Have You Ever

First Date

Kree: “Are you free this weekend?”

My heart keeps pounding. I feel like I’m palpitating and anytime soon, my heart will be about to burst. But I have to stay calm despite this excitement or else, I might make a mistake.

Me: “Why do you ask?”

Kree: “I would like to go out with you on Saturday and eat something sweet and cold somewhere.”

Oh my gally! He even remembers how I loved to eat something sweet and cold. I’m so touched. I didn’t know he would pay such attention to trivial things like that. He’s making me fall deeper to him. I hate this.

Me: “Ah~ Are we going out with the squad?”

I asked, trying my best not to jump to any conclusion that might make me disappointed in the end.

Kree: “I wouldn’t ask you through text if we will be going out with them”

Oops! Wrong move, Enzey. I can feel his seriousness through that one message.

Me: “I’m sorry.”

Kree: “Don’t be. I’m not angry or what. It’s just that I took all my courage to ask you out but it seems like you don’t understand what I’m trying to say.”

Me: “I’m---“

Phone rings…..                                                                                                               

I suddenly answered the call as I was typing a reply. It’s Kree. Oh my gally! What should I do? What else Enzey?! Talk! You already answered his call. Canceling the call will make the situation even worse.

“He-Hello?”

“I know you don’t want to talk with me through call but it’s just frustrating that you’ll end up misunderstanding my messages so I just decided to call. I hope you won’t get mad?” I can sense the hesitation in his voice. Cute~

“I-It’s okay.” What else can I say? I feel awkward talking to him this way.

“So.. Let’s go back to the topic. Are you free this weekend?” What a persistent man.

“Hmm. Why do you like to go out this weekend? Is it your birthday or something?” I respond, trying to overcome this awkwardness I feel.

“No. I just want to have some alone time with you.” What?? What for? Could this be the so-called First date??

“A-Alone time? Why?” It somewhat scares me.

“To know more about you.” He said firmly. I can feel his sincerity but I can also feel that my heart is pounding crazily with that line.

“Should I answer right away? Or would you give me some time to think about it?” I asked, having half-mind thought.

“Hmm. Not necessarily today but I hope you will say yes unless you have prior plans this weekend.” I can feel he’s quite disappointed with what I said.

”Ahm. It’s not like that…” I’m still nervous talking with you like this, what more if we go out just the two of us.

“It’s okay. I don’t want to push---“

“Alright. Let’s hang out on Saturday.” I gather up all my courage to step up from this kind of situation. I’ll stop this push-and-pull thing. I wouldn’t know what he feels towards me unless I’ll give it a try.

“A-Are you sure? Aren’t you just pressured with what I’ve said?” He said but I can sense he’s smiling on the other line. His excitement even reaches where I am. I never felt this way before. I never thought this day will come where my feelings will be reciprocated this much. I never knew that a simple ‘okay’ from me could bring such excitement to someone.

“Ow-kay! There’s no turning back, okay? I’ll just text you the details on Friday.” I can feel he’s like jumping over and over while saying that.

“Alright.”

“Good night, Enzey!” He said enthusiastically.

“Goodnight.”

The call ended but I can still feel my heart pounding. I looked at the clock and its 1:43 am. How funny that even time is teasing me. I never knew I can be as cheesy as I am right now. I used to tease my friends by being such but I guess, Karma is a b*tch. It’s payback time. Nevertheless, I feel so ecstatic being this way to the point that I can’t even take a nap. I have to sleep or else I’ll work like a zombie tomorrow.

=======

I woke up late than usual but still manage to arrive at work before the grace period which is 9:15 am. My eyes are sore and my eyelid feels so heavy. It’s your fault Kree! How dare you shake my heart this way?

“Are you okay?” Stephy asked as she passed by coming from the Packaging Department.

“Y-yeah. I’m okay.” I answered downheartedly. I just arrived from work but I feel like I’m so drained right now.

“Cheer up!” She said as she notices how exhausted I looked right now.

I was doing my rounds in the factory when I saw Charlotte and Victoria came out from the engineer’s quarter. What are they doing there?

“You~~~ Why are you late today?” Charlotte teased me.

“You’re late too. Wanna share something?” Victoria said, adding the fuel to the fire. Late too? Who’s late as well?

“Did you have a late-night talk with K----“ I covered Charlotte’s mouth with all my might to stop her from spreading such a rumor. Well, it’s a fact but it will remain a rumor if we will not admit it.

