Game Day

Another short-lived, would be romantical escapade was referred to as “Game Day.” I met him at the car wash. We caught each other’s eyes, but I wasn’t really looking for anything. I had just let go of the idea of any involvement when I cut off “The Bag.” I hadn’t even been dealing with my situationship/boo/Kryptonite, or whatever you want to call him.

The vacuum at the stall I was at wasn’t working, so I backed up, then pulled into the next stall over. I jumped out and walked over to grab the hose, noticing him looking at me again. That’s when he approached me. He said, “I thought you were coming back to talk to me.”

I kind of shrugged and said the other vacuum didn’t work. After a brief exchange, he asked for my number. I decided what the hell, I have nothing to lose and gave it to him. Afterall, I always say I don’t know how to date and could use the practice. 

He began texting me immediately. We made plans to get together a few days later. We were going to go bowling, something I hadn’t done in quite some time. We met at one of the local casinos that has a huge bowling alley inside. There was a tournament, so we couldn’t get a lane.

There weren’t any movies showing that really interested either of us. Besides, movies on a first date with someone you don’t really know is weird to me. How are you going to get to know each other? We decided to go to another nearby casino that also houses a large bowling alley.

He asked if I wanted to ride with him. Impulsively, I jumped in his car. Normally, I wouldn’t do that when I know nothing about this man and no one knew what I was doing past meeting someone at that location.

We had a great time bowling and getting to know each other a bit. He refused to give up a shoe in exchange for the rental shoes. His exchange with the girl at the counter caught me by surprise. He wasn’t really rude, but he was adamant.

After a few games, we decided to head out. Neither one of us was in a hurry to part ways though. We were trying to figure out something else we could do. I shared a few things I enjoy and he perked up when I said games.

He drove me by my house to pick up a few board games, then we went to his house. We had a great time. Again, this is not normal behavior for me. I did text a trusted friend with some basic information…just in case.

We ended up hanging out until past midnight. During that time, I was getting texts from my Kryptonite. I did my best to ignore those messages and concentrate on the potential of something new.

Over the course of the next month or so we hung out a few times. I gave him a ride to pick up his car or move cars around a few times. He took me to dinner once. We hung out at his house and played games a few times.

The last time I saw him was Valentines Day of last year. It wasn’t really a Valentines date type of thing. He was dropping off his jeep to have a stereo system put in and asked for a ride home. He took me to breakfast on the way back to his house.

I realized a few things that day. He was a smoker (which I already knew), but I didn’t realize just how much he needed to smoke. All the time. That’s just not my thing. I think the thing that got me the most was the stale smoke smell on his breath, and even worse, his constant need to spit. He kept a bottle or cup to spit out the phlegm build up from smoking. I just couldn’t.

In addition, he was super secretive. He kept his license plate covered, had absolutely no social media, and moved in a weird way. Not bodily movements, but how he moved through life. He told the waiter his name was Kevin, which was nowhere close to what his actual name was. When I asked him about it, he said the guy just didn’t need to know his real name. I didn’t understand the harm in a restaurant knowing your first name, especially one as common as his.

I realized that I just wasn’t into him. We kept texting in short bursts every few days, but it quickly trailed off when the pandemic hit. There just wasn’t any reason to keep up the occasional interaction when I knew I just wasn’t interested.

Truth be told, I also started entertaining my Kryptonite again. That probably did weigh in on my tolerance. That, in addition to figuring out what I was going to do in a time when the entire world as we all knew it shut down, changed, and I had no income.

I enjoyed hanging out with him, but didn’t see the point in pretending it would go anywhere. I don’t want to waste his time, nor mine. Over the course of the last year some friends (and my mom) have suggested I put myself out there to meet someone new…I asked where and how when the world was shut down. I guess that excuse is gone now. Perhaps I’ll make time for dating after the next book drops. We’ll see.