Chicago, First Date, and a Bottle of Merlot

It was an ordinary morning at the River View apartments. Angel Mc. Farland woke up at six in the morning. She jogged along the sidewalk for about a mile. The sidewalk faced out along the Chicago River. She was thinking about the meeting she had to have with her boss regarding an account. She was astonished that Chicago was quite different from Springfield. She figured that there was more city to Chicago than can be imagined. Being a trades assistant she was thinking about how the market was going to move. She worried about the client's account. She normally didn't think about a client during a jog, but this morning, she needed to. She knew this client to be right demanding. The condo beneath her was almost finished. She heard as she jogged by the sounds of the construction workers who were working steadily to build the new condo beneath her. Angel had been in the condo she lived in for six months. She returned home and got herself prepared for work. The clock was going on about eight-thirty and she had to be to work at nine. Angel left for the L-Train, which would take her to the brokerage firm. She thought to herself what a shame they lack those in Springfield.

Angel arrived for work at nine in the morning. She had her Starbucks coffee in her hand. She had a meeting with the client at about 10:00 A. M. She sat there watching the stock screener to see if the stock she bought a client with Exxon was doing well. At the end of the day, Angel rode the L-Train home and she looked forward to relaxing in her condo. She noticed that there was someone moving into the condo beneath her. Angel always liked to introduce herself to others. She changed out of her business suit and into some sweats before heading downstairs. She knocked on the door and it was opened pretty fast.

"Hello, how are you?" Angel stated as she stood in the doorway. "I just wanted to introduce myself to you. My name is Angel Mc. Farland, and I live in the condo just above you. Need any help moving in?"

"Thank you Angel, my name is Jamie Renee Dean, but everyone calls me J.R. for short. Great, I guess I could use some help in getting this stuff rearranged. Some of my family thought that I would not meet some nice people here in Chicago, but I guess I can prove them wrong," J. R. stated.

"Where are you from?" Angel asked as she helped J. R. unpack her clothing.

"I am from Schaumburg, Illinois, where are you from?" J. R. asked.

"I am from Springfield, Illinois," Angel answered. The two women sat and talked about their respective hometowns. J. R. and Angel had spent two hours arranging the furniture in the condo. She at first hated how the dining room table didn't face out toward the Chicago River. She decided that maybe the living room should flow into the dining room. After three hours of figuring this out, they finally got the room to flow like they wanted. Finally both women were exhausted. They ordered a pizza from Papa John's. Both however wanted to be able to eat deep dish pizza. They each drank a Pepsi with it. Immediately Angel and J. R. realized they had alot in common. However, Angel realized that she had to hurry up and get ready for work.

"Angel, thank you for the help of moving my stuff around. Friday night, I usually play golf and I hope that you can join me," J. R. quipped.

"Of course I play golf, and I definitely like to play after work sometimes, that is if the golf course is open after work," Angel replied. "There is one about six miles from my office." She left and immediately returned to her condo to get ready. Angel finally felt like she had found a new friend in Chicago. She worked hard that day, she realized that it was almost four o' clock and she hadn't even started closing out her positions on her stocks for the day. After she finished, she headed home to get her golf bag and she headed to Morehead's Country Club, where she was a member. She waited for J. R., who had just gotten off of work herself. J. R. was a guest of Angel, and she thought that they would play some golf.

"I will have to fill out the forms to join this country club," J. R. stated to Angel as she was at the twelfth hole. "Golf is a good way to relax after a hard day's work. I enjoy it a plenty. Thank you Angel for suggesting this place."

J. R. had finished the paperwork and was now a member of the club. After the two finished their golf game, there was a popular restaurant nearby called, Dina's, a popular Chicago hangout along the river. They sat and parused the menu. "Well, I would like to have the Chicken Cacciatore with a helping of fettucine," Angel blurted out to the waiter.

"I will have the Beef Rigatoni," J. R. said as she handed the waiter back the menu.

