How I Met a Dragon Lady

Sometimes you have a moment where things run in slow motion, or even appear to stop. You may be feeble minded and forgetful years later, but you can still the lingering touch, the taste of their lips, or their scent. The feeling can be just as vivid. For me, it was when I met Victoria.

Victoria and I worked together. I admired her from afar, watching her sway as she walked with her long black hair swaying in the breeze, and loved how she would smile when interacting with others. On a good day, perhaps she would smile at me, and my heart would race and my legs would weaken. She always seemed to take an interest in everyone, but somehow I always felt special. I’d catch myself daydreaming at my desk, the thought of simply being with her was tranquil and set my mind at ease. I’d talk to her from time to time, and she would smile and take an interest in what I had to say. I tried to sound intriguing and interesting, but always felt like I was spouting gibberish.

Boy, she was out of my league. She was such a beautiful lady, I had no business thinking something would happen. Victoria smiled at me as I walked back into the office from lunch one Friday. She seemed different, though. Her eyes were darker, and a bit more aggressive. I paused, finding myself at a loss of words, as her commanded me to stop. Usually, I could talk about something I’ve read or a movie, or something, but I found my mouth agape and at a loss of words.

“Enjoy your lunch?” she asked as I gathered myself.

“Um, it was good.” I cleared my throat. “Too bad I had to come back to work. It’s real nice out there. Thank God it’s Friday.” I tried to come up with something a bit more poetic, but all I managed was a T.G.I.F. cliché. I smiled, but internally I berated my lack of ability to say something meaningful.

“You didn’t bring me anything?” Her eyes were blue. Actually, to call her eyes blue was a disservice. Her eyes were brilliant blue. She winked and smiled. “I’m famished.”

“Should I have?” My heart raced faster. I’d run a marathon across the city to get her something if she wanted. “I can run out and grab something. No problem.”

“I’m just kidding. I already ate,” she shook her head a little. “Why don’t you take me out with you tomorrow? Unless you had other plans…” She left the question dangling, and for a rare instance, I had the strategic high ground, and I found the courage.

“I’d love to,” I said. My chest felt like bursting. Good Lord, I felt amazing. For a moment, I had the world on a string. I was suave and alluring.

“Great. Do you know Harvey’s Café on the corner of 5th and West?”

“Yea,” I nodded, but wasn’t sure. All the books I’ve read said to act confident, even if you were about to wet yourself. No big deal, I Googled it later.

“I have to run a few errands in the morning. Meet you there at 11:30?”

“Sure,” I said. “See you tomorrow.”

I floated back to my desk, my mind drifting amongst the clouds. We would slow walk through the park, watch clouds, and would hold each other. Let’s just say that my final few hours of the week were not productive.

###

I arrived first, finding a small table in Harvey’s, and told the approaching waiter I was waiting for my date. I let the words linger in the air, and they felt good. I felt normal for a change. I felt my confidence soar, well, at least until she arrived. I glanced up, noticing her scanning the dining area, looking for me. My heart raced as I stood, and waved her over.

You know slow motion segments in movies? The ones where the two lovers run towards each other. The music hits a crescendo as they find each other, hugging and kissing. This was exactly like that. When Victoria saw me, her smile lit up the room. As she slowly walked towards the table, she moved some of her black hair away from her eye. It was cinematic. Hell, even the lighting was surreal. I felt a surge of excitement, and the chills tingled throughout my body.

I blinked several times, bringing me back to this new reality. Was I supposed to hug her? Kiss her? Pull the chair for her to sit in? Try to be nonchalant? Thankfully, she made the decision for me, and stepped closer and gave me a hug. I held her tightly, feeling awash in excitement as her body pressed against mine. I felt a pinch on my back, and cringed. It was quick, but reminded me of getting a shot at the doctor.
“Sorry about that. My nail must have dug into you a bit,” said Victoria as she eased back. There was an apology in her smile, which was completely unnecessary. “Oh, I love your dragon.”

She reached towards my neck, feeling my pendent. A roaring black and silver dragon. I almost forgot I had it on. “Thanks. I love dragons. Kind of a fan-boy, actually,” I said.

“Me too, actually,” she said, letting her fingers slide down my chest. “They’re sexy beasts.” Her devious smile set me afire. “Were you the level 10 fighter, or the dungeon master?” Her light hearted laugh was music.

“Um, both, maybe.” I said. I was a bit nervous, remembering my D&D days fondly, but realized that it did me no favors in the coolness factor. Her laugh put me at ease.

