Freaks Of Nature

“Ugh...” Marie groaned softly as she rubbed her temple with two fingers. Just as she had guessed the moment she opened her eyes that morning she felt like absolute death. Her head had been pounding for most of the day, transitioning from like throbbing sensations to full blown migraines. It was certainly not the wisest state to go to work in, especially considering that today it seemed like she had been forced to suffer through some of the most picky customers in the city.

Heidi had phoned her on her cellphone a few hours after she dragged herself up off the couch and started getting ready for work. Fortunately she was in a very apologetic mood after abandoning Marie last night though she did somehow managed to slip a few gushing words of praise for the poor male specimen that had taken her home.

As she leaned leaned against her desk, struggling to even keep her eyes open, Marie found herself regretting ever coming in to work today. Being hungover and working at the front desk of a hotel were not exactly the wisest combinations. Somehow in between two men who were both equally fussy about having a room with a window and one elderly woman with a strong dislike for cotton bedlinen she had managed to amuse her friend with the fragments of what she could remember of the previous night.

Heidi giggled sharply over at her side of the desk, placing a neatly manicured hand across her mouth to suppress the airy laughter that threatened to violate the silence of the front reception. “You made out with a stranger on your doorstep? How risque! It's so not like you.”

“I was drunk Heidi.” She groaned while burying her head firmly in her hands. “I got really drunk after you and Paige decided to run off and he walked me home. I wasn't thinking straight. I've never been so mortified in my entire life.”

“Who was this boy if you don't mind me asking?” Her friend smiled as a young family scuttled past them on their way outside. Off to go sight-seeing no doubt. “Is he anyone we might know? Or just a handsome stranger?”

“I don't know!” Marie winced as she searched the drawers of her desk for a hidden stash of aspirin. “I never really got a good look at his face. By the time I bumped into him I could barely stand up straight. Everything is one big massive blur to me. Can we just drop the subject now?”

“But it's so funny!” Heidi exclaimed with a beaming grin. It reminded Marie of the Cheshire Cat from Alice In Wonderland. “I was so sure you would give up and go home right away. Good for you for letting loose for one evening. I'm very proud of you.”

“Yea 'loose' is a good way of putting it.” Marie replied with a heavy sigh. “Another one would be 'trampy'...”

Heidi did not bring up the events of the night before for the next three hours that Marie painfully endured. Customers checked in and checked out. The phones rang off and on as though some paranormal force had possessed them. By the time Marie's lunch break arrived she was more than ready to curl up in a ball and die.

Of course she didn't do that. Death was too easy, and Marie was much more incline to wallow in her misery than actually perish. She treated herself to a fruit smoothie at the little mixed drink shop across from the hotel to make herself feel better. And she drank the whole thing with a forced sense of pride, relishing in the fact that the strawberry concoction cost several dollars more than it should have. Thankfully even as she sipped it there quietly on a bench outside and soaked up some desperately needed sunlight her mood slowly began to improve. The throbbing migraines that had plagued her all morning long were beginning to dull into a much more tolerable pain now.

When she came back it was Heidi's turn for a lunch break and she was more than happy to manage the desk all by herself. The hotel was seldom ever busy in the middle of the afternoon. It gave her ample time to organize her cluttered desk and tend to the withering plants on both her's and Heidi's desktops that were begging for a drink of water. The people who owned the hotel had an obsession with plants. The front lobby was covered with them along with a massive painting of a forest on one side of the room. Guests often described it as 'beautiful' or 'majestic' but Marie had always felt the slightest hint of burden in having to tend to every plant that was struggling for life. There were days when she felt like she was working in a jungle.

By the time Heidi returned from her break she was sorting through the papers on her desk and pretending not to notice that the phone was ringing again. “So hows the hangover?” Her friend jokingly chimed as she settled back into her seat. “Still feel like there's a chainsaw grinding against your skull?”

“No. It's much better now thank you.” Marie replied with a force smiled. For some reason she resented being in Heidi's presence today. Nearly every male customer that had come into the hotel that day had eyeballed her. She was wearing that low cut blouse she'd bought last spring. The one with the pink flowers printed on it and a plunged V-neckline. She looked like she should had been on the front cover of a magazine. Or hanging off the arm of a dashing Hollywood movie star. In contrast Marie felt as though she belonged in some foul smelling kitchen scrubbing pots and pans.

