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 Posted: Thu May 19, 2011 2:44 pm
Christopher glanced down at his watch once more to make sure he was there at the right time. A little obsessive? Probably. It was still only a minute before noon — the time at which he’d asked Paris to meet him for lunch — so there was no reason for him to be worried, right? She wasn’t going to stand him up… he hoped.
To be honest, he wasn’t really sure he understood girls all that well. The only girls he had the most contact with in his life was his mother and his best friend. And even then, she was a few years older than him, and until they actually got to know each other, he knew he hadn’t exactly been the first person she wanted to see when she got home from school. Things were different now, of course, but that didn’t mean he understood girls any better. If his experiences in high school were any indication.
The place he’d picked for lunch was a tiny café on the nicer side of town. It had its own bakery downstairs, and was known for its desserts, so of course he thought it was a good place for a casual lunch. Even better — he’d called a few days before and made reservations, so they didn’t have to worry about the lunch crowd. Well… Just as long as Paris didn’t show up any time past quarter after…
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Posted: Thu May 19, 2011 7:49 pm
Paris was only running a little late. He wished he could say he wasn’t the sort of person to take hours getting ready for one simple date—an outing that wasn’t even really a date to begin with considering they were just getting to know one another; in his mind, it was more of a friend thing than anything else—but for a little over an hour he’d been unable to decide what one should wear on a not-date with a handsome young man at a nice café that served more upscale food than simple bagels. He didn’t want to look as if he’d just rolled out of bed, but then he didn’t want it to look as if he’d tried too hard either. His difficulty in choosing an outfit should not be obvious to his companion, nor should his attire make him appear as if he wanted to jump Chris’s bones in the middle of the restaurant—not a horrible thought, no, but one that would most likely end with them being kicked out of the establishment, and one he doubted Chris was going for in the first place.
Which was really disappointing, because skipping all this in-between-ness and just jumping Chris’s bones would make everything much easier and a lot less confusing in the long run.
In any case, after much deliberation he'd managed to settle on a pair of white capris and a long blue blouse cinched at the waist with a thin brown belt, with matching blue heels that offered a peak at his toes—casual but classy, or so he thought. He didn’t bother with much make-up, just some mascara and the faintest bit of color in his cheeks, and pink lip-stick instead of red—softer instead of bold—preferring to go with a mostly natural look. It was quick, it was easy, but it would still allow him to sit with Chris and at least look as if he belonged there, whether or not he felt that he did. The only time he ever ate at these sorts of hoity-toity cafés instead of the simpler ones that served little more than coffee, hot chocolate, and breakfast pastries were the rare times he went out to share a meal with his mother.
He slowed his approach once he had Chris in his sights, not wanting to seem as if he’d been rushing to get there. Confidence was sexy and he had plenty of it, or at least enough to hide the fact that he had no idea what he was even doing with Chris. Except for with Ladon, he didn’t do the friend thing. With other people, if he ran into them and had a good time, sure, that was fine, but he didn’t usually make plans to meet up and hang out; he preferred to do things in the moment. He and Chris could hardly be considered friends, and he wouldn’t even call what they’d done together so far “hanging out.” They’d flirted for a few hours the first time—or at least he had—and chatted for maybe half an hour the second. He wasn’t really sure how to define this.
“Hi, Chris,” he said once he was close enough to speak to him without shouting, coming to a stop beside him. “Sorry, I think I ran a little late. I got hung up. You haven’t been waiting long, have you?”
It was even worse because he had no idea what Chris was expecting. He couldn’t read him as easily as he read other people. He couldn’t tell if Chris wanted to be friends or if he was a bit more interested in him than that and perhaps testing the waters. A sign of some sort would be nice, but Chris didn’t seem to be giving any—and the fact that Paris couldn’t tell if it was intentional or not just made things all the more frustrating.
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Posted: Thu May 19, 2011 11:00 pm
Being a little late was fine. If their reservation got canceled they would just have to go somewhere else. It wasn't that big of a deal. Of course, he didn't have to wait much longer, since Paris did show up, and not much past noon.