I sat down, and as she gazed into my eyes. It felt comfortable and soothing, and I felt drawn into her being, if that makes sense. I blinked a few times. My vision blurred, but soon cleared up. I thought I sensed shadows more than before. The lighting was different. I thought I sensed more than before. The other diners were pushed to the background as everything seemed to phase into shades of gray. She was of black and silver, and seemed a bit transparent and fuzzy, but her brilliant blue eyes sparkled in the strange light.

The waiter came by and she ordered a steak. There was something flickering in her eye when she told the waiter she wanted it rare and bloody. A predatory kind of hunger. It piqued my interest.

We spoke of work while waiting for lunch. Her boss was kind of a jerk about projects falling behind schedule, and she was explaining in explicit detail of various ways to address it. We laughed, but somehow I thought she may have been just a little bit serious. The food arrived and we began to eat, talking about the interesting office gossip.

When the food arrived, she went straight into her steak. She cut off a large piece, and admired it on the fork for a second before devouring it. I wasn’t sure she chewed much, and she ate fast. She may have been a svelte lady, but the only way I can describe her eating was vicious. The poor steak didn’t stand a chance.

I hoped that the lunch may address my weird vision, and planned on taking a nice nap in the afternoon. Each time I looked at Victoria, I noticed new details. The redness of her lips were striking. Silver reflected from her skin when the light hit at certain angles. I blinked a few times as my vision cleared. Probably a good nap after luck would take care of it.

I paid the bill and we walked out into the afternoon sun. “I enjoyed this,” she said, wrapping her arm into mine. “You could’ve asked me out a long time ago. You’re a handsome guy, and I love a man who loves dragons.”

I hesitated. “Guess I’m still kind of shy,” I shrugged my shoulders.

“Don’t be,” said Victoria. “We should get together for dinner sometime. I know a great burger place, she leaned closer into me as we walked, arm in arm.

I guess it didn’t register much at the time, but she didn’t seem warm. There was some body heat, but just what I expected, but I blamed the cool breeze. Fall was setting in just a bit early this year. I was thinking about what to do when we said goodbye. Should I hug her again? Should I kiss her? The lunch date went well, but was worried about being too pushy, and didn’t want to blow it. The confidence I had before seemed to crumble and the indecision grew with each step.

She only parked a few cars past mine and wrapped her arms around me before I could decide what to do. Her breath felt almost like fire against my neck, and I pulled her tight. I breathed in a hint of evergreen. Perhaps it was a bit different fragrance, but it seemed more natural, almost Christmas-like. I thought of the wreaths my mom would always hang up. It was different, woodsy and fresh, and I loved it.
“Thank you for the wonderful lunch,” she said. Her kiss was quick, yet delightful. A beautiful end for our lunch. “So you love dragons, huh?”
“Like you said, they’re sexy beasts,” I grinned.

“Good,” she smiled. “You can see the true nature of things. My nature.” I felt aware of the prick on my back. “Your vision will clear in a while, but you have changed. Call me.”

She smiled and turned to walk over to her car as I fumbled with my keys and got in my car. What the hell did she mean? I watched her walk down the sidewalk for a moment. People walked past, oblivious. Her shadow along the stone façade. She stopped and turned back, giving me a wave. The shadow was different, and I managed a wave back to her, but my eyes drawn towards her the silhouette.

I closed my eyes, blinking several times. I couldn’t be right. The tail…the spikes…the horns! I couldn’t believe my eyes. Was this the true nature she mentioned? Did she drug me? I didn’t detect any malicious intent. I saw her shimmering in the sunlight as my vision phased out, but it was unmistakable. I held onto my pendant as I gazed back as her as she got in her car. The shadow was of a dragon, there was no mistaking this. I thought I was losing my mind.

You’ll see things much clearer now. The words echoed in my mind. I watched her merge into the traffic and waved as she drove by. Her eyes…her eyes were inhuman. They were so blue, but I clearly saw the vertical iris, like that of a feline. She smiled and waved.
I wasn’t sure if she drugged me, or if this were some sort of hallucination. The music on the radio played, but I didn’t notice anything. A text message popped up the phone.

“I hope you liked what you saw. Thanks for the lunch. See you soon? :)”

I swallowed and held the phone on my lap for a minute. Courage and confidence began to build as I performed some breathing exercises. Things felt good, better than before. I looked around, things were the same, yet different. Clearer, perhaps. Yes, this was a good thing, and sent her a response.

“Dinner?”

The seconds crept by. I stared into my phone, and my heart surged as I saw the typing symbol appear on the screen. Each second, an eternity.

“Sure!”

That was it. A moment frozen in time. I met the lady of my dreams. A dragon lady.