One Night Stand

This one goes out to all my fellow overthinkers and forever-good-girls out there. May you find the courage to follow your heart's desires and find yourselves rewarded just as deliciously.

*~*~*~*

Counting the clicks of her heels as she walked down the street was one way for Jane to keep her mind busy. She had to focus on something because otherwise her thoughts would spiral and she would chicken out, turn around, and run back home as fast as she could in these shoes.

Since reaching the age of thirty with a mediocre record of failed relationships and unsatisfied curiosity, Jane was on a mission to change things about her life. What was landing a very cushy job in IT that paid well to mostly leave her be if she didn't actually do much with that? Her friends joked that she still lived as if they were back at their all-girls Catholic school, trying to lead their pack as an example of every teacher's favourite pupil. It also didn't help to have a name like Jane that did not invite any excitement and only brought to mind the connotations of being plain.

Plain was forgettable. And Jane was done with that. Being a good girl hadn't rewarded her with any of the promised things. She fought for her current good job with an evening course after graduating with a Bachelor's degree in English landed her nothing above call centre jobs. She was the only one of her friends not currently engaged or married. With no stories to tell whenever they managed to meet and catch up, it was hard to not compare herself to others.

Plain. Boring. Forgettable.

And no more.

Jane couldn't quite remember how she first came across the hookup app, let alone decided to install it. A slow Friday evening alone with some reality TV in the background, a glass of wine on the side, and a boredom scroll of Instagram must've done it. But the anonymity of it all enticed her to try and then she thought that she might as well pay for one month. There was no harm in seeing what happened. It's not like she was spending money on much else.

This one decision opened the door to chatting to more men than she'd ever dated in her entire life and her head was spinning with all this newfound excitement and attention. They didn't know that she was anything but the sophisticated, glamorous woman she posed as online. The woman behind the LookingForTarzan91 handle was confident, aware of her sex appeal, and unafraid to dive deep into the jungle in search of someone to make her excited.

Except that now, several messages with this one guy later, after agreeing to hook up, strutting towards the hotel in her one sexy outfit consisting of a mini dress, thigh high heels, and a new set of lingerie to match, Jane was feeling less adventurous. Playful banter with XMakeYouScreamX flowed when she had the time to think of something witty and teasing to text back. Urban Dictionary helped fill in the gaps left by all that slang and acronyms meant. From her sofa, safe inside her flat and the comfort zone drawn around it, everything was easy.

Would XMakeYouScreamX still want to go through with their hookup when he saw the real Jane, too stunned by this reckless moment of bravery to say anything coherent, let alone witty or sexy? Was she about to make the biggest mistake of her life by having sex with a guy she met online? No, people hooked up on apps all the time, she was exaggerating that last one.

Jane stopped in the middle of the street.

"Calm down, girl," she said out loud, taking a deep breath.

It didn't work quite as well as she'd hoped for, but at least it stopped her thoughts spiralling any further and eased some of the jitters. Happening to stop in front of a shop, closed for the day now, the window reflected a glammed up woman who looked remarkably like her. Yeah, she polished up more than nice. Long legs looked even longer in these boots and the mini dress accentuated her ample arse and thighs. This was the sexiest that she looked in a while. With the touch of eyeliner bringing out a roundness of her eyes and this particular shade of rusty red lipstick making her small lips appear poutier, she was a total opposite of the plain Jane who worked in IT. Not even the few loose strands of the honey blonde hair freed from her bun by the whipping wind nor the more intense blush from the brisk walk ruined the overall effect. Jane looked like a woman who never complained about a lack of men wanting to have sex with her. So since she was about to meet one who also wanted that, why doubt herself now?

The impromptu confidence boost lasted all the way to the hotel bar, where they were supposed to meet first. Jane had walked past this swanky city centre hotel on many occasions, but never dared to go inside - now she knew why. The quiet luxury oozing out of the dim lights and dark furniture made her feel out of place. At least it was too dark to see the fierce blush on her face every time a man walking past looked at her for more than a second. She suddenly felt too slutty for a place this refined. Her outfit might as well have been screaming that she was here for casual sex.

