(Mason's POV)
Nervous as all hell, I stood in front of Anastasia. A small bead of sweat flowed down the back of my neck. I tried my best to keep my cool, but nothing worked. It was like I was looking at a completely different person. The girl…no…woman sitting in front of me couldn’t be the same one I grew up with.
(Anastasia's POV)
It’s about damn time Mason finally grew a pair and took me to dinner...I mean: What a surprise! I was expecting the investor and not my childhood best friend. He looked so uncomfortable in those clothes he was wearing-light purple dress shirt with a matching striped tie, and black pants. Don’t get me wrong, he looked good (Not as good as me), but the clothes weren’t him. Well, not yet.
Moments passed, and he just stood there like a lost puppy waiting for guidance. Trying to be friendly, I ushered him to sit down. With a little hesitation, he walked slowly to the table and took the seat across from mine. Now that he was closer, I could see the anxiety in his eyes. This is why I never got all dressed up around him. He can’t handle himself around women in these situations. His brain just shuts down… the little he has.
Well, perhaps I was a little overdressed.
(Mason’s Internal POV)
Don’t say anything stupid. She’s your friend. You’re best friend. You can’t say anything stupid. She didn’t change. She’s still you’re old friend, Ana. A very sexy, nicely dressed, beautiful Ana. Dammit!You’re making is worst, Mason. Calm down. You’re DJ Helix. Calm down. Breathe and look her in the eyes.
God dammit. They’re absolutely stunning! I can just get trapped in those hazel eyes forever. Okay…calm down. Calm down. Calm down. You can do this! You are Mason Williams!
(Anastasia POV)
After growing up with somebody for so long, you tend to know what’s going on inside their head. Right about now, I bet he’s having some sort of weird conversation with himself. They never work. He talks himself up only to crash back down. It was sort of cute. Sigh. Though, it could go on all night unless someone steps in. So, I firmly took hold of his hands. He seemed to calm down as he looked up from the table. The curly-haired DJ let out a slight, nervous chuckle. He straightened in his chair. The Mason I knew and lo- I knew was coming back.
“So, how has my favorite subpar DJ been?” I asked.
“Oh, the same way my favorite subpar club owner has been.” He responded, “How is that hole in the wall without its favorite headliner?”
“It’s better than ever since we actually brought in some real talent.”
We sat there in silence, just looking at each other with expressionless stares. Soon, our composures began to break. A snicker here. A smile there. We held it in as long as we could, but soon, we could barely hold it in anymore; we began laughing out loud. The laughter would stop, yet would resume when we made eye contact. It was so bad that tears filled our eyes. We laughed so loud and for so long, the waiter had to come tell us to quiet down, for we were “disturbing the other guest.”
“It’s been too long, Anastasia,” Mason stated as he wiped a tear from his eye, “I almost forgot what your face looked like.”
“Sure... It’s not like you saw me when I saved your ass from a drunken citation.” I smirked then sighed, “It’s just the club keeps me busy. I haven’t had much of a social life outside that place.”
“It’s not entirely your fault. Maybe, 67%, but not all. My career started rising ,and I forgot everything. I just left everything and everyone behind. Even now, when I’m not that big, I’m still busy with small jobs.”
“At least we’re here now…wait… why you are here? Are you my potential investor?”
“Investor? I already put a load of cash into that place.” He stated before a wave of realization hit him,” Let me guess: You’re not here to hire me for a big gig?”
“Hire you? I tell you to play at my club.”
Mason was quiet for a couple of seconds before a modest smile appeared in his face.
“That damn pony…” He said before grabbing a menu, “Alright, time to eat.”
(Mason’s POV)
It was all so obvious. Of course Vinyl would plan this event. How did I not see it coming? It must have been another part of her revenge scheme. Well, it’s a lot better than that male stripper….or those clowns. Those scary clowns. At least I can spend the night with my best friend at a pretty fancy restaurant.
“So you’re saying Vinyl planned all this,” Ana stated, slightly intrigued.
“Yep. It is a part of her revenge.”
“Revenge for?”
“I may have made a joke about her heat.”
“In that case, you deserve everything.”
“What?! It was a small joke.”
“Perhaps, but heat it a very big thing for them. In relation, you made a huge joke. It probably made her feel terrible,” Ana explained, “The poor thing. She didn’t have anyone to help her through it.”