The rest of her work shift went about as smoothly as a handful of broken glass in a blender. In between a small trickle of customers checking in during the late afternoon Marie found herself struggled to remember the embarrassing events from last night. She strained and thought and desperately searched the banks of her memory but no matter how hard she tried to remember it the man Marie had locked lips with was a complete blur. She had all but given up on it by the time work ended.

Heidi asked her if she wanted to go to the gym, and perhaps a little bit of shopping with her but Marie hesitantly refused the offer. The last thing she wanted was to run on a treadmill for the next hour and a half and looking at clothing with Heidi was an entire workout on it's own. Instead she found herself wandering the city streets looking for something to do with herself. Bored out of her mind and not interested in going back to her apartment so soon she eventually ended up drifting through a nearby shopping district where she peered through the windows of clothing boutiques she was strolling past like a voyeur, envious of the slender legs of the mannequins positioned behind the glass.

She treated herself to a chocolate dipped ice cream bar to make herself feel better about the ordeal. As much as she hated those godawful boutiques they were located right near a tasty ice cream shop that she loved going to. As she sat by a wishing fountain, smiling at the happy children tossing coins into the water, Marie cheered herself up by fantasizing that the gorgeous blond strolling past her hadn't eaten in three days and would have gladly killed for just a bite of that chocolate and sugar concoction.

Paige called her cellphone at one point. She refused to answer it, but listened to the giggly message in which her friend verbally assaulted her with several questions regarding the rumoured 'stranger' from the night before. Gossip flew quickly when you were dealing with women like Heidi and Paige. They were the superwomen of rumours. And they loved a juicy story. Even if it involved someone like Marie.

“Great, just great...” she sighed as a chunk of her ice cream bar fell off and landed onto one of her wrinkled pant legs. Though she wiped it away as quickly as she could it still left a damp sticky spot where it had seeped into the fabric. It was not exactly the most graceful moment of her afternoon but Marie was lucky enough to have grown accustom to missing her mouth. She was used to wearing small bits of her meals on her clothing.

Sitting on the edge of the fountain she lapped up the sight of people coming and going with the fainest smile on her face as the rush of sugar flowed through her body. Both Heidi and Paige haunted her cellphone with constant messages, asking her to visit then later that afternoon, inviting her out for more drinks, or just generally seeking her attention. Their motive was understandable. It had, after all, been several months since Marie had come in contact with a male. Even if he was a complete stranger.

Dipping one hand into the running water behind her, she closed her eyes and vacantly attempted to recall the events of her untimely break up with Jack. He'd come to her at work to do it. He knew she would never make a fuss in a public space like that. He'd patted her hand and smiled as though to ease the pain of having violently stomped on seven years worth of her life and kicked their relationship across the floor like a deflated and worn out soccer ball.

Every now and then Jack would bump into her on the street. Sometimes alone. Some other times with Tricia, his 'new' girlfriend. They were perfectly nice to her. Charming in fact. And that was what killed Marie inside a little every passing week. It was that lack of justice that hovered over her, and the bitterness of having been denied a good snarl-fest with the worthless duo. They were such a syrupy-sweet couple that she often felt like the antagonist in their presence. The 'other' woman that threatened their bliss.

It was even worse when he phoned her and talked to her about the weather and gardening like they were old friends. It made her miss the lazy afternoons of sitting on the couch with Jack. Marie had really loved those times when she found herself doing absolutely nothing with him. Those were the times when she really got to study him. The detailed structure of his chest, the powerful scent of body spray and the stiffness of heavily gelled blonde hair. Opening her eyes again she peered up at the bluish sky. Jack was gone now. He'd left his aftershave and that old t-shirt he used to wear on weekends but the rest of the man had been wiped clean from the tiny apartment they used to share. He now spent his lazy afternoons with a different girl. One who could twine her dainty fingers around strands of long blond hair and eat ice cream without getting it all over herself.

