Speak Of The Devil

Anna sat in front of the mirror, trying to decide if she should wear some make-up.

Hold on...

She stared at the blending foam in her hand and the make-up powder and sighed. What the hell was she thinking? She put them back in place and settled for a lipgloss. Then, she threw on a jean pant, crop top and leather jacket. She left her hair to fall and gave one last look to the mirror. Satisfied with how she looked, she walked out of her room.

Her parents were seated in the living room tarnishing her hope of sneaking out quietly. Her father was reading a book while her mother was embroidering.

"Where are you going?" Her father looked up at her.

"Out?" She said.

"By this time?" He asked.

"It's just 7pm, dad..." She argued.

"I won't stop you but you have until 9pm to get back...and you're not promiscuous, if he is interested in you, bring him to us." He said finally.

"Jesus Christ, dad!" She exclaimed in annoyance -- how convenient for him to think it was a man she was going to see.

"Do not call the Lord's name in vain. No decent lady should be out too late, Anna, that is just what your father is saying." Her mother interjected.

Anna scoffed angrily, "You will not let me dress the way I want; you will not let me go out the time I want; you will not let me do anything the way I want! I'm so sick of this!"

They ignored her and she walked away from them angrily.

"9pm!" She heard her father say, as she shut the door close.

She sighed in frustration and waited for her Uber that would arrive in the two minutes. Anna's parents were very old fashioned Christians. They followed the Christian teachings to a letter T, and strongly believed in purity and decency before marriage. Anna has thought about moving out so many times, even before she turned 24 but her parents wouldn't give her the go ahead. They said they would only give her the permission when it was her husband taking her away.

She was sick and tired of it all. Did she really want to be a child of God? No one has ever asked for her opinion. She touched the rosary on her neck and felt a little nauseous.

Her Uber then arrived, disrupting her thoughts.

Anna got to the amusement park where Joyce was already waiting for her at the front of the gate wearing a hoodie, ripped jeans and sneakers.

"Hey," She greeted.

"Hey, ready to go have fun?" Joyce smiled.

Anna nodded and off they went.

***

Natalie walked into the restaurant that Hector had suggested they should meet up. She had been really surprised when he called her at Kylie's tattoo parlor saying that he would love to have dinner with her tonight. She didn't know what to think of it but hoped it wasn't what she was thinking. Acquaintances could have dinner together in a fancy restaurant, right?

He had made a reservation and even told her where they would seat -- she looked to the corner at the far end and saw him seated there. He saw her and wore a wide grin on his face. She began walking towards him.

"You look absolutely stunning." He smiled.

She didn't even put in any efforrlt but oh well,

"You don't look bad yourself." She said as they both sat back down.

"This place is nice," She complimented the restaurant he had chosen for their meet-up -- the air was clean, the food smelled nice and the decorations were very apt. Obviously, he had nice taste.

"Thank you. I was here once on a group outing and the food was amazing, so I decided why not?" He smiled.

Natalie smiled back.

"You don't want to ask me how I got your number?" He asked.

She shook her head, "No."

He smiled in response.

"So, what would you like to eat?" He asked and pointed to her menu.

She picked it up and began going through it, the meals were not as expensive as she would have thought them to be.

"Um, I would just have the lobster and a glass of sparkling wine." She answered.

"Oh, seafood lover, that's great. I would have the crème brûlée, been dying to try it." He said and called over the waiter.

After telling them their order, he turned to her.

"So, how are you?"

"I am okay, just trying to take a break from everything. You?"

He shrugged, "Working with Director Winston isn't the easiest job."

Natalie chuckled, "You don't need to tell me that. So you're the screenwriter, the story's quite captivating so I can tell you're good at your job."

"Dinner with you and now a compliment from you? Made my night." He grinned.

The waiter brought their orders and Natalie cut a piece of the lobster and chewed.

"Mmmm, it's so soft and chewy," She commended.

Hector smiled, "I told you,"

"I knew immediately I saw you, that you would be perfect for the female lead role and I was not mistaken." He added.

"Thanks, so how long have you been a screenwriter?" She asked.

"Six years? Got my first gig two years after college. It was hell not doing what I wanted to and having to work as an accountant to pay the bills."

"I can relate. Before I got this opportunity, I was working with an advertising firm...got a two weeks suspension for having an altercation with some bitchy ass lady that I worked with."

Hector laughed lowly, "Did you teach her a lesson?"

Natalie laughed, "One or two in how not to be a snitch."

"Oh, she snitched?" He asked curiously.

"Yup. Reported to my boss that I have been coming late for just two days...she's annoying." She said.

He nodded, "I agree. And how do you feel now that you're out of the firm, doing what you've always wanted to?"

"Honestly, I feel great." She answered.

Hector seemed glad at her response, "I'm glad to hear that."

They continued eating in silence for some seconds, until he spoke again.

"So, Natalie," He called her name softly.

She looked at him, "Yes?"

"How did you know Simon Fletcher?"

"Speak of the devil and he appears..." Hector trailed off distractedly.

Natalie looked at him in confusion, "What? Who?"

She followed the direction of his eyes and standing at the entrance of the restaurant, staring at them smugly, was Simon Fletcher.