Fan Fiction |
by Jenny Tran
The four met up at a restaurant between their homes. It was simply decorated with little daisies. Apparently the owner liked the flower because Virginia noticed the tablecloth, dishes, cups and walls were painted with daisies. “This is very interesting.” She spoke out loud.
“Isn’t it?” Freddie asked, he looked just as awed as she did.
“Only girls would like this place.” Joanne wrinkled her nose in disagreement.
“I guess that’s why you don’t like it.” Freddie retorted.
“Hey, hey guys, can we have one peaceful dinner without you guys bickering?” Jeff asked.
The two exchanged faces but kept quiet for the waitress to order. When the food came, they were at it again. “What are you looking at my chicken for?” Joanne pushed her plate away from Freddie’s making it clink against Virginia’s plate.
“Oh come on!” she sighed and looked at her friend with exaggerated annoyance “You want some chicken? Here!” she plopped a piece of her own onto his plate.
That seemed to work as he smiled and stuck his tongue out at Joanne “Ginny’s nicer.”
“She just did it to shut you up!” Joanne replied.
“Okay, that’s it. Ginny, you want to join me at another table?” Jeff threatened. Virginia smiled as she turned back to Freddie and Joanne who looked offended.
“If you wanted to be alone with her, all you had to do was ask.” Freddie said sarcastically.
“Yeah, you don’t have to insult us like that.” Joanne added.
“Huh, I realized something.” Virginia said thoughtfully. When she captured all their attention, she continued “You two seem to stand up for each other when both of you are being put down? Why is that? I mean, you guys are constantly at each other’s throat and then suddenly you two team up to bash on other people?”
Freddie and Joanne exchanged glances not knowing how to answer her question “Okay, Miss I-am-a-shrink-so-listen-to-me Chan. Just because you got a degree on how to study people doesn’t mean that your clarifications are correct.”
“Clarifications…ohh…that’s a good one.” Joanne smiled as she admired his choice of words.
Freddie nodded politely at her “Thank you. At least someone appreciates MY opinion.”
Virginia and Jeff looked at each other unable to believe what they were talking about “Just shoot me now.” She said sarcastically.
“You gotta shoot me first.” Jeff added quickly.
“Aww…look at that. They want to die together….Romeo and Juliet.” Freddie let out a sigh and his eyes wandered to the ceiling again.
This time Joanne knew he was being dramatic “Romantic again?” she asked shortly.
He nodded, his face beaming “Yup, you got it. Wow, you sure are quick!”
She nodded in agreement “I know.” She stopped smiling when she noticed that Jeff and Virginia were ignoring them. They were whispering and giggling together. “Hey Jeff, you gonna eat all your veggies?” she asked. He ignored her and continued to chat in low voices with Virginia. She had a mischievous look on her face as she pushed her fork into one of his broccoli. He didn’t have to look over to know what she was doing, using his own fork, he pulled back his stolen vegetable. “Hey! You’re not gonna eat that.” She pouted.
He whispered one last thing to Virginia before turning back to Joanne “Didn’t your mother teach you any table manners?”
“Don’t pull that big brother tone on me, you may be Remy’s best friend but you’re not my brother.” She replied icily.
“Oooh, is that a threat?” he teased “How about we give my best friend a call right now?” he pulled out his cell phone and prepared to dial Remy’s number.
Joanne’s eyes widened in fear as she reached for his cell while he let her yank it out of his hands. A winning smile on his face “Wipe that smirk off your face! I’m not afraid of you, I just don’t want a lecture right now.” She said slowly.
Jeff grinned as he put out his hand for his cell phone back. She reluctantly gave it back to him “I told you, works every time.” He whispered to Virginia.
She muffled a giggle “I never doubted you.”
“Oh please, I’m still eating!!” Freddie spoke up.
“No one’s stopping you.” Virginia replied. “Well, have fun guys. I’ll see ya later Freddie.” She began to stand up as she motioned for Jeff to come with her. “Thanks for the dinner.”
“Where are you two going?” Freddie asked.
“To be alone of course.” She gave him a wink and smiled as she watched their dumbfounded expressions. “We’re giving you a chance to be alone too.” She pulled her jacked from the chair and Jeff helped her wrap it around her shoulders. “Bye.”
“See ya around.” Jeff added before leaving the restaurant, never once looking back as they walked out giggling like little kids.
“Can you believe those two?” Joanne asked in shock.