On her way home Marie intentionally walked past his 'new' home, hoping just for a glimpse of him strolling out the front door or sitting outside on the balcony. The building he lived in with Tricia was like a palace. It had a man at the front doors and was painted a distinct pearly-white. It was probably the most fantastic place in the world for someone to live and she observed it with envy. The building was a haven. Even more so to Marie, because it was the place that Jack existed.

She didn't see him however, and just the fainest voice in her mind told her that it was for the best With a sigh she kept on walking. Past the glorious white doors, beyond the place where the man she still loved now dwelled. A month after she and Jack had officially 'broken up' and she still came to work sobbing every single day a woman who had been checking in for the weekend had told her things could only get better. She'd patted Marie on the arm when she said it, assuring her that as a divorcee she knew the pain that she was feeling. “It will all pass in time. And then when you're healed someone knew will come along.” Marie did not believe her.

As she strolled closer to her own apartment building Marie could not help but feel the gnawing sensation that her answering machine would be filled with messages from Heidi and Paige. No doubt one, if not both of them, were convinced something had happened to her. Marie did not usually ignore cellphone calls like she had today. She just could not tolerate the stress of her friends pestering her right now. Especially considering the hangover she was still recuperating from.

Strolling up to the paved concrete steps of a building that was not nearly as glamorous as the place that Jack lived she found herself taken aback by the stranger that was hovering just outside the front doors. Her insides knotted with shock and surprise. For a moment she felt a crawling sensation wash over her skin as she acknowledged her initial shock and the guilt of having reacted in such an inconsiderate way. After all, she had spent all those years in school and everyday life being constantly lectured on how she should not treat people who are 'different' badly. They repeated it over and over again in grade school. But of course there is a difference between the naive acceptance of equality for those who are different and actually coming face-to-face with someone who was. Indeed all the nagging in the world could not have prepared her. Nobody warned about accepting those who were exceptionally tall, and that was what he was.

Indeed the stranger was remarkably towering in height for a human being. Not the sort of height that is sometimes excused as a result over too much milk products and bizarre genetics. Not 'slightly above average' height if you will. He was the kind of 'tall' that made Marie's life flash before her very eyes. The sort of 'tall' that belonged under a circus tent or being paraded before a group of Doctors with nothing else to do with themselves but gap at the medical mystery. He was almost twice the size that she was. Taller than the door he was lingering next to. Perhaps even taller than anyone else who was present in this city. And when he slowly turned and noticed her an awful feeling spread through her gut that told her instinctively thinking 'freak' in her mind was probably correct.

“Well, hello there!” She heard him chime as he shoved his hands into the pockets of the black suit jacket he was wearing. A part of her was itching to know where he found clothes that fit. But wouldn't everyone have thought the same thing? He was probably a tad too limby to be shopping at department stores with everybody else. “Good to see you.”

“H-h-hello there yourself.” She stammered back at him as she fumbled through her purse in search of her keys. Perhaps if she pretended that she was busy he would simply leave her alone?

“You...don't remember me at all.Do you?” She saw his face scrunch into a slight frown. He sounded a little hesitant, as though afraid of what she might say.

'Oh Damn!' Marie thought as she dropped the keys onto the ground, allowing her ample time to say something else to him “No...No,, I'm petty sure that I don't know you. You must be mistaken.” She retorted while crouching down onto the cement to retrieve her fallen keys.

“No.” He replied with a gentle shake of his head. “I am not mistaken.” He was chuckling at her when she stood back up and the hairs on the back of her neck stood up. She knew that laugh all too well. That rumbling low-pitched laughter was unfamiliar to her until she heard it again. Then like the gates of a dam it came flowing back into her memory, filling her with an awful sensation that made her feel like curling up in a ball or jumping in front of a bus.

“You're...'him' aren't you?” She sighed unable to suppress both the horror and despair that had flooded her mind. “The one from last night.” After looking at him again it did make perfect sense as to why she remembered the stranger crouching onto the ground before she sloppily smacked lips with him.

“Yea. That was me alright.” He smiled, scratching the back of his head casually as he stepped a little closer to her. “I came here earlier but I guess you weren't home. A woman with curly blonde hair told me you usually got off work around this time.”