"I am glad we got seated fast," Angel stated. "Seems like most Friday nights, you would think the whole city of Chicago was here looking to eat. Well, J. R., what do you do for a living?"

"I am an insurance executive. Boy howdy does the insurance business give anyone a headache. But I love the job. I had my first day today, so cheers to the weekend. What do you do for a living, Angel?" J. R. asked as she and Angel raised their glasses to the weekend.

"I am a stock trader. Yeah, that stock market can be a real pain in the rear end, but I love it," Angel responded.

After they finished their meals, they skipped dessert, and paid their respective meal tabs. Upon leaving the restaurant, the two now best friends headed off to Newsom's Bar and Grill, one of the best bars in Chicago. They drove their cars back to their condo, so they would not be tempted to drive after drinking. The two got a glass of Merlot wine and they both sat down at the bar to drink it. They raised a cheer to meeting new friends and to a new town of Chicago. At the same time, two guys approached the bar and they also wanted to get some Merlot. They sat not far from Angel and J. R.

"Wow Rick, it is a mad house tonight. What did everyone in Chicago show up? I bet in Cairo, it would not be this bad," Trent blubbered as he sat down to have his wine.

"Well, in Mattoon, it would not be a madhouse. Some small town bars, you're lucky if you get the best seat in the house. But Chicago is a huge Change from Mattoon," Rick replied.

"Well, yes and it is a huge Change from Cairo. I hope they don't run out of Merlot tonight. That is a great drink," Trent replied. J. R. and Angel were sipping Merlot and casually looking around the bar. They decided that they had better call it a night and return to the condo. They immediately decided to call an Uber. The driver was running at least thirty minutes late. At the same time, Rick and Trent decided to call it a night and head back home themselves. As Angel and J. R. waited for the Uber to come, Rick and Trent opened the door to exit the bar, and he tripped over the rug that was scrunched in the door jamb and fell on his face.

"Are you okay?" Angel asked as she went over to him

"Yeah, I am fine, just tripped," Trent replied.

"Hey Trent, you okay, bro," Rick asked as he walked over to the doorway.

"Yeah, I am fine," Trent stated to Rick.

"I don't believe that I have seen you ladies here before," Rick said as he got to his feet.

"First drink here," Angel replied. "My name is Angel."

"Hi Angel, my name is Trent Johnson," Trent replied to Angel as she looked over her shoulder. She still wondered where the Uber was. J. R. came over looking a bit puzzled.

"Hey Angel, who have you just met?" she nearly shouted.

"J. R. Meet Trent Johnson," she replied. At that moment, Rick walked over to the group.

"Hi, Trent, good to meet you," J. R. replied.

"Hi my name is Rick Ewing, Trent's my buddy," Rick stated.

"Hi Trent good to meet you and hello Rick, good to meet you too," Angel replied. "I guess we are all waiting on dear old Uber to come on here. Sorry, but we have been here awhile. Oh, this is my friend Jamie Renee, but call her J. R. like J. R. Ewing on the show Dallas."

"Hi J. R.," Rick stated, it is good to meet you.

"We just finished ourselves with our time at the bar. We just had a little Merlot to drink," Trent replied. Angel watched as the clouds in the sky began to darken.

"Guys, we better get under the marquee, it will rain. Hey Merlot is my favorite drink. J. R. and myself just had some," Angel stated. Not long after Angel said it, the sky unleashed a torrent of rain. The foursome, who now just met, all huddled under the marquee. They each exchanged numbers so they could meet for another time. Finally, after what felt like an eternity the ladies' Uber ride showed up.

"J. R., the Uber is here, we better move it," Angel shouted.

"Coming," J. R. replied. The two ran for the Uber as the rain continued to come down.

"We have to do this again the next time," Rick mumbled as he walked back to the bar.

"Yeah, we should," Trent replied. "Those two ladies like their Merlot."