Christopher smiled when he saw Paris approaching, his immediate thought was that he was disappointed that she wasn't wearing a skirt or a dress, but that was quickly pushed to the side when he saw her smile and heard her apologize as she got closer to him. She looked nice... More than nice. She definitely looked like she would be a Crystal girl, but since he knew she was at the school on a scholarship, well... that made him think she was even more pretty than some other girl. Besides, a lot of dancers had really small chests, right...?
"Hey... you look really nice," he greeted her, looking her over a couple times before taking a step back to hold the door to the little restaurant he'd picked out for them to eat at. "No, no, you're not late. You're just on time. I just got here, myself," he said, not seeing any point in making her worried about being late. That would be a jerk move on his part, after all.
"Hi, we have reservations," he said to the hostess just inside the establishment, "It's under Gallo." After just a moment of looking them up, they were led to a quiet little corner, away from the other people having lunch. Mostly business people in nice suits and a few older patrons either by themselves or with a friend or two.
"I hope you're hungry," Chris grinned as they sat down, "Get whatever you want. I'm paying, okay?" he insisted, not wanting her to feel as though she has to hold back on getting what she wants because someone else is paying for her, or whatever is going through her mind. She really did look nice, though.
Maybe this wasn't such a bad idea...?
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Posted: Fri May 20, 2011 12:20 am
Paris savored the attention he was receiving, smiling sweetly and staring up at Chris with appreciative eyes for the compliment he paid him. He didn't need anyone to tell him so to know that he looked good, but sometimes it was nice to have his efforts recognized, and after agonizing over what would be the appropriate manner in which to dress for a situation he still couldn't define, Paris was pleased by the way Chris was currently looking at him -- like he couldn't tear his eyes away. The glances toward his chest didn't go unnoticed, but Paris remained unconcerned. Chris hardly seemed suspicious -- or even dissatisfied -- and until he did Paris saw no reason to explain himself or reveal the truth.
He followed the other young man into the cafe, making a mental note of Chris's last name -- Gallo? Was that Italian? -- and glancing around as they were led over to their little corner. He definitely noticed that a majority of the patrons were quite a bit older than he and Chris. In fact, he thought they were the youngest couple there. But Chris seemed content and not at all uncomfortable, so Paris could only assume he was used to places like this. It wasn't as if it were especially fancy, but it did have a sort of posh atmosphere about it -- very cosmopolitan. Not the sort of place Paris would have chosen, but definitely one he could get used to.
Paris took his seat and began skimming the menu the waitress handed to him, his eyes immediately checking the prices. Nothing horrendously expensive, but still more than he was used to spending on lunch. When they were asked for their drink orders, Paris said, "Sweet tea. No lemon, please," and went back to reading the short descriptions by each meal.
He looked up at Chris offered to pay. Okay, well, he didn't offer so much as immediately insist, and Paris didn't know if he was supposed to argue and insist otherwise or graciously accept. Was this some sort of test? Was he going to be judged depending on his answer?
"Oh... thank you..." he said, feeling just the slightest bit unsettled but not allowing it to show. He kept a smile on his face the entire time. "But are you sure? I don't mind splitting."
Did that mean this was a date? He hadn't thought it was, but if Chris had planned on paying -- and he'd made reservations; who did that for lunch? -- then did that mean he thought this was a date? What was the big deal if it was? Paris had been on plenty of "dates" where the other guy had paid; if he didn't have to shell out some cash for food then he wasn't going to complain. This didn't have to be any different. Except that Chris was different. He was... polite, and... almost like a gentleman. Paris had very little experience with gentlemen...
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Posted: Sat May 21, 2011 9:38 pm
Was it bad that he was offering to pay? Er. Okay, he wasn't so much as offering as he was expecting to be the one to grab the bill. Did that mean it was a date...? Well... sort of...? He had asked her out to lunch, so that counted as a date, right? Hey, give him a break! He was still warming up with this kind of stuff after being on the bench for a couple years. Besides, his older brother had told him that he needed to find some way to impress her enough to not want to run away, but to not over do it so as to scare her...
