A Woman Turned

We talked about our interests, both of us learning more about the other. This was only the tenth date that we’ve been on. We’ve only been together for about two months, but I had to admit that it was nice so far. We didn’t spend a whole lot of time together because of work schedules, but when we did it always felt refreshing to have him around. I guess that’s what happens when you start dating someone while working a full-time job.

Ryan was the first real relationship that I’ve had. I did have a few flings in college, but most of those were just trivial and didn’t last more than a couple weeks. I didn’t want them to last back then, I just wanted to have a bit of fun and then move on to the next one. I never had a relationship that lasted as long as this one has. So far, it’s been pretty good.

We walked and talked for another couple of hours. When we got back to the parking lot, the sun was setting. It was a beautiful night, and I had to admit it was peaceful to be with him.

“I love doing this. It’s relaxing to have an amazing woman like you around,” he said. He placed his hand in mind. I grabbed it, but I was still nervous about everything. I didn’t know what to think about all of this, but I liked it.

“I had a great time today as well. I love park walks,” I replied.

“That’s good. I guess we can walk over to the restaurant then. It’s just down the street,” he replied.

I agreed. I liked that we didn’t have to take a car everywhere. I only liked taking cars when I needed to. I was more of the “go green” type of person. I wasn’t crazy about it like some people, but I still supported it. We walked down the street, the restaurants getting busier by the second. It was a Saturday after all.

“Damn, there’s a ton of people,” I said.

“Sure is. Don’t worry though, I’ll make sure we have a great place to sit for dinner,” he replied.

Ryan was a gentleman, and that was part of the reason why I liked him. There was something about him that made me excited, and the fact that he knew how to treat a lady interested me even more. Maybe that’s why I never connected with guys in college. They were all too busy trying to be boys and not men. Oh well, their loss.

We went up to a small seafood place that didn’t have a large turnout at the moment. So far, it seemed peaceful and I liked that. The host saw we were ready and serviced us right away. We were seated at a booth that overlooked the waterfront. Ryan smiled as he grabbed my hand from across the table.

“You know, seeing your beautiful eyes make me happy. I’m glad that we’re able to do this,” he said.

“Same here. I’m just happy that you were able to get out of work. I was worried that they wouldn’t let you go for some reason,” I replied.

“Don’t worry. Even though they might be mad right now, I scored a deal with another company that will blow their mind. This auto parts company saw how stellar our service has been, and they were excited to partner up with us. I’m just happy it’s all going so well,” he said.

“I’m glad too. It’s amazing how we’re both doing well in life. It might be normal, but at least we’re both happy,” I replied.

I was happy. I mean, I had a good job that paid the bills and then some. I also had a great boyfriend that I was starting to grow even fonder of. I didn’t think it was love yet. Plus, I didn’t think I wanted to be in love yet. I felt like it was too much too fast, and I didn’t want to screw myself over because of it.

I was worried about being in love, to be honest. I thought that if I was in love, it might mean sacrificing a part of myself in order to make another person happy. I didn’t know if I could do that just yet, and although I wanted to, I didn’t think it was the right idea for me. I wanted to take things slow and see where they ended up.

The waiter came by and got our drink orders. He also got our food orders as well. I got some sort of fish, while Ryan got the calamari. It looked interesting, but I don’t think I could eat something like that. While we waited on the food, we talked for a bit. We spoke of different things, from stuff that we saw in the news to personal tastes in music. It was fun talking to him, but towards the end of the waiting period for our food, I started to feel like I was running out of things to say. I was worried about it, but I decided to shrug it off. I didn’t think anything bad was going to happen. I just felt like we talked about everything that we needed to, and now we were enjoying the company of each other’s silence along with the small talk.

When the food came, I breathed a sigh of relief. I dug into my food, the conversation minimal for the time being. We were both hungry, so we didn’t have to do a whole lot of talking. It got me thinking though, if this was the right thing. I mean, I did feel happy with the way my life was going, but something seemed odd. It was as if there was something missing that wasn’t coming to light.

What was it though?

I mean, I was happy and everything. I don’t know, maybe I’m just overthinking things again.

The rest of the dinner was nice, but before we left I ran to the bathroom. When I got out, Ryan was gone. What the hell?

I was frustrated to say the least. I thought he would at least stick around to walk me back to the car. I turned on my phone and sent him a text asking where he was. After a minute or so, he texted back.

Sorry for leaving so suddenly. I had to go back to work. They called because an emergency happened and they need me to fix it.

Damnit.

I texted a simple “K” back to him and locked my phone. I can’t believe he would just leave me like that! The nerve of some people…

I wasn’t going to let it affect me though. Everyone wasn’t perfect, and I know that he was just doing his job. Still, I wish he would stop su*king up to the managers and just tell them to fu*k off. I guess I’ll just walk back on my own.