• They say it is never that serious, but bachelor never saw this coming
Image: PEXELS
Diary,
I was a little apprehensive about going on a date with a 23-year-old, mainly because dates with these young cats have proved disastrous before. Jen not only proved different for a whole new reason; she opened my eyes to a reality I didn’t know existed.
“You have no idea how excited I am about this,” she confessed as we sat down to dinner.
“That’s refreshing,” I said. “I’ve heard people say they’re nervous on a first date. ‘Excited’ is new.”
“That’s the thing. This is my first date.”
“‘Our’ first date, you mean?”
“I mean my ‘first’ first date.”
I almost choke on a bite of my rib eye. “Are you serious? You’re saying you’ve never been on a date?”
She nodded and swallowed a mouthful of grilled hamburger. “Yap. Not until tonight.”
“But… on the phone, didn’t you tell me you’re 23?”
“Actually, 24 in five months. And that’s the other thing. You called me.”
“I don’t follow.”
“Guys don’t call anymore. They’ll hit you up on social media or text, but a call makes it that more special.”
“Guess it pays being old-fashioned, huh?”
“In fact, a bunch of my friends were so excited about me going on a date with a gentleman who bothered to call that they couldn’t wait for me to get home and spill the tea.”
I looked around. “They’re not in here, are they?”
She laughed nervously. “No. They’re camped in a bar across the street.”
“It’s that monumental for you, huh? Going out with a guy?”
“Oh, no. I’m not a prude, if that’s what you’re thinking. I meet guys all the time. In clubs, bars, social gatherings… That sort of stuff.”
“I see.” In my mind’s eye, I see a nice careful woman who’s set herself aside from her peers. “But it never got serious?”
“Right. It might get hot and heavy on the dance floor, or a naughty drunken make-out session in a bathroom, but the farthest it gets is a one-night stand before it fizzles out.”
The image in my mind’s eye pops like balloon. So long nice girl; hello courtesan.
“So,” I said, choosing my words carefully, “you’ve actually slept with different men but never been on a date?”
She looked up, a hint of dread in her eyes. “Is that sort of thing important to you?”
“A body count? Not at all. It’s the casualness of it all that baffles me.”
“Oh, it happens all the time. But they’re only hookups, nothing special.”