'Tina.' Marie mentally groaned. Only one person in that entire complex was tacky enough to wear pink skirts and that was the giddy young woman who lived across the hall from her. Crossing her arms over her chest she stared at him for a moment, studying the vague outline of his body while trying to grasp how she'd failed to notice how tall he was. Even with a gallon of gin in her system she should have noticed how big he was. Shouldn't she?

“Listen. I'm really sorry about last night. You know, making a complete ass of myself and all.” She blabbered while her mind childishly screeched 'he's a freak! Dear god he's a freak!' like a police siren. “But I had a really, really miserable day and would really like to go inside right now more than anything else in the world. “

“Certainly. But can I at least give you your earring back?' He exclaimed, clasping his hands together neatly in front of his body.

“What on earth are you talking about?!! What earring?” She squeaked in high pitched alarm. In her sober state she felt completely and utterly disgusted by the thought that she had locked lips with this man. Because as judgmental as it seemed if she had not been so drunk she would have rejected him the very moment he approached her.

“This one.” He hesitated before opening his hands, revealing a gold hoop that was gingerly neatly in his outstretched palm. “It is yours is it not? I found it on the ground when I was walking back to the bar. I thought you might want it back.”

“Oh yes, that 'earring'.” She thought. That glitzy hoop was part of a set Paige had given Marie last year for her birthday. They were made of gold and looked very lovely with the right outfit but Marie hardly ever wore them. For this exact reason of all things.

“Oh god. I didn't even know it had gone missing!” She reached out without thinking, eagerly grabbing it between two outstretched fingers. She had found the other one on her living room floor this morning and had assumed the set had fallen out during the night. She was in such an array this morning that she did not even notice that the other one was missing. She was lucky. Damn lucky considering how awful she might have felt if she had actually lost it. Paige would have been crushed if she'd ever found out that her gift had been carelessly lost. Clasping it tightly in her hand she studied the stranger, who now stood with his hands crammed into the pockets of his jacket. “I don't know how to thank you.”

“Well...” He smiled at her cheekily as though she had unknowingly spoken the magic words. “If it's not too much of a hassle I would really like to know your name.”

“My name!? Really?” She blinked when he nodded at her. What kind of a reward was that? If she was in his shoes she would have been trying to sell it off for a twenty dollar bill in a pawn shop. Or demanding some kind of a cash reward. Anything was better than a name! “I-It's Marie.” She said, hesitating as a part of her suspected that he wanted to know her last name as well. “Marie Clarence.”

“Marie is it now? That's a very pretty name.” She studied his face when he spoke to her but could detect no hint of sarcasm in his expression.

“Geeze, the last person to call my name 'pretty' was an 80 year old woman.” She exclaimed. It baffled her that he was being so sincere. Frankly it disturbed her. A part of her was anticipating the moment when he whipped out a knife and started chasing her down the street. He certainly had the physique of a serial killer.

“Well, I'm not an 80 year old woman and I think it's pretty.' He retorted with a gentle shrug of his shoulders. She could not tell whether he was looking at the ground or simply looking down at her. “It is nice to properly meet you Marie Clarence.”

“Uhh...Thanks. I guess...” She cringed having briefly reminded herself once again that this was not their first encounter. Oh god did she want to just crawl into a sewer hole and die. How could she have done something so stupid? It probably thought she was some kind of idiot right now. Perhaps the only reason he'd bothered to return the earring was to get a kick out of her oafish behaviour once more. “Are you sure you don't want anything else? A name seems kind of like a sucky reward.”

“Well...” He opened his mouth but the sentence was never finished. For at that exact moment a voice called out to them, interrupting him as it flooded the humid city air.

“Oh my god, Mar-Mar! Is that you?!” The fine hairs of the back of her neck tingled with impending doom as her ears picked up the sound of a very familiar melodic voice calling out to them from the opposite end of the street. With her face no doubt twisted into some godawful cringe she slowly turned around. Heidi was standing there with her arms fulling of shopping backs and a broad grin plastered across her gorgeous face.

