Amira by Sofia Ross Page B

little
damp because she was short on time, so she pulled it up into a casual updo,
leaving a few wispy strands at the sides spiraling down to brush her
collarbone.  She also wore the beach glass necklace, and Hani was right; it
made her blue-green eyes appear much more vivid.  He grabbed a button-down
shirt and black jeans from the closet without giving it a second thought and
turned to her for approval as she was finishing her makeup.  As usual, he
looked stunning with very little effort at all. 
    Serena
waved to Maggie when they arrived at the restaurant.  She was already inside
near the hostess station and waved excitedly over the heads of a few other
restaurant patrons.  An older woman looked annoyed at her exuberance, but
Maggie didn't notice the sharp look the woman gave her when she almost elbowed
her in the temple when she waved to Serena.  Serena didn't see anyone else with
Maggie, and she wondered who she had brought along as her date.  Even if she
came alone, Serena knew that Maggie would not be going home alone; she would
pick up the bartender, the bus boy, or even someone else’s date.
    Maggie
and Serena hugged quickly and started chatting away as Hani told the hostess
that they needed a table for four. 
    “You
make me look like a schlub!  You look so nice!” Maggie said, criticizing her
own choice of skinny jeans, charcoal gray tunic sweater, and ankle boots, which
were actually more appropriate for the casual steakhouse than what Serena was
wearing. 
    Serena’s
outfit and Hani’s dark clothing made everyone else in the restaurant look
subpar. It was a working class town, but sometimes Serena felt that the locals
were just a bunch of slobs without any taste.  The men seemed to all wear blue
jeans, a faded t-shirt from their favorite sports team or a band that they
liked in high school, and a flannel shirt for a jacket, and the most of the
women didn’t seem to care too much about their appearance and looked like they
were too tired to do more than run their hand through their hair before leaving
the house. 
    Serena
started to ask Maggie who she came with, when someone rushed from behind
Maggie, tackling her around the waist and tickling her.  The smile quickly left
Serena’s face when she realized it was Shane.  Panicked thoughts raced through
her head. Stockroom Shane . Shane-who-I-had-let-feel-my-tits-as-he-masturbated
Shane.   She felt a wave of embarrassment creep to her cheeks, and she tried
to hide her disappointment as best as she could and tried to be social. 
    “Long
time, no see, Serena,” he said, leering at her breasts at the neckline of her
dress. 
    She
suddenly felt self-conscious and wished she had worn something a little more
modest and pulled the pashmina tighter around her, covering her cleavage.  It
had been a long time since she let him feel her up while he jerked off in the
stockroom; in fact it felt like an eternity because that had stopped as soon as
she met Hani.  She knew that he and Maggie had been hanging out together from
time to time and had even screwed around a few times, but the last she knew,
things weren't working out and he acted like a dick and Maggie wasn't answering
his texts or returning his calls.
    “Nice
to see you, Shane.  Hani, this is Shane.  He works with us at the store, and
Shane, this is my boyfriend Hani,” Serena quickly announced, emphasizing the
word “boyfriend”.  She had stepped closer to Hani, indicating that they were a
couple and Shane didn't have a chance with her anymore. 
    “Honey? 
What kind of a guy's name is Honey?”  Shane said sarcastically, looking at Hani
like he was from another planet.
    “Hani”
he clarified, ignoring Shane's sarcasm and pronouncing his name much more
distinctly than Serena had.  “Hani Fouad,” he added, extending his hand toward
Shane.
    Shane
ignored the gesture and announced that he was “ ready to get his drink on ”
and wondered when their table would be ready because he was