He seemed different. He seemed . . .darker. She had seen his moods change before. When they first met he was a whirlwind. It was like his moods were a ship on a restless ocean, bobbing up and down on the waves. Tonight, as she watched him, he seemed like the sides of that ship were beginning to overflow.
He started normally, with his usual casual demeanor. When he picked her up, he was dressed immaculately. His black suit was professionally pressed, with a matching vest and a high spread collared white shirt and baby blue tie. His movements were smooth, almost practiced as he opened the car door, maneuvered it across town to the restaurant. His conversations began casual, but increased in intensity. As they sat at the table, one across from the other, he would ask pointed questions, each one leading to the next.
It wasn't until he was paying the check that she noticed the look that had taken over his face. It started with his eyes, growing a little darker and beginning to cloud over. The darkness began to spread away from his eyes, moving over his face and covering his entire being. She was admittedly worried that his mood was going to get dangerous. She felt the innate urge to run. The instinctual response to danger, to flee and preserve life was something so deep within her psyche that she almost didn't realize what it was until she felt it rise up within her.
There, however was an unexplainable, albeit undeniable hesitance in her that she couldn't overcome. Along with the sense of danger that was welling up within her, his darkening demeanor was also sending a surge of excitement through her. She had never seen this side of him. And as she climbed into the car, she caught a glimpse of his eyes, deep wells that seemed to peer directly into her soul. It was then that she realized. It had just started.
When the car pulled up to his home, where she had never been, she made note of the fact that he obviously had more means than he had let on. The home was expansive, every room seemed to go one for longer than it rightfully should. He sat her on a stool and navigated his way around the bar, shedding the jacket, vest, and tie along the way.