The Wonderfully Confusing Adventures of Marcie and Sam: The First Date
This installment is told from Sam’s point of view.
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I drove up to her house, kinda nervous. I’ve been out with others girls before, but I felt like Marcie was different somehow. Maybe it was the fact she was younger, only by a year, but in highschool the difference between a junior and a sophmore can be enormous. Maybe because its because Marcie isn’t like the other girls I’ve been out with.
Anyway I wiped my hands on my pants quickly in an attempt to remove some sweat that was collecting there. I got out of my car, smoothed my hair, and approached her door. Upon my knocking, the door was answered by who I assumed was her brother.
“Hi, there,” I piped up. He stared blankly at me. “Um, I’m here to pick up Marcie.”
“Uh-huh,” he grunted, then turned to yell up the staircase opposite the door, “Mar, your date is here.” He turned back to me and smiled.
“I’m Sam,” I said offering my hand for him to shake.
He took it and said, “Josh. Do we go to school together?”
“Maybe, you go to St. Sebastian’s?”
“Well, I’m just a junior so uh…” Then I saw Marcie come down the stairs. She wore a black dress with grey tights and black flats. Over it she wore a bright yellow raincoat with a blue knit scarf, and her hair was pinned back with green and purple clips.
“Hey Sam,” she said reaching the bottom of the stairs.
“Hey,” I replied, “You look great.”
“Thanks. Okay bye Josh,” she said giving him a kiss on the cheek and then followed me out the door. We jumped into the car and she asked, “Where are we going?”
“I thought,” I began as I pulled out of Marcie’s driveway, “that we could just go to Chrissy’s. Something lowkey.” Chrissy’s was this diner in town that all the kids at our schools used as a hang out for after games and school events. It was also cheap and I had taken time off for swim season at the restaurant where I work.
“Perfect, I love it there. My friends and I always go after opening night for shows.”
‘Yeah and it screams no pressure,’ I thought. Our ride to the restaurant was pretty quiet. I tried to make conversation, but Marcie’s shy and was probably just as nervous as me. From what I could tell, it was her first date. Finally I got a conversation flowing when we reached the restaurant. I felt good going in. Marcie and I were laughing at a bad pun that she made, and I was marveling and her cute little laugh that was a bit strange, but the whole thing came crashing down when I saw them sitting in the corner booth. It was a group of kids from our choir. I knew Marcie would regard them as the “cool crowd” because they were the ones that got the solos and cast in the leads, and they were my friends. As Marcie and I waited to be seated, I turned my back to them and faced her and smiled.Marcie smiled back, but it quickly faded.
“What’s wrong?” she asked, reaching out to me.
“Nothing, nothing,” I replied, but I saw her gaze float past me towards their table, and she took a sharp breath.
“I’m sorry, we can go somewhere else,” I tried to make things easier for her but then I heard a voice behind me.
“Sam!” I turned and saw my friend Catherine.
“Are you here alone? Do you want to join us?” she asked.
“Hi, Catherine,” Marcie piped up behind me.
“Marcie, how are you?” Catherine asked surprised.
“I’m fine.” Marcie and Catherine had been in a lot of shows together, all of which Catherine had been the lead in. They were friends, but Marcie had never been accepted into the popular group, which later I learned she was fine with.
“Oh, I’m sorry, Sam. You guys are on a date. I’m sorry.”
“It’s fine, Cath,” I said as the waitress came to take us to our table.
“I’m sorry about that, Marcie,” I said once we sat down.
“It’s okay, Sam. It’s hard for some people to understand why you would want to go out with me. It’s hard for me to understand.”
“Wait, you don’t know why I asked you out?”
“Was it a joke or something? Because I would understand.”
“No, I asked you out because I liked you. Because this girl fell into my arms, literally, and it felt like a crime to let you go. Especially since I would have probably never talked to you, even though we see each other every Monday night.”
“You have an amazing voice by the way. I’ve heard your solos.”
“I’m sure yours is great too Marcie. Will you sing for me?”
“I don’t know, Sam, maybe. It seems like more of a third date kind of thing.”
“You are totally right.” She laughed then, again I marveled at it.
“You have an amazing laugh,” I said.
“Really, most people think its weird.”
“Oh its totally weird, but also wonderful.”
We spent the dinner just talking, about our families, our friends, some goals. Josh is Marcie’s only brother, leaving for college next year. She wants to study music education, but also harbors the hope that she’ll be a writer or composer. Marcie had passions, and she listened intently as I told her about mine. People are probably one of her passions, listening to them and helping them. If I was ever in trouble, Marcie would be the one to call. We had finished up dinner, but the night was still young.
“Want to go for a walk in the park?” I asked.
“Absolutely,” she said with a smile.
So I drove us over to the large park with the path circling the duck pond. It was partially frozen over. It being December and all. The full moon glittered on the frosty surface on the pond.
“Are you very cold?” I asked, as I watched Marcie pull a pair of blue mittens out of her pocket and slip them on.
“Oh just a little, but don’t worry, I like the cold,” she responded. She lifted her head upward to look at the moon, “Its beautiful, isn’t it?” she asked slipping her arm through mine.
“It sure is. Why do you like the cold?”
“Oh I don’t know. I always say I’d rather be cold than hot, because you can always put on more layers but there is a certain point when you have to stop taking off layers.”
“Did I make a joke?” Marcie asked.
“No, no, your logic makes sense.”
“Thanks, but I guess I love the cold because its sharp and its clean, it can be numbing, but the hot can just be muddy. And inside I love the idea that I can curl up in a blanket near the window with icy temperatures inches away.”
“And the snow is pretty.” I added.
“Yes, the snow is pretty,” Marcie said giggling, “So which do you like better? Hot or cold?”
“I like those cool days in between. The ones where its been really humid so it rains, and the rain just cools everything off. There’s that smell in the air, and a nice refreshing breeze blows through rustling the trees.”
“That’s beautiful,” she said stopping in her tracks.
“Oh, uh, thanks,” I responded turning to face her. And it began to snow. Marcie looked up and lifted her hands to catch the falling snow, laughing that wonderfully weird laugh. Her blues eyes sparkled with joy.
“You’re right,”she said looking back at me, “the snow is beautiful.”
“You’re beautiful,” I said, and then I bent to kiss her. It was slow and her lips were soft. After a moment she pulled away. The look on Marcie’s face told me she was happy but confused.
“I planned the snow you know,” I said jokingly, trying to bring back her smile. It did and she nudged me in the arm.
“I should be getting back,” Marcie said.
“Alright. I’ll take you home.”