She died a little inside when she saw her scamper towards them in her high heeled clad feet. Her long legs made her stride far too quickly. It felt like she had rushed up to greet them at light speed, horrifying Marie who was already dreading the backlash this was going to cause.

“Oh my Mar-Mar! You'll never believe what I found today. I wanted to cheer you up after the crappy night you had.” She grinned, passing Marie several of the bags she had been carrying. “I swear, I have found you what could quite possibly be the cutest skirt in the world.” Heidi's eyes fell on the man just a few moments after the glow of her excitement had faded. She looked him up and down in silence, summing him up silently before flashing a beaming smile at the towering creature. “Well hello there Mr...?” Her voice lingered off, suggesting rather than blatantly requesting the strangers name. He seemed more than happy to reply to her. But of course that was exactly what Heidi wanted. She needed a name to make the gossip a little more believable after all.

“Romero.” He had reached out his hand, offering it to Heidi whom accepted the shake in such a reluctant manner than one might have assumed it was coated with dirt or slime. “Carlos Romero actually.” Mari took note of the name, inwardly sighing now that the stranger had been named. She would have preferred not knowing. Him remaining simply 'a stranger' would have made her life so much easier.

“Charmed. I'm Heidi. One of Marie's friends.” She replied with a slight wince as she puckered her lips. Marie hadn't seen such an expression on her friends face since the last time someone dared her to drink unsweetened lemonade. She didn't like the first impression that this 'Carlos' had given her. More importantly she did not appeared anymore delighted by his appearance that Marie had been. She even went as far as shuffling away from him a tad, digging her heels into the pavement as she shot Marie a quizzical look one that suggested she was starting to question her friends sanity. “Well Mar-mar, you certainly have a talent for hiding your acquaintances. I've certainly never met this fellow before.”

“We've only just met ourselves actually Heidi.” Marie responded through gritted teeth, gesturing to the earring the cradled in the palm of her hand still. “Mr Romero here found my earring on the sidewalk last night and was kind enough to take time out of his day to return it to me.”

Heidi took one look at the earring before loudly blurting “That's one of the earrings Paige gave you. If you'd lost it she would have never forgiven you!” Without batting and eye she turned her head towards Carlos. “How on earth did you manage to figure out who it belonged to?!”

“Well...Miss Clarence and I had a bit of an 'encounter' last night.” He smirked, threading his fingers through his hair casually. “I walked her home and found it on the pavement later on. So I guess I already knew where to look for her.”

“I see...” Marie's winced. She saw a mischievous glimmer in the other woman's eyes, knowing damn well that she had symbolically shot herself in the own foot by allowing Heidi to hear such a thing. Now the 'mysterious stranger' from the night before had been given a name. “Well then I assume you're planning on rewarding Mr. Romero here for returning it?” Marie's insides did a flip flop as she stood there trying very hard not to let her face turn red. “Er, yea. Sort of. He asked for my name before you arrived. “ Glancing over at Carlos she was relived to see him nod his head in response, agreeing with her silently while never budging once from the spot he was standing. He remained rooted there like a tree. A frighteningly tall one.

Heidi was about to open her mouth again, no doubt to further torture Marie who was already in such a state of embarrassment that she wanted to crawl under the nearest rock but the moment her perfectly formed lips opened she was interrupted by the deep baritone voice of the male that stood in front of her. “We were actually just about to go to the little coffee shop down the street before your arrival. Miss Clarence here insists that a name is not a proper reward.” With him standing in the direction of the sunlight she was allowed a better look at the details of his face. He was not a 'norm' for the area, sporting chiseled features and a crop of black stubble growing across his chin and cheeks line a miniature forest. He did not sound 'ethnic' to her, but his name certainly did and the sharply nutmeg hue of his skin was a screaming contrast against all of the pale or pinkish people was strolled past him. Even Heidi's extensive trips to the tanning salon could not rival such an undeniably natural colour. When he spoke he looked over at her, and a chill swept down her spine that had never been there before. His eyes were the brightest shade of green Marie had ever seen. So intense and pale that they resembled coloured glass. Had it not been for the black pupil in the centre of them and the cunning expression that flickered across them she would have believed he was blind. How could any 'normal' human eyes be so intense, so acidic in their very nature?

