Cassey--Nice Guy

She only dates bad boys. Yes, the most attractive men to her are those who live on the edge, on the very cusp of danger, at the brink of exclusion by society’s upstanding citizens. She likes men who smoke, who get into drunken brawls, men who flagrantly disregard traffic laws. She prefers men who drink black coffee, who hate children, men who do not read books. The best candidates of all are the ones who treat her poorly — men who stay at night and leave in the morning, men who never return her calls, who bruise her body, bruise her heart, the ones who never bring flowers. These are her men.

Alexander is a nice guy. He met and fell in love with her at the local grocery store where she works as a cashier. Every week, Alexander goes grocery shopping and waits in line for her register. He speaks sweet words and offers to take her out to dinner. She never accepts. Though she enjoys and looks forward to their grocery store encounters, she could never see herself falling for Alexander. He is clean-shaven and handsome. He dresses well and uses proper grammar. He makes her feel special. He is simply too nice.

Still, Alexander would not be discouraged. After months of flirting and asking, he finally convinced her to go on a date with him. She only agreed in order to prove to him that they would never work out.

On Friday evening, he appeared at her front door with a bouquet of flowers. Then, he drove her to a restaurant in a part of town with no graffiti. She had never tasted food so delicious. They even ordered dessert. She took note of how much cream and sugar Alexander put in his coffee. They ate and laughed and discussed everything from grocery store coupons to the local news.

“Did you hear about the Tiffany’s on Main Street?” She asked.

Alexander smiled. “Yes, I heard someone broke in and looted the place.”

“They say whoever did it is very good. Nothing was ruined, no broken glass. The thief very neatly, almost politely, stole millions of dollars’ worth of jewelry.”

Alexander smiled again. “Fascinating.”

“What’s so funny?” She asked.

“Nothing. Oh, by the way, I wanted to give you this.”

She watched Alexander pull a small rectangular case from inside his coat. He set it on the table in front of her. She did not react at first. No man had ever presented her with such a gift. She felt heat rush to her cheeks. Reeling from shock, she slowly opened the box. It contained the most beautiful bracelet she had ever seen — diamonds the size of teardrops embedded in glittering gold. She did not know what to say.

Then, she read the inside of the box: Tiffany & Co.

Suddenly, she knew. Alexander is not a nice guy after all.