Self-service

She could have sworn he had looked her way.

He was cute, she would give him that. Not amazingly cute though. He was not very well dressed, but there was something about the way he carried himself and had discreetly looked at her that interested her deeply.

Clair was waiting in line in one of these self-service pay-by-weigh restaurants that are so popular amongst university students such as herself and, as she believed, the guy.

“Are you gonna just stand there all day?” Someone behind her complained. She had been lagging the queue during her daydream. Red faced, she moved forward, stealing a look his way. There was a hint of a smile on the corner of his eyes and mouth. Ok, he was definitely paying close attention to her.

It finally came her turn. She was famished, but she couldn’t let that cutie see her with a mountain of a plate. Salad: that should do the trick. She decided she wanted to show him she was a healthy eater. Lots of lettuce, a tomato or two… She scanned the selection for anything else she might like. Failing that, she picked a purple something.

Ok, now to see if all this hard work paid off, she thought to herself. Throwing her head slightly to one side so as to arrange her hair, she peered behind her shoulders. The guy was gone.

Nooo! How could I let this happen? She thought desperately, as she stole looks all around, looking for him. She turned completely around in a brusque movement… and turned right back. He was right behind her, looking at her with a hint of curiosity. She flushed furiously, moving on and away from the salad selection and picking the rest of the food to her liking (but still on small quantities of course, not all was lost). She weighed her food, asked for a diet soda and turned around, scanning the restaurant for an available table. She found one and only one: a corner table with only two seats, right next to another corner table with a lonely girl. Luck was finally turning her way (due to the table, not the girl). Conscious of the fact that he had just begun scanning the place for a seat himself, she couldn’t help but smile as she made her way to the table. She could feel him following her now. She sat down in what she hopped was a classy manner, and noticed that the lone girl on the other table was staring daggers at her. She shrugged the problem aside; after all, she had better things to worry about. Relaxing on the seat and arranging her plate, she glanced sideways: he was coming her way!

Clair was careful not to start eating: she wanted a crumbs-free smile available for when he inevitably sat down, which would be soon. He was only ten steps away, five, and then two. He turned. Something was wrong. Clair watched helplessly as ‘her’ guy moved towards the lone girl. As he placed his plate on the table, the girl, looking pointedly at Clair, pulled her boyfriend to a quick kiss. Suddenly Clair decided she didn’t quite like that restaurant anymore.