“Yes. That's right.” She whispered, feeling as though a had was clamped tightly around her windpipe now. Those eyes were disturbing to her. Perhaps even more so than the size of the individual that they belonged to. They reminded her too much of a snake, which made her recall all those times growing up when those boys in her neighbourhood would chase her with the garden snakes they found. Marie hated all reptiles because of them. Snakes especially.

“Awww what a major bummer.” Heidi pouted, sucking into Carlos's lie as she lowered her arms and allowed her shopping bags to droop onto the ground beside her. The disappointment lingered for only a millisecond before she was back to her beaming, perky self. “Oh well. I won't be a bothersome 'third wheel' to you two then. I have someplace to be right now as it is. Have fun you two!” Turning to Marie she thrust one of the bags into her arms. “Here, this is for you Mar-mar. Try them on tonight and let me know how they fit. I swear you'll love them!”

“Thanks Heidi...” Marie forced herself to smile as her friend threw her arms around her and pulled her into a vice-grip hug. “I'll try to remember to call you.” As Heidi waved goodbye and drifted away she had the sneaky suspicion that she would probably end up at the front doorstep of Paige within the hour. Before sunset everyone who Marie considered a 'friend' would know the name 'Carlos Romero'. And she didn't even get a chance to explain herself.

There was an uncomfortable silence when her friend walked away. Both she are Carlos seemed to watch her until she had faded away into an unfamiliar black dot off in the distance. “Well, that friend of yours friend is a very...perky woman.” she heard him remark to which she sighed deeply.

“You can say that she's annoying. I won't be offended.” She had turned to face him again, facing the crippling dilemma that although Heidi was now absent he was not. “Sorry about that by the way. I didn't think she was going to show up. Usually she doesn't come to this part of the city without calling me first.” The fine hairs on the back of her neck raised when it dawned upon Marie that she had been ignoring her cellphone for most of the day. “She's not used to seeing me with people that she doesn't already know.”

'Carlos' as he had named himself earlier simply shrugged his shoulders, smiling in her direction as though completely unaware of how uneasy she was in his presence. “No, I would not say she is in the spectrum of 'annoying'. A little bit of a busy-body judging by her behaviour, but not really annoying. Forgive me for sort of shooing her away like that. You just looked like she was bothering you.”

“Oh she was. Heidi can be really nosy at times. She has this thing about always wanting to know every detail about my personal life.” Marie responded just a little too quickly only to realize how terrible it was for her to be talking badly about one of her closest friends like that. “I'm sorry.”

“No don't be. Just because she's your friend doesn't mean she can't piss you off every now and then.”

Marie laughed nervously while twirling the ends of her already knotty hair. When she forced herself to actually look him in the eye again she found him smiling back at her. He appeared to be waiting for her to say something. “So...I guess you actually want that coffee now?” Marie grimaced, noting the fact that he appeared to be waiting rather than just standing there. The way he shifted his weight from one foot to the other was an undeniable trait of impatience. Running her fingers through her hair she mentally cursed Heidi, who was the individual responsible for the situation she was in. If she hadn't shown up Carlos would have left and Marie would have been curled up on her bedroom floor by now.

“Actually that was just a lie I made up to get your friend to leave us alone to be very honest. But if you really wanted to I don't mind. I could use a drink anyways...”

Once again Marie found herself wanting to bang her head against a brick wall as it dawned upon her that she had set herself up in such a way that it was impossible to turn Carlos down. Not without coming across as either rude or impolite. Biting on the edge of her tongue she forced herself to smile and nod her head at him. “Sure, I'd love to.”

“Really? That's wonderful!” His expression lightened up just a little making his eyes look even more sinister than before. Whether or not this was intentional was completely beyond Marie's grasp. He sounded friendly enough, maybe even just a little charming. “If you don't mind going for a bit of a walk I have a place in mind.” Of course she nodded her head again, grinning like an idiot because there was nothing else for her to do.

