Second Date?

Second Date?

 By Naima Qianna

Kellie

    I walked into the restaurant at eight o’clock. The hostess greeted me at the front.

    “Good evening, would you like a table or a seat at the bar?” the hostess asked.

    “Good evening. I have a reservation under the name Wilson,” I said.

    She checked the reservations list. “Yes, your table is ready. Follow me,” the hostess said.

    The seating area was sprinkled with a handful of people and, a few people sat at the bar. I followed her to a small booth in the back. I sat on the side facing the door and placed my handbag beside me.

    “Your server will be with you shortly,” she said as she placed the menus on the table.

    “Thank you,” I said.

    I looked at my watch. It was a little after 8. I didn’t expect Richard to be on time because the traffic was horrible and he was coming from the other side of town. I thought I’d give him the benefit of the doubt. Fifteen more minutes, and I was out.

    Luckily for him, he came within my fifteen-minute grace period.

    “Sorry, I’m late. I ran into a little traffic. I hope I didn’t keep you waiting too long,” Richard said as he walked over to the booth. He was a little underdressed for our official first date at a nice restaurant, and his sneakers were a little busted. I expected him to at least have on jeans. He looked nothing like he did at our previous encounter. The brother was sharp. Tonight, he looked like he just came from the gym. Me, on the other hand, was dressed to impress. I had a cute short black dress and black strappy sandals. I got my hair braided two weeks ago, so it was still fresh. I pinned it up into a top-knot bun. I had minimal makeup, a little mascara, red lips, and a little bronzer to give me that sun-kissed look.

    I stood, we hugged, and I sat back in my spot in the booth. He sat next to me.

    “I think it’ll be better if you move to the other side or I move because we both can’t sit comfortably on one side of this small booth,” I said.

    “I’m not going to bite unless you want me to,” he said.

     I ignored his comment and politely asked him to get up. He gave me the creeps, and it wasn’t even a solid ten minutes into the date. He got up and moved to the other side.

    “You look beautiful. We should’ve gotten together sooner,” he said as he stared at my chest.

    “Thank you,” I said. I didn’t know how to take the other part.

    “So, have you looked at the menu yet?” he asked.

    “No, I was waiting until you got here,” I said, immediately regretting my decision. I should’ve looked at the menu and ordered my food when I got there. I could tell it was already going to be a long night.

    I picked up the menu and browsed the starters section. I didn’t see anything that jumped out at me. I always had a difficult time deciding what I wanted to eat.

    “Hmm, everything looks so good. I don’t know what to get,” he said as he stared at the menu.

    “I’m going to go with the chicken salad,” I said.

    “Are you sure? You don’t have to eat like a bird for me. You look like you can throw down,” he said.

    “Oh really, what is that supposed to mean?” I asked.

    “Oh, it’s just that you know, you know. You got a nice round backside,” he said.

    Oh no, this dude didn’t just say that. Our server came over to our table before I could respond.

    “Good evening, I’m Maria and I’m your server this evening. Are you ready with your order, or do you need a few more minutes?” she said.

    “Hi, Maria, I’m ready. I would like the chipotle chicken salad,” I said.

    “And your drink?” she asked as she wrote down my order.

    “A large lemonade, please,” I answered.

    “Okay. For you, sir?” she asked.

    “Yeah, let me get that house salad and two waters,” he said. “One with lemons.”

    I held in my laughter. This dude ordered the cheapest thing on the menu. What is going on here?

    “Okay, so I have one chipotle chicken salad, one house salad, one large lemonade, and two waters, one with lemons,” she said.

    “Yes,” we both said.

    “What kind of dressing do you want with your house salad, sir?” Maria asked.

    “Let me that Italian,” he confidently answered.

    “Okay, I’ll be right back with your drinks,” she said as she took our menus.

    “Do you know how long it’s going to take for our meals to be ready?” he asked.

    “It should be no less than ten minutes, sir. Would you like anything else while you’re waiting?”

    “Nah, we’re good,” he said.

    I looked at him and then at Maria, “Actually, may I get the crab dip starter.”

    “Sure. I’ll be back with your drinks and starter.”

    He looked at me like I was crazy.

    Maria walked to the kitchen. I know she thought he was crazy because I thought he was crazy.

    “So, what are your plans for later?” Richard asked.

    “I’m going home to finish up a project I’ve been working on for the past month,” I said. “How about you?”

     “Well, I went to the gym early this morning, and I might go back after we leave here. I have to keep my body in top-notch shape,” he said as he flexed his biceps. “I’ve been going there for the last few weeks. It’s been killing me, but it’s all worth it. You know, you should join me some mornings or nights. It’ll help build a tighter backside.”

     “Excuse you. There is nothing wrong with my behind, thank you.”

    “You’re right. It’s perfect, but you could use some legs exercise,” he said as he looked at my legs underneath the table.

