Danny - First Date (2)

Danny: First Date

I've never known a girl like you before
Now just like in a song from days of yore
Here you come a knockin', knockin' on my door
And I've never met a girl like you before…

I hope to God I'm talkin' metaphorically
Hope that I'm talkin' allegorically
Know that I'm talkin' about the way I feel
And I've never known a girl like you before
Never, never, never, never
Never known a girl like you before                             

--Iggy Pop (Never Met a Girl Like You Before)

            Danny flipped another row of burgers and looked at the clock, sighing inwardly.  Another three hours before he would be free.  Working during the week was not a big deal since he could quit after a four or five hour shift.  This business of eight hours on Saturdays was brutal.  At least he could take comfort in the fact that on most days he got to work with his best friend, Erin.  Having someone to share your misery usually made the time go faster.  The downside today was that the store manager, Mr. Potato Head, as they fondly referred to him, was here.  That meant that they definitely had to keep their usual clowning around to a minimum, which put a damper on his typically jovial mood.

            Erin peeked at him over the top of the opposite side of the grill, where he was assembling the burger orders.  “By the way, where were you last night?  I got a standing ovation at the opry.”  He wrapped a completed burger in paper, turned and slid it down the shoot to the front counter.  He touched the computer screen in front of him, and the next order popped up for him.

            Danny scraped burgers off of the grill and dropped them unceremoniously on a tray next to the grill.  “Sorry, man.  First date.  I didn’t know if she’d appreciate a night of country music.  No offense, man.”  He took a full tray and slid it into the warming oven to keep them at the appropriate temperature.  Then he grabbed another stack of frozen patties and laid them in a row on the grill.

            “Well, I guess it’s okay for you to ditch me if there was a girl involved.  I didn’t even know you had a date.  How did I miss that?  Who was it?” 

            Danny cleared his throat.  “Violet Mitchell,” he muttered.

            Erinn popped up again, eyes wide with a mixture of surprise and shock.  “I’m sorry.  It sounded like you said Violet Mitchell.”  He stood there with the mustard bottle raised in his hand, waiting for Danny to answer.

            “She knows Ainsley,” Danny responded, confirming what Erin had heard.

            Erin paused, thinking about what Danny had told him.  He tossed the mustard bottle in the air a few times, mulling over this new information.  Finally, he broke the silence.  “I bet Ainsley’s sticking pins in her voodoo doll as we speak.”

            “Actually, she suggested it, if you can believe that.”  Danny raised his spatula in a mock salute.  “Score one for Danny.”

            Erin grimaced.  “Are you sure this isn’t one of her tricks?  She’s been nothing but cold and hostile for the last two months since you broke up, and now all of a sudden she’s setting you up with one of her best friends.  I smell something rotten in Denmark, buddy.  I would seriously watch my back on this one.” 

            Danny grew somber.  “I really hadn’t thought about it that way.”  He worked silently for the next few minutes, stewing over what Erin had proposed.  Suppose this was some sort of elaborate shrek.  Ainsley was certainly capable of yanking his chain just for fun.  Besides, he had never had the kind of luck with women that Erin had.  All Erin had to do was flash his mega-watt perfect smile, dimples and green eyes, and women of all ages were instantly smitten.  Being five-foot, ten inches with a trim build didn’t hurt him, either.  He never lacked for potential dates, and had an easy confidence with women in particular.

            Danny, on the other hand, was five inches shorter, with reddish brown hair, glasses, and freckles everywhere.  If he was honest with himself, he could also probably stand to lose about twenty pounds around his mid-section.  He had a lot of girls that were friends, but Ainsley had been his first serious girlfriend in high school.  Sometimes it was difficult to be Erin’s best friend without feeling a little jealous of him.

            Erin interrupted his introspection.  “I’m still having trouble with this scenario, especially with Ainsley involved.  So what did you do on your date?”

            Danny snapped out of his daze.  “Dinner and a movie.  I know it’s not terribly original, but I didn’t have any time to plan something else.  Besides, it was better than staying at home alone on my night off.” 

            Erin nodded in agreement.  “Did you score any points?  I want some details, man.” 

