We were off to a stellar start. David didn’t remember me. Not in the slightest. But instead of harping on the fact that we 100% did meet at Fall Retreat (if I’m honest, I’m pretty sure I did harp on it for awhile), I moved on to reintroducing myself. Being the bold, excited new version of myself, I invited David to hang out that night with some friends after Cru. And I asked him if he was coming to the Halloween scavenger hunt the next day. The answer to both? No. He lived in Blacksburg. He had plans. It was already pretty late.
I really believed that David was just a loner guy hanging around Cru who hadn’t made friends yet. Turns out he knew a ton of people and just happened to be standing by himself. It was an awkward conversation. And for some reason, there’s a picture of it happening. (even more hilarious when you note that this was taken by Abby. aka Abby Grace Photography) ((double hilarious because wow, we were really different people))
Somehow David ended up at one of the guy’s houses that night for a game of signs. Neither of us remember a ton from that night, but I do remember feeling that awkward twinge for David again. When we went around the circle saying what our “sign” was (basically just some type of hand gesture), David used one from the movie School of Rock. (you know, the part where Jack Black and Lawrence the piano player do a secret handshake? anyone?) Annnnnd I was the only one who laughed. No one else knew what he was talking about. I believe this is when our first inside joke was born. David says he remembers thinking I was pretty.
The next night was the scavenger hunt, which I had super enthusiastically invited David to. He didn’t show until the very end. Which I only know because there’s picture evidence. The end goal was IHOP, so while I was traipsing around the NRV dressed as Hermione, David was in Blacksburg with his friends dressed as Toad. We didn’t interact that night. But I do remember seeing him and thinking it was weird he showed up when he specifically said he couldn’t come.
Guys, remember how I told you how cool I was as a college freshman? Well it gets better. The next night, my girlfriends and I went to see High School Musical 3 in theaters. It was my second time seeing it. Yeah. After that we went back to our dorm and out on the lawn to catch the tail end of Cru playing capture the flag. The game had started a long time ago, so we were searching for someone to help us get in on the game. Someone shouted out our names from across the field. We didn’t know who it was, so we walked over cautiously.
It was David! Of all people! We walked closer and then he HUGGED both of us. What. Why. (This still cracks me up! David is not a shouter or a hugger.) We started playing and the game was broken up by an argument between the two teams. So one of the girls suggested we all stand in a circle and pray and end the game early. (I would definitely hashtag this event #cheesychristianalert) David and I made eye contact from across the circle and smirked at each other. We all headed to 7/11 to peacefully grab hot chocolate.
Long story short, half of us decided to head to one of the guys’ houses to play signs again. I wasn’t going to come because my two girlfriends were headed back to the dorm, and then David said this…
“What? You can’t go anywhere without your possy?”
I obviously couldn’t let that slide, so I headed across campus with David, exchanging small get to know you questions along the way. David asked if he could have a sip of my hot chocolate because he was cold. And I agreed. And then…he drank THE WHOLE THING. The entire drink. So of course, I scolded him about this. (also, this was weird right? why did he ask me for hot chocolate?! why did I let this strange boy share my drink?! why didn’t he show any self restraint when taking a “sip”?)
It was a fun and very weird night. We played signs until it was way late at night. And at some point, David and I exchanged numbers. And AIM usernames. (oh don’t you worry, aol instant messenger plays a huge role in this story)
The next day, he texted me asking if he could repay me for drinking all my hot chocolate. This might be the only smooth thing that David’s ever done :] He asked to if I could meet him at Starbucks on campus the next day and I said yes.
And then I called my best friend and we tried to figure out if this was a date. It could easily go either way. It was cryptic. And come to find out later, that’s just the way David wanted it to be. (insert eye roll emoji here)
Continued here: Our first date?
note* I thought it’d be fun to recount our love story here on the blog. It’s funny, it’s most definitely awkward, and it tells you a little bit about our not so stellar beginnings. Also, it’s one of my favorite stories to tell. Also, when I told David my idea he said “Oh noooooo.” I’ll be posting updates every Friday for the next few weeks! And I’m politely asking that you do not judge the photos because they are most definitely pulled from facebook and terrible, terrible quality :]