The 'place' Carlos spoke of turned out to be a cozy little cafe located in one of the side street's near Jack's new apartment. It was one of those places where the tables were all wooden and heavily worn and the air smelled of cigarette smoke in spite of the indoor smoking ban. He paid. Even though she pulled her wallet out and vainly attempted to fight him, reminded that she still owed some sort of a reward to Carlos for sparing her from the wrath of an angry friend. He waved the offer aside with a smile, insisting that he was the one to suggest coming here in the first place. She ordered a hot chocolate in spite of a aching desire for caffeine and sipped in quietly, unable to find anything to say to the man that sat across from her besides “Thank you.”

“This place huh? I love the atmosphere of this place.” He grinned, watching her as she studied her drink quietly. “It's charming without being one of those popular, wannabe-artsy coffee houses. I hate those. They're always filled with snotty teenagers.”

“I guess so.” She murmured, admittedly unable to tell the difference between this shop and a run-of-the-muck Starbucks. She didn't care about what the store itself looked like considering she was more often in and out of it in less than ten minutes. Lounging around the couches, discussing tedious everyday life was the type of things only the young and attractive could do properly in those places. “You should have allowed me to pay.”

“Naw, I wouldn't have been able to live with myself if I had.” Carlos replied with a heavy shrug. “It's just a thing of mine. If I suggest the place I feel obligated to pay for the purchases. That way if the person does not like it they have not wasted their own money.”

“Oh...well. Thank you then, I guess.” Marie blinked stupidly. It kind of made sense to her. At least he had not dragged her to some place that was ridiculously overpriced and demanded that she pay. “This place is really cozy.”

“Yea I know. A friend of mine told me about it awhile back. I like how quiet it is most of the time. No one really bothers you in here.”

Marie sighed, recalling the dozens of places Heidi and Paige had recommended to her over the years. Most of them were too loud or flashy for her taste. Her friends were very determined to morph her into the same breed of social butterfly that they were. No cafe, or restaurant they'd told her to go to had worked. She as still cursed to the ill fate that came with being a socially awkward wall flower.

“So, if you don't mind me asking, what was the deal with last night exactly?” He asked her after a few moments of silence and both of them staring out the window uncomfortably. “No offence but...I've never had someone randomly kiss me like that. It was really strange.”

“Oh geese I don't actually know myself to be very honest. I was really drunk.” Marie confessed, making sure to speak quietly enough that the elderly woman seated at the table next to theirs would not be able to overhear her. “My girlfriends dragged me out and then ditched me halfway through the evening and I guess I just started to knock back the drinks. I really don't know why I kissed you.” Resting her head in her hands she stared deeply into her steaming mug. “You must think I'm some sort of floozy.”

“I never thought that for a second.” Carlos replied, swirling a spoon around in the coffee that was resting on the table in front of him. “You didn't seem like the floozy type to me. You actually seemed more depressed and unhappy than anything else. It's kind of why I came over to talk to you in the first place. I kind of figured you only kissed me out of some desperation for affection. ”

“Well I really am sorry about what happened and I honestly feel like a complete idiot for doing that. I swear I'm not like that normally.” Marie spoke in between sips of her drink. It was a little too hot for her likings, but had just the right amount of milk added to it. She loved the way that the flavor seemed to linger on her tongue. “I'm also sorry about the way Heidi was acting earlier. I know she came across as rude but she's really not that bad of a bad person. She's just not used to interacting with people...suffering from disabilities. I don't think she really knew she was being inappropriate.”

He snorted loudly, interrupting her apologetic ramble with a roll of his eyes. “I assure you, my height is not a disability of any shape or form. Just say it like it is; I look like I just escaped from a traveling Circus. I'm scary up close. And I probably make someone of your size feel like a dwarf in comparison.” Carlos retorted so sharply that at first all she could do was sit there gaping in awe. “I don't like it when people try to beat around the bush about my appearance or try to use neutral 'politically correct' terms when discussing it. Being tall isn't a disability. I can always crouch through doorways after all. I'm tall, not wheelchair bound.”

