Blind Date

After several darker stories in a row, I’m doing some lighter fare, and something I’m having fun with. This is a slow build with sex only near the end.

***********************************************

I was having a bad string of relationships. I seemed to find every guy who thought that buying me dinner meant I should spread my legs for him. Frankly, I was getting more than a little sick of it all. I am Celeste, 24 years old and holding down a good job. I didn’t need some man to support me, and certainly thought there should be more to dating than going out for a few hours then screwing.

I took to refusing dates with almost anyone who asked. In most cases that was by far the smartest thing to do, since many of those asking, spent no time getting to know me before asking me out. That told me that they were interested in my body, not in me as a person. So I spent a lot of evenings either alone or hanging with my female friends.

One of my friends, Sonia kept encouraging me to go out more. I tried explaining how little I enjoyed going on dates but she seemed not to care.

“Celeste, do you want to be a lonely old cat lady?”

“I can’t be a cat lady. I don’t have a cat.”

“That’s about the only thing keeping you from being a cat lady.”

“You’re so damned dramatic. Look, when I find a decent guy, I’ll go out with him.”

“There ain’t no perfect men.”

“I don’t expect perfect, just better than the walking sewage I’ve seen.”

“You’ll find the kind of guy you want about the time hell freezes over.”

“Lighten up on me, Sonia.”

“I’ve decided it’s my mission to find you the right person.”

“Please, don’t.”

“You aren’t going to, so someone has to.”

“No, you don’t have to.”

Sonia just had a smirky smile, and I decided to drop the subject, but that didn’t mean I wanted her to fix me up with anyone either. She seemed to let it go, rather than continuing to push, and I guess I began to relax a bit. I suppose that was my mistake, though it’s hard sometimes to think of it as a mistake. So I continued to be almost anti-social – at least when it came to anything dating related.

So weeks later, it was kind of a shock when Sonia told me she found someone she thought was perfect for me.

“Jeez, Sonia, don’t do this.”

“The two of you are like a matched pair.”

“I’m not looking for another me. I already have myself.”

“I just know that the two of you fit together right.”

“Please, stop.”

“Celeste – just one date with Jamie. If you aren’t compatible, no problem.”

“I’m not sleeping with him.”

“No sex on the first, second, or third date, if it goes that far.”

“Not the fourth, fifth, or sixth, either.”

“So there is a chance for multiple dates? That’s great.”

“I don’t want one date, much less several.”

“Come on, you haven’t been on a date in months. It’s not going to kill you.”

“That’s what you think.”

“Jamie is nice and I think the two of you will get along.”

“Just let me moulder by myself.”

“It isn’t good for you. Just give this a try.”

“So what is this Jamie like?”

“Nice person, but got dumped by their ex, and a little hesitant to jump back in.”

“Well, I guess we have that in common.”

“I think you’ll find Jamie is a decent person if you’ll give them a chance.”

“You aren’t going to give up until I agree, are you?”

“Nope.”

“Fuck, Fine, set me up with Jamie.”

Sonia made all the arrangements, so I never even spoke with Jamie. We were to meet at a nice restaurant, and I was to wear my lavender pussybow blouse, so Jamie could recognize me. Sonia knew my wardrobe, so she made the choice as to what I was to wear. I arrived a little early and told the hostess that I was meeting someone.

As she was escorting me to a table, a woman spoke to me. She was a little taller than me, dressed in slacks and a button down women’s shirt. “Celeste?”

“Yes. May I help you?”

“I’m Jamie.”

I almost died. My friend Sonia had set me up on a blind date with a woman. At that moment, I could cheerfully have strangled my friend. “You’re Jamie? I didn’t think – “

“You didn’t think your date was a woman.”

“How could Sonia have – “

“She has a wicked sense of humor.”

“I don’t think we should – “

“Let’s not call it a date, but we’re both here, so why don’t we just have a nice dinner together.”

“I don’t think we should do that.”

“Sonia gave me a gift certificate for this place, so we might as well take advantage of it.”

The hostess had walked away and Jamie and I were standing by the table. “I don’t want to give you the wrong impression, Jamie.”

“Please, have a seat. We can each have a glass of wine and agree that Sonia is a piece of shit.”

