Kitty decided she needed a personal excursion to temporarily escape her life in rural Idaho. Having heard of a goth convention in a smaller city in eastern Kansas, and knowing I lived only about an hour from where the event was held, she forwarded me a message about it, attaching a topless picture showing her holding a sign over her bare tits: "Let's meet."
I've seen other pictures of her naked from various angles as we've conversed quite a bit online, and she's seen pictures of me from a vacation to Virginia. Sure it's possible she was showing me fake pictures, clouding my imagination with falsehoods, but ponder for a moment how many women would send a "fake" picture featuring a women who was larger in frame. Now, mind you, she wasn't obese, but slim she certainly was not.
The restaurant where we'd agreed to meet was a travel plaza truck stop outside of the event city just off the interstate. It was a Saturday late-morning, but the traffic around the travel plaza reminded me of my morning commutes to work in Kansas City. The truck stop parking lot rivaled the parking lot of Bass Pro or Cabela's parking lot during a weekend sale -- the only available parking spaces meant exercise would be involved.
Standing next to my car and peering around the other stops at the plaza, a sea of cars, trucks, and RVs told me that no matter where I went, waiting would be a requirement. Disconcerted, I navigated through the sea or maze of cars and vehicles and into the building.
This truck stop was both a convenience store and a restaurant under one roof. Navigating through the crowd in the convenience store, trying my best to make it to the restaurant, I noticed the restaurant crowd was nowhere near what the parking lot alleged. Indeed, when I approached the hostess, I was seated immediately at a booth next to a window while letting her know I was waiting for Kitty. When the waitress arrived, I informed her of the same while ordering coffee and letting my iPhone occupy the time while I waited.
Not long did I have to wait before my phone started ringing with Kitty's picture showing on the screen. My heart jumped momentarily, but after taking another sip of coffee, I answered the phone to Kitty telling me she'd just arrived and wanted to initiate a game of "cell phone Marco Polo", and I'm pleased to say that I eventually lost.
I stood when Kitty approached the table and motioned her to sit down. She left her black jacket on and riding open, revealing a low-cut t-shirt underneath, giving a wonderful view of her cleavage that left it difficult to not stare periodically. Her dark brown hair rested on her shoulders, hanging loose and providing a frame for her seemingly innocent face.
When the waitress arrived, we ordered a late breakfast ("and coffee as well for me", Kitty noted) and started in on conversation. Occasionally she would smile, allowing me to catch a glimpse at a hint of gold behind her lips. "What the?" I asked, peering closer at her lips, reaching to her chin. She smiled wider, opening her mouth slightly and that's when I saw the fangs.
Later in the conversation, Kitty's voice turned to one of mild disappointment. "Let me confess," she began, taking a sip of her coffee, "there isn't a convention out here."
I sipped my coffee, "I know." I turned myself so I was sitting in the booth instead of reclined against the wall. "I searched for it after you sent me the e-mail."
She brought the coffee cup to her lips, tilting it enough that I couldn't see her lips moving, her voice a little lower as she asked, "Why didn't you say something?"
I raised my cup off the table. "Well at first, I was a little miffed," I sipped my coffee and set the cup down, "simply because I don't like being lied to. I could have canceled, but I wanted to meet you. Shame you wore those fangs for nothing."
Silence crept into the conversation, with several sips of coffee transpiring before Kitty interrupted it. "So what shall we do then?"
* * * * *
The full moon against the cloudless obsidian sky above cast a bright light over the open Kansas countryside, the perfect night for a midnight, moonlight stroll along the gravel trails of the virtually treeless park outside this small town. It also seemed to be a nice way to finish out a day with Kitty spent traversing various shoppes and having seemingly endless conversations in restaurant booths.
About a mile down the trail, we encountered a set of benches. Kitty sat on a bench and I sat next to her, wrapping my arm around along her waist, pulling her in close. We sat talking for a short time before Kitty stood up before me and stretched herself out. I stood up next to her and stretched as well.