It dawned on her that she didn't even know XMakeYouScreamX's real name. They hadn't bothered to exchange those, only agreeing to have something red and visible on their torsos to recognise each other; Jane had gone with a real rose stuck into her bun after panicking that a red dress and lipstick were too generic. They weren't going to use their online handles in real conversation, were they? The guy hadn't even turned up yet and she was back to overthinking the whole thing.

"Excuse me?" A warm voice startled her, anxious thoughts fleeing at the sight of the man in front of her.

If what drove her to signing up for that hookup app was a desire for adventure, then she found it. Adventure stood in front of Jane, his hazel eyes level with her despite sitting on a high bar stool, a carefully trimmed moustache and beard framing an easygoing smile. This adventure had left his white shirt open a few buttons at the top, exposing not only the tanned skin, but also the leaves of a tattoo snaking from under the fabric and framing his collarbone, a round pendant on a chain sitting in its dip. Even with a sports jacket it was obvious that her adventure was no stranger at the gym.

Jane realised that she'd been gawking and blinked herself back to reality.

"Yes?"

"Are you...?" He pointed hesitantly to the rose in her hair. Only then she remembered to check - thankfully, a triangle of a red pocket square sat at his chest.

"From the app...?" She added, choosing some degree of certainty over avoiding awkwardness. Things were going to be awkward anyway, she might as well embrace that.

The man smiled at her, relieved, but also charming. Sitting down, he leaned his arm on the counter and Jane watched, mesmerised, as a muscle flexed under the fabric.

"I hope you weren't waiting long. My name's Francisco. Can I get you a drink?"

God, even his real name spelled out excitement so far removed from her daily life! How could she dream of keeping up with him? Heat crept up her cheeks as she tried to string a coherent sentence together - though she couldn't deny that she was also getting hot under her dress at the sight of him.

"Erm, it's OK, I barely got here myself..." The words felt awkward in her mouth and her fingers were desperate for something to fidget with.

When she didn't say anything more, Francisco's smile eased into something that was probably meant to help her relax.

"I'm sorry, I didn't catch your name... Unless you'd prefer if I called you LookingForTarzan91?" His voice dropped to a whisper when saying her online handle and he winked at her, but she cringed nonetheless. Why couldn't she have gone with something even a touch less cheesy?

Clutching onto the hem of her dress as if it were a lifeline, she cleared her throat.

"It's Jane." The words came out quieter than she meant. Thankfully, the bar wasn't loud.

"Wonderful to meet you in person, Jane."

When she dared to shake the hand extended to her and felt the heat of this man practically sizzle on her skin, only some higher power looking out for her managed to stop her whole body from shuddering. Francisco kept the grip gentle, but she could feel that these hands were used to displays of strength.

"I'd love to buy you a drink," he offered with a smile. "What would you like?"

Suddenly this all became too overwhelming to bear. The prospect of having to think of a drink, sharing it over playful banter filled with innuendos, and the whole back-and-forth culminating with Francisco ending up on top of her, but only if she won at the social game... Jane's mind glanced at this highlights reel and decided to abort mission.

"I'm sorry, I'm not sure I can go through with this," she rattled out, sliding off the stool. "I'm sorry to have wasted your time, Francisco, have a good evening."

"Whoa, slow down here."

She was scrambling for her purse when heat from a hand gently placed on top of her wrist stopped her. Francisco was now right next to her, the proximity a little dizzying. He was close enough that she could see each individual hair on his beard and the reflection of the bar's chandelier in his eyes. Had she not been in heels, she would've had to look up at him, though right now they were almost the same height.

Her surprise must've come across differently to him because he then took half a step back, his touch gone from her hand; Jane realised that she missed it.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you." He raised his hands where she could see them. "I mean, I'm not going to force you or anything, but can you at least explain why you're running away the moment I got here?"

The realisation of how her behaviour must've seemed from his point of view rooted her in the spot with mortification. Cringing at herself once more, Jane focused on taking a deep breath before she spoke.

"It's just... I've never done this," she finally managed, her voice dropping to a whisper by the end of the sentence.