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Richard

    I arrived at the restaurant a little after 8. It was traffic. I walked in and spotted Kellie in a booth in the back. She looked good too. She was glowing. I was grinning hard on the inside. Her short black dress was hugging all of the right parts. I couldn’t wait to wrap my arms around her. She smelled so good too. Her scent was intoxicating.

    The menus were on the table. I asked her if she’d looked at them. She hadn’t, and that was cool. She waited for me.

    “So, have you been here before,” I asked as I looked over the menu.

    “No. It is my first time,” Kellie said. “I’ve heard the food was delicious.”

    I knew I should’ve looked online first to get a feel of the prices because it was a little steep.

    “Mine too,” I said.

    I was hungry, but I didn’t get paid yet, and I left my credit card at home. So, I ordered what I could afford; a damn house salad. I don’t even eat salads like that. Kellie must’ve thought I was cheap for only ordering such a small meal. I was frugal with my funds, that’s all.

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Kellie

    My crab dip came five minutes before our meal, so I offered Richard a taste.

    “Sure, what does it taste like?” he asked. He dipped a pita chip into the warm gooey dip.

    “It’s crab. You do know what crab tastes like?”

    “Yeah, but I mean. Does it taste like crab?”

    “It’s crab and cheese.”    

    Our food came right on time. Richard kept talking nonstop about everything and nothing at the same time.

    “Yeah, I went away to school at Morgan for my freshman year, then I transferred to North Carolina A and T. I majored in English at Morgan, but I switched to Journalism at A and T. I interned at the local television station in Greensboro. It was a good experience for me,” he said between bites of his house salad.

    “I thought you looked familiar. I think we might’ve been down there at the same time,” I said.

    “Oh really, when were you down there?” he asked.

    “I was only down there for one year. 1998,” I answered.

    “Cool. I was still down there. I was probably working at the university as a teacher’s assistant. I went to grad school down there too. I didn’t quite know where I wanted to be after graduating. It was tough to pinpoint what I wanted to do with my life. I’m glad I found it eventually because I couldn’t go home. My parents kicked me out when I turned 18,” he said.

    “Oh wow, that’s terrible,” I said. I looked down at his plate. It was nearly clean. “So, how was your salad?”

    “Great. I didn’t know I was that hungry. How about yours?” he asked as he wiped the last bit of dressing from the plate.

    I figured the salad was delicious by the way he was cleaning the plate with his finger. He gobbled that lettuce down in a matter of two minutes. I thought he was going to choke between him talking and shoving food in his mouth.

    I still had about a cup and a half of salad and chicken left on my plate.

    “My salad is great. The chipotle has just enough kick to excite my taste buds,” I said.

    “Oh, really, I know I would love to excite your taste buds,” he said as he winked.

    “Excuse you. What makes you think I want you to?” I said. By this point, I was ready to go. I had work in the morning, and he wasn’t that interesting to me.

    “I can tell by the way you’re looking at me?” he said.

    “Umm, no. I don’t think so. You’ve really lost your mind. I’m ready to go,” I said. I took a few more bites, placed my cloth napkin over my plate, and said, “Check, please.”

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Maria

    The woman was put together, but the man looked kind of rough. I mean, it’s not the fanciest restaurant, but it is somewhat expensive. He didn’t put any effort into his appearance. He had on gym shorts, a t-shirt, and banged-up sneakers. It seemed it was their first date, and boy was it a doozy. I’m not one to talk to about my patrons, but since you’ve asked, I’ll give you my observation.

    I thought the guy was kind of cheap, too. I mean, he ordered the least expensive item on the menu. The house salad is $6. The water is free. The woman’s meal was $15, her starter was $8.50, and her drink was $5. I could tell she was lowkey embarrassed. She probably didn’t want to be there any more than I did, and I wasn’t the one on the date. I wanted to say something, but I kept quiet and gave them the best service I could under the circumstance.

    I wasn’t surprised when the woman asked for the check right after she finished her meal. I’m surprised she stayed that long. I thought she would’ve gotten a to-go box two minutes in.

    The woman gave me a $20 tip, and the guy tipped me $2. I doubt she goes out with him again.

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Kellie

    I couldn’t wait to get out of there. I paid for my part of the bill and gave Maria a generous tip. I don’t know if Richard had enough for his share, and I didn’t care. I was not waiting around to see. I wish things would’ve gone better. Richard was good on paper and checked all the right boxes, but he was a no-no for me in person. I was not impressed at all, and I thought he was cool when we first met. I don’t know what changed between then and now, but it’s over—no second date. Don’t text, call or email me, sir. Lose my number and all of my other points of contact.

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Richard

I thought everything went great. We had chemistry. I know she was feeling me. I sure was feeling her. I think I’ll shoot her a text tomorrow for a second date.