Paper Crane Wishes

Myth Busted (then)

Myth Busted

(then)

Growing up in my family I've always been taught to believe in love at first sight, to look forward to that moment when my eyes land on a guy and the world suddenly makes sense. It's such a Disney movie expectation that no one had the guts to tell me it wouldn't really happen, at least that's what I thought at sixteen on the night of my first date.

Aunt Kate was the biggest supporter of the myth never passing up the chance to tell us all about when she saw Uncle Clark for the first time and knew he was the man she was going to marry. And since everyone always said that I was so much like Aunt Kate I always believed I would get to tell the same story some day.

But then that moment didn't come when I opened the door and looked Cameron in the eyes for the very first time. I know I stared too long as I waited for love to hit me like a ton of bricks but that never happened.

Not when he stepped inside and handed me flowers.

Not when he smiled and asked me if I was ready to go.

Not at any time on that date. In fact, I didn't even know if I liked him.

Looking back when I never loved him at any point, even when I thought I did, because now I know he wasn't the one I'm suppose to be with even though everyone told me his was. Love at first sight wasn't going to happen for us, but at sixteen I was so sure that it was.

As far as I was concerned by the end of that night love at first sight was the biggest myth in history and I had just busted it, even though that's not what I told everyone else.

When you have to lie about how you feel maybe that's a pretty good sign, but wishful thinking can make you ignore the biggest signs.

"Hi, it's nice to meet you. I'm Cameron," he said stepping inside and sticking out a hand for me to shake.

"I...I'm Olivia," I stuttered staring at his hand. Was I suppose to shake it? Or maybe he was trying to hold my hand. I didn't know what was going on.

He smiled and pushed the white flowers he was holding out to me, "These are for you." His eyes flicked to mine, then the flowers, then the floor. His face was a little red.

"Um, thanks." I took the flowers and then turned to where Mom was standing behind me.

"I'll put these in some water," she said taking the flowers from me. After she walked away looked back at Cameron.

"Should we go?" I asked trying to make eye contact. Maybe that was the key to love at first sight, not just split second eye contact, but actually looking at each other long enough to really see him. When he finally looked back instead at everything else around us the magic didn't hit me. I didn't feel fireworks exploding or like the knowledge I'd just met my future husband had slammed into my brain. I felt nothing but awkward.

"Uh, sure." He didn't move other than to put his hands in his pockets.

I twisted a little of my bright green dress in my fingers waiting still for something to happen. It wasn't suppose to be awkward. All the hard work had been done for us right down to deciding that we would be going for ice cream and then the small summer carnival. We just had to go and fall in love. That was going to be the easy part after all I had heard, wasn't it?

"Aren't you going to open the door?" I asked in a whisper. I doubted he heard me but I guess he did because he reached for the door and walked out. He didn't even tell me to go first.

What happened to the chivalrous prince charming? I thought that was what I was suppose to be getting. Someone who would sweep me off my feet, protect me, and treat me like a queen. Instead my mother had found a guy that couldn't look at me or so much as stick to the ladies first rule.

I tried not to cringe when I saw his truck and noticed how much it needed to be washed. I don't know what I was expecting, every teenage boy around here drove a pick-up truck, but I guess it wasn't that.

None of the date was.

He didn't open the passenger side door for me either, just walked over to the driver's side and climbed in. Meanwhile I tried to figure out the most lady like way to get into a truck while wearing a dress.

That was the moment I knew that falling in love was not going to be the easy part.

Now I know that was the moment I knew he wasn't the one.