Jessie looked at her friend and sighed.
“Sarah, what are you doing?”
Sarah nearly fell out of her chair. All of a sudden the papers on the desk in front of her needed a lot of her attention.
“Nothing,” she blushed.
Jessie laughed and shook her head.
“Yeah, right, you were totally staring at Jason again.”
Sarah’s face reddened even more.
“Shut up. I can’t help it. He’s just…he’s just…just look at him!”
Jessie laughed and went back to her cubicle. It was obvious she’d only come over there to tease her. Sarah silently cursed herself. She really couldn’t help it. It shocked her that anyone could. He was just so beautiful. He was tall and slender, but toned. His dark brown hair was thick and full of waves. His skin was an olive tone, just enough to give him an ever-present tan.
Sarah loved how he dressed professionally but relaxed. He could pull off a sweater and khakis a hundred times better than anyone else. The cologne was slightly overdone but the smell could melt any girl’s heart so the intensity was forgivable. Every time he walked by she had to stop and enjoy the experience. The view and the aroma were worth being admired.
Jason was kind of a loner. As attractive as he was, she didn’t understand why people weren’t surrounding him at all times. Instead he was always alone. He ate lunch alone, took his break alone and barely spoke to anyone unless it was work related. It completely confused her.
Jessie was always teasing her about Jason. She told Sarah over and over to go talk to him. She wouldn’t even consider it. Courage was not her strong suit. Besides, she was almost positive he wasn’t interested in her. So she was left with her daydreaming.
To keep herself, mainly her eyes and mind, occupied she reorganized her desk. The work for the day was done. Now she was just waiting for the end of the workday to come. Of course, no matter how occupied she tried to be, her mind still kept wondering to Jason. She really couldn’t help it.
Finally, 4:30 came and she headed out of the office. The sun had already started to set and was reflecting of the windows of her car. She searched her purse for her keys. When she looked up Jessie was standing in front of her, Jason in hand. Sarah’s eyes grew wide with horror. Jason looked uncomfortable. Jessie was grinning.
“Hey Sarah! I was just telling Jason how I think you two would hit it off. You should totally go out sometime. Well, better go! See you tomorrow!”
She gave Sarah a wink as she left them in an awkward silence. Sarah was truly horrified. She couldn’t believe Jessie would do something like this. Yeah, right. Of course Jessie would do something like this.
Sarah couldn’t decide whether to look at Jason or at the ground. She chose the ground.
“I’m sorry. Jessie can be… well Jessie.”
He shrugged.
“It’s okay.”
Sarah couldn’t just walk away. This would probably be her only chance. She had to force herself to take it.
“So, what do you think?”
Jason looked at her for a long moment. She could almost see the gears turning. He was trying to decide.
“How about Friday night?”
Her heart jumped. She couldn’t suppress a huge smile, but did her best to look calm.
“Sure, we can go to dinner after work if that sounds good to you.”
He nodded and she saw the corner of his mouth slightly curve upward. They said goodbye and went their separate ways.
It took forever for Friday to come. Sarah spent an extra hour and a half making sure she looked perfect before she went to work. She was full of butterflies all day. Every time Jason walked by he gave her a small smile and, of course, Sarah would blush. The time ticked by excruciatingly slow. It seemed like every time she looked at the clock only a minute had gone by.
Finally Jason walked over and asked her if she was ready. Trying not to seem anxious she gathered her purse and coat and they walked out together. He led her to his silver Ford Taurus, nothing super fancy but not a beater either. He opened the car door for her then settled into the driver’s side.
He did things like that all evening. At dinner he pulled her chair out for her. He even asked what she wanted to eat and ordered for her. She didn’t have to open a single door herself. She felt so special every time. The date was better than she had expected. She was afraid it was going to be awkward. He was usually so quiet. She didn’t expect him to be so open and friendly. She could practically feel herself melting.
Because they had left straight from work their date ended back in that same parking lot. Jason parked and immediately jumped out, walked around the front of the car, and opened her door for her one last time. She thanked him as he gave her his hand to help her out. They smiled at each other.
“I had a lot of fun.”
Sarah looked at him timidly. He brushed her long brown hair behind her shoulder.
“I did too.”
Now her stomach was full of knots. The idea of Jason kissing her was exhilarating and terrifying all at the same time. She prayed silently that he wouldn’t hate it if he did. He leaned towards her and she closed her eyes. She felt his lips press softly against her cheek. She wasn’t disappointed. Waiting was okay. It would give it more meaning.
He wrapped his arms around her and whispered into her ear. His voice was deep and sincere.
“Can I call you tomorrow?”
Her knees nearly gave out.
“Yes.”
It was all she could think of to say. It was surreal. Jason enjoyed his date with her enough to want to call her tomorrow. Then she sobered herself as best she could. Lots of guys said they would call and never did. He had asked though. It seemed more sincere, but if she got her hopes up it would kill her when he didn’t. It would kill her anyway but she hoped it would be less painful. He kissed her cheek again and got back in his car.
They didn’t kiss until their third date. By then they had already become close. The only thing that bothered Sarah was that Jason didn’t share much about his past. She had a bad feeling there was something important he wasn’t telling her, but she pushed it to the back of her mind. Things were going so well. She wasn’t going to ruin it by being paranoid.
They were sitting on his couch watching Night of the Living Dead. Sarah was curled up next to Jason with his arm around her. She looked up at him and smiled. In the light of his living room she noticed his skin looked unusually pale.
“You okay, Jase?”
He looked down at her.
“Hm? Why?”
“You look a little pale.”
“Guess I’m just a little nervous.”
She gave him a confused look.
“Why?”
He smiled, leaned down, and kissed her softly. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him closer. They lay down across the couch still kissing. Sarah moved her hands to the sides of his face. Something rough suddenly came off in her hand. She pulled away and looked to see what it was. She screamed and threw it on the floor. Terrified, Sarah looked at Jason’s face. A large chunk of skin was missing from his cheek.
“Oh my god Jason! What’s wrong with your face?”
He smiled.
“I just haven’t eaten in a while.”
“What?”
He put his finger across her lips and shushed her. She realized they weren’t embracing anymore. He was holding her down. Skin slowly started to fall from his face in chunks. She could see his teeth where his cheek should have been. He leaned closer and she turned her face away from his grotesque disintegrating flesh. He whispered in her ear as she cringed.
“Don’t worry Sarah, I’m not like the others. I’m not partial to brains.”
Her scream was cut short as he ripped into her throat. It didn’t take long for her to die.
He watched her patiently.
Then she opened her eyes, looked into Jason’s, and smiled.
