Settling into a routine
I decided to make one last stand. I decided to call Nicky and invite her out. But before I did, the phone rang. “You wanna go to a show tonight?” she wanted to know. Yeah. Okay.
Some friends of hers were performing their alt-country drag act, or whatever it was. We decided to meet beforehand for a drink, because that’s the way we begin an activity. I arrive at the bar in question — not My Bar, where we met, but reasonably close, since I have a very limited world — and she’s finishing up her first vodka-and-something.
I kiss her cheek and call for a drink. We face each other, turned on our barstools like true romantics. I’m watching her head. Something is wrong.
“Look,” she says. “We need to talk.” Ohhhh boy. I drink my drink and she probably said something like this:
“Glad…great…fun…ex-boyfriend…trouble…confused…love with somebody…travel…city…glad…but sex…happy…trouble…friend…mistake…not saying…you know…okay?”
I was busy reminding myself that I needed to pick up my leather jacket from the dry cleaner’s, and that I was out of lightbulbs. “Look,” I venture, when it seems she’s done, “I understand what you’re saying. What do you want to do?”
“I want to go to see the show with you,” she replies. So we go. Watch and learn, friends.
The show, how lovely. We sit there in the club and enjoy it. I make a lot of great faces at her, she makes them at me. I meet her friends and charm them. The usual bullshit. We retire to yet another bar. Even more usual.
“Look,” I say, “I know what you’re saying about being confused about me. I know you’ve just got out of a long relationship and are seeing this other guy. I’m not saying there has to be anything between us. I just don’t think you should rule it out.”
She gulps and nods.
“I’m just saying it should be investigated,” I tell her.
She frowns. “Yeah. I know.”
“All right,” I say. “What do you want to do?”
“I don’t know.” Frowny frowny.
I get up, take her hand. “Let’s go.”
Yes, friends, she gave me the Let’s Cool It talk, and then we went back to my apartment. What world are we living in?
Still, it was our best time together. Her eyelids fluttering, her mouth gaping. I was doing that. In the morning she looked more confused than ever, but I just let ‘em wonder.
by Jack, October 30, 2003 5:20 PM | More from Drinking & Women | More from Nicky
Within the Chronology
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In the morning she looked more confused than ever, but I just let ‘em wonder.
"`em"? Did she turn into twins all of a sudden, as implied by your pronomial construction? Because that would sure be interesting.