An Asian Date

Do you believe in love at first sight, or should I walk by again?

So, my Valentine's weekend was pretty good. It started out on Saturday where I got to hang out with my life-long friend, Stephanie, and her boyfriend. We went to see Sherlock Holmes in celebration of my birthday. Yeah, my birthday was weeks ago, I know, but Steph and I have an understanding - "Always late, but never forgotten."

Our tradition is to take each other out to dinner or a movie for one another's birthday for some one-on-one time. So, we decided on Sherlock Holmes. Needless to say, I was a bit surprised when I got an email saying "Hey, Chelli" - pronounced like "Shelly", and yes, it's a nickname, but one only those who knew me when I was eight or younger can use without risking friend-inflicted injury - "Alan and I were wondering if we could take you out to Sherlock Holmes this Friday." So much for one-on-one. It was still fun, though the evening was cut short, because, after arriving back at Steph's place, she asked me if I wanted to come in with her and Alan. I told her I'd been around couples enough to know that imposing on their one-on-one time isn't typically appreciated.

On Saturday I went to Maddox, which is amazing by the way, with the family and got salmon, as usual. I ate more raspberry-butter rolls than salmon, but it was completely worth it. I also hung out with my sister's boyfriend, Josh. He and I are good friends, which bodes well for him, because if I didn't like the person my sister dated I would make sure he didn't stick around for long. I have my ways, believe me. So, we got to hang out and watched Les Miserables with Liam Neeson and the Captain Barbosa from Pirates of the Carribean. Good show, see it.

Sunday, Jason - Josh's little brother - called and asked me out for Monday, since it's President's Day and we didn't have school. I told him yes. The problem with this? We've tried it before. It's a long story, but let's see if I can sum it up. He and I were always just friends. But at times we tentatively experimented with the idea of moving past that. At one point, while he acted like he was interested while dating others, I pretty much out-and-out asked him if, as far as I was concerned, he was ever going to pursue anything. The problem was, he acted like I was a backup plan ... if the other relationships he was trying out, didn't work out, then at least he had me. I got sick of that after the third (or was it fourth?) girl. So I decided to discuss it with him. The outcome? The whole, original, "I like you as a friend, but there's no chemistry there."

I kind of was like, "Alright." But then I was mad for a few months about that. Hey, it was insulting, regardless of how it was put. It was still a rejection. Well, this was last summer, to give you an idea of the time frame. And ... now he's asking me out. I think I said yes 'cause he caught me off guard. But we did go on a date. But here's the best part. We went to Gateway Mall in Salt Lake for the date. We had just finished dinner and were slowly meandering toward the theater where I was going to see Avatar in 3D for the second time, when a young Asian man stopped us on the sidewalk.

Him: "Hey, sorry. But can I say something."

Us: "Sure...?"

Him: "I just want to say that you two are a cute couple. You look great together."

Us: (laughter)

Him (looking at Jason): "I want you to know that this is a very attractive girl."

Us: (laughter)

Him: "Are you a couple?"

Me: "No. Not really."

Him (looking at Jason): "Do you mind if I ask her for her phone number?"

Jason (being the completely easy going guy that he is): "No. Go ahead."

I proceeded to give him my phone number. Why? I was caught off guard, the same reason I said yes to Jason asking me out. Meanwhile, he and Jason chatted about how we knew each other, and whether or not Jason was sure it was cool. His name was Ellias or something (pronounced kind of like Elliot, but with an "s" at the end instead of a "t"... sort of). Anyway, we laughed so hard when he left. I told Jason, "You're supposed to say, 'No, it's not okay, and I do mind' in situations like that." And then I hit him, hard, in the face. Just kidding. In the arm, and not so hard. But it made my day. I told Jason, jokingly, "See what I have to go through?" But really, I felt like saying, "Ha! See? Perhaps you weren't sure whether or not you're interested in me, but obviously other guys don't have that problem." I mean, the kid didn't even know me, and he decided to ask for my phone number despite the fact that I was obviously on a date.

It was too good. Anyway, that's the update for this week. I'm out.