It was Tuesday night again, and Deana was excited to see him.  She wasn’t sure what to call him.  Do I go with Bruce, or do I stick with my joke of calling him Justin?  

She scrolled through her Facebook, when a memory popped up. She went through the different posts from that day over the years. A couple made her emotional. 5 years ago had been their engagement party, 7 years ago had been a vague post about an earlier boyfriend. People she thought would be in her life forever. Life had other plans. She missed those days, the friends she’d had then. Before her big heartbreaks. 

She got dressed for karaoke, still in her clothes from work. She wore a medium green scoop neck tee, dark jeans, tan ankle boots, with a long but simple chain necklace. She pulled back part of her hair, enough to be out of her eyes but left the rest down. She threw on some tan shades of eyeshadow, light eyeliner and mascara. Her glasses were just for work, at least that’s what she’d told herself. She hated how they looked on her, no matter which style she went with, but refused to get contacts and touch her eyes. 

Danielle came up and had a quick bite to eat, mooching food from the fridge. She finished eating when the buzzer rang three times. 

“Your man is here,” Danielle chirped. Deana grabbed her black jacket and they headed downstairs. 

Justin was in dark jeans, his peacoat, and a scarf trying to cover his face. He had a black beanie down over his ears. He walked between the two girls, and soon they were at the bar. They found a table, had a seat, and Danielle got up to get the first round of drinks. 

Deana took off her jacket, resting it on the back of her chair. “I meant it as a joke, but do you really want me calling you Justin?” she asked him. 

You could call me Dog Shit and I wouldn’t care. 

“Yeah, I’m not gonna do that. But Justin’s ok?”  

He nodded. 

You look nice tonight. Not too dressed up but more than casual. Your shirt really brings out your eyes. 

Deana tried not to blush. 

You have trouble with ANY kind of compliment, don’t you?

“Pretty much. I grew up hearing the opposite of compliments from almost anyone not family or close friends. I really need some kind of therapist, but who can afford one?”

I’m here to listen. He put his hand on hers, looking into her eyes. She felt safe in that moment, knowing he would listen to whatever she had to tell him. 

“I’ll just sing about it instead, for now. Then we can talk later.”  Justin nodded in understanding. 

Danielle brought back song slips for Deana to fill out along with their drinks. Deana filled them out quickly and went up to the DJ booth. 

“So, I hear you two have a date set up?” Danielle asked. Justin held up two fingers in response. 

“TWO dates?! I guess I missed that when she told me. You know where you’re taking her?”

Justin nodded, pointing to his head. 

“You have some in mind.  They better be good.”

Wait till she tells you all about them. One will have to be a while. I wanna take her to one special place, but I want to be able to TALK to her, not like this…

“Will the other one be soon?”

I have to check their reservations, but as soon as I can get a reservation, I have the perfect place in mind. 

Deana came back to the table and sat in her seat between Justin and Danielle. The rotation of singers started, and soon it was Deana’s turn. Slow music started, the notes low and sad. He watched her, so much expression in her face and voice. 

“These wounds won’t seem to heal, the pain is just too real. There’s just too much that time cannot erase.”  She looked as if she was going to cry. 

Any more shit from Paul lately? he asked Danielle, looking concerned towards Deana. 

“Not that she told me, no.”

She looks so sad for some reason. She said she’d sing about some stuff tonight, and that we’d talk about it later. 

“I have no clue, I’m just as lost,” Danielle answered as Deana continued to sing. 

He watched her, feeling her pain as she sang, yet didn’t know what was causing it. He hoped she’d open up to him again, even if it meant more baggage. 

Deana finished the song, sat down in her seat and sighed before taking a couple gulps of her drink. Justin looked at her, brows furrowed in worry. 

You sounded beautiful, but so sad. 

“Later,” Deana said. Justin put his arm around her shoulder, pulling her close. She gave in, putting her head on his shoulder. He gently kissed the top of her head as he rubbed his arm along her shoulder. 

Justin could smell her shampoo, a mix of lilac and lavender. Such a comforting scent in a comforting moment. 

“I like this,” Deana whispered. He squeezed her tight in an attempt to say ‘me too’, giving a low hum in agreement. 

Dani glanced at them, smiling at her best friend in a touching moment. 

They stayed like that through a couple songs, until Deana sat up and had more of her drink. 

“I think I want to have him come up, so we can talk,” Deana whispered to Dani. 

“I’ll make myself scarce when we get back,” Dani said in understanding. 

“Only if you want, it’s just to talk,” Deana repeated. 

We’ll see, Dani thought. 

Soon it was Deana’s turn to sing again. Another lower register song, but the tempo was much faster. “You took my hand, you showed me how. 

You promised me you'd be around Uh-huh, that's right…” Justin noticed she still seemed sad, even if the tempo didn’t match the emotion she was conveying. 

She finished the song, sat down, and finished her drink before she was ready to go. Justin helped her with her jacket before heading out the door. 

You wanna talk about things now? he asked, his eyes wide in curious concern. 

“I was browsing through my Facebook earlier, and it brought up a lot of things. Memories with exes.  5 years ago was our engagement party…”

“Shit, D, I’m sorry,” Danielle said. “But it was good that it didn't work out. He was young, stupid, it would’ve put SO much pressure on you…”

“Yeah, I would’ve had to have a job and be doing school, not a lot of time early on in a marriage. I know, I see it now, but it still hurts. It reminded me of all the friends I lost in the breakup. Friends I had for years, before him, that stopped talking to me or continued hanging out with him. Just sad at how much I forgot I’d lost…”

Danielle took her hand. “You still have me…” she smiled. 

Justin took her other hand, squeezing it tight, nodding and looking at her. 

Deana softly smiled at both of them. “Thanks, both of you.”

They got to the apartment. “I’m gonna head up and go to bed,” Danielle said. “Have a good night, you two,” she sang as she opened the lobby door. 

Deana stood there, nervous. 

You ok? You haven’t been your usual self tonight. Nothing new with Paul along with all this?

“No, nothing with Paul. Just what I said earlier, remembering old relationships, friends or otherwise. There is more I want to talk about, do you want to come up so we’re comfortable and not out in the cold?”

Justin nodded softly. I’m here to listen. 

She took his hand and looked deeply in his eyes. “No, I think WE need to talk…”