Getting a Life Ch. 06

***Hey guys, I'm sooooo sorry for how late this is coming, no excuses. I want to thank everyone who's rated and commented on the story so far. I appreciate every single one of you. Please rate and comment on this chapter as well, that's all I look forward to. Love you* Lannasage

Tai straightened his burgundy blazers for what must've been the thousandth time that evening as he awaited Selly's arrival with her friends. He hadn't been this nervous since his first date at 15, but even that couldn't compare to this. Once again, he was befuddled as to why this woman wielded such powers over his psyche. She wasn't the most beautiful woman he had come across, but he liked that there was a uniqueness in her beauty.

There was also the thing about his strange need to protect her. He swore he had never felt such a strong urge to protect anyone, fine, he could attribute it to her vulnerability, but he knew he would only be kidding himself. He honestly wasn't one to give two fucks about anyone's emotional woes. Prior to meeting her, he had worn the tag of 'selfish jerk' with pride and dedication, but with her, he wanted all of that to change, he swore she was doing the weirdest things to his psyche, he wasn't sure if he should embrace the feelings or fear them.

He looked at his wrist watch, 6:54, okay, 6 minutes more. He could wait an extra 6 minutes...or an hour even, just as long as he saw her.

"Is she the one you're waiting for?"

Tai almost jumped out of his skin at the sound of that voice, he turned to find his elder sister looking up at him questioningly, but he could detect the displeasure in her eyes as well, not that he gave a hoot about that, "What the hell Mina? Are you trying to give me a heart attack?" He asked, he only gave her a brief look before returning his eyes to the road for any sign of Selena and her friends.

"Is she the one you're waiting for?" Mina repeated, ignoring Tai's earlier question.

"Yes, now it would be nice if you returned to whatever it is you were doing before coming out." He replied already regretting his agreement to meet up with Selly here, he hadn't liked the idea from the get go, but he was willing to do anything to get Selly to go on a date with him, now he thought he should've suggested some other place.

"Won't you at least introduce us?" Mina asked, her dark eyes staring up at the brown pools that belonged to her brother defiantly, he knew she wouldn't leave that easily.

An exasperated sigh escaped Tai's lips, "Mimi, this isn't the time for this, I'll introduce you guys, but I have to settle some things with her first, you don't understand, she's special."

Mina raised a dark brow questioningly, "She's special? You think a woman is special? Are you okay?"

No, he wasn't okay. She was doing the weirdest shit to his brain and he understood Mina's concern. It just wasn't like him to think of anyone as special, "Mina, just go, please."

Just as those words left his lips, he watched an ash-colored Lexus IS salon car slow down a few metres away. Damn, that car was nice. After art, he had a thing for autos. He had once considered being a mechanic and had even worked at a few auto shops when he was younger, over the years though, art had taken up most of his time and his interest in autos waned- but not so much he didn't know a damn good one when he saw it.

Forgetting about his annoying older sister, he moved toward the car to at least ask the owner if he could get a better look at it. A familiar male form stepped out stopping him in his tracks. He knew that guy, he had seen him somewhere, he was hard to miss or forget, the man had the build of a basketballer and looks better suited for a model. He watched the man turn around as he tried to remember where he had seen him.

The man opened the passenger door and Tai watched a long, slim, milky leg in a silver-sequined, 4-inch heel step on the pavement, it's twin followed suit, the man's hand was offered to whoever owned those legs and he helped her out....her! Of course, now he knew where he had seen the black guy, as well as the female who had just stepped out of the car, they were friends of....he gulped uneasily.

Damn. He had been waiting for her for hours and now that she was here, a nervousness that hadn't resided in him since they had agreed upon their date suddenly came over him. He smoothened invisible wrinkles on his navy blue blazer as he watched the tall man open the backseat door.

Unlike the first one, he took extra time talking to the occupant of the back seat before letting her out. A wave of jealousy passed through Tai when he noted the man's somewhat doting nature towards who he knew was Selly, he acted like he was her boyfriend or something. He shook off the thought, he wasn't her boyfriend, he didn't know their relationship as of yet, he was sure they weren't blood relatives because they looked nothing alike....he paused in hid thoughts. He definitely looked familiar, he had seen a similar face before....her fiance, of course. The man shared an uncanny resemblance with the other man in the picture she had given him of her fiance, they had to be brothers. He almost laughed at himself and his childish jealousy.

