Chapter 4

“I don’t believe it,” Yaron said stubbornly as Daniel, standing at the curb, tried desperately to hail a cab. “Did you really get the lady in red’s number?”

“Why are you so surprised? You pushed me to do it.”

“Yeah, but I never thought you would stand a chance with her. I was just pushing you out of your comfort zone.”

Daniel waved the napkin with Georgina’s number in front of his friend. “Well, I completed my quest and got the grail.”

“You just made up a name and a number,” Yaron insisted. “Or you imagined the whole thing. There was some strange smell in the air, you know.” He made the gesture of smoking weed.

“Nope, it really happened. I talked with her, and if she was a product of my imagination, it was like Daydream 5.0 in 3D, the ultimate experience.”

“Well, you did have that stupid expression on your face when you came back,” he pushed his friend gently.

“I’m proud of myself. I did it. I talked with her.”

“How did you do it? Please share your wisdom with this humble padawan, Master.” Yaron made a short bow placing his hands on his chest as if he was praying.

Daniel shrugged. “Being at the right place at the right time, I guess. We got lucky.”

“Speak for yourself. I didn’t get any hot chick’s number.”

“I’m talking about the cab, moron,” Daniel yanked the taxi door open and slid onto the plastic-covered back seat. Yaron followed, slammed the cab door shut behind him, and the taxi took off into the night.

“Is this Daniel Cohen?” The faked female voice on the other end of the phone sounded familiar, though not immediately identifiable.

Daniel answered, “Yes? How can I assist you?”

“I’m the chick in red you met Saturday night at the nightclub. I’m very hot right now and I was hoping you were free to help me with my vaginal fever...”

“Yaron! You jerk!” Daniel held the phone away from his ear as his friend cracked up laughing. “This is so not funny!”

“Sure it is. You just don’t see the humor.”

“Troll,” Daniel sighed, leaning up against the back of his chair.

When Yaron stopped laughing, Daniel went on.

“My mom freaked out that we were back so late. I made her worry, blah, blah, blah. I am going to send her to the grave,” Daniel said, mimicking his mother’s precise phrasing with only a slight twinge of guilt.

“Jewish mothers are loud and domineering by definition. You’re twenty-five, Daniel. You need to stand up to her. You make enough money to have your own place.”

“Yeah, well, it’s easier to live here if you don’t mind the occasional nagging. She cooks for me, does my laundry, and keeps the apartment clean. Besides I’m saving a lot of money for the future.”

“So, are you grounded?” Yaron cracked a loud laugh.

“Hey, I’m twenty-five, remember? She can’t ground me. All she can do is make me feel guilty and I’m immune to that already.”

“Okay, big man. So, have you called her?” Yaron asked.

Daniel decided to play dumb. “Called who?”

“Ha, ha, nice try. You know who I’m talking about, the lady in red.”

“Nah, I haven’t called her.”

“Why not? It’s been three days. That’s usually the next step when you get a chick’s number.”

“Because some things are better left as a fantasy. It was a perfect moment in my life. I talked with a hot girl and didn’t get slapped or humiliated. If I call her I’m going to ruin the memory of it. She was probably a bit tipsy or depressed, or both, and I just happened to be there. Even if she agrees to go out with me, she might actually find out that in the daylight I’m not the person she thought I was. In any case, I plan to save myself the heartache and the disappointment.”

“I think you’re just a coward. Yeah, she won the genetic lottery and she looks great in a sexy dress, but that’s it. If you tell yourself that you’re not good enough for her, then it will quickly become a self-fulfilling prophecy.”

“Okay, Sigmund. The session is over. And don’t you dare bill me for this talk.”

“You’re a hopeless case anyway,” Yaron said rolling in laughter as he hung up.

The phone rang again one hour later.

“Hello, am I talking with Daniel Cohen?” a female voice asked at the other side of the line.

“Yes, that’s me. How can I assist you?” he asked in a very professional manner thinking it was a client, a bag of potato chips in one hand.

“I’m Georgina Eastland. I hope you remember me.”

Daniel almost choked with a chip.

“Yes, of course I remember you! The lady in red I met at the nightclub last Saturday. You’re unforgettable.”

Daniel heard Georgina giggling.

“The real question is why YOU remember ME,” he said expressing his thoughts aloud.

“You were kind and you cared for me. You were not trying to sell an image. You intrigued me enough to look for you.”

“How did you find me?”

“Let’s say there are five other Daniel Cohens in the area that got a call from me too. Three of them invited me out pretending to be you.”

“How do you know it’s really me?”

“I recognized your voice, but when you called me ‘the lady in red’ I knew I had found the right one.”