Slutty Shaughna

#7 Not a date

When my dinner with Dshawn is only an hour away, I'm starting to second-guess myself. I've been working my ass off the past two weeks, working so many shifts at both Giovanni's and Animals that I'm spent. I'd much rather be in bed right now, sleeping. Instead, I'm standing in front of my closet, trying to figure out what to wear. I don't even know what restaurant he's going to take me to and I'm too proud to ask, so I'll just have to figure something out that will work at any place we go to. Dshawn wasn't the fancy type back in college, but I have no idea what he's like now. All I know about 26-year-old Dshawn is what Caroline told me from her hook-up with him, and that's just sex stuff. Apparently, he likes it when a girl puts his finger up his ass. I'm not sure if that kind of information is going to be very useful at what's basically a business dinner.

I didn't tell Caroline that I'm going to have dinner with Dshawns. I didn't even tell her that I was at his place not that long ago, sleeping in his bed. She's been so distracted lately, trying to get over that Nathanial guy, so we mostly talk about her stuff when we call or text. Not that she doesn't ask about my life, but it's obvious she's only got space in her mind for Nathan.

Honestly, that's a crappy excuse. I could have easily told her about sleeping in Dshawn's bed, especially since nothing happened. She would find it hilarious that I fell asleep at a party, since I'm normally drunk as a skunk, dancing on tables. And she'd be interested in tonight as well, just as curious as I am about what Dshawn wants my opinion on. I don't know why I haven't told her, why I haven't told anyone. It's just such a rare thing that a guy wants to talk about something serious, without making sexual jokes or insinuations that he wants the night to end in his bed.

With a sigh, I decide to call Caroline and let her know what I'm up to tonight. It takes her a while to answer, and when she does, she sounds frantic.

"I'm about to go on a date," she tells me. "My second one of the day, actually."

"What?" I ask, surprised. "Two in one day? Girl, are you taking a page out of my book? Who are you and what did you do with my goody-two-shoes best friend?"

She laughs, but she sounds a little more hysteric than I'd like. "I need to get him out of my mind, Shaughna. I had a date with this guy named Paul this afternoon, but he didn't do the trick, so I'm going out for cocktails later tonight with Darius."

"And who is Darius?" I ask, shocked to my core about this whole thing. I mean, my best friend isn't some prude or anything. When she likes a guy, she's rather quick to take things into the bedroom, but she hasn't been with a lot of guys. Six so far, if I'm correct. So for her to have two dates in one day... She must really be messed up over goddamn Nathanial Storm.

"Just some guy from one of the apps. He's kinda hot. I really need to go get ready now. Was there something you wanted to talk about?"

"No," I lie. Now is not the time to start yapping about her ex-boyfriend. "Just checking up on you. Let me know how your date went."

When we hang up, I feel even weirder than I did before talking to her. Not about Dshawn though, but about what's up with my friend. She just sounded so... off. Then again, she's getting over someone and the best way to do that is by getting under someone new, so this Darius guy might be the perfect distraction. It's what I would do, for sure.

I decide to go with a black pencil skirt and matching jacket over a green top. When I take off the jacket, it's a fun outfit, but with the jacket it's very professional. The perfect mixture for this dinner. I throw on some earrings and a necklace to show that I've put in a bit of effort, but decide to go with flats instead of heels. This isn't a date, after all. And since this isn't a date, I'm not going to bother curling my hair or doing some fancy updo. Instead, I pull a brush through it and put a rubber band in my purse in case I want to pull it into a ponytail later. Good enough.