The other woman, whose eyes had been searching the street, finally caught sight of him, a small smile came upon her lovely features and she approached him, he had to admit, she was very pretty in that high-class lady kind of way and he didn't doubt she was the outgoing one of all three, she dressed the part. Her shoes were matched with an orange-coloured sleeveless chiffon top and a high-waisted metallic skirt that hugged her hips which weren't quite as thick as Selena's.

"Hi, Tai, right?" She asked once she reached him.

Tai gave her a warm smile, "Yes, good evening."

She returned his smile and extended her hand out to him, "I'm Linda, Selly's friend, remember me from the other day?" She asked, a mischievous glint in her eyes

He had a feeling she was willing to enumerate more on the 'day' in question, but he didn't give her that opportunity, "Yes, I do remember you. Nice meeting you again." He replied.

"Same here." She replied, her eyes taking a not-so-quick perusal of him.

Tai didn't doubt for a second that tonight would be more about his relationship with Selly than anything else, sure it was supposed to be a double-date, but he could bet her friends would zoom their interests on him all night long.

Luckily, he didn't have to stay under the curious gaze of Linda as Chuks and Selly joined them.

"Hi." A cheery male voice greeted.

He looked away from Linda and his eyes fell not on the over 6ft tall male standing inches away, but the less commanding, more conspicuous smaller woman by his side, he had to blink twice to be sure his eyes weren't deceiving him. She was gorgeous!

For the past few weeks he had only seen her in a natural state- no make-up, casual, or mostly sloppy outfits, dishevelled hair. This was the first time he was seeing HER. Selena. And boy was that outfit doing a number on his senses. The gold dress hugged her silhouette sensually, it was sexy, the colour complementing the coffee-bean color of her glowing skin- yes, her skin looked lovely as well, not the dull he had seen these past weeks. She looked like a different person totally. Her face had a new glow to it as well. It wasn't heavily made-up by any stretch of the imagination, but there was more of an effort tonight and he appreciated it- he more than appreciated it, he loved it.

She gave a small, unsure smile and said "Hi" in a quiet voice.

Unconsciously, he replied with a "Hi" in a whisper, the knowing smile that graced Linda's lips made him regain himself. He gave a small cough realising that they both looked like two shy teenagers going on their first date, "Hi." He repeated, his voice firm. His gaze reluctantly left Selly's to rest on the man beside her, "Hi, I'm Tai." He said as he stretched his hand out for a shake.

The man took it without hesitation, "Chuks, nice to meet you." He replied, his eyes looking him over like he was trying to assess the kind of man Tai was.

Tai made a mental note to himself to find out who exactly this guy was to Selly because it seemed he was the one he'd have to go up against if something went wrong...not that he ever wished for that, but this man gave him even more reason not to fuck with Selly.

He watched a faint smile appear on the man- Chuks' face, perhaps a sign that he had passed the preliminary stage of acceptance, "Nice to meet you as well." He returned the smile with one of his own.

He was optimistic that by the end of the evening, he would've gained two allies in his quest to win Selly's heart.

*****

The dinner was going much better than Selly thought it would and she was yet to decide whether that was a good or a bad thing.

She found Tai was having an enviable conversation with her friends, she almost felt like the spare wheel in all of this. She couldn't remember the last time Linda and Chuks had laughed this hard, and she would be getting a good laugh too if she wasn't over-thinking everything....and worrying about what Chuka would think if he saw them like this, or if he was somewhere around. She wanted to know what he thought, no, she just wanted to see him. But he said he wouldn't show himself to her anymore, so that was a lost cause.

Inwardly, she berated herself for even thinking about Chuka, here Tai was in all his gorgeous sexiness, right beside her, dressed to the nines in a pair of grey slacks, a white dress shirt and grey blazers that fitted his tall frame perfectly, his midnight-black hair was bound at the nape of his neck with a thin hair band with a strand falling loose, reminding her of what he looked like the first day they met- Samurai Jack- with a better outfit than the cartoon character.