Francisco's eyebrows drew closer together.

"Had a drink at a bar?"

"No! I mean I never... met someone. Casually. For a one night stand," she finished when the confusion on his handsome face did not disperse.

In the second that it took Francisco to absorb her words his eyes have gone from dark with a lack of understanding to glistening with something that resembled amusement.

"OK. We don't have to do that if you don't want to."

The comment stopped Jane in her tracks and her arm dropped limply from the handbag.

"We don't?"

But that's what they agreed on, this was a casual hookup and not an actual date. Was he just saying that to change her mind? No, that was such a horrible thing to assume! Just because Francisco was a guy and they'd met on a hookup app didn't immediately have to make him focused on one thing only.

"You sound surprised by that." A smile played on his lips and somehow she didn't feel like he was laughing at her. That was all she needed.

"I just..." The air left her lungs when she ran out of words to finish that sentence and the seconds ticked by. "It never crossed my mind that it'd be OK."

"Jane!" Francisco's hand was back on her, this time warming her shoulder with reassurance. "Don't get me wrong, I'd love it if the evening ended with us staying at this hotel for the night," he sent her a wink, whilst removing his hand from her. "But not if you feel like I'm pressuring you to, never! If all that you're comfortable doing tonight is having one drink with me, then I'll take that. I enjoyed getting to know you in our messages and it'd be great to carry on. If you want to, of course."

One drink. That didn't mean anything for later. If their hookup was doomed from the start, then it would've come out during the time it took to finish a glass. She shouldn't be ending something that hadn't even started yet just because it could go wrong. And despite how quiet it was, the bar had a fair few people around, it was as public a place as any other - if she needed a quick escape, the staff would surely help.

Not that Francisco had given her any of those vibes. For all of his tough guy on a night out exterior, so far he'd been just as considerate and nice as he had been in their messages. Nicer even, given how the spice of their messages didn't leave much room for gentleness.

"Alright." Jane felt her shoulders relax as she said it. She sat back on the stool, running a hand through her hair since they suddenly felt empty. "I'm so sorry, I completely overreacted there. Nerves got the better of me..." She tried to laugh it off, but it came out weak.

"It's completely normal. I was nervous too!" His laugh sounded so much more genuine and confident than hers as he sat opposite. There was only a small gap separating their knees from each other, which did not escape Jane's attention, though she tried hard to ignore it.

"Why would you be nervous?" She asked instead.

"I could ask the same thing of you."

"But I asked first."

"Okay." Jane quickly realised that she liked it when Francisco laughed. His eyes pinched at the corners when he did in the most adorable way, making him appear a little less intimidatingly handsome and a little more approachably good looking. "It's normal to be nervous when meeting someone for the first time. You never know if you'll hit it off with them the same way in person as you do online, you know? It's so much easier to appear all suave when it's just you and your screen, and the other person is just a name. Now your turn."

The way in which he said it, the decisive tone that made no room for worming her way out of answering, sent an excited tingle across her skin. It gave her the courage to be honest in her answer.

"As I said, I've never had a one night stand before. Or any sort of... casual sex." It was still difficult to just throw the word out like any other, but under Francisco's encouraging smile Jane slowly felt more confident in doing so. "I'm usually a fourth date kind of a gal."

"What changed now?"

"I'm sorry?"

"Can I get you two anything to drink?" The barman had bought her some time by appearing in front of them.

"What would you like?" Francisco extended a hand to her to order first.

They ordered, an Aperol spritz for her and a gin and tonic for him. The moment the barman stepped to the side, Francisco's eyes were back on Jane. She already knew he expected an answer before he repeated the question:

"So what changed now?"

A sigh filled the air between them.

"I guess I got tired of the fact that always being the good girl didn't get me anywhere." Her drink appeared in front of her as if magically knowing that she needed it; no matter how many times she admitted that out loud, it didn't take the sting off the truth. The bitterness of Aperol coated her tongue, masking any that rose up as a result of confessing her vulnerabilities to a stranger. "I was always the goody two shoes doing what she was told, trying to keep my friends on the straight path with me. And yet here I am, plain Jane, stuck alone and with no fun in my life while my friends are all happily paired up and living the lives that I was promised as a reward for obeying the rules."

