Redheart Rehabilitation

by Emerald Omen

Chapter Two: A Movie and a Meal

When we arrived at the theater, Redheart let go of my hand, which made me sad for some reason. Granted, I wasn’t used to having a hand to hold, but the warmth of her hand on mine was a nice feeling. We walked inside and gazed at the list of movies showing.

“See anything that interests you?” I asked her. She put a hand on her chin, and shook her head.

“I’ve never seen any of these, or heard of any of them. I don’t really go see many movies. Any you like?” she asked. My response was similar.

“Well, let’s just pick one then. Here, put a hand over my eyes, and I’ll point to one.” she said. It was then I realized Red certainly had a playful, somewhat childish side.

“Okay, ready?” I asked, covering her eyes with my hand. Red smiled, and pointed to a random poster, giggling.

“Which one is it?” she asked as I removed my hand from her face. I looked to where she had pointed.

“Looks like… Ghost Ship.” I answered, looking at the poster. Upon closer inspection, I realized it was an older style horror movie.

“Uh, you sure you want to watch this one? It might be a little scary.” I asked, unsure of how Redheart would handle a scare. Red shrugged.

“I don’t know. Like I said, I don’t watch many movies. How scary can it be? It’s not real.” she said, with a fair bit of logic in her statement.

We payed for our tickets, and went to the concession stand.

“Popcorn?” I asked her. She nodded silently. I ordered one large value bucket, big enough for two people, while still being a good price. We then went into the screen room and picked out our seats, just a little forward from the middle. There weren’t many others present when the movie actually started.

A little while into the movie, and it had gotten mildly interesting. A small crew of ocean salvage workers had been tipped off by a young man about a huge abandoned ocean liner sitting in the ocean, and had gone to look at it. It was when the ship suddenly would show up on their sonar, and then disappear that I knew something wasn’t right about it.

Just as the crew boarded the ship, I reached my hand into the popcorn bucket, and instead of feeling some warm, soft popcorn, I felt something else, also warm and soft. I looked away from the screen, and realized I had grabbed Red’s hand, who was also getting a handful of popcorn.

I quickly released her hand, feeling unbelievably embarrassed. I mean, that’s the kind of thing that only happens in movies, or cheesy fan-fictions… right?

Regardless, I looked at her, and discovered she was already looking at me with somewhat wide eyes.

“Sorry.” I whispered. She smiled, and turned back towards the screen. Suddenly, an explosion happened on screen, and she jumped in her seat, and abruptly shoved the popcorn bucket into my lap, dumping it all over my body in the process. She turned to look at me with a horrified expression.

“Oh god! I’m so sorry Jack! I just wasn’t expecting the explosion, it scared me for a minute. Oh, you’re a mess, and it’s all my fault!” she said, beginning to pick popcorn kernels out of my lap. She was acting rather crazy for such a simple accident. I put my hand on her shoulder, and she stopped.

“Relax Red, it was an accident. Stay here, and I’ll go get cleaned up.” I said, beginning to stand. Before I could leave, I felt her grab my arm, and I turned to find her looking at me with somewhat pleading eyes. “Please, can you stay? I don’t know if I’ll be able to watch this movie by myself. I’ll feel safer if you’re sitting next to me.” she whispered.

I sighed. I just couldn’t refuse those eyes of hers. I sat back down in my seat, and the movie was just starting to get creepy. Apparently, we had missed the appearance of a ghost girl, and now something was happening that made Red cling to my arm. There was a pool… filling up with blood. Oookay.

About an hour later, the movie was complete, and I couldn’t pry Redheart off of my arm. She clearly doesn’t bode well with scary movies. With the way her arms were wrapped around mine as we walked out, one might have thought we were a couple. But that’s crazy… right?

ANYWAY, we walked back home, and eventually, I convinced Red to let go of my arm.

“I still feel bad about dumping that popcorn onto you. Not only did I get your clothes dirty, but I wasted the money you spent on it as well.” Redheart said, pouting a little. I just laughed.