Reluctantly, I sat down. A waitress came over and Jamie ordered a bottle of Chardonnay. I didn’t think I should drink much, but I was so angry at Sonia and humiliated by it all that I didn’t protest. Very quickly, we each had a glass of wine, with the rest of the bottle in a little bucket or cooler on the table. Jamie raised a glass in a toast.

“Here’s to kicking Sonia’s ass when we see her.”

In spite of it all, I had to laugh, as we clinked glasses and began to sip our wine. Jamie seemed to understand and drove the conversation as we started. “So I have to assume you’re not into girls and had no intention of going on anything resembling a date with any other woman.”

“That’s a safe bet.”

“Sonia said you’re a programmer/analyst. I do some of that, as well as a little systems architecture and systems maintenance, of course.”

We spent a while swapping war stories about systems work. We talked about Agile development, code reuse, and modular programming. We talked about some of the truly kludgy code that came to us to be fixed after it inevitably went wrong. Jamie had quite a nice sense of humor and was pretty sharp when it came to systems work.

We did, in fact have dinner, since Sonia was paying for it. It was the least the bitch could do since she set us up in this. I found that I enjoyed talking to Jamie. I had the flash of a thought that I wished Jamie were male because I’d love going on a date with that man. I quickly tried to bury that thought as it could lead some places I wasn’t ready to go.

I found myself curious as to why she was out with me on what had been supposed to be a blind date. “I’m surprised no one has snatched you up already.”

“I was really serious about someone, but they decided I wasn’t what they wanted and dumped me for someone else.”

“He was an idiot.”

“Actually, she was an idiot, but now I’m hesitant to get really serious again.”

“Oh, I didn’t realize.”

“She was bi-curious, and I loved being with her, but she decided that men were really her thing.”

“Why in hell did Sonia set us up, if she knew that?”

“Bi-curious is okay, but I’m not sure you’re even curious about that.”

“No, I’ve always been attracted to men.”

“Which makes you an even less likely person for me.”

“Why in hell did she even try to match us up?”

“She said you had been so down on every man you met that she thought you were a closet lesbian.”

“That’s ridiculous.”

“Now that I’ve met you, I know she was wrong. Sonia has really lousy gaydar.”

“I do like you as a person, I just – “

“I understand completely.”

“I hope you didn’t get your hopes up.”

“Like I said, I’m not looking for anything serious now anyhow.”

“I have enjoyed spending time with you.”

“Do you like dancing?”

“I don’t know.”

“There’s a club I go to. You can just listen to music if you want, or you can dance.”

“I don’t want a bunch of guys asking me to dance.”

“Very few guys there. It caters to women. If you’re with me, most of those will leave you alone too.”

“You mean it’s that kind of club?”

“No reason to be uptight. We get lesbians, bi-curious, and even straight women who are trying to get away from the guys for a night.”

“I’m kind of afraid.”

“You can do strictly fast dances if you dance. Two women fast dancing is fine even in straight clubs.”

“Isn’t it upping the ante?”

“We aren’t going home together. I don’t want to and neither do you.”

“I still feel weird going there.”

“Give it a try, if after half an hour, you say you don’t like it, we’ll leave.”

We went to a club that I never even knew existed. I guess that’s no surprise, since that kind of club wasn’t really my scene. It was nearly all women, but varied from some who looked more feminine than me to some who were almost indistinguishable from men. We found a table that was out of the way, though I saw more than a few eyes on us as we went there.

A waitress came over to get our drink orders. As she did, she looked me over very carefully. That in itself was almost enough to make me bolt from the place, but I said I’d give it thirty minutes. We had polished off a bottle of Chardonnay at the restaurant, which left me a bit tipsy, but we each ordered another glass at the club.

A couple of women came over and remarked that they hadn’t seen much of Jamie for a while. They also seemed curious as to who I was. Jamie indicated that I wasn’t available without specifically saying there was anything between us. The women had knowing smiles as they left. I did start to relax and Jamie asked if I was up to a fast dance.

They had just finished a slow number, so she said there would be several fast numbers before they did another slow one. We finished our drinks quickly and went out to dance. I had danced with women before, though never in a lesbian club. Between the wine and the music, I quickly got into the dance. Jamie seemed to enjoy it and our dancing seemed to compliment each other.

As we danced, I almost forgot I was dancing with a woman and reacted more like I would to a man that I liked. When I realized that, I was really embarrassed, but Jamie didn’t seem bothered by it one way or the other. We danced until a slow number came on. I hesitated, then she gestured toward the table we’d been sitting at.