His cologne teased her sense of smell, she couldn't tell what brand it was, but she made a note to herself to find out. It was masculine, but not so strong that it was offensive or cough-inducing. And he used just the right amount.

Virtually every woman in the room was giving their table more than just passive glances every 5 minutes as thought they were checking to confirm if the two hot pieces of male eye-candy were still there while they formulated a grand plan to shift their attentions away from the women they arrived with.

Yes, even Chuks was quite pleasing to the eye this evening, then again, just like his brother, he was always pleasing to the eye- even when he failed to dress up. He had come in what she had aptly tagged 'classic Chuks'- a pair of black jeans and a black shirt to go, she could bet her dress the dark green blazer he wore over the shirt had been forced on him by Linda. Probably one of the clothing items Linda bought him that he liked to shove in the recesses of his wardrobe until she made him wear it- or somebody died. Because Chuks had zero sense of style. He had a buff body, but couldn't figure out how to show it off in his clothes. He was just that clueless....and it wasn't just the clothes he seemed to be clueless about.

Selly hadn't failed to notice the looks of longing Linda had been giving Chuks when she thought no one was watching, she was going to ask her friend what exactly she thought she was getting into once she got her alone. As much as she had nothing against Chuks and Linda hooking up, she knew Linda would need a lot of attention and as much as Chuks was caring, he wasn't one of those people who caught on to things with ease so that would be something of an issue eventually.

"Earth to Selly."

Selly snapped out of her thoughts when she heard those words escape Linda's lips, she found 3 pairs of eyes staring at her in a blend of confusion and concern, she wanted to punch herself, it was downright rude to have just zoned out of the conversation, "I..I'm sorry, um...what were you guys talking about?" She asked as she reached for her glass of iced tea and took a small sip.

"Are you okay?" Chuks asked with concern.

She nodded, "Yes, I'm fine." She gave a small smile that was meant to assure them, but none of her companions seemed convinced as their expressions never changed.

"Are you sure? You know, if you're tired we could leave." Tai suggested.

She smiled her appreciation at him, she wasn't sure if his concerned tone should sooth or worry her. He had suggested this dinner and had booked the reservation hoping he'd get to know her more and she him and all her silly self had done the entire evening was sit there like some statue saying and doing nothing. If it were someone else, he'd have been pissed and his mannerisms would've shown that. Tai on the other hand, barely seemed affected by her lack of attention, she knew her friends were interesting, she just didn't think them that interesting.

"It's late anyway." Linda piped in as she flipped her wrist to look at the watch attached to it, her eyes bulged, "Wow, 9:50, how time flies."

"Time does fly when you're with good company." Chuks added, his comment clearly targeted at Tai. He found him an interesting fellow, he was nothing like the random people one met on the streets, he had a uniqueness about him that Tai liked and wholly approved of...not to mention, he clearly felt deeply for Selena. He didn't know many men who could stand being ignored by their date for the amount of time Selly had ignored Tai without losing their shit. He knew she didn't do so intentionally, but it didn't stop it from being off-putting to the average person.

Tai had played the role of a doting lover since they got here, he repeatedly asked if she was okay- his own way of making her aware of his presence most probably, he wanted to know what she wanted to drink, eat, if she was filled. He hadn't bothered asking her a lot of questions as most of her replies were monotonous in nature, he had kept it brief and simple with surface questions like what she majored in in the University, her hobbies, her favorite food and all of that. He had noticeably avoided any questions pertaining to past relationships and Chuks had to commend him for that, besides, he was sure he knew most of what there was to know about Chuka.

"I suppose we should pay for our meals." Chuks began as he reached for his wallet in his pants.

Tai waved him off, "No need, my sister owns the place, bill's on me."

"Wouldn't be right if I let you pay for it all, I should at least get mine and Linda's bill." Chuks insisted as he fished out two fifty-dollar bills, oblivious to the look that passed between Linda and Selly.

Linda grinned at Chuks' statement, she knew it didn't seem like much, but she was definitely getting somewhere with Chuks if he was willing to foot her bills, he knew her financial status was better than his presently- she had a well-paying job, plus her inheritance, but he didn't let that stop him.

Tai shrugged, "If you insist."

