The Path Not Taken

Chapter 5: New Year's Day 2004

"Let me take you out for breakfast." Brandon states more than asks Kate as they pass each other in the hallway on the way to the kitchen early New Year's morning.

The two had sat at the kitchen table for hours sharing drinks - if that's what you could call the cheap bottled malt liquor beverages that were currently the "it" thing - and getting to know each other the previous night, before he'd crashed among the other partygoers in a corner of the living room while she'd slipped away to her own bedroom.

"Ok." She agrees.

After Kate cleans the mess in the kitchen and freshens up, the two head out of the apartment together, walking to the diner around the corner.

Over coffee and greasy diner food - the perfect hangover cure - they continued the getting to know you dialogue that they'd started the night before.

Brandon was actually pretty smart and motivated, which was a novelty for Kate, both personally and romantically. She herself was still getting her feet wet in the professional arena and was quite sure her current administrative position (read: answering phones and making copies at a local law firm) was a dead end job and for the time being, a means to an end (read: money for rent with a little extra left over for recreational activities (drinking, dining and traveling)).

On paper, Brandon's professional aspirations and extroverted personality was the polar opposite of Kate's, but their shared interests outside of their work life ignited a spark and an immediate attraction that night and she was interested in getting to know him better.

Kate had grown up in a family that fostered a love of music, movies, literature and the arts. Her parents had taken her and her siblings to summer concerts at the local outdoor amphitheater starting at a young age and she had already seen quite a few plays and musicals - both on and off Broadway - well before her 16th birthday.

In college she'd debated between whether to major in computer science or business but ultimately decided to go with her passion for writing and had obtained a degree in English, soaking up all the creative, essay and poetry as well as journalism elective classes she could, while also taking as many literature courses as would fit into her schedule.

Her slightly introverted and severely anxious personality kept her from pursuing an internship while in college or moving to any large cities where editor or copy writer positions were more readily available as opposed to the suburban town she grew up in and returned to after college, so instead of her dream job she settled for a convenient 9-5 at the law firm where a best friend from college worked as a paralegal while doing a little writing - that never amounted to much - on the side.

While Kate and Brandon couldn't be more different in their professional aspirations and long term career goals they both had a dry sense of humor, were fluent in sarcasm, shared a deep love of pop culture, movies and books and had similar, eclectic tastes in music.

"Who is your favorite band?" Kate asked Brandon as she took a sip of coffee.

"That is NOT an easy question to answer and it is most definitely not first date material."

"What do you mean? And... date?" She blushed.

He avoided the question about their "date" by diving into a lengthy answer about why her question was more complicated than it seemed, but she was learning quickly that they both felt the same and very strongly about music, so she actually did know exactly what he meant.

"I probably have at least five 'favorite' artists or bands. It really depends on my mood. But right not, right at this very minute I would have to say that Matchbox 20 is my favorite band."

"Mine too! I mean, at this very minute. I just saw them in concert with a friend a few months ago. But I've also seen Billy Joel, Paul Simon, Michael Bolton, 'NSYNC - absolutely zero shame in that! - New Kids on the Block - because who in my age range hasn't? - and my family's personal favorite, Jimmy Buffett several times. Yup, we're Parrotheads."

When she looked up from her plate she saw he was, well, not quite laughing, but definitely grinning and chuckling softly.

She blushed again. "I've said too much..."

"Not at all!" He said, grabbing her hands across the table. "I think it's adorable and so refreshing to talk to a girl who knows what she likes, what she's passionate about and isn't afraid to admit it. There's a lot to unpack with that list of musicians, but we'll get back to that in time."