Before that night, I knew her for a while but not well. We went through Specialist Training at the same time, and as usual for me under high pitch conditions, I absorbed myself in work. I'd betray a smile every time she passed by in her uniform and rolled-up hair, beautiful women being the one chink in my wall of habitual discreteness, then go back to reading a report. I knew only the basic water-cooler facts about her so I was a bit surprised when she approached me on the last day of training.
I was talking to this girl I met just after boot camp, sharing goodbyes and speculations about the future. Then she passed by holding one of those Styrofoam cups, bumped into her and spilled the drink. The girl ignored the apologies and hurried angrily into the nearest bathroom. So we were left alone and I looked into the green of her eyes until she opened her mouth to speak.
"You like Italian food? My cousin opened a restaurant and been badgering me to pay a visit. So, what are you doing tonight?"
"Just found out I'm having a lovely meal with a lovely lady. Why are you asking?" They tried to teach me to think before acting, but I've been practicing healthy restraint for too long. She gave me a time and a place, told me to meet her there and went on her way.
On the first trip home in a while I broke off my previous engagements. The civilian shower I had was a pleasure so I took a couple of moments of vanity. I recalled all the times she half-smiled back and the quick studying glances she placed on me. The damnable maxim echoed in my head: 'Why not?'.
Soft music welcomed me into the little eatery. I scoped around, catching perfume and the smell of food but not my date. A guy who bore the slightest resemblance to her gave me a modest bow and shifted a curtain on the far wall, motioning me in.
She had her back to me, but I was the one caught by surprise. I've never seen her like this, in black heels accentuating her behind, in a thin skirt under an earth colored sleeveless, with her red hair flowing past her shoulders. Seeing her bare skin awakened something in me.