"I do." Chuks smiled as he dropped the notes on the table and held them down with a glass cup.

Tai nodded and stood up, "May we?" He asked, his hand outstretched to Selly.

She smiled coyly at him and took his hand, "Thank you."

"You know there's no need for such chivalrous acts, now Linda's gonna be expecting me to do the same." Chuks joked, his jibe won him grins from Tai and Selly and a playful hit on the back from Linda.

"It wouldn't hurt to be a gentleman once in a while." Linda said.

He smiled at her and replied, "I no be gentleman at all...I be African man, original, I no be gentleman at all." He sang along to Fela's hit song.

She threw her head back in laughter and stood up, "Let's go Shaka de Zulu."

Chuks followed and shook his head, "Shaka's Southern African, I'm West African." He corrected as he often did whenever she referred to him as Shaka.

"It's all Africa." She countered as she hooked her arm around his. He made no attempt to disattach himself from her and she smiled inwardly at this, once again lauding her progress.

All four of them walked out of the restaurant unaware of the prying eyes that followed them and had been watching them since they entered.

*****

Tai stared at the door which looked larger and more ominous than he remembered it to be. It was funny how some previously insignificant object would suddenly gain a new meaning or seem of higher importance when one faced certain situations.

His situation this time, was that he had to drop Selly off. He swore he had never had a shorter drive. Granted, they hadn't spoken much on their way, they had hardly spoken in fact, there had just been tranquil silence with the soft blues song coming from the stereo filling up the silence. He never thought he'd love silence as much as he did today.

He found her even more intriguing than before, he couldn't remember going on a date and driving back in silence, the other ladies he usually went on dated with liked to talk like paid chatter boxes, they went on and on about random shit he never guessed anyone would notice like the couple across from them with the obnoxious laugh, the rude waiter, or the lady who had on the wrong outfit. Selly had to be the weirdest woman he had ever gone on a date with- he liked weird.

He leaned into his seat, letting her know in unspoken terms that he wasn't going to start the 'goodnight' speech. Hell, left to him they wouldn't be in her driveway right now, they'd be at his place and he'd be ripping her clothes off, he smiled inwardly at the thought of ripping that sexy number she had on, oh, what he would give....

"I had a good time." She spoke up, pulling him out of his thoughts. He focused his attention on her but gave no signs that he didn't exactly hear her, she didn't care to find out if he did, "I know I was withdrawn and a little out of it, but I really appreciate what you did today, I...it's been a while since I had this much fun." She said, her voice laced with sincerity.

Tai nodded, once again thinking to himself how unusually grateful she sounded, she didn't sound like an excited teen after her first date or an eager woman even. Usually, he could tell when a woman wanted another date, but in her case, she seemed content with this one, not like she expected any future dates...he expected more.

He smiled disarmingly at her, "I'm glad you had fun. Maybe we could do this again another time?" He suggested. The words sounded alien to his ears and if it wasn't his voice, he would swear someone else was talking. That wasn't his line, he never suggested second dates, that's what the women did. He wondered if he should be scared of these things she was making him do...but they felt good, he felt...right.

She nodded in the affirmative with an uncommon eagerness, she had thought for a minute that he wouldn't want a second date, she truly did enjoy his company though it seemed like she didn't, "Yes, I would like that very much."

He grinned at her reply, "Without your friends? I mean, they're cool, but I'd really love a one-on-one with you."

She laughed, somehow she figured the presence of Chuks and Linda had deterred him from saying certain things the entire night and rightly so, "Yes, without them." She focused her attention on him and noticed with a sense of discomfort, the far away look in his eyes, he was staring at her with a lean smile which creeped her out just a little bit, "Are you okay?"

At that question, Tai's smile grew just a little wider, "I've never seen you laugh like that, it's beautiful." He replied, she stopped laughing, her face turning serious.

He reached for her and brushed her cheek with his fingertips, he swore he saw her shiver, "I really wouldn't mind seeing your laugh everyday." To emphasise his point, he went on to tickle her side, she shifted.

"What are you doing?" She asked as she dodged an incoming attack.

"Are you ticklish?" His hand flew at her, this time catching her unawares as he tickled her side, she squirmed.