Hopefully he was doing okay? Although, by her expression... maybe he was trying too hard? Damn...
Chris looked over the menu when Paris did, letting her order first before looking up at the waitress with a smile. "Same for me, please," he said, feeling like he shouldn't be excited that they both wanted the same thing to drink. Then again, sweet tea was kind of popular, so maybe it wasn't really something for him to mark down as a thing they had in common. It had been so long that he couldn't help it...
"Yeah, get whatever you want," he insisted again when she double checked with him about paying. He really didn't mind, but he also didn't want her to feel like he was forcing it on her. Hmm... maybe he should have let her pay half? Or at least her own bill? No, he wouldn't do that. She was on a scholarship, so who knew how much she could afford or not. But maybe it was bad for him to just assume that she couldn't afford it? Or... that it would be too much for her normal lunches? Not that he didn't usually just get a bagel or a sandwich, but still.
"How have you been...?" he tried starting up small talk, not wanting her to just sit around and feel awkward... if she was feeling awkward... "Was your mental health day enough to get you back in the game...?"
He really had to stop with all the sports references...
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Posted: Sun May 22, 2011 12:03 am
Unable to decide what to do about this suddenly very confusing and potentially awkward situation, Paris inevitably decided not to do anything at all. If Chris had any hopes about how this "date" would turn out, there was no use dashing them, just as there wasn't any point in fretting over it and mistakenly ruining what could turn out to be a good time, date or not. He was having lunch with a good looking guy at a nice cafe; he could worry about any sort of meaning behind it and whatever choices he ended up making later.
At the moment, he chose not to argue about who would be paying for what. If Chris was sure, then who was Paris to continue questioning him otherwise? He certainly didn't have any problems with a free meal, especially when the food looked as good as the dessert one of the waiters carried as he passed by on his way to one of the other tables.
"I've been okay, I guess. Could probably use a few more mental health days, but I can't take took many of those, can I?" he said with another smile, and in doing so he made another choice -- not to tell Chris that his attendance hadn't improved at all.
He paused to think, wondering where and how he should steer the conversation. When was the last time he'd actually had a legitimate conversation with someone? Usually it was just pointless chatter, little things to gain the slightest bit of interest before moving on to more physical concerns. As much as he liked talking, he realized he didn't do it very often, though that was his own doing and he knew that well enough. But Chris seemed safe, and he supposed it wasn't really Chris that posed the danger in the first place. The danger lied with himself, in his own attachments, but that was something he could easily prevent, right?
"Actually, the last few months have been terrible. Especially February. February was the worst," he said, pausing again when their waitress brought their drinks over, and continuing when she wandered off to allow them more time to look over their menus. "But you probably don't want to hear about any of that, and to be honest it's probably not that big of a deal. I mean, it was. It is. I mean, there are all these people and these things and this city is just insane. And then before that there was friend drama and relationship drama. Actually, I wouldn't even call it relationship drama because it wasn't a relationship to start with, but the friend drama, that was pretty crappy. So I've taken the last few months to just do things for myself and be on my own and try to get my head together so I can 'get back in the game,' as you say."
He stopped his long-winded rambling -- purposeful this time -- to stare across at Chris and gauge the look on his face. "Sorry. You probably didn't get a word of that. Suffice it to say, my life is pretty crazy right now," he said, wondering how much he was scaring him and if this was the last time he'd been getting a free meal out of him. "So... how have you been? You must have things easy now that school's winding down. But you play baseball, don't you? Do they still hold games over the summer? I'm not all that up-to-date with sports schedules."
