Nobody Girl (3 page)

“I was so proud of you when you kicked Jason in the nuts. I really thought you were
gonna
spring back from this, but apparently not. You’ve got to get yourself together. Jason was a no good creep. He’s not worth all this. You’ve
gotta
get over him.”

She didn’t reply. Her sister just didn’t understand. She had never been married. In fact, Delia couldn’t think of a single relationship Donna Lee had ever had that lasted longer than two months.

“You know what your problem is? You’ve let Jason define you for so long you can’t see yourself without him. You think because your biological parents didn’t want you that no one could ever want you. One charismatic grin from that trouser troll and he had you thinking that you were the most beautiful you had ever been. Well, you know what, Delia? You
are
beautiful.
With or without him.”

Delia kept her head under the pillow to hide the tears that had developed from the all too true words of her adoptive sister. Deep down she knew Donna Lee was right.  She knew she couldn’t carry on sleeping on a couch and dwelling on her pathetic life.  She had to find a way to get on with her life.

The next day, she made progress.  She actually got off the couch for longer than twenty minutes and managed to put on an outfit that didn’t closely resemble pajamas. As a way to say thank you to her current landlords, she took a few minutes to straighten up the apartment. For the first time she realized what a mess she’d been living in. Her sister and her roommates where complete pigs. They still lived as college students even though they had graduated three years ago. With pizza boxes stacked next to the door and home furnishings made of empty milk crates, Delia knew she definitely had to get out of that apartment as soon as possible. But the thought of finding her own place, a new job, and jumping back into the rigmarole of paying bills and just, well, living overwhelmed her.

Delia returned to the comfort and security of the couch. While massaging the bra strap indentations in her shoulder with one hand, she reached for the remote with the other. She really hated her huge breasts and longed for the day when she could afford to have the implants removed.

After clicking on the television, Delia searched for a show that didn’t feature a man or a woman or love in any way, shape or form. She channel surfed for nearly an hour then settled on a program that showed the physics of roller coasters. Besides realizing that she was a complete nerd for enjoying something like that, she also realized that she had never been on a vacation. Even though it would probably drain the last of her savings, she felt it was something she needed to do.

With a newfound resolve and excitement for having a goal, Delia opened her laptop and started making plans.

“A cruise?”
Donna Lee said, nodding.  “I
gotta
say, that sounds like a great idea. I’m so proud of you.” She gave Delia a big hug before opening the refrigerator and shaking her head in disappointment at the meager provisions.  “Oh, and it’ll give us an excuse to go clothes shopping,” she said excitedly while reaching for a carton of leftover Chinese food.

She stuck her hand in and pulled out something that probably used to be broccoli. After sniffing it, she shrugged, tossed it in her mouth and said, “We
gotta
get you some sexy clothes. You dress like you’re fifty, not twenty-five.”

“Well, actually, that’s perfect for this cruise.”

***

The Golden Swan Cruise line was exactly what Delia wanted and needed. Considering that 90% of its passengers were over 70, she knew she wouldn’t have to worry about men hitting on her. She could finally clear her head, relax, and try to find the good in herself.

The cruise started out perfectly except for a few of the feisty old men that would try to put the moves on her every once in a while. Delia always graciously declined their advances. The attention should have raised her self-esteem but it didn’t.  As far as she could tell, she was the only one on the boat with all her natural teeth. Of course they hit on her.

The only thing that bothered her was an alarmingly attractive young man she’d noticed when she boarded the boat. He was the only other passenger that seemed to be in his twenties as well. His short dark hair and penetrating blue eyes captivated her even from a distance.

After three days on the boat, she’d seen him a total of eleven times. She didn’t know why she was counting. It just turned into a fun little game in her head. She would pick a spot on the boat and see how long it took before he passed by. Then she would sit back and study him. Delia told herself there was no harm in looking.

Tonight she found him in the ship’s nightclub. But then again, he was there every night so really she found him without looking. Stealing an innocent glance, she noticed he was wearing a black fedora tipped to the side along with a precision pressed shirt and a skinny tie. She wondered why he always looked like he’d just stepped out of a revival of
Guys and Dolls
. Delia shook her head and returned her attention to her drink. She was becoming obsessed with a random stranger. Yet, he did not seem equally enthralled with her. Instead, he was completely captivated by a woman that had to be twice his age. He was obviously some sort of gigolo.

***

Chase Donovan stacked his beer bottle caps into a mini tower on the bar. When they toppled over, he started again.

“Another beer?”
  Jim the bartender asked.

Chase counted the caps. He’d already had six, but he wasn’t drunk. He never got drunk. His alarmingly high tolerance for alcohol was sometimes very annoying. He wished he was drunk.  Maybe then he could tolerate Felicia flirting with every man in this stupid gaudy nightclub.

“Nah, I think I’ll settle up and get out of here.” Chase stood and stretched.

