The Date, Part Three

Part Three

Jake Hawthorn. 

Hallie’s boyfriend. The word still felt weird to say. Normally she wouldn’t dive straight into a labeled relationship, amazing boy or no, but Jake had been insistent. He didn’t want to go on dates and constantly make out with a girl without inclusivity involved, and he definitely wasn’t interested in a fling. Not wanting to appear like her normal casual self, Hallie agreed with his logic and prompted him to ask her out right then and there.

It was official. Before long, all her friends knew about it. She shared some pics of the two of them, but refrained from sharing anything too personal for his sake. It was nice having all the attention on her for once, since Hallie had only ever been on the other side until now: an excited, supportive friend for other girls who started dating boys they liked. 

Tara was one of the girls Hallie shared the news with, of course, though Tara’s post-New Year’s break-up with Mark ruined their chances for double dates. Hallie did suspect her involvement with Mark had been a part of it, but Tara only explained that Mark didn’t seem as committed to the relationship.

Whatever suspicions Hallie had about Mark potentially confessing about what they did gradually diminished over the next few weeks. Tara was acting like herself, and there was no bad blood between them that she could pick up on. If anything, it validated Hallie’s decision to sleep with him in December. All the excitement of being with a boy she was forbidden to be with, one of the best boys she had ever been with, and none of the fallout.

The better question was . . . how would Jake compare? To both Mark, and all the boys before him? Hallie would find out tonight.

Ever the perfect gentleman, Jake picked her up promptly at 6 PM when he said he would. Hallie greeted him with a short, but lingering kiss as she awkwardly leaned across to the driver’s seat to do so. Jake’s maroon shirt would have matched the dark red dress Hallie almost wore; she was grateful for the classy beige sweater she had opted for instead. Being too couple-y on Valentine’s Day was a bit cringe. She loved that he wore vests instead of sport coats or blazers, and the dark gray one that matched his slacks today was new to her. 

Hallie wasn’t the only one appreciating her significant other’s outfit, as she was just as perceptive as the average girl. Jake tried to be subtle, but she instantly noticed his little glance towards her chest and the way the light sweater hugged her curves. The outfit she chose was the perfect combination of prudish and sexy. While her instinct was to wear a dress to show off some cleavage and bare shoulders, it would be more hot if Jake could strip her in more teasing steps that evening. Besides, her perky C cups clearly still got his attention without a V cut needed to draw the eye. Hallie was confident that the mystery of her body would be noticeable all evening, and Jake would be ready to see more by the time they ended up back at his place.

They arrived at the restaurant Violet Delight, and Hallie confidently gave her name. As promised by Tara, the hostess walked them over to one of the more secluded booths for their meal. Less foot traffic, less noise, and an overall better atmosphere with the table’s candles and the soft music playing in the background.

Little did Hallie know, it was the only part of her night that was going to go right.

Tara watched her and Jake with an excited determination. She knew what time they would be arriving due to the reservation she had made for them, and had chosen the table particularly because she could see it clearly from her office across the way. The room had a cleverly designed window pattern that distorted things enough from the outside that no one could see in unless they were standing right next to it and looking carefully. However, anyone on the office side could see things a lot more easily when positioned in the right spot. It wasn’t actually Tara’s office, but she made herself cozy in the manager’s space since she was in charge for the night. The whole point of the window design was so a manager could see if anything was going wrong outside while still giving him or her some privacy. 

It also worked for spying, in Tara’s case.

The first part of the night was the easy part, but Tara was still almost quivering in anticipation. It had taken everything in her to be the perfect friend for the past two months while planning her revenge. Hallie didn’t suspect a thing, and clearly had gotten over the initial wariness Tara spotted when she first mentioned the break-up. 

She hadn’t initially known Valentine’s Day would be the day, but the plan had always revolved around a date in her restaurant. It’s where she had the most control. It’s where Hallie had the least control. But the fact that Hallie had been indecisive about where to go for such a big holiday for couples made it the perfect time to stop planning and start acting. Tonight was the night, and it was too late to call things off now. 

Liv was already on the way to their table.

The eighteen year old, Liv, had been at Violet Delight for nearly half a year, and she and Tara became fast friends when she was hired. Not only were they close in age, but they had enough in common to enjoy each others’ presence and have each others’ backs amidst some brutal days at work. Liv had been a little tentative when Tara approached her with the revenge idea. Sure, Hallie was the worst for what she did, and Liv had been disgusted when Tara told her, but Liv also wasn’t the mean type of girl. Her style of ‘having someone’s back’ was verbally defending them, like when it came to obnoxious and misogynistic patrons at the restaurant. The things Tara had in mind weren’t exactly in her wheelhouse.

When Liv expressed her reservations, Tara promised if she helped, then Tara would recommend her for the assistant manager job when Tara left for college. Coercing Liv wasn’t her favorite part of Tara’s preparation, and she did feel a little bit bad about it. Tara had already been planning on giving the recommendation, but she was also dead set on getting her revenge.

Tara practically held her breath as Liv approached the table. 

This was real. This was happening. 

Hallie was going to get everything she deserved.