            “I think we’re going out again.”  Danny grinned, but didn’t look up from the grill.  The fryer beeped behind him, and he turned to lift the baskets of fries out of the hot oil.  He let them hang and drip a little longer than he would have normally.  He moved over and dumped them on top of the fries in the holding bin and liberally shook salt all over them.  Then he tossed them all together, lingering as long as possible.  Erin impatiently tapped his foot, and Danny smiled to himself.  Deciding he had tortured him long enough, he turned back to the grill. 

            “So are you going to tell me, or am I going to have to beat it out of you?” Erin huffed at him.

            Danny paused with his spatula in the air.  “I had a good time.  She’s funny.  Well, maybe witty is more accurate.  We mostly talked about people we know at school and movies we’ve seen.  She works in a video store, and I thought I’d seen a lot of movies.  She has me beat on that count for sure.”  He paused a moment before adding, “I’ve never met anyone quite like her.”

            This last statement caused Erin to wave his arms around and totter in a circle mechanically spouting, “Danger Will Robinson!  Danger!” several times.

            Danny grabbed his sides and feigned pain from laughing too hard.  “Cut that out!  You don’t want Mr. Potato Head coming in here and accusing you of screwing up someone’s order again, do you?”  He pulled a fresh package of buns off of a stack behind him and loaded the tops and bottoms into the toaster two by two. 

            Erin picked up the buns as they came out on the other side.  “You know your life would be completely dull and boring without me.  But you’re right, we probably shouldn’t work together.  So why don’t I know this Violet if she goes to our school?”

            “She’s on that half-day program where she just takes a couple of classes in the morning since she’s already completed all of the graduation requirements.  Then she takes classes at the community college in the afternoon.”  Danny explained.  “And I don’t know why you don’t know her.  You both are in Music Composition together.”

            Erin thought about that for a moment.  “I’m still drawing a blank.  Wait, it’s coming to me now.  She’s the brunette who sits in the front row over by the window.  She’s kind of cute, but not really my type.”

            “There’s a skirt that isn’t your type?  I’m shocked, Erin.  Truly shocked” Danny countered.  “If I didn’t know better, I’d say you were losing your touch with the ladies.  That makes more for me, thank you very much.”  He chuckled to himself.  Erin was working on becoming the consummate ladies’ man, and it amused Danny that he had overlooked even one of the girls at school.  He couldn’t decide whether or not this was favorable for him.

            “Well. I will say just this one thing.”  Erin interrupted Danny’s introspection. 

            “What’s that?”

            “If she’s on the half-day program, then she’s too smart for you.  She’ll see through your bullshit in a nanosecond.  You better quit while you have the chance.”

            “Thanks for the support, man.  Maybe you’re just jealous and want her for yourself.  It’s a ploy to get me out of the way,” Danny countered.

            “Hardly.  I’m warning you now.  This girl is out of your league.”

            Danny scowled and continued.  “This advice coming from the horndog who chases all of the jailbait wearing miniskirts and cowboy boots at the opry every weekend.”  Mr. Bolton, the store manager swiftly approached in their direction, but Danny’s back was turned towards him.  Erin’s eyes got wide, and he opened his mouth to respond, but Danny cut him off.  “Don’t hurt yourself trying to think of something witty.  I get it.”

            Mr. Bolton’s voice boomed right behind Danny’s ear, and he jumped a little at the sound.  “Then maybe you can get back to work while you’re at it.  Less talk and more action from you two jokers.”  He had his hands on his hips with his reddened face contorted into a scowl.

            Danny turned around and gave him a mock salute.  “Yes, sir.  Sorry, sir.  Back to work, sir.”  He and Erin both lowered their heads and started working furiously without a sound. 

            Mr. Bolton watched Danny without changing his expression.  “That’s right.  Joke all you want.  The two of you are going to run into trouble with those attitudes, I can guarantee it.”  Mr. Bolton waited for a minute, then retreated down the aisle, shaking his head in disappointment.

            After a couple of minutes, Danny broke the silence.  “Thanks for the warning.”

            “I tried, but you were all wound up and wouldn’t have listened anyway.” 

            “Well next time try harder.  He almost had me shaking in my sneakers.”  Danny grimaced.  “How much longer do we have in this torture chamber?” 

            Erin looked up at the clock.  “Two hours and forty-five minutes too long.  Put some more burgers on that grill before I get behind, will ya?  Don’t think you’re off the hook, though, wise guy.  We’ll talk about your new girlfriend later.”

            Danny rolled his eyes.  “I can hardly wait.”