“Relax, it was an honest accident. I can’t get mad at you for an accident. It could have happened to anyone.” I said, hoping that would calm her down. It appeared to do just that.

“Well, if you’re sure. I need to change into new clothes, I was sweating a bit in the theater, and now they feel icky. I’ll be right back.” she said, running off to my bedroom. I chuckled. Girls.

I glanced at the clock. It was nearing five in the evening. The movie had run a little longer than I thought it would, and since neither of us got much popcorn, I figured I should start dinner.

I looked around inside my refrigerated. Being a bachelor living alone usually, I didn’t have a ton of food, but I had enough for a me and a guest. I fished out some eggs, a few vegetables, and some cheese. Omelets sounded appetizing right about now.

As I switched on the stove and began to dice some tomatoes, I heard Red come back into the kitchen.

“Ooh, whatcha making?” she asked. I turned around, but my thought process stopped when I saw her new outfit choice. A light green tank top that showed a little bit of her midsection, with a pair of black yoga pants. Damn, she certainly had the body for the clothes. I wouldn’t have guessed before, because her previous clothes were a bit baggy. I quickly turned away before she could realize I was staring.

“Uhh, O-Omelets. Is that okay for you?” I stuttered.

“Ooh, I haven’t had an omelet in ages! That sounds wonderful! Do you need any help?” she asked.

“N-No, that’s okay. They’ll be ready in about ten minutes.” I said, refocusing on my current task. Miss Redheart sat at the table, and I finished the Omelets. I pulled out two plates, and put an Omelet on each one.

“Anything special to drink? I’ve got 2% Milk, Water, a few beers, or some lemonade.” I offered, setting Red’s omelet in front of her.

“Lemonade sounds good.” she said, taking a sniff of the Omelet set in front of her. “Mmm. This smells good too!” she added.

I chuckled, pouring two glasses of iced lemonade.

“I’m glad you think so.” I said, setting the two glasses onto the table, and taking my seat. Red took the first bite, and she shuddered.

“Ooh, that’s the best thing I’ve tasted in a good while.” she said, quickly taking another mouthful. I smiled and took a bite of my own Omelet. It was good.

“Huh, better than they usually taste. Maybe having such a lovely guest made me a better cook.” I muttered to myself.

“Hehehe, maybe.” Red giggled.

Once we finished our Omelets in silence, then I took our plates to the sink.

“I don’t have much in choice for desserts, just ice cream, a few donuts, or some stray hard candies.” I said. Redheart thought.

“Umm, a few hard candies are good. I’ve always liked those.” she said. I set the small bowl of assorted hard candies in front of her, and took a donut for myself.

Before I could take a bite, Red caught my attention. She sat back, a hard candy in hand.

“I wonder if I can still do this.” she said, tossing the candy into the air. With perfect aim, it sailed right into her open mouth… and into her throat.

She began coughing harshly, grabbing at her throat. I jumped out of my chair.

“Whoa, hey! Are you choking?!” I asked as she continued to cough. She nodded violently, gagging.

I quickly lifted her out of her chair in front of me.

“I hope I can remember how to do this.” I muttered, wrapping my arms around her ribcage. I locked my hands together, and squeezed. Red was still hacking. I squeezed again, harder, and the hard candy flew out of her mouth, and sailed across the room.

Redheart collapsed into me, breathing rapidly.

“Whoa! Easy now, you’re okay.” I said, gently setting her in her chair. I patted her back as her breathing returned to normal. I noticed her eyes were watering, so I grabbed a napkin and wiped her cheeks and dabbed around her eyes.

“Here, drink some water.” I said, filling up a glass and handing it to her. She took it and slowly took a few sips. I sat next to her as she set the glass onto the table, and opened her eyes.

“Are you o-KAAYYY?” I asked as she suddenly gripped me in a tight hug. I placed my hand on her back, unsure of what I should do.

