Sunday Story Time: The first date

My first date with Skunky we met in no other place then....you guessed it, the Wal-mart parking lot! I don't remember why we agreed to meet there. It was possible I forced the issue because I thought it was going to be a one time thing and I didn't feel he needed to know where I lived! It might have even been because we decided to go out right after his shift and so it was just easier to go straight from work.

In any case, we decided to take his car. And this is what he was driving at the time:


Imagine less pretty, and a girly teal color. And imagine the ENTIRE back seat filled with every possession he owned.

" Jenn, I'm sorry about the back seat. I'm kind of in between places right now."

Is he serious? He's living out of his car? " Skunky, I thought you were living with some friends in an off campus apartment?"

"Yeah yeah..well that changed so, I'm just looking for another place to live right now."
" Where are you staying?"
" Well I go see my parents on the weekend."
Oh...okay so he's not completely homeless. " And during the week?"
" Well I'm crashing at friends places until I can find something more permanent."

I shake my head and go to open the door.

" Hey wait a sec...I've had some problems with her lately, she'll only open from the inside." He rushes around to the drivers side, gets in and reaches across the seat to open the door for me. " Okay, come on in!"

I stand there for a moment, trying hard to stifle a hysterical burst of laughter, and then climb into the car.

" Yeah the radio doesn't work either." I openly stare at him, having completely lost all of my sense of politeness. He has the sense to at least blush at this.

I mentally kick myself just in time for this to not get any worse. " Hey no big, that's what talking is for right??"

He smiles with intense relief and we head out of the parking lot. We were living in New Hampshire at the time, and anyone who lives there knows it takes at least 30 minutes to get anywhere. That's a long car ride with a guy you're just going on a pitty date with! With no radio as a distraction to boot!

It doesn't take us long to lapse into silence. I end up staring out the car window, listening to the miles pass underneath us, when all of the sudden...

" Hehehehe!"

I glance over at Skunky. He looks pretty normal...except for his slightly hunched forward posture, a slight hopping up and down in his seat, and what can only be expressed as a slightly crazy smile plastered on his face. I face forward now, a little on edge.

" Hehehehehehe."

This time I can't help but say something. " Umm...what are you doing?" Perhaps he's laughing at a joke in his head, and maybe he'll share this time...

" Oh!" He glances over at me, blushes a little more again, and the smiles one of the most genuine, radiant smiles I've ever seen in my life. " Sometimes, I get so happy that I can't contain it. So I laugh." To emphasize his words, he claps his hands together and then rubs them back and forth, like he's trying to warm them with the friction, then grabs quickly a hold of the steering wheel again.

I stare at him again. And can't help but smile. I know Skunky from work to be a bit hyper, and a little ...weird. But this was a whole new level of odd! " That's a little weird, Skunky."

He shrugs. " Yeah I know." He goes back to smiling out the windshield.

Surprisingly, this whole episode puts me at ease. I suddenly see Skunky in my mind as this weird little kid who needs to be protected. Later this thought process would cause a whole lot of pain for both of us....but right now it serves to make me relax.

We get to dinner, at a Chili's restaurant near the theater we're going to. Skunky flirts, quite expertly to my surprise, with our waitress, and it's mildly annoying. Watching him though, I convince myself he doesn't realize how charming he can actually be. We chat and laugh about Lord knows what, and then comes the moment I am convinced now, after several years, I actually fell in love with him.

I'm sipping my Sprite through my straw and he says to me " I never drink out of straws."

I look at him a little perplexed, wondering where he is going to take this. " No?"

" Yep."

Apparently he wants me to indulge him. And I'm a little curious. " Why not?"

" Because...can you imagine a manly man doing this?" He then proceeds to unwrap his straw and place it into his drink. He bends it meticulously at the bendy part, and then puckers his lips in the most exaggerated pucker I have ever seen, brings the straw up to his mouth, bats his eyelashes and takes a swig through the straw. He then puts his drink down and slumps down into a relaxed position in his chair, one arm slung over the back of the chair, and states simply. " Real men don't drink from straws."

I finally break out into the hysterical laughter that has just been boiling under the surface all night...so much so that people around us glance to see what was so funny. Skunky sits up straight, a look of supreme accomplishment on his face.

The rest of dinner went wonderful and the movie and drive home were great. He actually does end up driving me home afterward ( I don't remember why, but I'm fairly sure it has something to do with my brother taking my car!)

We end up talking about the church in my driveway. He knew I was Mormon, and was curious about the church, he's only met one other Mormon in his life. Of course being the "molly mormon" that I am I invited him to come on Sunday. He says sure, he'd be really interested to go. I'm fairly sure, though, that it's only because he wants to see me again. But hey...whatever gets him there!

until next time!