I was incredibly nervous. I hadn't been on a date since I broke up with my ex a month and a half ago, and I've never been good at this dating crap. I met this girl online, so I had a vague idea of what to expect, but you never REALLY know. I saw the warning videos in school, I knew that the likelihood of anyone you meet online being a 50 year old bald pedophile with a Snidely Whiplash moustache was about 100%, and that it was only pure optimism making me assume that there would be a reasonably attractive girl coming to meet me at the movie theater.
I accidentally got there about thirty minutes early, having severely underestimated the driving time from my apartment to the mall, and I'd already done a couple uncomfortable laps around the building, pretending to be interested in the different stores. Now I'm sitting on a bench inside the theater, right next to all the obnoxious arcade games which tease me with their "I was built ten years ago" appeal. Still, no matter how much Tekken 2 defied logic by still existing, I was stuck on that bench.
Maybe she wouldn't show up. I've never been stood up for a date before, I wonder what it feels like. Just how long would I actually sit here? I already bought two tickets for some shitty chick flick I had no interest in seeing, and it was starting in about five minutes. I mean, what the hell is the proper course of action here? Do I wait out here for her until she arrives? I know I'm not going to go inside and watch the movie, that's ridiculous... Fuck, she's probably not coming.
Wait... I think I see her! ...No, that's a bald guy. I wonder if he would watch "Love Beautifully" with me. I bet he's really funny, and he's got some great stories he'd share while watching the movie. Or maybe he'd become hopelessly violent andβwait, there she is! Wow, she looks exactly like her pictures, MySpace angle notwithstanding. Actually, she looks pretty nice, 5'5", long blonde hair, loose, flowing white dress covering her teasingly shapely body... Damn, I am one lucky son of a bitch. I can't wait toβI should probably go say hi instead of sitting here staring creepily.
"Hi there, I'm Jack." I said with a smile. I'm always nervous when I smile, not knowing whether I'm showing too many teeth or not enough, or if I'm just coming across like some sort of serial murderer. "Heyyyy!" She stared at me intently for a moment. "Arlene." Right, that was the name she gave online. Good, I'm not just picking up some stranger. "I already got the tickets, so we can go get some seats."
"Ah, good. Okay, let's go!" She knew I would've gotten tickets. Bad first impression. Nice tits, though, now that I see them up close.
We sat down near the front of the theater, there not being that many seats left. I like to pretend that most of these people went through what I did, sitting on a bench, pensively waiting for a date. We got there halfway through one of the previews, apparently some guy was angry about some other guy telling him about a kidnapping he was doing. Arlene seemed to have some trouble getting comfortable in her seat, but eventually settled down and, surprisingly, started making fun of the preview. Very loudly. That's cool, she's a cool person, she's funny. She is really startlingly loud, though, I hope the other people don't get mad... oh, who am I kidding? The only reason anybody's in this room right now is because they hope it will help them get some sex.
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It's finally over. Well, that was two and a half hours about a woman in love with a man because he rides a horse I'll never get back. I noticed that Arlene seemed to be uncomfortable and was shifting around her seat several times, but I didn't pay much attention to it. These theater seats are pretty stiff, after all. As the credits rolled, I looked over at her and she met my gaze. "So..." I volunteered, wanting to gauge her reaction before mentioning how much I hated the film. "Well... it wasn't as good as the book, that's for sure." Oh. It was based on a book. Which she read. And is now telling me, in detail, about. Great. "Yeah, well, they're never as good as the books, haha. So... you want to get a drink or something?" Anything to get out of this mausoleum for the spirit of film. "Actually, I was kinda hoping to get home... but if you want to follow and have a drink, that's fine." She was smiling, but not in the way where I assumed there would be some sort of sex involved.
Of course I took her offer, I'm not an idiot. I rode in her car, enjoying the lingering smell of pine tree air freshener and old, untouched CDs by The Smiths. When we finally got to her apartment, I started worrying. Again. She apparently lived in some fancy gated community, easily two or three social levels higher than my own living arrangements. It was dark, so I didn't see anybody else, which just added to my anxiety about this being that neighborhood from that one episode of the X-Files. She pulled up to a parking space and got out of her car without saying anything, making a beeline for her door. I followed, honestly not knowing what I should be doing in this situation. I mean, I'm no square, but I'm also not... what's the word... "this successful with women," if you will. Horror movies had taught me that I would probably be eaten by an alien by the time the night was over, but if it meant I had a chance to tap that ass, well... it might be worth it.
As soon as we got inside her apartment and she closed the door, she turned to me with an incredibly serious look on her face. "Look, there's something I should tell you." Yep, she's an alien. An alien monster who's going to strap me up in a cocoon on her ceiling. She took a deep breath. "I am... a nudist." A... nudist? Is this France? Did we drive to France? What the hell, since when are nudists a real thing? So... what could I say? "Oh..."
"Yeah, I've been a nudist for like... seven years, ever since I moved out, and now it's really uncomfortable for me to wear clothes." She looked like she was telling me that she ran over my cat with her car. "So... that's why I wanted to come back home after. I hope that isn't too weird for you..." Actually, it probably was. I still wasn't very sure that knowing a nudist was something I could come to terms with. "Oh, it's no big deal. I mean, we're all born naked, right?! Haha!!" That was a bad joke, but she visibly relaxed. "Exactly! It's just a much more natural state to be in!" And that's when she started taking off her clothes.