If she’d taken me in her arms to slow dance, I don’t know what I’d have done. Part of me wanted to mold myself against her body, while another part wanted to run from the club. At any rate we sat down and got another glass of wine each. The music was loud enough that we had to lean closer to each other to talk, and I got a whiff of her perfume, and for a second, it was frankly intoxicating.

We drank and danced until we both had quite enough and stumbled from the place to catch a ride share. We sat together in back, and I can only attribute it to my intoxication, because I leaned against her shoulder and wrapped my arm around her arm. I had never done that with a woman before, except perhaps my mother, many years earlier, but it felt comforting.

I gave the driver my address, and Jamie gave hers. Jamie told the driver to go to my place first, even though the driver said it would be a little shorter to go to Jamie’s first. As we rode, Jamie suggested that we might get together again sometime soon. I agreed and I swear I saw the driver look at us in her rear view mirror for a second, before returning her attention to the road.

We got to my place and Jamie leaned over to kiss me on the cheek, but not realizing it, I turned my head abruptly and our lips met. It felt like a jolt of electricity running through my body, and I was frozen in place for a few seconds with my lips joined to hers before I pulled back. I could feel my face getting hot, and I just knew I’d turned very red.

Jamie sounded something between apologetic and bemused. “I’m sorry, I meant to kiss you on the cheek.”

“That’s fine. I need to go.”

With that I quickly got out of the car and careened to my apartment, unlocked the door and went it. I think Jamie had the driver wait until I was inside, but I was so out of it, I’m not sure. I locked the door, went in my bedroom and lay down on the bed without ever taking my clothes off. As I drifted off, I could taste Jamie’s lips on my lips.

As I slept, I had dreams, and in my dreams, Jamie and I were slow dancing and I was wrapped up in her arms as we danced. I could feel her hold my body close and stroke my back, without ever getting truly sexual. In other dreams, Jamie and I sat together. We kissed, ever more passionately, while again she caressed my back.

I’d never had those kinds of dreams about any woman. I’d never had anything resembling feelings for any woman. The whole thing was disturbing while at the same time being exciting. The excitement in itself was troubling. I was sure I didn’t want a romantic relationship with a woman. Besides which, Jamie made it clear that she wasn’t ready for any kind of relationship.

……………………………………………………………………………..

I woke up the next morning, still a little hungover, but with my phone ringing. It was Sonia and she wanted to know how my ‘date’ with Jamie had gone. I might have been hungover, but I shook that off fast enough to give my friend hell.

“You bitch. How could you set me up on a blind date with a woman?”

“Are you going to try to tell me you didn’t enjoy going out with Jamie? I have spies and they told me how the two of you were dancing and hanging out at the club.”

“I’m not interested in a relationship with another woman.”

“Methinks the lady doth protest too much.”

“I’ll protest you upside the head.”

“So when are you going out again?”

“If we go out again, it will only be as friends.”

“The best relationships start out as friendships.”

“Keep it up, Sonia, and I’ll block your fucking phone number.”

“But you kissed.”

“That was accidental.”

“Accidentally kissed – I see.”

“She went to kiss me on the cheek, at the same time I turned my head.”

“So Jamie went to give you a chaste kiss, and you turned it into a real one.”

“It wasn’t deliberate.”

“And the tooth fairy is real and the moon is made of green cheese.”

“Cut that out.”

“Damn, Jamie must have really gotten to you.”

I hung up on her, but could hear Sonia laughing as I did. About an hour later, after I’d showered and put myself together, Jamie called.

“Hey, Celeste, Sonia called me, and I guess she talked to you too.”

“I wanted to kill her.”

“She seems to be enjoying this way too much.”

“I could hear her smirk, even over the telephone.”

“She asked me when I was going to get you into bed.”

“Never. God, I can’t believe her.”

“I told her you were straight. She said you were getting less straight by the minute.”

“I think this is going too far.”

“We’re friends, and that’s the way it’s going to stay.”

“Now convince Sonia of that.”

“I told her that if she really thinks this can and should happen, she needs to quit pulling your chain. I told her that just makes you more resistant to any kind of relationship.”

“Is that really what you think?”

“I’m not sure there ever could be, or even should be, but I know there won’t be unless you are comfortable.”

“Pursuing a quieter seduction?”

