I woke up today thinking about a boy I dated in high school. I think about him a lot. (It’s okay. Clint knows I still think about him.) I went back in my mind to the day we met. It was at a party. I was very interested in this boy, but alas, he was off limits because he was dating a friend of mine. But, let me tell you something right up front. I didn’t care. I wanted to go out with him.
So, as all teenage girls who have the flirt gene will tell you, I knew how to work it. Oh, sure, I had that whole 80’s hair thing going against me, but then again, so did every other girl out there. I laughed with him. I playfully punched his arm. I complimented him athletic ability. (Okay, I really didn’t do that. I actually made fun of his volleyball serve. I mean, please, this thing went so high in the air you had time to sit down for lunch before it reached the other side of the net.)
As the party neared an end, I began to panic. I have to get this guy’s phone number. I don’t care if he is dating a friend of mine. I want to go out with him. However, luck was not on my side. He left before I had a chance to get him number. (Yes, I was that kind of girl who would ask a guy for him number. You want to make something of it? I didn’t think so.)
It turns out that without my knowledge he had asked someone at the party for my number. He called the next day. Yes, I freaked out. Yes, I did that “girl squeal.” And, yes, I did get all cocky thinking I was “all that” and that my flirting worked and I charmed this boy so much he just had to go out with me. (Well, I did. Didn’t I?)
We went out. Two weeks after we met, we went on our first date. Let me just say right up front, I had the world’s biggest crush on this boy. He knew just what to say and how to treat me. I can close my eyes and still see him the way he was that night. So young. So sure of himself. So damn adorable!
That first date was 17 years ago to the day. (Memorial Day weekend) I meant it when I told you it was a date like no other. A date that meant more to me than any I had ever gone on before. I admit, I was just a young teenager and really didn’t know a lot about dating. Maybe that is why I can remember every detail of this first date. (I confess. I didn’t have a whole lot of first dates, so I am therefore allowed to remember the ones I had with fondness. Clint is okay with that.)
I still see that boy sometimes. Oh sure, he is no longer a boy. He has aged just like I have. He is married now. (Ironically, to a woman that is the complete opposite of anyone he ever dated. A complete opposite to him, actually. But, I know his wife well and I have to admit, it is a perfect match.) He is great with his kids. Sometimes, when I see him with them, I catch a glimpse of the boy I dated. It makes me smile.
I was able to talk to him today. Just the two of us. (Granted, it was hard to try to sneak that time in when we have family obligations and time alone is not what it used to be.) We reminisced about the “good ol’ days” and how long ago it was. We laughed at all the inside jokes that were ours “back in the day.” I swear, it almost felt like I was that teenage girl flirting with that teenage boy again. The butterflies in the stomach. The smile that I just couldn’t contain. The internal debate in my head “Will he kiss me? Won’t he? Will he? Won’t he?” (He did, by the way. For old times sake.)
For just a moment, just a brief moment in time, it felt like 1987 and we were on that first date 17 years ago. I looked into his eyes and, completely forgetting about the man I married and only seeing the boy I dated, I whispered “I love you”.
He kissed me. And said, “I love you, too.”
FYI: For those of you who don’t follow links to see who the “He” is I am talking about….yes, it is Clint. He is the boy I started dating 17 years ago today. Little did he know then that once he took me out, he was never getting rid of me again!
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