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Posted: Sun May 22, 2011 11:33 am
Chris looked down at the menu for a few moments, before back up at Paris when she started telling him a quick summary of everything that had been happening in her life, his eyes widening slightly at the sudden wave of information. Of course, he'd been the one to ask her how things were, so of course he was going to expect her to share... He just hadn't expected her to share absolutely everything like that. No wonder why she needed her mental health days off of school. Things sounded really rough for her.
"I'm sorry to hear that," he said softly, not really knowing what else to say to make things seem any less crazy for her. He looked up when the waitress brought them their drinks and took a few moments to take a sip, before setting it back on the table. "I don't mind hearing about it," Chris promised, feeling guilty for not already knowing how she wasn't all that happy with things going on in her life. Hopefully him taking her out to lunch like this would distract her a little...? At least for the moment.
He shook his head when Paris stopped rambling, not really minding her letting everything out in one go. "No, it's fine," he insisted again. "I'm sorry you've been having trouble with things. Obviously I don't know any of the details, but if you ever need someone to just talk to... like, if something happens and you have no one else to talk to... feel free to call me, okay...? I promise I don't mind." And he really didn't mind. He liked it when people called him to just talk about their day and how things were going. His life was pretty normal, so he felt as though he was relied on when others took time to talk. It was a boost to his ego, really. Not like he needed any more boosting, but still.
"I've been fine," Chris said when Paris asked, not really having anything to share. "Well, after exams I'll have it easy. I'm expecting there to be long nights this week to get everything done. And yes, I play baseball, but over the summer the colleges don't play. I've got some camps to help coach at, instead," he explained, hoping he wasn't boring her to death with sports talk. "It's just a summer camp for kids in elementary and middle school, but they needed councilors, so I've been doing that for the past few years." It definitely made summer more meaningful for him. And instead of just sitting around, he would much rather be out in the sun, or at the shelter. Either was fine for him.
"What about you...? Any plans for the summer...? Do you have any dance competitions coming up, or is that just for younger grades...?" he asked, laughing a bit awkwardly at his lack of knowledge on the subject. "Sorry, I don't really know how it works..." So of course he wouldn't know what could take place over the summer.
Chris paused when the waitress came back to get their orders, nodding to Paris so that she could get her order in, first, before he placed his.
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Posted: Sun May 22, 2011 12:05 pm
Paris was ill-prepared for the waitress to come back, having spent most of the time he should have been considering his menu talking and rambling and lost in thought. He made one more quick glance-over when Chris nodded at him to order first, and ended up choosing a Watermelon and Mint salad to start with, followed by the Pork Milanese -- a fancy sounding name to him, though the description was appealing and it didn't seem overpriced. He let Chris order as well and handed his menu to the waitress as she departed to place their orders before answering any of Chris's questions.
"Recitals more than competitions," he corrected him, not at all insulted by Chris's lack of knowledge. He didn't know anything about baseball aside from the very basics, so they were pretty much even. "There are competitions, and dance-a-thons and things like that, but those are usually for charities or to promote awareness instead of just showcasing your talent. I take advanced classes. We usually have recitals a few times a year, and one or twice we've put on our own mini production, but now I'm trying to focus more on auditions, seeing if I can get a part in any local productions before trying for a larger stage elsewhere. I haven't really gotten any bites yet, but..."
His position and his goals made things difficult. The parts he wanted weren't traditionally danced by men, at least not in anything but a comical fashion, and comedies and satires weren't a part of his game plan. He was serious when he tried out for the role of the Sugar Plum Fairy, or Princess Aurora, or any number of female parts. He knew he could do it, and he was confident enough in himself that he knew he could dance the part of a girl and probably not bring much attention to the fact that he wasn't one. He was lucky to have been built in a way that deception was easy, but few people seemed willing to take him on. None of them seemed to want to take the risk.
"Other than that, summer's probably going to be pretty boring. I don't really get to do much, except maybe go to the beach once or twice if I'm lucky. Things haven't been all that exciting for me recently, but that's my own fault for avoiding everything. I guess I need to find new hobbies or something."
