One call led to another and plans were made for the following weekend for Terry to come over to my parents' house and have dinner. However, this was not a date, a singles gathering had already been planned and he agreed to show up.
The night was full of fun and laughter. He lingered after the other guests left. During the course of that conversation, I learned he knew more about me than he initially disclosed. In fact, he had seen me before I ever met him personally.
He told me that during Christmas with his family, they were watching the newly taped version of the Messiah we had done that year. While watching the TV screen, he saw me, pointed me out to his sister and asked, "Who's that girl?" So, Marie proceeded to tell him that I was a divorcee and had two little boys.
There were two things that amazed me from learning this from Terry. The first was that he actually picked me out of the crowd and pointed to me on the tv screen. (Keep in mind we were dressed in full period costume, even our heads were covered.) All he could really see was my face. The second thing that struck me was that after learning I was divorced and had two children, he still had an interest in meeting me.
When he left that evening, I found myself beginning to wonder if he would call again. There had been no hint of affection during the evening, but there was no indication that he had been turned off either. The next couple of days, I found myself rushing to answer the phone every time it rung, especially late in the evening. I was elated when I heard his voice on the other; however I didn't allow my excitement to exude into our conversation. I maintained complete composure, almost to the point I had myself convinced it was no big deal....but it was.
The following Sunday night we decided that he would come over and I would cook for him. You know, they say the best way to a man's heart it through his tummy. This would be his first encounter with my dad and also the first time since our outing to the park that he would have some time with the boys. As the events of the evening unfolded, it still amazes me that he came back.
Our normal Sunday evening routine was going to church and coming home afterward for a light snack supper, usually consisting of popcorn, chips, crackers, etc. After the initial painless introduction to my dad, it seemed the evening go off withouth a hitch. Until my dad realized that I was cooking and were off the norm, suddenly he began ranting and raving about how we didn't cook on Sunday night and he wasn't the least bit happy that I was cooking. Not only was I embarassed, but felt certain that after that evening Terry would never show up on my doorstep again. Fortunately, the remainder of the evening turned out well.
The next day was Valentine's Day and I had no expectation of talking to much less seeing Terry after Sunday evening; however, around 6 pm he called to ask if he could come by after work. Now after work for him was 11:30 because he was working second shift at the time. After the evening before, I wasn't about to say no. So around 11:30 he showed up with a smile on his face and hands behind his back like a child trying to hide candy from his mother. As subtly as he could, he took the package from behind his back to reveal heart shaped sugar cookies that he had picked up from Ingles.
"Happy Valentine's Day. I didn't a chance to get anything for you, so I thought I would at least bring you some cookies." He said rather awkwardly, as if embarrassed by his gift.
"Thank you but I really didn't expect anything you really didn't have to bring anything." I replied. Silence fell and it was almost a deafening silence. Suddenly I realized how foolish my statemnt had been to him. Why couldn't I have just said a simple thank you? So, I tried to explain away the reason for my reply. Fortunately my explanation seemed to appease him.
We would spend the next few hours talking about our past relationships, hurts and hang-ups. Finally, I was growing weary and knew that early morning was coming quickly. So, we said our goodbyes and he headed out the door. I followed behind to lock the door.
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