“I know! Let’s follow them.” Freddie suggested.
“No!” he gave her a strange face at her sudden outburst “I mean, they’re no fun anyways. Let’s go to the karaoke bar.”
“Sure. I love to sing!!” his mood suddenly changed.
************
When Jeff and Virginia was out of the restaurant, he turned to her “Sorry about that. You know they’re just finding someone to tease.”
She nodded “I know. I’m use to it. Although I must say, you were the longest tease from Freddie.”
He smiled at the response “Should I be honored then?”
Virginia shrugged her shoulders “Honored, I wouldn’t say, but maybe insulted.”
He laughed “Never.”
She shook her head “Anyways, where did you want to go?”
“Have you ever seen the beach at night?”
“Can’t say I have. But I find it kind of creepy.” She shivered, showing her disagreement to the idea.
“Really? I find it hypnotizing and so peaceful. During the day, its so busy with people, you don’t have time to appreciate that part of nature.” He explained with a serious face that it made her smile.
“I like how you put that. Okay, I’m in. Let’s go.” She pulled at his arm and together they drove to the beach. Once the car door opened, she could hear the waves crashing. “Wow, its even louder at night.” She commented.
“That’s because you are blocking the noise of the cars, people and birds. This way, you can only hear nature.” He looked around for his spot, a rocky area where he sits and relax. His face brightened when he found it “Come on.” Reaching for her hand as he pulled her along the cold sand. “This is my secret place.” He whispered.
“Its very…bumpy.” She said slowly as she watched him climb the rocks with ease. He turned around and put out a helping hand for her. She eagerly took it as he pulled her to the highest rock, sitting right next to him.
“The stars are beautiful tonight.” He looked up at the sky with pure admiration for nature “See, without the city lights, the sky looks even more brighter. Just how nature intended it to.”
She smiled as she looked at his face through the dimmed light of the streets and the moon. “I didn’t know you had such a great appreciation for nature.”
“There’s a lot of things you don’t know about me.” He said mysteriously.
She laughed “That you’re really a psycho and you brought me here to kill me and bury me alive in the sand?”
His eyes widened as his jaw dropped “How did you know? You must be an angel from above if you can read minds.”
She wrinkled her nose “That was corny.”
“I know.” He said apologetically. “I’m not good with talking to girls.”
“You’re great with me….and how about Joanne?”
He dropped his head and shook it slightly “I meant with the girl that I like.”
Virginia’s smile disappeared as she looked out into the ocean “Sometimes its not how you act around a person, its how you don’t act around a person.”
He looked up with a confused expression “What do you mean?”
“Well, I think that when you act like yourself, it just means that you are more comfortable with a person. When you don’t act a certain way, it just means that you are holding a portion of yourself back. You’re keeping a part of you behind because you’re not comfortable or you just don’t want them to know you.”
He nodded slowly, understanding what she meant “Maybe.”
She smiled “That’s just my opinion you know.” He nodded understandingly “Answer me this. How do you think your future girlfriend will be like? I mean personality wise.”
He looked thoughtful before answering her “I guess, to be able to talk to her about everything. To spoil her. For her to love me with the same passion. A best friend.”
Virginia nodded “That’s most ideal for a lot of people. But only a handful will actually meet that person of their dreams.”
“How about you?” he asked.
“I thought we went through this already?” she replied.
“Things change. Idea’s change. Feelings change.”
Her eyes wandered away “That’s very true. But somehow it hasn’t. I still believe that I won’t be able to find a guy that will embrace the idea of his girlfriend being so passionate about her work.”
“It’s probably a turn on for some guys.” He hinted.
She lowered her head away from the light, so he wouldn’t see her blush “Maybe….” She glanced at her watch “Oh goodness, we’ve been out here for an hour. I’ve got to go home or ‘mother’ will scold me.”
“You mean Freddie?” he asked as he crawled down the rocks, his hand tightly secured around her waist as he helped her down.
“Yeah, he’s worse than a mother. I grew up without one and now I still have one.” She let him hold onto her waist as she jumped onto the sand. “But you know, he’s my best friend. He was there when no one else was.”
“That’s understandable.” Jeff replied. They walked down the beach to where their car was parked. He took her home that night feeling different about their situation. He was a step closer in getting to know her. He always felt that she was holding back her true feelings with him. Jeff wasn’t sure if their situation got any better but he knew the talk had helped both of them.