Jane had kept her eyes locked on the vibrant orange in her glass, not ready to face any pity coming her way. Yet when the silence between them grew a little too long for comfort, she swallowed her pride and looked up, only to see that Francisco wasn't pitying her.

"I don't think there's anything plain about you, Jane," he said in a voice as warm and rich as the darkest chocolate.

When the heartbeats passed and the pin still hadn't dropped, Jane remembered to close her mouth and get back to Earth. The "How could you know?" was at the tip of her tongue, but she managed to replace it with:

"What makes you say that?"

"Well," Francisco adjusted himself in his seat, setting his drink on the counter as if he was about to give a lecture on the subject. As if he was well versed in it. Already well versed in her. "So as to get the obvious out of the way, you're gorgeous. And I mean head-turningly gorgeous. If I wasn't here, there's at least three men in this bar alone who would've tried to buy you a drink instead."

The compliment seemed tied to a puppeteer's string because the urge to tuck her hair behind her ear at the sound of the words was irresistible.

"But the messages that we've exchanged up until now didn't paint a picture of someone who's plain."

"Ah, but you said it yourself, it's easier to be more suave when you're on the Internet," she pointed out, not without a certain feeling of a-ha!

"Are you telling me that you're not the intelligent, charming, and sensitive woman that was messaging me?"

At the glint in his eyes Jane couldn't help but blush. Was that what he thought of her?

"I... I'd like to think that I am."

"I don't think that you are, I can

see

that. Nervous, sure, but that's only dulling the edge on what's already there." He took a sip and she followed his lead. Not once did either of them drop the eye contact they'd been maintaining. "And last but not least, contrary to what you might think, the app we met on is

not

for plain people."

"It's not?"

"Nope," he said with an exaggerated smack of the lips. One that drew Jane's attention precisely to them. She couldn't tell whether he smiled because he saw that or because the idea of her not realising what she'd signed up for amused him.

"I found it through an ad..."

"That's a

pretty

niche app. So if it advertised itself to you, you must've had something else in your search history that triggered the algorithm. Which means," his head tilted as Francisco meaningfully raised a glass to her, "that you're very much

not

a plain Jane."

They sat in silence as Jane absorbed all of that. For a woman in IT, she did just get played by an algorithm. Under different circumstances this would've been a prompt to rethink her career so far. However, in these...

"Oh..." was the only sound that finally escaped her lips as the information fully clicked. When it did, her body also sunk a little bit more comfortably into the bar stool.

"Does that make you feel better?" Francisco prompted after another moment, making her eyes snap up to his. The light from the lamp hanging over the bar got trapped in the swirl of a curl, slicked back with some product, but still resisting taming into straightness.

"I'm not sure yet," she admitted. "But it doesn't make me feel worse either."

"That's a good start! Should we cheers to that?"

Jane smiled, for the first time that evening, then gladly clinked her oversized glass that made his look comically small.

"Thank you," she said once they'd taken a sip.

"For what?"

"For doing all that to put me at ease."

"Did it work?" Jane paused for only a moment, checking in with her body, before nodding when she found none of the tension or unease from before. "Good."

Their conversation turned to more neutral grounds, from hobbies to how they found the app, as the glasses gradually emptied. It didn't take much persuading to go for one more, after all it's not as if an Aperol spritz was anything strong. Francisco's company was too fun to leave after just one drink, she wanted to enjoy it for at least one more. There was no harm in that.

More than that, Jane had realised that she was having a good time herself. With the nerves forgotten, she found that she was the witty, flirty person she was presenting as in her messages, acting it all in real life now. It could have been because she had an equally smart and handsome partner for all that playful chat, but she was keeping up with it, giving back as much as she was handed. Francisco really didn't see her as plain, neither did he seem disappointed the more he got to know her. If anything, the gleam in his eye seemed to grow the more they chatted. Though that bit she may have been imagining.