“Would you still feel that way if I was a broke ass?”
“Good thing we don’t have to worry about that.” She bats her eyelids, giggling.
I pour some water in a glass and take a sip, my mouth suddenly dry.
“How much do you make?”
“Excuse me?” She looks taken aback by my question.
“You heard me. I want to know if you make enough to feel you’re deserving of mydentist’ssalary.”
“That’s kind of rude of you, don’t you think?” She glares at me, shifting uncomfortably in her seat.
"This isn't working out," I accuse signalling for the waitress.
“Wait, what do you mean?” She frowns at me.
Still willing to give me a chance, is she? I guess dentists are pretty high-end in her book.
"This whole setup is just pretentious. I never eat in places like this because I can barely afford my rent from month to month. I am not a dentist. I haven't even been to one since I was a kid. I'm a writer. I write online content, and it pays me next to nothing. I live in a one-bedroom apartment that's the size of the bathroom in this place."
Her eyes widen, and her shoulders tense. “You should have said that from the onset.”
“Yeah, but would you still be sitting here, fluttering your eyelids like I’m even your type?”
She shakes her head.
The waitress arrives, and I pull out my wallet. She raises her hand to stop me.
“I will fucking pay this bill,” I hiss, throwing my credit card on the table. The waitress picks it up slowly and casts Susan or Stephanie a sympathetic look.
It's always the man's fault, isn't it?
"See you around," I mumble as I rise to leave.
“Unlikely,” she bites back, and I decide to give that to her. I did humiliate her in front of a waitress. I did lie to her. I did arrive ten minutes late in a jacket that smells of old socks. I rake my hands through my hair and walk out of the restaurant.
“How’d it go?”I’m lying on my couch channel-surfing when my brother steps through my door in his pinstripe suit. I don’t know why I even gave him a key.
“Great,” I lie.
“Is that why Tiff just called me? Apparently her friend Sam was in tears, ranting about how my brother is the biggest asshole in the world.”
"Oh, is that her name? We didn't get that far." I know very well I was an asshole, but I've had it with Jax and Tiffany trying to set me up. “Fuck off.”
He moves my feet off the couch and sits down. "Did it ever occur to you to be nice for once? It wouldn't kill you."
“I was nice. I never insulted her, not directly at least. I paid for lunch. What more do women want?”
“How about you at least pretend you’re having a good time? You might actually find that you will.”
“I did, for half an hour while pretending to be a dentist.”
He lets out a breath. "You can't be alone forever, bro. At some point, you need to think about settling down, or at least getting a job that pays." He looks around my apartment. I know he means well, but it annoys me that he's always judging.
“I’m happy with the way things are right now. Why do I need to change it? To suit you? Tiffany? A woman who barely even knows me? No, you want me to change so you don’t have to explain why your brother is such a deadbeat.”
He shakes his head. "That's bullshit, and you know it. Look, at least talk to Tiffany."