“I’m not trying to seduce you, and I don’t think I could, even if I wanted to. But I enjoy your company, and don’t want Sonia to screw that up.”

“I get it.”

“I’d like to see you again, but not before next weekend. Otherwise, Sonia will figure there really is something going on.”

We agreed to get together the following weekend. Jamie suggested we grab a bite to eat then catch a movie. I avoided Sonia, and her calls since I was still pissed at her. I did my normal work, but somehow found Jamie still appearing in my dreams. I just figured it was because we’d spent time together and had some emotional connection, but it still was kind of worrying.

……………………………………………………………………………..

I got texts from Sonia, but texted back that I was really tied up with work and would not be able to get back with her for a while. I know Jamie said she was going to tell Sonia to back off, but I wasn’t sure how much I trusted Sonia. After several days, she did text me apologizing for our previous conversation and saying she missed being able to talk to me.

I told Sonia we’d get together next week. I wanted to get past my second non-date with Jamie before I saw her. I still didn’t want to think of meeting Jamie as a date, but I wanted to spend some time with her. It kind of puzzled me, since I felt sure I didn’t want a romance or physical relationship with a woman. Jamie was clearly a woman, and it wasn’t the kind of friendship I had with other women.

We met at a little café near the theatre. Since we both had decent jobs and it wasn’t a date, we split the bill. We weren’t expecting to drink much, so we each drove there. We commiserated over the idiots we each had to work with, along with appreciating a few who made our lives easier. There were several movies playing that night, but we easily agreed on one that interested us both.

I had a few trepidations, since I’d had men in movie theatres put up the arm rest and try to pull me close. Jamie left the arm rest down and didn’t try to put an arm around me, so I kind of relaxed. Later on, without thinking about it, I put my hand on top of hers on the arm rest. I realized what I’d done almost as soon as I did it, but felt if I jerked my hand away immediately, it would be worse than leaving it there.

The movie was a comedy, and we laughed at most of the same parts. I liked that we had similar senses of humor. After the movie, we each decided to go home. Given that we were driving, we didn’t want more drinks, and clearly if we went back to that club, Sonia would find out, since she’d heard about our previous visit.

We were parked close together in the lot and walked to our cars. There was a commotion as we left, and I grabbed Jamie’s hand. The noise stopped pretty quickly, but we held hands the whole way. We got to my car, then turned to face each other. It wasn’t a conscious decision but I lifted my face slightly and opened my lips a bit.

I saw Jamie’s eyes widen for a second, then she smiled, leaned forward and kissed me. We didn’t kiss long, and I was surprised I didn’t pull away. It wasn’t a full make-out type of kiss, nor was it deeply passionate, but still we kissed and though it bothered me later, at the time, it just seemed like what we should do after the evening together.

Neither of us pushed the kiss or made a big deal of it. Once we broke the kiss, I got in my car and drove off. I saw Jamie, standing and watching me drive off before she got in her own car. When I thought about it, I worried. I didn’t want Jamie to think there was any sort of romantic attraction. At the same time, if I made too big a deal over the kiss, it would kind of spoil an otherwise nice evening.

As I lay in bed later, I played that kiss over in my mind. I put my hand to my lips, as though my hand was Jamie’s lips. I was torn between a mild attraction and a repulsion to what we’d done. No, I didn’t think there was anything wrong with it for those who wanted that. I just didn’t think I was one of those people who did want that.

I fell asleep that night, spooning a large pillow on my bed, and with my hand still resting gently on my lips. I found myself dreaming about that kiss, and dreaming about kissing Jamie. When I awoke, it was clear, I’d been kissing my hand much of the night, and that scared me. I wondered if maybe I needed to go on a real date with a man.

Yeah, I know that many of them would want to fuck me afterward, but I wasn’t sure that wasn’t what I needed. Was I starting to fixate on Jamie because I was so lacking in romance in my life? I decided that I was overreacting to an innocent evening together and a fairly chaste kiss at the end of it. I didn’t want to simply jump into bed with some guy just because I’d kissed a girl.

I was half afraid to talk with Jamie, and held off calling her. She called me that afternoon, and I wasn’t sure what exactly I should say. I was sure I didn’t want to jump in bed with her, but didn’t want to seem like I was rejecting her before we’d done more than share two innocuous kisses. I wanted to keep hanging out with her, but didn’t want her to think that meant anything more than friendship.