"I can't believe this is your first ever date," Kay commented with a smirk as the two of them wiped down the restaurant tables. "Pretty girl like you,"

"Pretty girl like me who didn't even have any friends three months ago," Robin reminded her, folding up the dirty tablecloths, tossing them into the wash bag. "It's not really a date though. He's just taking me for a drink at the pub. I'm kinda gutted really though, I was meant to go to a club where my friends' band are playing, but he said he doesn't really like live music so we're giving it a miss,"

Robin was doing her best to downplay that night's activities, but in truth, it was a date. After talking at John's party, Ant had asked her out, and she didn't really want to say no. It would be an adventure, she told herself, yet another excuse to throw herself out of her comfort zone. Besides, Ant had been very charming, and she was sure he'd be a good first date.

Robin hadn't told John or Stuart, the only person she'd confided in being Kay, her work friend. After a few more shifts working together they'd gotten close, and Robin liked her a lot. She was a good confidant, the two of them bonding one afternoon as Kay told her all about how her boyfriend had been ignoring her calls, but as soon as that shift ended he was stood outside the restaurant with a bunch of roses. The next day they were arguing again, and Robin, despite previously thinking the dramas of relationships were all ridiculous, enjoyed being there for her new friend.

Kay was a lot friendlier than the other two waitresses Robin had met on her first day. Ana had been working a few shifts with Robin, but she was painfully shy with her, barely speaking, only really to say hello and goodbye. Ana might have been quiet, but she was still nicer than Susie, who was constantly bossing her around. It felt as though Susie thought herself superior and thought Robin was just a stupid kid, and even if she made her feel uncomfortable she refused to tell her Uncle, the thought of it making her feel like she really was a kid. Besides, Susie bossed Kay around too, and Kay merely responded by rolling her eyes. Kay made working with Susie bearable, but she made working in general fun.

"What sort of wanker doesn't like live music?" Kay rolled her eyes, before distracting herself with Robin's mention of a club. "Where were you meant to be going, Casbah, or Cavern? Or the Morgue, or-"

"Cavern," Robin nodded quickly, cutting Kay off before she could name any more clubs and make Robin feel daft for her lack of knowledge about Liverpool.

"I can't believe you know the Quarrymen," Kay muttered, smirking again. "My little sister Rosie went out with Paul for a few weeks, she dragged me to their gigs since she was too young to go alone. They're pretty good, the bass player's not the best though,"

"Stu's more of an artist than a musician," Robin excused her best friend with a shrug. "John made him join the band since the others refused to play bass,"

"Surprised you're not going on a date with John, you've talked about him far more than you've mentioned your date, what's he called, Andy?" Kay frowned, and Robin felt herself flush red.

"John's me mate, he was the first person I met in Liverpool," she explained, hoping it excused her for mentioning her friend more than her romantic interest. "And he's called Ant,"

"Like the fucking insect?" Kay practically gasped, letting out one of her bell-like laughs. "That's a stupid name,"

"I don't even know if it's short for something," Robin confessed, letting out her own laugh.

"It's short for 'I'm a prick called Anthony who think's I'm too good for the name Tony'," Kay muttered as she rolled her eyes before she looked up out of one of the front windows, her eyes widening. "Hey, speak of the devil, is this your insect man?"

Robin looked up out of the window, seeing the silhouette of Ant stood outside the restaurant, and her eyes widened. She'd not expected him to meet her after work, she was meant to be meeting him at the pub down the road, and she still had another ten minutes left of her shift. Except there he was, looking handsome in a black suit and tie, his hair combed back neat as he looked through the window, and upon seeing that she had spotted him he raised his hand to her, a faint smile appearing on his face.

"Is this you off then?" Kay asked, gesturing over to the lad out of the window. "You may as well go, there's just the washing up left to do,"

"Are you sure? I'll come in early tomorrow to make up for it," Robin said, and when Kay nodded encouragingly Robin quickly took off her apron, throwing it at her as she quickly unpinned her hair. "Do I look okay?"