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Posted: Sun May 22, 2011 1:32 pm
Chris ordered his raspberry chicken club sandwich and handed the menu back to the waitress, hoping that Paris wasn't rushed into making a decision on food. He knew he'd distracted her a little with all his questions... so if she didn't like what she got, she could just order something else, right...? And they still had to get dessert.
"Oh, recitals... right..." he mumbled to himself, feeling stupid for not realizing that competitions was obviously the wrong word. Would it be weird if he asked if he could see a recital...? Probably. They'd only spoken... what? Three separate times...? He should probably hold off on things like that, then. If he ended up sounding too desperate, then that would be bad. But... it wasn't that he was desperate at all! He was just interested! But his brother had pointed out to him that it probably came off as him being desperate... Sigh...
"I'm sure you'll get a part you want," he said, before quickly explaining why he thought so, "I mean, you're an advanced dancer, right? So you'll have more opportunities than others just starting out. I'll keep an eye out, if you want me to, for auditions around the city." Chris paused, thinking about it for a moment or two before biting lightly at his lip. "Well, I guess you would be the first to know about things like that, wouldn't you...?" Since it was her area of expertise, after all. She probably didn't need him to look out for anything for her.
"What do you like to do at the beach?" he wondered, playing with the fancily folded cloth napkin sitting in front of him. "Do you just like to lay out, or do you surf...?" Hey! It was possible! He knew some girls that liked to surf and snowboard, so... it wasn't that far out there for him to ask, right?
"What do you like to do other than dancing? Maybe I can help suggest some hobbies...? My mom goes through hobbies like you wouldn't believe, so I might be able to think something up for you to try...?" It was just a thought...
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Posted: Sun May 22, 2011 3:12 pm
"You sure ask a lot of questions," Paris teased, taking a sip of his drink before falling into one of his usual positions, propping his elbow onto the table -- was that impolite? -- and cradling the side of his face with his hand as he stared across at Chris. "Are you this interested in all the girls you ask out to lunch?"
Provided he asked out a lot of girls. Paris didn't see why he wouldn't. He was good looking enough -- although he didn't even think that was an adequate description. He was more than good looking enough. The more Paris stared at Chris, the more he wondered just how well the perks of playing a sport had served his body. So far he'd only been able to see his arms; if they were any indication as to how well in shape his was, Paris was sure he would be impressed.
"No surfing. I don't really look like the type to surf, do I?" Even he would admit he often looked the part of a snooty Crystal girl, even if he was far from it. "Laying out, yes. I like the sun, even if I burn easily, and swimming is fun with the right people. Sometimes I'll play volleyball if there's anyone else out there playing, and then occasionally there'll be a party on the beach. Those are fun."
He reached out for his drink again, playing with the straw and swirling it around through the ice and tea as he spoke. "You know, I don't really do a lot other than dancing. I like music, although I guess that and dancing go hand-in-hand. I've never really played a lot of sports, but I like running. I recently took up jogging. It helps to clear my head. But any other sport... they're all violent and dirty," he said, wrinkling his nose in minor disgust. "Watching other people play can be sexy, but doing it isn't really my thing."
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Posted: Sun May 22, 2011 4:08 pm
He blinked at her in slight surprise, having not realized that he was asking too many questions all at once. Well, he knew he did it every so often, but he felt kind of embarrassed when she pointed it out. "Oh... Sorry! I uh... I always ask lots of questions... Sorry, I'll try and tone it down," he said quickly, not wanting her to feel like she was cornered or anything like that.
Chris shook his head at her question, before shrugging lightly. "I haven't really been in to dating for a couple years. I've been focusing more on school and baseball," he told her, hoping she wouldn't find it strange that he hadn't really been dating. "You're the first I've asked to lunch in... a while. Besides for studying purposes, of course..." he added, remembering that he did get together with a lot of people when he needed to study and grab lunch at the same time. It was just more convenient that way.
