedly. Gabriella thought he looked like she had some infectious disease and wanted to avoid her. But Madison didn’t notice.

"So hilarious running into here! What a coincidence! It’s like fate. We always run into each other." Her voice was way too affected like she put it on and slid up and down like a kazoo, Gabriella thought.

"You don't say." Brandon drawled. Madison caught sight of Gabriella just then.

"Who is that? The new help your dad got? She should at least wear a uniform." She looked disdainfully at Gabriella.

"No such thing, Madison. This is Gabriella, my date." Gabriella herself was stunned to hear that and could not mistake it this time; whereas Madison looked like she didn’t comprehend what he just said.

"Are you playing a game, Brando? Okay, I’ll play along."

"No game," Brandon said curtly. Madison blinked, as though trying to understand a foreign language. Brandon didn’t wait around for her to understand. He walked toward the counter with a nonchalant ‘see you later', pulling Gabriella with him.

"Wait! You can’t be serious," Gabriella protested, finally getting her brain to wrap around what he had just said. He quickly gave his credit card at the counter, obviously in a hurry to get away from the store.

"Thank you for shopping with us, come again soon," the attendant said. Brandon grabbed the bag and strode quickly to the door, forcing Gabriella to scurry after him on her shorter legs.

"Brando, will you be at the party this Saturday?" Madison called hurriedly before he could get out, determined to get an answer from him.

"Maybe, maybe not. I haven’t decided yet." He said carelessly and walked out. Madison still went on talking with a petulant face, feeling put out at his lack of cordiality.

"Fine, I’ll see you later Brando!"

"She seemed desperate, did you have to cut her off that rudely?" Gabriella asked as they walked to the car. Brandon ignored her, too intent in deep thought. Gabriella made a face behind his back. He sure has bad manners, she thought. And not just toward me. Looks like he treats all women he doesn't like like that.

In the car, Brandon turned the radio loud, blaring a dance-pop song. Gabriella could sense he didn’t want to talk so she settled back and enjoyed the song, which she happened to like, her foot tapping on the rug to the beat. After a few seconds, he came out of his thoughts and noticed her.

"You like this song?"

"Sure." His gaze flickered to her occasionally from the road.

"What?" she asked, noticing his eyes.

"I didn’t think you were the kind of person to like this kind of a song, or any music for that matter. And I was also wondering what happened to that girl from half an hour ago, who looked like she wanted to throttle me." Gabriella bit back a smile. It wouldn’t do to let him see that he made her smile. But he caught it.

"Was that a smile?" he asked, with a grin.

"No," she said, turning to look out as they slowed to stop at the signal.

"I think it was." He took hold of her chin with his free hand and turned her head slowly toward him. Noticing she was biting her lower lip to keep from smiling, he pulled it out from under her teeth with his thumb.

"Hey!" she said, surprised at his presumptuousness.

"You got real pretty lips. Don’t ruin them by chewing them off," he stated as-a-matter-of-factly. Gabriella lowered her gaze, suddenly feeling abashed.

"I do that sometimes. It's a habit of mine," she admitted.

"You should stop, don't ruin your pretty lips." He called her lips pretty. Twice. Gabriella didn't know whether he meant it as a matter of fact or as a compliment.

"Are you hungry? We’ll get dinner now anyway. You still owe me." he continued.

"Where are we going? If your taste in food is anything like your shopping, I won’t be able to afford it."

"I was thinking about Carlotta's Cheese Pizzeria?" Brandon suggested casually.

"Oh." Gabriella looked unsure. That was a very popular place for romantic couples, even if it was affordable. She didn’t want to go there.

"Maybe there’s somewhere else I can afford…"

"Nope; I've always wanted to eat there. This is a perfect opportunity." He was already driving up to it and pulled to a stop.

"There’s a drive-through," She suggested feebly. But he was already getting out.

"I prefer eating at a table," he said firmly. Gabriella sighed. He was really stubborn when he wanted to be. Or maybe he was just giving her a taste of what she gave him.

"Table for two, outdoors please," he told the host. They were led to a cozy table sheltered by a striped umbrella. The outdoor area was near a pier, looking out to the sea. It was an extremely romantic atmosphere and Gabriella felt uncomfortable.

"Couldn’t I just buy you a hotdog and we call it even?" she asked. Brandon passed her the menu.

"I don’t eat those at night," he replied, "and I already ate one yesterday. Well, a second one at least." She didn’t say anything after that but buried her head in the menu. At least the pizzas were affordable.