“You sure?
Looks like Felicia’s having a great time. I’m not sure she’s ready to go yet.”

Chase glanced at the dance floor and saw Felicia gyrating with not one, but two men.  He rolled his eyes and sat back down. He knew he couldn’t leave her there alone. He had to make sure she got back to her room safely.

Jim chuckled and placed another beer in front of Chase. “On the house,” he said. “Why don’t you try to enjoy yourself a little more?” he added while nodding to his left.

Chase knew what he was nodding toward.
The pretty little dark-skinned girl with the green eyes who sat alone at the end of the bar night after night.
Chase had admired her beauty from afar ever since the cruise left Florida. He’d even mentioned it to Jim but had been reluctant to approach her. He didn’t take this cruise to pick up girls. He’d taken it for Felicia, but did she appreciate his sacrifice? He looked at the dance floor again and heard a resounding ‘no’ in his head.

He took a long swig of beer, tipped his hat to the perfect angle, then made his way over to her. He had to take a chance at some point. He was starting to see her eyes in his sleep. And if she rejected him, that would still be less embarrassing than what Felicia was currently doing on the dance floor.

“You’ve been nursing that martini for twenty minutes now,” he said with uncharacteristic boldness. It must have been the seven beers talking.

“What? Oh, I’m not a big drinker,” she said, looking at the glass of alcohol that had hardly been touched.  “I don’t even know why I ordered this.  I guess I figured since I was in a bar I might as well try to fit in.”

“If you want to fit in here, you’re going to have to break a hip,” he said.  She laughed the most enchanting, delicate, feminine, beautiful laugh he had ever heard. His pulse raced and his stomach fluttered, but maybe it was the alcohol. Yeah, it had to be the alcohol.

Chase smiled and searched for something else to say. Something to the effect of ‘I think you’re gorgeous and I’d like to get to know you better.’ But that didn’t sound right. It sounded desperate. He should have taken a few more minutes and worked out some pick up lines before he came over. Better yet, he should have texted Sammy and asked him what to say. Sammy always had the right words. Not like Chase. Chase was usually too busy to worry about women.  So now here he was trapped. Standing in front of possibly the most beautiful woman he would ever see in his life, smiling like an idiot, and not having a clue as to what to say.

“Your eyes are beautiful,” he blurted. Chase reddened and looked away. That was possibly the most juvenile line he could ever say. What was he thinking?

“Thank you very much for the compliment, but you can go back to your date now. What was her name? Felicia?”

“Felicia?
Date?
No, no, you’re mistaken. We’re not together … well, we’re together, but not like that.”

“Look you don’t have to explain it to me. But as someone that has been cheated on many … many times, I know how it feels and I would never want to be a part of that. I’m not here to break up relationships.”

“No, no seriously, you’ve got it wrong. She’s my grandmother.”

The beautiful woman furrowed her eyebrows as she looked from Chase to Felicia and back. “She looks a bit young to be your grandmother.”

“She looks good for her age, but I assure you, she’s my grandmother.” Chase reached into his pocket and pulled out a picture from his wallet. The picture showed a little boy about six years old being held by a tall blond woman who looked remarkably like Felicia. “We’ve taken this cruise every summer since I was eleven. It’s our chance to bond.”

“That is the sweetest thing I have ever heard in my life.” She took the picture out of his hand and studied it more closely. “You are so lucky to be close with your grandmother.  I would love to know my grandmother.
Or any biological family for that matter.
I’m Delia.”

“Chase, Chase Donovan.” He shook her hand and sat down next to her.  “So why don’t you know your family?”

***

“You ready to go, Son?” Felicia asked an hour later as she dried beads of sweat from her face with a handkerchief. Delia studied the woman’s face and physique. She approximated Chase’s age to be about 25, which meant that Felicia had to be around 65. Delia prayed she would look that good at 65. Felicia barely had a wrinkle and she had a light in her eyes that made her look almost juvenile. She reminded Delia of the ethereal Heather Locklear who never seemed to age.

“Not yet, Grandma.
Why don’t you go back to the room and I’ll meet you there?”

“What did I tell you about calling me Grandma in public?” Felicia said in a forced whisper. “I’m trying to pass for 50 here. No one is going to believe that if they know I’m your grandmother.” Then she kissed the side of his head and tousled his hair. “Are you going to introduce me to your friend?”

“Oh, sorry, this is Delia.”

“Delia,” Felicia repeated with a smile.
“Beautiful name for a beautiful girl.
Make my boy happy okay? He needs a good woman to straighten him out.” Just then, a techno version of “Smoke Gets in Your Eyes” started playing. “Oh, I love this song,” she said, clasping her hands.

With that, she was whisked away by a crowd of fawning suitors leaving Chase smiling after her.

***

At three o’clock in the morning, the glittery disco ball stopped turning. Chase and Delia looked around and noticed they were the only ones left in the nightclub. All the retirees had long gone to bed.