“Youuuu. Spill the tea or else we’ll believe what we heard.” Victoria trying to make a deal just to feed their curiosity. Since I don’t have the energy to argue, we just went straight to the QC office.

“What were you doing at the engineer’s quarter?” I asked trying to change the topic.

“Haven’t you heard the good news? Boss will be at the major stockholder’s annual meeting so we’re free from neither any meeting nor any extra instructions aside from our daily routine. In short, it’s TGIF, for real.” Charlotte exclaimed excitedly. It’s a very rare instance so it’s understandable.

“So when the cat is away, the mouse will play, you mean?!” Oh~ Thank God. I can even take a nap at the lunch time.

“Yiiiz!” Victoria replied enthusiastically.

“So we have enough time to listen to your untold story. Spill the tea, girl!” Charlotte said, bringing back the topic.

“Ah. Yeah, I forgot. Sorry.” I replied nonchalantly. Should I need to tell you everything?

“WHAT’S THE MEANING OF THIS?” Mara shouted as she enters the room. This crazy little girl almost killed us for causing a heart attack. We thought our boss surprisingly came back.

“You crazy!” I shouted back. It made me alive and almost forgot how drained I feel right now.

“Speak up. Come on!” Victoria exclaimed.

And so I explained everything aside from the fact that we will go out this weekend. I don’t want to spoil something that has not been done. I don’t want to count the chicks when all I have are eggs to be a hatch. But I don’t know if is it just me or did I observe it right. I saw Mara changes her mood when she heard about the details between me and Kree. And she left the room first as if she can’t take it anymore. Or maybe I’m just overthinking because I know for a fact that we have the same taste in guys and have ill-fate when it comes to dealing with them. I just shrug it off and will just hope for the best.

We go on our separate ways and do our job. After taking a nap a while ago at lunchtime, I feel more alive than I was. I saw Kree from afar but he was doing one of the injection molding machines so he doesn’t notice my presence. I went upstairs to do my paperwork. It’s been a long time since I didn’t encode any due to the issues to resolve in the factory and the Sports Fest, on top of it. Time flies so fast when I’m concentrating on something. I didn’t notice that it’s 5:30 pm already. But I have to leave at 6 pm since I arrived late a while ago. My phone vibrates…

*1 message received*

See you tomorrow at MS mall - Manila, 2:30 pm. I’ll wait for you at the café on the ground floor.

I couldn’t help but smile because of what I’ve read. I have to go home and sleep early or else I’ll have a bad skin condition due to lack of sleep. It will ruin my make-up.

I was staring at my phone while waiting for the clock to point at 6 pm. Then I realized, I haven’t saved his phone number. I just know it was his since there’s no one else who would text me that way. So I decided to save his number and name it “Kree ♥”. Of course, a heart after his name is a must.

=====

It’s the D-day. I can’t even decide what to wear. I want to doll up but I don’t want to be overdressed. But at the same time, I don’t want to look underdressed as if I haven’t prepared for this day. With all the mess I made in my room, I settled for this simple denim casual dress and an inner blouse with creped half-length sleeve. I matched it with my high-cut white rubber shoes so that I can walk around the mall comfortably. I put on some peachy-toned make-up but not too much so I won’t take much time in retouching it as I oil up. I have to leave right now or else I might get trapped in the traffic.

Good thing, I arrived just right in time. I was about to text him when someone tapped my shoulder on the left side but I saw no one so I looked at the right side and there’s his index finger, poked my cheek. He looks sooo… handsome. I’ve never seen him this way. There’s nothing special in his attire today but he looks so fine in that dark gray polo shirt, denim jeans, and his favorite beanie. Am I just blinded by love or it just suits him perfectly. I love how our attire matches well. Casual attire for a casual first date.

He’s waving his hand right in front of my eyes, trying to catch my attention. I was in awe to see him looking that way to the point that I forgot to greet him. You’re being way too obvious, Enzey!

“Are you okay?” He asked while he displays his irresistible smile.

“Y-yeah. I’m okay.” I replied, trying my best not to be obvious on how I like the way he looks right now.

“Shall we?” He asked then we proceed to walk towards the restaurant.

“What do you like to eat aside from something sweet and cold? We’ll eat it later for dessert.” He added.

“I don’t have any specific dish in my mind aside from chicken.” Then I smiled brightly at him. I don’t know if is it the chicken or is it because of his special attention right now that made me smile.

“Okay. Good thing they have chicken in their menu.” Then he started calling the attention of the waiter and made an order. I have no idea what else he orders but I couldn’t stop looking at him. I didn’t know he can be this neat and handsome when he dresses up.