"What do you want?" she asked from behind the menu. Her voice sounded muffled as a slight wind blew past them and Brandon didn't hear her.

"What? I didn’t catch that." He pulled the menu down to the table.

"I asked what you wanted," she repeated.

"Hmm, I like everything for the toppings." Gabriella’s heart sank. She was sure she wouldn’t be able to share a pizza then, especially as she was vegetarian.

"Um, alright then I’ll order separately." He looked up.

"Why? They do half and half. It’s on the menu."

"Oh, right, I see that. Okay then."

"What do you want on your side?"

"Veggies." He looked doubtfully at her.

"Veggies on a pizza?"

"Everybody has different tastes."

"Touché. Let’s order." He said as the waiter came up to the table.

"We’ll halve the pizza, one side everything, one side veggies. And mozzarella sticks for starters."

"Right away," the waiter said and left. She looked knowingly at them before going off, almost as if she thought they were a couple. Gabriella caught that look and almost blurted out that was not the case.

"So." Gabriella halted, unsure of his reaction to what she was going to ask.

"That girl, um… Madison. Is she your ex or something?"

"No, she’s not my ex." he sounded stiff and brisk again, Gabriella thought.

"Are you guys dating? Because she sure didn't seem happy to see me with you." Gabriella stated, eyeing him curiously.

"No, I'm not dating her." His short answer didn't put Gabriella off.

"Sure sounded like you did; she even has a gooey nickname for you. Brando, right?" he frowned at her for a moment. Aha, Gabriella finally found a way to get under his skin. But he grinned the next moment.

"She’s got a subjectively little crush on me, that's all."

"'Little' being a broad term."

"She’s actually dating someone else. You’ve probably seen them as a couple in the papers. They are in show biz." Seeing as Gabriella didn't read the tabloids, she didn't really know.

"The upper class. Figures." He heard the disdain in her voice and spoke.

"Why the attitude toward the wealthy?"

"It’s nothing."

"I don’t think it’s 'nothing'."

"Oh, it’s just that rich people are all snobby and haughty and I've only met a handful of people who give a damn about the little people. It’s because of them there’s such a division between rich and poor. I mean, with all that money, why can’t they help the less fortunate? It's racism in wealth." Brandon studied her earnest face for a minute. Then he broke into a laugh.

"That’s the longest speech you ever made to me. And well said." She blushed and lowered her head.

"Well, you asked." She said defensively but pleased at his compliment. Suddenly a thought struck her.

"Hey, I didn’t mean any offense."

"I’m not offended. Why would you think that?"

"You're obviously one of the rich kids too. I mean the fancy car, the shopping preference, the sunglasses…"

"What do my sunglasses have to do with them?"

"Two words: Dolce and Gabbana."

"Technically, that’s three."

"You're not denying it."

"I'm not. So you figured I'm rich, huh?"

"It was easy. And your money-obsessed way of thinking was a clue," Gabriella said easily. Brandon gave an amused smile at that. "The only thing I didn’t understand was the hotdog. Don’t rich people eat escargot and caviar and lobster and stuff?"

"If you’d actually tasted those, you’d definitely prefer a hotdog for lunch," Brandon said with a grimace. "And you can't eat stuff like that all the time, you'd get sick of it."

"Oh." She furrowed her brow while observing him, trying to figure him out. The food came just then and he turned his attention to tearing a slice of pizza.

"This is good. Have you ever eaten here? It’s great." He enjoyed the food with relish. He's a foodie, Gabriella thought. That was strange, considering how slender he was.

"How do you eat fast food and still remain like that?"

"Like what?"

"Skinny."

"You think I’m skinny?" he looked pleased.

"Not that it matters what I think, but yeah."

"Thanks. I’ll take that as a compliment."

"I thought only girls liked that compliment?"

"You underestimate men." Well, that was… Gabriella didn’t know what to say so she ate her pizza quickly.

"So how are you skinny?"

"Born that way I guess." He sipped his soda. "Although my personal trainer would be pleased to hear what you just said."

"Ah, that explains everything." Gabriella nodded in understanding. The sun had just set so they watched the horizon quietly for a few minutes as they ate.

"I don’t get it. Why are you so averse to fast food and meat?" Brandon asked suddenly.

"It’s unhealthy. And if you knew me, you’d call me a health freak."

"Nah. I can think of better names to call you than that."

"Oh really? Like what?" she dared him.

"Perfectionist. Drama Queen," he said playfully. But Gabriella got offended.

"You can’t judge a person after meeting them only twice."