Ana sure knew how to make a fellow feel bad about his past activities. In all honesty, I still felt terrible. Even after the joke, she continues to be my friend. Still continues to help me. I could learn a lot from that pony.
Ana and I ordered our food when the waiter came round to check us. I didn’t know what half the stuff on the menu was, so I just ordered some spaghetti while Ana ordered a lobster. (I should have got the lobster.) While the food was being prepared, we made small talk and caught up on each other’s lives. With my career and her club, we missed a lot. Though, we tried our best to keep in contact.
It seemed like time just faded while talking to her. We reminisced about our childhood, talked about things happening in our life, and spread a bit of gossip from the club. The awkwardness faded away and instead of me being in front of a stunning woman, I was talking to my best friend. Before I knew it, the waiter interrupted our conversation with the food.
I dived into my spaghetti with no remorse, yet quickly remembered where I am. I slowly looked at the woman across from me and opened my mouth to show her a remorseful, pasta filled grin.
“Really?”Ana asked as she wiped some tomato from my cheek, “You’re this old, yet still can’t eat properly. Ugh, you got a stain on your shirt.”
“Just like old times, right?” I slurped a noodle into my mouth with a satisfying smack.
“Will you ever grow up?”
“I really don’t know. Doctors diagnosed me with the mind of a thirteen year old. Good thing I have my looks, right?”
‘“Yeah…don’t quit being a DJ.”
“If I do, I’ll just work at the club. I do own thirty percent.”
“No, you own ten percent. I own ninety. I know my numbers, Mr. Helix,” Ana drew a crude pie chart with our faces on it. It showed our percentages of the club.
“With that big slice of pie, you might get fat…ter.” I joked.
“Oh? Then I guess I’ll just split my half of pie with Vinyl. We will be co-owners, perhaps?” Her retorts were good. A lot better and more bone crushing than mine. “Speaking of Vinyl, what made you…get her? I never took you for a brony.”
“I’m not a brony. I just like the show a little,” I paused to think out my answer, “I really don’t know why I got her. An urge maybe. I was slightly tipsy during a binge of MLP with the bros. Then, I received a notification from this Vogon Biotech company. Honestly, I thought it would be a neat way to get my name back on top. Enhance my career sort of speak. Turns out: I bought a lifelong friend.”
“Weird…I never heard of Vogon Biotech.” She rubbed her chin trying to recall information, “Nope. Nothing, but I have seen other ponies in L.A. Maybe they know?”
“Maybe, but I have another way to figure stuff out…anyway, let’s not let this food go to waste.”
We finished our meal while playing footsie. She got in a couple of actual kicks, but I didn’t mention them. The waiter came around with the bill, and I paid (Like the gentleman I am…plus, I owed her some money). Ana left the tip and we left. As we walked away, I couldn’t help, but look at her. My god, she looked ravishing in that dress. I know she knew it because she added a little more sway into the way she walked. “Flaunt it if you got it,” she said once. How true it was.
We stepped outside of the restaurant into the cold night. Seeing Ana in her dress, I offered my jacket. She gladly took it and bundled up. We made small talk, waiting for the valets to bring my car around.
“Have you ever had an urge to do something stupid?” she asked.
“Most of the time,” I joked, “Though, I’m usually already doing something at the mome-“
In the next instant, Ana took hold of me and brought my face to hers. I had no time to react before our lips touched. Her soft, warm lips interlocking with mine caused my body to lock before relaxing into the motion. I wrapped my arms around her body and pulled her in close. With her body close to mine, the cold night seemed to melt away, replaced by a warming sensation.
Our lips only parted when we both had to stop for air. We both looked at each other, smiling. She wore this coy look about her that I’ve only seen a few times before. With a relieved breath, she laid her head on my chest. We just stood in each other’s embrace until the valets came.
The first valet pulled around in my Civic. I hesitantly let Ana out of my arms to tip the valet and get in my car. I was about to offer her a seat until her car pulled around, but out of nowhere, the roar of an engine could be heard. Around the corner came a brand new, yellow Camaro. The female valet stepped out, and Ana stepped in. She looked at me, her coy look replaced, by one of superiority.
“Just a perk of owning ninety percent.” She stated, looking at me, “That was good kiss. Better than the last one where you froze.”
With that, she blew me a kiss, and the engine of her beast roared as she drove off. I smiled, remembering the last time we kissed. It wasn’t my shining moment, but it was in the past. I was more focused on the future. With a happy sigh, I drove home.