Maybe me?

I’m not sure if it’s just me. Maybe everyone has a crush somewhere along the way.

Mine…well, it happened over the course of four years. A perfect smattering of fate and luck landed this gorgeous brunette in the same degree field at college. Over four years, I think I had 14 classes with her, but who’s counting?

One class in particular stands out. It was small, maybe 20 students or so. She sat in the second row, three seats back. I remember getting caught in constant daydreams and fantasies on those warm spring afternoons….dreaming that maybe she’d come up to me after class and ask me to hang out or something. I dare not make the first move.

I remember looking at the rickety chair/desk that she sat in…thinking that it should be replaced with a seat made of gold, perhaps with a string quartet playing upon her entry into the classroom. That may be a bit much, as she held what I like to call “an acquired taste” beauty. Line her up in a row of 10 random women, and I might be the only one to call her the most attractive or best looking.

That small class, my best opportunity to introduce myself or stand out came and went. Finally, my senior year, with two weeks left before being birthed into the real world, I ran into the aforementioned “dream girl” at a bar.

“Hey, you’re in my major right?” playing it cool, forgetting that she probably did remember me from group projects where I still didn’t have the fortitude to talk to her.

“Yeah, yeah…” she said, a little perturbed to be interrupted while waiting for friends.

“Well, I know we’re all getting ready to graduate…but, can I have your number?”

The longest pause in the world occurred. It was somewhere between five seconds and five hours.

“Sure…but I have to warn you, I’m seeing someone. But, you know, just in case you want to talk shop or network after college – sure”

She pulled a wadded up receipt from the bar and wrote her number on the back.

“Here you go.”

I nonchalantly put the receipt in my pocket and played the finish cool, “well, have a great night – I’ll be in touch.”

The receipt should have been framed. It was nearly under lock and key as I gathered my things after finals. Would I use it? What would I say? How would I say it? What if her home was hours and hundreds of miles away? If it was that easy to get her number, what took me so long?