"You’re easy. Anybody can tell exactly what you’re like within two minutes of meeting you." Gabriella stared at him, feeling less cordial by the minute.

"Fine! Then… forget it. It’s not like it means anything. I don’t care what you think of me." She got up huffily and left the table, walking toward the pier. She hadn’t even finished her soda.

"Wait, wait! Don’t get offended! I didn’t mean it in a bad way!" Brandon called hurriedly. He quickly paid the bill and grabbed the two soda cups, running after her.

"Gabriella, hold up! Gosh give a guy a break, I can’t run with soda!" she stopped mid-stride and whipped around.

"Don’t call me by my name! We’re not close friends or something for you to do that. And here," she angrily threw two ten-dollar bills at him.

"That’s for the pizza. I’ll pay the rest of the money for the dress when I collect my next paycheck. Just stop following me!" she turned on her heels and stormed off. Brandon stopped and watched her go into the darkness, feeling guilty. She walked down a lonely part of the pier, not noticing the sign saying 'keep away'. She sat down on a ledge staring at the water. Brandon came up to her and sat as close as he dared.

"I’m sorry." He said softly. "I guess I was out of line. Here, you didn’t finish your soda. And you don't have to pay for your dress, I thought we already agreed on that." She didn’t look at him, but took the soda and drank it in one shot.

"Wow, I’ve never seen a woman do that." He looked impressed.

"You’ve probably never talked to a woman before either." She retorted. "If you had, you'd have picked up some manners by now."

"Ouch, harsh." Brandon winced. "But I deserve it, and I suppose it's true." She turned sharply.

"What? Wait, I didn't mean…"

"I know. It was a shot in the dark. Get it? Because we’re in the dark and you spoke without knowing." He grinned, hoping she wasn’t mad anymore. She smiled too, thinking he wouldn’t see. But he did.

"Doesn’t take much to get you to smile, does it? That means you have a sense of humor. Good." She quickly straightened her face.

"Oh shush. I'm only laughing because your joke was so lame."

"Did it work anyway?" Gabriella bit back a reluctant smile.

"Whatever."

"And hey, you don’t have to pay me back. Think of the dress as a settlement for emotional and physical damage. Cool?"

"I don’t want to be indebted."

"You don’t have to." She closed her eyes.

"Fine. But don’t stalk me anymore." He sighed. Would this stubborn girl ever understand that he wasn’t stalking her? She got up, giving him the soda cup.

"Look, I've paid my dues, you've cleared your debt and we're even. Now I have to go. I have work tomorrow." Brandon sighed.

"already?" he asked.

"Some of us have to work to put food on the table," Gabriella said in a soft voice. "Goodbye, Brandon." She got up and walked back to the pizzeria, Brandon watching her with wistful eyes. Unfortunately, she stepped right into a broken piece of wood that snapped, sending her right into the water below. She screamed as she felt the rush of falling suddenly.

"Gabriella!" Brandon's voice held panic as he dropped the cups and dived into the water from the pier after her. Gabriella was still struggling because she didn’t know how to swim. She gasped and spluttered, desperate to keep above water, though her clothes began to weigh her down. She went down for a moment, but felt a pair of arms beneath her, lifting her into a cradling position. She coughed, holding onto the strong figure for support. Brandon quickly swam to the rocky pebble beach which was easier to reach than the pier. He laid her down, sitting beside her.

"Are you alright? Can you breathe? Do you need CPR?" he patted her on the back as she coughed out the salty water.

"I’m fine," she rasped. He rolled his eyes. She looked anything but.

"Do you need to go to a hospital?"

"No! I'm totally fine!" she seemed horrified at the thought. He noticed her rubbing her ankle. She winced. She must have twisted it when she fell through the pier. She breathed heavily.

"That must hurt. Come on." He carried her up and took a discreet path back to his car.

"Just take me home, please."

"No, we’re going to a hospital."

"I can't, I won't! and… and you can’t make me, please!" the terror in her voice made him stop and glance at her.

"You might be seriously hurt!"

"I’m fine. I just need to get out of these wet things."

" If you get sick on me… fine, where’s your house?"

"64 Perch St."

"Got it." He didn’t enter it in his GPS but drove confidently. Gabriella bit her lip as she felt achy.

"Don’t add to your wounds. You don’t need a cut lip on top of everything." Brandon warned her. She unclenched her teeth over her lip and clenched her fists instead. This was the worst day ever! She was soaked, bedraggled, bruised, and got into another accident – again. All because of him, she was sure. One thing Gabriella knew; Brandon Whiteley was definitely a walking accident zone, one she had to stay away from.