"You never know..." he told her, offering a slightly sheepish grin for his apparently stupid question. Even though she didn't look like she surfed he might as well ask, right...? He didn't want to just assume that she didn't when he really did, if that had been the case. The things she liked doing at the beach seemed fun, at least. He wasn't all that wonderful at volleyball, but he could at least play it. And swimming was definitely fun, too. "So you don't build any sand castles like I do, do you...?" he asked, laughing lightly at himself for having such a childish hobby at the beach.
"Not all sports are violent and dirty, you know," he said, obviously amused by her take on sports. "What about tennis? I bet you'd be good at tennis, if you're light on your feet." He could hold his own in a tennis match, but he still lost to his mother all the time. Talk about embarrassing.
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Posted: Sun May 22, 2011 4:35 pm
Paris almost gaped at the news that he was the first in quite some time and just barely managed to control the reaction, lowering his eyes to hide his surprise and grabbing his drink to sip for further distraction. The longer they sat here, the more he began to think this little luncheon of theirs was more than he'd originally thought it to be. The only thing he couldn't decide was if agreeing to come had been a mistake or not.
He wasn't strictly against dating. He "dated" plenty of guys, but it was never anything serious and it didn't usually entail much conversation or getting to know one another over lunch. He had casual relations with people -- a few drinks, some chit-chat, some flirting, then bed, and not always in that order. That wasn't to say he wouldn't date the way most people did, just that it would take a pretty special person -- or a special circumstance -- for him to commit himself to it, and even then it would take a lot of convincing for him to completely give up his open lifestyle.
Right now, the only thing special about Chris was how different he was from other guys in his life, and the only thing special about the circumstance was that there was a bit more money involved. Neither point was a turn off.
"I'd build a sandcastle if I had someone to build it with," he replied, keeping his face more or less averted until he was sure he had his expression back under control and his thoughts back out of his eyes. "And tennis could be fun so long as I got a cute outfit to play in."
He glanced back at Chris after setting his drink down, fiddling with the straw a little more and considering his companion seriously. He tried to think of something he might have done to attract his attention enough to get him to ask him out, and though Paris never hesitated to give himself credit or stroke his own ego, he honestly couldn't think of a single thing, unless all that flirting he'd done at the party and worked after all and Chris was just really good at hiding what he was thinking. He'd done little more than approach him and make himself available to his company. It worked with a lot of guys, but he hadn't gotten any sign that it had worked with Chris. Maybe it had and he just hadn't realized it.
"Can I ask... what it is about me that caused this?" he asked, making a motion between them with one of his hands. "Not that I have a problem with it. I'm just curious... if you haven't dated in a while..."
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Posted: Sun May 22, 2011 7:01 pm
Oh, was it bad that he hadn't asked others out more recently? Not that Chris noticed her surprise, but still. And he hardly thought he was special, so that was fine is Paris didn't think he was anything to jump for joy about.
Chris nodded in understanding when she explained the circumstances for her to build a sandcastle, before letting out a light laugh when she mentioned needing a cute outfit in order to play tennis. "Fair enough," he agreed, not minding tennis skirts at all. Actually he preferred them. Well... On others... Not himself, obviously.
He reached over to pick up his drink, taking a sip of the tea as Paris asked him 'why' to everything, which almost caused him to freeze in slight surprise. How the hell was he supposed to answer that? 'Oh, I figured I would go for it?' or 'Well, you scored almost a ten for your legs. If you had shorts on and high heels, it would probably hit an eleven.' Yeah, like that would go over well. Or maybe 'Well, my brother has been harassing me about not having a girlfriend so I figured I should ask out the first girl that showed me any interest'?
While all those were at least partially true, he knew that was just the panic of being put on the spot talking.
"I figured it was the only way I could see you again," Chris admitted, hoping that didn't sound too horribly lame. No, it probably did sound really lame and he had no idea how to fix it. "At the party, I didn't really expect to se you again. You... you're fun to talk to. You actually included me in doing something with you instead of the others who... just wanted me to play for them," he explained, shrugging lightly since it wasn't really that big of a deal. "The other girls there were nice, but you asked me to teach you how to play instead of requesting another song. And then, when we ran into each other earlier this week... I... didn't want to chance not getting to know you better." He paused, trying to think of something to redeem himself for being so ridiculously lame, but ended up ducking down his head to fiddle with his utensils. "That's all..."