“Oh...” She was going red in the face again. Marie could feel it even as it was just starting to form. Carlos's all-around blunt attitude provided her with a kind of shock she'd never felt before. Even Heidi was not as straight forward as this man. As he set the metal spoon down and took a long drink of his coffee she found herself envious of him. He was so unashamed of himself, so blatant and accepting of his psychical appearance.

“Can I ask what exactly you have?” Marie paused, sensing that she was coming across as though badgering Carlos about an STD than a psychical disorder. “I mean your uh...height.” She added quickly to spare herself some more humiliation. “Is it a genetic thing?”

“No.” He replied with a surprisingly cheerful tone, completely unoffended by her questions. “I have a form of gigantism. It's caused by a tumour on the pituitary gland usually.”

“Yikes, I'm really sorry.” Now she really did feel nasty. Judging a person who had a tumour. “That must be really scary.”

“Not really. Mine was removed by doctors when I was 23.” Carlos replied with another shrug. “It wasn't too bad. Fortunately they got it out before anything serious happened. Usually people like me who don't get the tumour removed keep growing and growing until they die of heart failure. They wanted to take it out when I was 18 but I couldn't afford the surgery then. If I had I would have been a lot shorter.”

“How tall are you now?”

“7 ft 6. At least according to my doctor. Not exactly a world record. It's a pain in the ass finding pants that fit though.”

“Oh...” Propping her elbows up on the table she forced herself to smile. In the very least she could be friendly to him, after all he'd returned her earring to her and bought her a hot chocolate without demanding anything in return. “It's kind of weird for me. I mean...I don't really know you but I keep on asking you all these personal questions. It must be really annoying, am I right?”

“It's nothing I haven't been asked before.” Carlos replied with a smile of his own, watching her as she traced the tip of her finger around the rim of her drink. “You get used to it after awhile and it just becomes a normal everyday occurrence.”

“Doesn't it get annoying after awhile though?” She grimaced inwardly when her phone began to ring. It was Heidi probably. Or Paige. Or someone else that had heard from the gossip grapevine that she was out with another human being. “Sorry.” She whispered, quietly turning her cellphone onto silent. It was terribly mistake bringing it with her today.

“Your 'friend' calling to check up on you I take it?” He asked, staring at the device with an amused expression plastered across his face.

“Yea...”

Marie did not pay very much attention for the rest of the drink. They chatted a little more, but it was all idle small talk. The same sort of things she frequently discussed with her next door neighbours out on the balcony. By the time her hot chocolate was gone she had forgotten half of the things they had said to each other. Carlos was still very polite of course, but her thoughts and focus were elsewhere, dwelling on how she would handle all the questions that would be thrown at her tomorrow when she came into work.

The sky was streaked pink and orange by the time they left and much like the agony one experiences by slowly removing a bandaid he asked to walk her back to her home again. She did not say 'no', though Marie had truly wanted to. How could she refuse a person who hadn't done her any real harm, and had gone out of his way to help her while getting nothing but negativity in return? They walked side by side down the empty sidewalk together. He was still talking, but she could not come up with a response. Instead she stared at the ground, counting the names written into the cement until they reached the doorsteps to her apartment building. “Well, here we are...” She chuckled nervously, unable to think of anymore more 'clever' to say. “I guess I'll see you around or something. Thanks again for returning my earring. I really appreciate.”

He did not say anything to her, but instead lifted his arm waving at her casually before simply turning and walking away. Marie watched from the front steps of the building, studying Carlos as his outline grew fainter and fainter off into the distance. When she could no longer see him properly without squinting she pulled out her keys, unlocking the front door and quietly heading inside. Her apartment was cold when she stepped inside. The balcony door had been left open the entire day, allowing cool air to flood the entire living room.

Dinner consisted of an unheated can of no-name spaghetti which she did not even bother tossing into a bowl and simply grabbed a somewhat unclean looking fork out of the kitchen sink (the dishes had not been done in over a week). Sitting on her living room couch she ate quietly, mulling over the melodramatic events that had occurred throughout the day. She dreaded going into work tomorrow, and had somehow managed to avoid her cellphone ringing several times over the next hour and a half before she gave up and started to get ready for bed. Just before she turned in for the night she checked her answering machine. It was completely filled with messages from Heidi and Paige.