The Café Diaries

The First Date

We're both looking for something 

That we've been afraid to find

It's easier to be broken

It's easier to hide

Looking at you, holding my breath,

For once in my life I'm scared to death,

I'm taking a chance, I'm letting you inside.

She stepped out of the cab and slowly walked towards the café he had chosen for them to meet. It was the first time she was doing something like this. She was a shy girl who wanted to open up and meet somebody, which led her to join eharmony, an online dating site. Now, this was not the kind of stuff she was into but her friend made her account on the app. And after a while, she decided to give it a shot. What could go wrong, she thought.

After coming across a huge lot of weird guys, she finally met a person she thought was decent. She couldn't figure out how he looked like because his picture was a bit blurry.  But she had a candid photo of hers up on the app which her sister had clicked without her knowing about it at the time.

There was something about this guy which she felt was positive enough for her to meet, otherwise she would have never talked to him, nonetheless go on a date with him.

She was a bit nervous, anxious and excited at the same time. She bit her lower lip, her way of releasing stress and entered the cozy café. She looked around while checking in her jacket and saw a guy standing up from his seat in the far corner of the café. She knew it was him as he had told her he would be wearing a black V neck T-shirt. She smiled and went towards him.

"Susan, right?" He asked

"Yeah. And you must be Josh!" Susan exclaimed

"Yes. Nice to finally meet you." Said Josh as he hugged Susan.

The hug wasn't much; just a welcome sign from him but Susan was blushing. Her heart was racing from the anxiousness and the gesture Josh had made. They both sat down on their respective seats and for a few moments everything fell silent between them.

Josh was a nice looking man with broad shoulders and an almost unnoticeable chin dimple. Susan looked at him and thought to herself that he was definitely an attractive guy with dirty blonde hair and ice blue eyes. She had also noticed how cute he looked with those glasses on.

Josh found Susan someone who had a pleasing personality and was good to look at too. Not that he was looking for someone who was an eye candy; Josh has had a fair share of those and the result wasn't something he was proud of.

They both had talked a million times online, but suddenly they had nothing to speak about. Little did Susan know that Josh too, was nervous about their date. He had spent hours on setting his hair properly and finding the right shoes.

Josh cleared his throat and spoke, "I see you got a new haircut. Your hair looks different in the picture; longer actually."

Susan touched her hair, as if to confirm, "Yeah, I like it short."

"So, how's work? Still working on that client of yours?" Asked Josh

Susan felt herself settle deeper in the couch as she felt comfortable about all of this and the conversation continued till the waitress intervened to take their orders.

"May I have your order please?" The waitress asked as she held a mini pad and a pen in her hands.

"Yeah, uh, I'll have a Mocha with a cheese sandwich. And what about you Susan?"

Susan looked at the menu and said, "I think I'll have Latte Macchiato and a bagel." The waitress smiled and took off with their orders.

"So, how's the book coming up? Have you still told your parents about it?" asked Susan

"The book is coming up alright. It's hard to manage writing with work. Also, it is never easy to tell parents, especially mine, that their son wants to be a writer after they had spent quite a few bucks on sending him to Harvard." Josh chortled.

"I think you should tell your parents about it. I am sure they will be fine with it. After all, it is your dream and all the parents want their children to do well. Maybe after telling them about it, you will be able to concentrate more on writing." Said Susan in a businesslike manner.

"You really do bring out the psychologist, huh?" Josh laughed and Susan joined him too.

Soon their order arrived and their chats continued.

Susan held the coffee cup in her hands and something struck her, "I still don't get why a guy like you was on a dating site?"

"As in?" Josh asked confused

"I mean to say, you are a fine looking man and a Harvard graduate. I mean, the girls go to fall for the Harvard graduate thing." She chuckled

"Well, I don't know. I guess am looking for the real thing; a relationship where two people understand each other, have a pretty clear idea of what the other means and give each other space at the same time. I know it's a long shot, but I can still try, right?"

"Sure you can. Well, that's a valid reason But you can still find girls outside, you know. You're young and all..." Susan trailed off, mentally hitting herself on continuing this topic.

Josh seemed to have sensed her nervousness and said, "I know what you mean and I have gone to a fair share of dates but I didn't feel it. I was always thinking that I could do better, that I could have a relationship I really want."

Susan nodded and brought the cup closer to her lips and took a sip of her latte. She chanced little peeks at him while drinking her coffee.

Their conversations continued and it was clear that they were into each other. There was a moment where their eyes locked and a smile spread across their faces. Josh was actually pleased with himself on asking for a date with her, because there just might be a chance they could take it a step further; he wanted them to.

After paying the bill, whose receipt Josh grabbed from Susan's hands, both of them went outside. Susan was a tad disappointed as they had to leave due to their work schedules. She had to go and meet a client in her office and Josh had a meeting to attend to.

Susan had Goosebumps all over her arms as they stepped into the cold. Josh's foot slipped a little on the wet pavement and his arms touched lightly with Susan's. Before, Susan could call for a cab; Josh faced her and thanked her for the date.

"I think we should do this again, what do you say?" Josh asked her with a sparkle in his eyes.

"Sure, I would love to." Smiled Susan.

Josh whistled for a cab for Susan and before she could get in, he rested her hands on her upper arms and leaned in to place a small, innocent kiss on her lips.

Susan was surprised, but she liked how it felt.

"So, see you soon?" Beamed Josh

"You will." Susan blushed and sat in the cab, waving Josh goodbye.

They both smiled to themselves, hoping that this date would not be their last and many more were to come.

~The End~