"Like you could conquer the world," Kay responded with a sarcastic grin. "Good luck, I expect full updates tomorrow,"

"Obviously," Robin nodded, getting her handbag from the counter across the restaurant before she headed over to the door, fully aware that Ant was watching her through the windows. "See ya', Kay,"

With that, Robin took a deep breath and opened the door, trying not to jump out of nerves when the bell of the door took her by surprise. She didn't think she was nervous until then, until she could see Ant waiting for her, and the moment she was crossing the road to meet him she felt completely out of her depth. What was she doing, going out with a lad she didn't even know? Why was she going out with him, someone who was pretty much a stranger, when across town her best friends were doing a gig, her best friends who'd taken her under their wings the last few months and shown her how to have fun? She tried to remind herself not to be pessimistic, telling herself that John and Stuart had been strangers too just a few months ago, and just because she didn't know Ant that well didn't mean he was a bad person, it didn't mean she was making a massive mistake.

"Hello, gorgeous," Ant greeted with a wide smile, and Robin wasn't sure what it was with the compliment that made her insides clench. "You kept me waiting,"

"I thought I was meeting you at the pub?" she asked, raising her eyebrow as she tried not to be annoyed.

"Yeah, change of plan, couldn't wait that long to see you," he shrugged with his cocky grin, wrapping his arm around her shoulder as soon as she was close enough. "Worth the wait though,"

"Aren't you a charmer," Robin remarked, trying desperately not to look back through the restaurant window, knowing that Kay would be watching them in amused judgement.

The two of them walked down the street, Ant's arm still wrapped around her shoulder tightly, and anytime anyone else was near them he would look up at them and grin in greeting, almost as if he was proud that he was walking around with her. She felt almost as if she was an accessory, and considering she barely knew him and up until a few months ago wasn't even interested in relationships it felt a little odd to her.

Robin tried to ignore that though, especially as they got to the pub, which was surprisingly empty for a Friday night. Ant found them a table at the back of the room and pulled her seat out before sitting down across from her. Perhaps he just thought his words and actions to her were gentlemanly, maybe that was how lads always acted on dates and she was just unaware of it considering no one had ever wanted to date her before. Maybe she was still so surprised someone wanted her company that she was so out of her depth to the extent everything was making her uncomfortable.

She'd never felt uncomfortable with John, part of her mind called, but she quickly dismissed that thought. John was her mate, she had no reason to feel uncomfortable with him, even when they bickered or he wound her up. Ant, however, was a prospective romantic partner, that was something completely different.

"Have you been on many dates then?" she asked before she could stop herself, trying to remember if she'd seen him at John's party with any of the girls, but her memories of that night were hazy, and she had no memories of him until he appeared to light her cigarette.

"A few," Ant shrugged, still smiling, though he honesty and casual nature left her feeling a little more overwhelmed. "What about you, I bet you had all the boys running after you in Leeds?"

"Sheffield," she corrected, realising he'd not just been joking that time and had actually forgotten where she was from. "And you'd be daft thinking that. The only lads I talked to in Sheff were the old men me and me dad would go to the football with,"

"I'm sure you had a few admirers," he pressed, though she shook her head. "Well you've got one now. It's funny, I always thought Sutcliffe had the hots for you,"

"Stuart?" she exclaimed before laughing. "Nah, he's me mate, nothing more. He showed me round my first day of college and he's been my best friend ever since. Same with John, met him just after I moved in, him and Stu have been really good friends to me,"

"Oh, good old John Lennon, ey?" Ant laughed, rolling his eyes until he saw the way Robin frowned, becoming protective of her friends at the thought of him laughing at them. "You should have known him in school, he was a right thug. Apparently it's gotten worse since his mum died as well y'know, but if he's your mate that's alright, just know he can be trouble, wouldn't want you getting hurt,"

"I'll bear it in mind," she clenched her jaw and fought against the urge to just walk out of the pub and run the full half hour walk to the Cavern club. "Is this what dates are, the boy slagging off all the girls friends? Aren't you meant to ask me about my interests and at least pretend to care?"

