The day had finally come. Mr. M called back (after help from Miss M to encourage him). Our first date was approaching and I was a nervous wreck. My mind raced, thoughts swirled, stomach churned every time I thought about MY FIRST DATE!! What to wear? What to say? I was so excited and scared all at the same time. We agreed to meet at Macaroni Grill which was half way for both of us. He lived in an apartment about 45 minutes from where my townhouse was. It was my idea to meet as a "just in case". Don't ask me what I thought I would need to escape from. Mr. M and I had learned a lot about each other just from working together for so many months. I knew this guy was special. I wouldn't go out with someone I didn't think was husband material. I had already decided that years ago. Yep, Mr. M certainly qualified in my book as someone worth spending time to get to know better.
So the day finally came. A friend came over to help me stress about my outfit. After about 10 clothing changes I decided on a long black skirt and red gap t-shirt. Dressy casual, can't go wrong with that. The excitement had been building all week and I could hardly stand it. I got in my car and headed to the restaurant, only to realize when I got there I was 45 minutes early! I was so nervous I had miscalculated the time it would take me to get there. I paced the lobby of Macaroni Grill, glancing out the window every few minutes, my heart in my throat. Each minute that ticked by made the nausea just a little bit worse. I tried to pray, talk to myself, deep breath. I'm sure everyone who saw me thought I was crazy. Here I was, 23 and on my first date with my potential future husband. The thought was overwhelming.
When Mr. M strolled through the doors, my heart skipped 3 beats. He looked so handsome, clean cut, will dressed, and overall what I had always dreamed of. We sat, chit chatted, and ordered. I don't even remember what I ordered. All I know is that I couldn't eat even one bite. My nerves had the best of me and I didn't think puking on our first date would be very glamorous. The evening at the table flew by. He was charming, witty, funny, sensitive, vulnerable, and very honest about what life had been for him thus far. As he talked, I was intrigued, drawn in, and felt deep in my heart that this guy was something special.
Dinner ended, he payed and we walked to the parking lot. Not wanting the night to end anytime soon, we decided to go to a movie and left together in his car. We had no idea what was even at the theater and walked in hoping it was time for a movie to start. We decided to see What Lies Beneath with Michelle Pfieffer. It was the worst movie I have ever seen but I didn't care. All I could think about was sitting next to Mr. M and our arms almost touching. I stared at his hand hanging off the end of his arm rest and wondered what it would be like to hold it, fingers laced between mine! I was giddy with how the evening was going and sat next to my date totally content that we were sitting next to each other.
After the movie we thought ice cream sounded good. Funny thing was we didn't know where to go so we just drove around. We ended up at a gas station that sold TCBY yogurt. Again, I didn't care where we were or what we were doing, I was on a date with Mr. M and nothing could go wrong! (we found out later we were 2 minutes from a Marble Slab and had missed it!) There was never a dull moment or awkward silence. We shared, talked, laughed. As it neared almost midnight, it was obvious the night needed to come to an end. I still had to drive 25 minutes home and Mr. M wanted me to get home safely. We headed back to the restaurant to pick up my car. As he pulled next to my car, I turned to say good bye and thank you to him. My heart again fluttered with the thought of a hug, or more. Would he try to kiss me??!! Nah. A hug? Kiss on the cheek?! I froze, panicked that I didn't have a clue what to do or how to end the evening. It didn't matter though. Mr. M sat confidently and casually in the driver's seat of his blazer, smiling as he said goodnight, his hands planted firmly on the steering wheel.
I got out, waved and got in my car. I floated home. I was so excited I couldn't stand it. My first date was amazing. Everything I had hoped for and more! And what was even more exciting was that I had kept this night a secret from my family. I didn't want the stress of expectations and what my mom and sisters would think. I couldn't wait to go home and tell the world I had met someone. Someone special. Someone I wanted in my life for a very long time!!!
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