“What’s for your drinks?” He asked. I didn’t even know that he can be this considerate and sweet.

“I’ll go with cola,” I replied as I look into his eyes. Then he smiles brightly while completing his order to the waiter.

“Why are you smiling?” I asked as I was wiping our spoon and fork using the issue.

“Nothing. It’s just that, you look so beautiful right now. I mean, you always look pretty but seeing you dressed up like that for this day makes my day complete. I can’t stop my lips from smiling.” He explained while beaming.

 “You too. Seeing you dress up like that is quite refreshing. You should dress up always that way.” I replied and smiled back at me.

“Is this a compliment competition or something?” He said trying to c***k a joke. In fairness, I don’t feel awkward anymore talking with him. It’s more comfortable than before.

Finally, the food arrives. I think he ordered too much for two persons, to think that I can’t eat that much. He ordered nachos for an appetizer, a platter of Bolognese and Seafood Alfredo for the main course with honey-glazed and sweet & spicy chicken, Hawaiian pizza good for two to three persons, and 1 pitcher of ice-cold cola. He’s quite generous, indeed.

“Are we waiting for somebody else?” I asked jokingly.

“The dessert will be served later.” He replied with a matter-of-fact tone.

“Seriously?” I exclaimed. I don’t want him to spend this much on a date. I think he’s trying to impress me or what but I guess this is way too much.

“Don’t worry, I’m a big eater despite my built.” He said while putting the pasta on my plate.

“Thank you.” Then we started eating.

The get-to-know-each-other chitchat starts. I don’t know why but I feel more comfortable with him today. And I also took this chance to ask how he had my number. But obviously, he got my number from David. We also talked about our interests and which matches both sides. We both like listening to music and we’re both homebodies. And a lot of similarities came in. I never imagined I could find someone who would match almost everything I like. He even talked about his dream of going to this well-known company in the United Kingdom but he always failed but he keeps on applying every year trying his best to reach his dream. He’s not just considerate and sweet, he’s also goal-oriented. Good thing I agreed to do this date. I had the chance to get to know him better without skipping any process. I hope this will work.

“It’s time for the movie.” He said as he shows the two movie tickets. Of course, it’s a must on a first date. I’m not a fan of horror movies, it's a good thing he chose a suspense thriller movie. I know horror films make the skinship comes out naturally but I might cry watching such and may end up ruining the day.

“Alright. Let’s go.” Then I smiled at him.

=======

Time flies so fast. It’s 8 pm and I have to go home or else I might end up sleeping outside the house if I’ll arrive at midnight. I don’t have any curfew but I guess going home before midnight is not bad at all. Reasonable enough for a lady like me.

We’re walking side by side going towards the bus terminal. My hands keep bumping towards his. I don’t want to make the first move but I can see his hesitation in doing the move.

“So how was it? Did you enjoy our first date?” He asked trying to kill the awkwardness.

“Yes. Good thing, I agreed.” I replied.

“I forgot to ask you something?” He said.

“What is it?”

“I know it may be cliché but may I ask what your ideal man is?” He asked but his shyness can be seen all over his face.

“Ideal man? To be honest, I don’t have any specific description for an ideal man. But of course, I like someone who has good manners, kind and caring. Good-looking guys as well just like you. But most of all, I don’t want somebody who would just read between the line. I want someone who will gonna cross the line just to reach me out.” Then I smiled while looking at him eye to eye.

“Oh~ I never knew you can be as simple as you are right now. Good thing I asked you to go out today.” Then he smiled back and slowly held my hand. I feel so nervous and I can hear my heart beating so fast. How I wish this euphoria never ends. We continuously walked towards the bus station hand in hand.

It’s time to say goodbye for now though it’s sad how our date ends this way. No one wants to let go of each other’s hands. But I have to leave before I end up standing for two hours traveling.

“I have to leave,” I said, trying to remove my hands from holding his but he doesn’t want to let go.

“Should I go with you?” He asked, acting cute as he’s trying his best to be with me for a longer time.

“Are you crazy? How can you go home alone? It will be difficult for you to travel this late; you might end up missing the bus going to Quezon City.” I said.

“Okay. Text me immediately as soon as you arrive home.” He said.

“Alright. I will. I have to ride the bus or else I won’t be able to sit in my favorite spot.” I insisted.

 Good thing he listens to me. I feel so tired from all the stuff we did but I had a great time with him. Thanks to Kree, I will sleep with a smile on my face. It’s a well-spent first date, Kree.