"Oh, sorry, I didn't mean to upset you," he apologised, reaching across the table and taking hold of her hands, squeezing them a little too tight as if to show how sincere he was. "He's a good lad really, it's just old rivalries rearing their heads. Tell me about you, tell me about college. Are you an artist?"

Robin told him about her art, or at least the bits she felt comfortable with. She told him about her portrait collection, about her watercolour landscapes, about how she used to get the bus up to the countryside areas near her in Sheffield and spend the day out sketching what she could see. She didn't tell him about her desire to be a photographer, or her dreams to capture the world as it was because there was beauty in acknowledging the ugliness of the world, because that all felt too personal, too close to who she really was.

In return he told her all about the bakers shop he worked in part time. It was his aunt's business, he was just working there to help her out, but in a few months he'd be going into the family business with his father. His parents ran a law firm, the biggest in the North of England, and he'd be starting out as an apprentice while he got all the qualifications. It explained at lot, that his parents were rich, considering how well he dressed. Ant's clothes were a lot nicer than the stuff her friends wore, they were new and clean. Not that any of her friends weren't presentable, but he looked pristine, like he'd not worked for anything before, not like Kay who wore scuffed shoes and jeans that were a little too short because her wages went on rent for her and her sister. Not even like herself, who'd made most of her skirts herself or had worn the same shirts and pairs of trousers for the last four years because she'd never been allowed to get a job before and her money went on more important things.

Ant's family were wealthy, he had better prospects. He was going to be a lawyer, he was realistic, not like her. She dreamed of a life where she could just be free to do what she wanted, to take pictures and be herself. Creative passion and artistic freedom were the things she wanted from life, but he clearly was more practical. That was something admirable, rather than wasting his life on unrealistic dreams he was just getting on with things, and he'd end up better off in the long run.

"What do you do for fun?" she asked, unable to think that his life was just offices and paperwork.

"I like taking pretty girls out to the pub," he said lightly, and Robin couldn't help but laugh.

***
Ant had been a gentleman, and as she felt her nerves calming, Robin had actually enjoyed the date. He was sweet when he wasn't being cocky, and he'd grown on her considerably to the point she actually quite liked him. She almost found herself a little smitten, so when he'd offered to walk her to the bus stop when it was time to go home she didn't refuse. She let him hold her hand, and when they spotted her bus at the end of the road he stood directly in front of her so there was no avoiding her eye contact.

"So this is it then," he stated before bluntly asking, "You're my girlfriend now then, alright?"

It wasn't so much a question, more a statement, but Robin surprisingly found herself not really having a problem with it. He wasn't so bad. He was decent looking, had good career prospects, and he clearly liked her. He'd called her pretty non-stop all night, and it felt almost nice. Maybe that was how it was meant to feel?

So, unknowing what else to do, she nodded, finding herself stunned as he didn't wait for her verbal answer. He instead dropped her hand, putting both of his either side of her face and pulling her in for a kiss. It was a strange and sudden first kiss, and she had to fight off the instant disappointment she felt that this was her first. Was this how she imagined her first kiss, sloppy and almost forceful, stood by a dirty bus stop in the middle of the street? It wasn't quite romantic, but she felt as if he liked her, especially as his hands drifted down from her face to squeeze her curves, but she pulled away quickly, grateful that the bus had pulled up, giving her the perfect excuse to leave.

"See you," she said in a hurry, feeling her face flush red as she rummaged in her bag for her bus fare.

"I'll meet you after work again tomorrow," he promised. "See you, pretty girl,"

She offered him one last smile before she stepped onto the bus. Embarrassed that anyone on the bus would have seen them kissing, she quickly handed over her fare to the driver with the intention to go and sit at the very back, her usual spot. It seemed like the best place to hide, to collect her thoughts about everything that had happened, but hiding wasn't an option.

Not as John was sat on their usual seats, a cigarette between his teeth that he quickly tossed out the window, his arms folded across his chest, his hands in tight fists, for once wearing his glasses, giving him perfect vision.

***

Word count: 2670

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