Strike Out

The mood at work was much lighter yesterday, now that my bosses have left for their summer holiday. There was still a lot of work for me to do, but it was easier and more fun to do it knowing that I did not have anyone looking over my shoulder. Then again, if my boss decides to review the security camera when she gets back she might discover me eating a huge piece of chocolate cake at my desk (we had a little party for me and Marta, the birthday girls), texting French Boyfriend, and changing my clothes into a cute dress at the end of the day in preparation for our first dinner date together.

I was looking forward to the evening. All of our lunch dates had been fun: Eric was always very gentlemanly, he and I always had a lot to talk about, and he made no secret of the fact that he was very attracted to me. I was looking forward to getting to know him even more over a delicious French dinner. He had been raving about this restaurant on the upper West side, so we made plans to meet at Columbus Circle and walk uptown through the park.

It was a beautiful summer evening. I would have liked to have stayed in the park and watched all the people playing sports, having picnics, strolling with children and dogs, savoring the green beauty of the trees and sky. But I was also very hungry. Eric and I walked hand in hand, and talked about our days. He was very complimentary, and the Frenchman in him made it clear that he wanted to kiss me. He was a gentleman about it, but he is French-Brazilian after all, and those people have a different sense of propriety. Especially when they are not LDS! I wondered how long it would be before I had to tell him that, as a good LDS girl, I won't have sex before marriage.

Well, I didn't wonder for very long, because not very far into our Central Park stroll, he hinted that it would be so fun if we went to Atlantic City for a weekend sometime soon. So I told him basically, "I'm sure it would be fun, but we could only go for a day trip because I will not spend the night in a hotel with you, in fact, I will not" blah blah blah. I explained it all very clearly, expecting surprise. And boy was he surprised! It was almost comical. As the news sank in, he expressed shock. Major shock. There were many questions. He had to sit down to take it all in, so we sat in a grassy glade for a while and just talked. His reaction went from disbelief to wonderment to pleading, and back again to shock and disbelief. At the same time, he was probably thinking his charms could change my mind, but I was firm and clear. Women who feel that promiscuity is liberating and empowering had nothing on me at that moment. I felt like the most powerful and desirable woman in the world. And yet it was hilarious to me that my virtue was blowing his mind.

I don't know how long we talked, but after a while I tried changing the subject. We talked a little bit about books, about soccer, how we both have very long-lived people in our families. But he was shaken by my bombshell, and could not recover. He told me that his appetite was completely gone, that he had to go home and read about Mormons on the internet, and that I should probably just date other Mormons because then there would be no problems. I couldn't help but agree about the last part, and felt a little miffed that he would rather read about Mormons online than talk to one in person, but I was ready to go too. It was quite clear that he was not going to buy me dinner, and that simultaneously amused and disappointed me. It was hilarious to think that my standards had quenched his French-Brazilian fire to such an extent that he couldn't even stomach food, but I was disappointed that he wasn't at least man enough to follow through with our date.

So we walked back to the subway and said our goodbyes. I wonder if I will ever hear from him again? Probably not. But it's okay. I went home and heated up some leftovers and read a book.