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Posted: Sun May 22, 2011 7:32 pm
Paris probably would have liked the partially true but not all-together appropriate answers better than the one he got. It wasn't that he didn't like hearing that he was worth getting to know, but the way Chris worded it made this seem much too serious all of a sudden, especially for a third encounter. He'd hope for something along the lines of 'Well, I think you're pretty and I thought it'd be fun' but had instead gotten something much some sentimental -- something he wasn't entirely comfortable with.
"You wanted... to see me again..." he repeated slowly, trying not to sound so confused even if he kind of was. "But... you barely even know me. I mean, I know this whole going out thing is so we can get to know one another, but you don't even know my last name."
He didn't even know what he was supposed to do about this situation now that he was in it. Chris wasn't a bad guy, but Paris was beginning to get the feeling that this might be going a bit fast. Not that he particularly minded in other circumstances, but it didn't seem like Chris was just messing around. He hadn't dated for a while and he was looking for something. Paris knew he couldn't be that something, no matter how nice Chris was or how much money he had in his pocket. Firstly, he didn't like getting that close to people, and secondly... he wasn't a girl...
He wondered if he should tell Chris that, let him know he'd been duped this whole time and stop this before it got even worse, but then he thought if Chris was dumb enough not to notice then he deserved to be fooled. The guy was getting way ahead of himself anyway, wasn't he? For someone who seemed so intelligent, he sure was setting himself up to get played.
"It's LeFay, by the way," he continued, "and, yes, it's French. No, I can't speak it very well. My dad stopped bothering to teach me when my mom left when I was ten. I'm seventeen years old, I have very few friends and even less direction in my life, and I'm not the easiest person to get along with. Maybe I'm not like the other Crystal girls you know, or maybe I am. I'm selfish and vain, and I always put myself first, though in my defense no one else ever has. The truth is, I saw you at that party when I heard you singing Silver Springs, and I thought you were good looking so I went over to hit on you, and now... I guess I agreed to come out with you because I had a good time. It's been a while since I've gone out with anyone and had fun."
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Posted: Mon May 23, 2011 12:15 pm
Yeeaaahhh, he'd realized that he was getting too deep into it about halfway through, but there wasn't much he could do to shut his mouth and start over, was there...? Feeling a light shade of red flush his cheeks, Chris laughed lightly and awkwardly, a hand reaching up to brush at his hair and scratch the back of his neck. Well, this was... very awkward...
"Oh, right... I probably should know that, shouldn't I?" he half joked, although he was also trying to cover up the fact that he was probably coming off as very desperate. How lame. The first girl he took some real interest in and she thought he was a creep. "Um... And mine is Gallo... Italian, but not completely. I like lasagna, at least?" he offered, hoping that Paris wasn't being completely serious with her listing of everything he should know about her and more.
Then again, why wouldn't she be serious...? He was obviously making this lunch date into something much more serious than he should have, so he kind of walked into this backlash. Talk about embarrassing.
"Well," he started, still feeling rather awkward about everything, "I was going to ask you to go to dinner with me next Friday, but maybe I should try harder to keep things slow." He was so obviously out of practice with this dating business. Or maybe he was just misreading her and what she was expecting. He paused again, thinking about it for a few moments. "Well, I guess that would be a bad time, anyway... I think prom is that night... Are you going...?" he wondered, feeling even more lame for not asking her about that sooner. Oh jeez, she wasn't expecting him to ask her to prom, was she? Or maybe she already had a date to prom and was just humoring him...? He didn't know any more...
Luckily their food had just been brought out to them, so he had something to distract himself. But depending on her response, he wasn't sure if he would have an apetite...
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