Among the few dates I have experienced, one stood out among them, and it was the worst. Not just the worst in terms of a mere experience, but it was a very serious, damaging, and embarrassing outing.
It happened when I was in school. The lady I had been crushing on finally agreed to go on a date with me, and I was very happy about it. I felt on top of the world and was ready to do everything and anything to make the day a memorable one for me and possibly for her too.
The day arrived, a Friday evening after the school activities of the day. I dressed up and headed to the eatery we had chosen. I got there, and she wasn’t around yet. I wasn’t too bothered because I had been on a call with her, checking on her whereabouts and how long she would take to arrive.
Finally, after waiting for about 40 minutes, she arrived. And guess what? She came with her friend, a lady. Aaah! I exclaimed within my heart because deep down, I wanted to have a private talk with her. Another thing was that I hadn’t budgeted to spend on an extra person.
Okay, we sat at a table, with her friend seated beside her. Each time I tried to engage her in a conversation, her friend would bring up a topic that took all her attention away. Right before my eyes, they would start talking and laughing so hard. Although they weren’t mocking me or talking about me, their presence just didn’t sit well with me. At that point, I had already bought ice cream for the three of us, and as we ate, I was preparing to order solid food, rice.
I was already angry with myself, but I decided to play along. Instead of focusing on me, the lady was busy talking, pressing her phone, and showing her friend things on it. To reduce the awkwardness, I tried chipping in to see if I could make their discussion more general so that I could at least be part of it. But the more I tried, the more I got ignored.
"Anita, what’s happening? Are you here for me or your friend?" I tapped Anita, the girl I came with, on the date and spoke in a very low tone so that her friend wouldn’t hear.
"What do you mean? I don’t get you. Can’t you see you’re not fun to talk with? I’m wondering what I would have been doing if I hadn’t brought my friend!" Anita replied, her voice so loud that people around could hear her.
I was lost in thought, confused by what I had just heard. She said I wasn’t fun to talk with, yet she hadn’t given me the chance to talk. And this was the same girl who laughed at my jokes during our chats on the phone! I was lost in thought, with anger boiling inside me.
Meanwhile, as she said that, her friend burst into laughter, and that was when I realized it was all a planned setup. Maybe she had only come to the date because I had begged for it.
Well, it was good I hadn’t spent much. I stylishly told her that she should continue with her friend and then left the place. As I walked out, I could feel the stares of people around, but I didn’t care. I was ashamed, but I needed to leave the scene by all means.
On my way home, I deleted and blocked her contact because that day turned out to be the worst day of that year for me.
Thanks!
I wrote this in response to neoxianprompts in Neoxian City community. You can find the prompt announcement here