Six: Nice Guys and Set Ups

   Knock.
   Knock.
   Knock. I cursed underneath my breath, as I crouched over the  bathtub, bathing Skedaddles. They'd been knocking on the door, gently at first, then more persistent, harsher for the past few minutes, as I attempted to clean my hydrophobic tabby. Skedaddles yowled as I picked him up, out of the sudsy water, and gently patted him down with a fluffy, eggshell colored towel.

   "I'm coming, gods." I shouted, as I stood up, glancing in the mirror. The reflection showed a twenty-four year old who was mildly presentable, which was better then what I had been hoping for, considering that it was nine thirty on a Tuesday morning during winter break and I'd finished working out an hour ago and had yet to change; after coming back to see shards of a hand painted terracotta pot, a gift from a student, and shreds of green stems and orange marigold petals scattered across my bedroom, and my cat, who was acting nonchalant, utterly innocuous, covered in potting soil, showering fled my mind.
   Knock.
   Knock.
   I threw opened the front door, forcing a large smile onto my face, despite how exasperated I felt towards the knocker.

   "Hel- Officer Ca- Oliver?" I exclaimed, staring at him. He wasn't in uniform; he was dressed casually, in jeans and a coat, a necessity for anyone who was planning on venturing outside and wished to properly protect themselves against the bitter December wind and snow Pittsburgh gifted us with, each winter, his feet clad in dark Converse, as he smiled slightly, a nervous blush overcoming his cheeks.

   "Lavender, sorry for just dropping in, but I had something to ask you and..." He trailed off,glancing past me.

   "Alright-" I paused, as he glanced at his feet. We hadn't seen each other in months; after the night at his apartment and the humiliatingly tragic morning after I'd  wiped from my mind, there were a few formalities left with the investigation that required my presence, afterwards we never had a reason to meet up, allowing me to avoid thinking of the case, of my biological mother, and anything associated with it, including the police that I had a previous disdain for. "What?"

   "How are you?"

   "Fine." Either the question was so spontaneous or inconsiderate that he couldn't have bothered texting me, I was presuming the first, yet if it wasn't, I wouldn't be surprised. "How are you?"

   "Good, I'm good. Are you single?"

   "What?! Look, Oliver, I-I... I'm sorry, but I can't date you. I couldn't, it isn't, you're nice and damn does being a cop pay, because those abs... I don't know if you thought... That night was months ago, we did nothing, nothing together. I was going to an ex's, I told you that... I, you're kind, but you're a cop, a cop who helped lead the investigation concerning my birth parents, I couldn't; every time I looked at you, every time I see you, I think of the terrible things my biological father did, how my mother abandoned me... I'm working on moving forward, dating you wouldn't help with that... No."

   "No, no, no! Not- I- Lavender- Ms. Mums- I wasn't asking you out, er, I mean, not for me."

   "Oh..." I blushed, wishing he had interrupted me before the dam had broken and I told him how I felt. "I am." I confessed. I hadn't dated anyone serious since Quinn; I wasn't in love with her, wasn't hung up on her, at first I didn't because of the unwanted publicity I was receiving and after my face ceased making appearances on the nightly news, I just didn't feel like diving back into the dating pool. "Man or woman?"

   "Man or wo- Man. I'm sorry; I didn't even stop to consider that you might prefer, that was rude of me, I, damn, I just, I don't normally contact people after I solve their cases, I just... There's this guy, heterosexual, great guy, I know you don't like cops, but he's not really one, he's a 911 dispatcher whose marriage recently, not recent-recently, it's been a few months since it was finalized, four, maybe and he... The holidays are a lonely time and the office is having a party on Christmas Eve, it isn't a Christmas party, it's non-affiliated, so that way everyone feels comfortable, I-"

   "Oliver." I interrupted his speech, a speech that made a train wreck seem better then this awkwardness. "Do you want to set him up with me?"

   "Yeah. Sorry for the spiel; it's been awhile since I've asked a woman out. Are you, do you like men? If you don't, I didn't mean to appear r-"

   "I do." I sighed, wondering if I should divulge my orientation to him. It wasn't a large deal to me, I didn't keep it secret from people, if you excluded my parents, yet I still wasn't sure. "I'm bi, though, so I'm fine with him, but if he isn't accepting of that, I'd like to know before so I don't have to go through anything unnecessarily unpleasant."

   "He should be; I'll ask. The party starts at nine Thursday, at the station, I apologize for the short notice, I was buying discount Hanukkah decor, since it ended a few days ago, and I saw your building and I have a pretty good memory and thought that you lived here and figured, why not stop in."
   "Mmkay, I'll be there, if he's not an intolerant as- intolerant, I'll be there. How dressy is it?"
   "Eh, it ranges from business casual to semiformal, depending on age and salary. I'll probably be in khakis and a button down, my boss' boss will probably be in a navy suit, my female coworkers will probably be in pantsuits or nice dresses."
   "Alright; thanks." I smiled, as he exited my apartment; we weren't friends, we were barely acquaintances, inviting him in for coffee and smalltalk seemed like it would appear a bit peculiar, a bit awkward. "What to do, what to do..." I murmured to myself. Shower, first, decide what to have for lunch, see if I had any outfits that would be appropriate for an City of Pittsburgh Bureau of Police holiday party, mentally prepare myself to go on a blind date, ask Sandi and Quinn- was I aloud to ask Quinn for help, despite our past relationship that had ended close to eight months ago? The party was soon; I didn't have long to decide.

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