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While I couldn't say nearly as much for all of the customers, I had to admit the place was very clean. Perhaps that's not too surprising, as a dirty Laundromat would most likely repel any would be patrons. Unless you looked at it from other points view. I mean, hey, other than bars and supermarkets the best place to pick up guys is the Laundromat. It's a good thing too as that is exactly why I was here…in a round about sort of way.
I noticed him the second I walked through the doors. It wasn't nearly as difficult as I had thought it would be. The only information my contact had told me was that his eyes would give him away. Boy was he right! I must admit I was quite taken aback at first by his appearance. He no longer had eyes in the normal sense. In their place was an implanted visor. It was almost like a relic pair of Ray Ban's without the arms. It struck me as curious and immediately two explanations entered my mind. The first, and least likely was because it made him look more intimidating. I have found over the years that a lot of solos are poor and don't like to waist bullets on trash. If you can stare them down, you save money. The second reason was to mislead his enemies. As I became aware of how people responded to any given situation, I began to realize that a person's eyes give almost everything away. Taking that advantage away from your enemy could only benefit you. Imagine not knowing for certain whether or not the muscle with the big gun was looking at you or your friend. I know I wouldn't take a risk like that. An amazing idea, I had to admit and in retrospect both of my theories were probably correct but such augmentations disinterested me, mostly because they were flawed.
Don't get me wrong! Against MOST people it would be quite effective but I've spent most my life judging how people are feeling or what they're thinking by observing their whole body and seeing how they interact with their surroundings. For example, I knew he was staring at me. Now, I'll be the first to admit that almost anyone could have guessed that since every guy in the place and even some women had their eyes on me. It unnerved me a bit but I've gotten used to it over the years. A lot of people have told me how incredibly attractive I am, either verbally or through…body language. Now I try not to flaunt it but I will be lying if I said that I never used it to my advantage. Hell! I'd be an idiot not to! These days you have to pull out all the stops to milk any advantage you might have or you could very well lose and losing only happens once.
Anyway, like I was saying I noticed the man right away. Other than his eyes he was quite non-descript. You could see that his arms had been augmented but that was common enough, as was the fact that he carried enough weapons on his body to open shop. I took a breath and moved towards him. I noticed that his muscles tightened ever so slightly as I got closer but then they relaxed almost immediately. I was quite impressed by his control! What he did next was absolutely adorable. As I put my laundry up on the machine next to his he acted as if he didn't notice me walking up by watching the video monitor. It made me smile and something inside me realized that I would like him, which was good. Too often had I tried to hire some solo to protect me while I did my work and the only payment they required was my body in their bed. I hated those kinds of people. I was glad that this guy seemed different. I waited for a few minutes to let him collect his cool before I spoke to him.
“Hey!” I started as I found myself watching the same screen. There was a game of Jai-Lai on. It was an interesting sport where convicts played a sort of no holds barred football for a season and if they made it to the final game their sentence was shortened. Quite brutal to be sure, but a lot of men liked it. “Do you like this sort of stuff?” I asked.
He looked down at me for a few seconds before he responded. “Naw, I'm not a big baseball fan. Contact baseball is a whole nother story, but I prefer Fight Club on channel 135 and the BattleNets.”
He must not have heard me correctly. The machines were rather loud and I often forget that not everyone has as good of hearing as I do. I tried again now that I, or most likely my breasts, had his attention.
“Do you come here often?” I realized how blatant a pick up line that was and hoped I wasn't laying it on too thick. Where's your tact, Victoria I cursed myself. He almost smiled.
“Yeah, I come here often, usually right after a job, “ was his response. He then added a sly little grin as if to imply what he did. Just in case I hadn't figured it out yet. He must have thought I was very imperceptive.
“Usually I just do my wash at home but unfortunately my dryer broke and the stupid landlord is taking his sweet time fixing it. Sometimes I wonder where my money goes!”
He just grunted. I wasn't really sure if he was even listening to me or not but I had his attention and that's all I wanted. Keep him interested, drop a few hints and hopefully he will ask me out so I can proposition him for the job.
I ran my fingers through my long black hair and brushed my arm against his thigh as it dropped back down. I smiled up at him. “Sorry,” I lied. “Hey, I wasn't thinking on the way here. Could I borrow you fabric softener?” I took his lack of response as a yes. I turned back and started to load the machine. A few minutes later he spoke to me.
“How long you been in the cities?”
“Almost a year now. How about you?” I asked.
“I just got here a couple months back.”
“Have you met anyone important yet?”
“Nah. I'm just biding my time. Staying low for a while.”
The conversation continued for about two hours. I learned his name was Sharkman and he told me about some of his most recent jobs. Almost like a resume. I told him little about me but when I did talk he listened intently. I was sure he was going to ask any second now. I was not disappointed.
“What would you say to dinner sometime?” was his bold question.
I feigned surprise and even forced myself to blush a little. I stammered on a bit about how we had just met and I normally don't do this but he seemed such a nice person so why not.
“Great!” he beamed. “If you want I can pick you up at your place.”
I smiled and gave him directions. I suggested we eat at the Perfect Burrito. He liked the idea but wasn't sure we could get reservations on such short notice. I only grinned mischievously.
“Let's make a deal. If I can get us in there, you pay for it.”
He thought about it for a second before saying, “Yeah, that sounds great. I'll meet you at your place at ten.” He then turned and walked out.
I made sure to look up at him as he left.
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