“T-thank you.” she rasped, her throat clearly sore. She hugged me for another few seconds, then released me. But not before giving me a quick kiss on the cheek, forcing me to blush, even given the circumstances.

“No sweat. Are you sure you’re okay?” I repeated. She nodded, and sighed.

“Ugh, who taught you how to do the Heimlich maneuver?” she asked, rubbing her chest where I had grabbed her.

“I learned myself. I apologize if I did it wrong.” I said, fearing I had accidentally hurt her. She shook her head.

“No! You did it expertly. Some say if it doesn’t hurt, you’re not doing it correctly.” she said.

I nodded, and slowly began to clear the table.

“Well, as long as you’re okay, thank god.” I said.

Red stood next to me as I began filling the sink with water. She was leaning on me ever so slightly.

“Thanks to you Jack. You saved my life.” she whispered, a tear falling down her cheek. I frowned.

“Hey, I don’t want to see any crying. You don’t have to thank me, I just did what I could.” I said, pouring the bubbles into the water. Red let out a sob.

“Seriously? It may not seem like a big deal to you, but it is to me. I owe you my life.” she said, giving me another hug. “I never should have tried to do that trick. I should have known better.” she said. I scoffed.

“There’s nothing wrong with letting the kid in you out now and then, it’s part of who you are, and I like it when people show their true colors. It makes everyone different and unique.” I said, putting some washed dishes aside. Red grabbed a towel, and began to dry the dishes.

“Wow, that’s… actually pretty deep Jack. You’re very wise.” she said, finally calming down. I raised my eyebrows.

“I am? I just seem like an average guy to me. Just a dude with a low-end job, few friends, and not much to do with his free time.” I said, finishing the dishes. Redheart put a hand on my shoulder, causing me to pause, and look her in the eye.

“Jack, you are not just an average guy. I’ve been with you less than a day, and I can tell that easily. You have a good amount of common sense, a friendly and gentle personality, a good heart, and a smart head set squarely on your shoulders. The fact that you are struggling as you are with few friends actually baffles me, but I’m honored to call you a friend of mine, and I truly hope you see me as a friend as well.” she finished, giving me an honest smile. I opened my mouth to speak, but found it difficult to find any words.

“Red… no one has ever given me such compliments. Not even my own mother. Do you really mean all that?” I asked. I didn’t even need to ask. I could see the honesty in her eyes.

“I do Jack. I’m really glad you came in to the Rehabilitation center today. I’m actually impressed. I haven’t seen you even try to smoke once today.” she said. I began to sweat.

“Y-yeah, I guess I’m just enjoying your company.”

A few hours of simple chat later, we both decided it was time for bed. I helped Redheart set her stuff in my bedroom, then got myself comfy on the couch. As I lay there, waiting for sleep to claim me, I thought about what Redheart had said a few hours prior.

“Jack, you are not just an average guy. I’ve been with you less than a day, and I can tell that easily. You have a good amount of common sense, a friendly and gentle personality, a good heart, and a smart head set squarely on your shoulders. The fact that you are struggling as you are with few friends actually baffles me, but I’m honored to call you a friend of mine, and I truly hope you see me as a friend as well.”

Redheart honestly meant all that. She believes me to be an honest, heart warming man. But, I’ve been lying to her from the beginning. I’m not a smoker, so I should never have met her in the first place. Granted, it probably wasn’t that big of a deal, I’m still paying the business after all.

But still, I couldn’t help but start to feel… guilty. I needed to tell Red the truth.

Author's Note:

Jack continues to learn about his guest, discovering that she doesn't like scary movies, she has a innocent, childish side, and he also just saved her life.

At the moment, it would appear that neither of them realize that between the movie, the homemade dinner, and the walks, most people would assume they're on a date.

Afterall, all of those are things people who are dating would do...

Comments

[Cyber4521]

Im actually enjoying This so far keep up the good work

[Emerald Omen]

8884765
Thank you, I'm glad you're liking it thus far.