The True Story of How We Met and Other Curious Adventures: During the summer of 1997 (before the beginning of my junior year in college), my good friend Julie said "Kat, I have the perfect guy for you! His name is Mark and he’s good friends with my sister." Julie knew full well that I was already dating someone else (but she never did like him which is why she did a plug for Mark). As it turns out, Mark was the older brother of my friend Daryl who went to school with me. By then, Mark had already graduated from NYU and was already doing the whole career thing. I thought nothing of it and then actually met Mark at a party a few months after my conversation with Julie. Eventually, Mark started calling me and we would chat. I remember our first full-length conversation. He basically bragged about himself and of how content he was in life and of how he is so sure of himself…yadda, yadda, yadda. I remember hanging up and thinking "damn, what an arrogant bastard. I sooo do not like him." But he kept chasing me and calling me. I kept on talking to him and kept mum on the fact that I did have a boyfriend (who I was trying to get rid of –we were always on-again/off-again). I had assumed Julie told him at the very least, and to me, I just considered him to be a friend.
The Library Incident: One night, Mark asked me to go meet up with him and his friends. I really didn’t want to go out with him, nor did I want to just straight up and say "I’m not interested in you." Like I said, I considered Mark only as ‘friend-material.’ So I told him, "no thanks, but I really have to study. I have to go to the library." Mark said fine. Later that evening, I went out my then-bf and we decided to go play pool. Lo and behold, who did I see at the pool hall? Mark, of course, was there. I felt like such a fool. I was blatantly caught in a lie. I mustered all my courage, acted nonchalantly and went up to Mark to say hi. He coolly replied, "oh nice to see you here." I think I tried to save myself by saying something like "oh I finished studying already" but I don’t remember. After I got home, Mark called and we got into a heated argument over the phone. We fought as if we were already boyfriend and girlfriend. We talked and yelled at each other for more than an hour! After that incident, we didn’t talk to each other for a while.
The You-Kissed-Me Incident (aka The Throwing Up on His Shoes Incident): Fast forward a few months later. I believe during the winter, circa 1997, Mark and I saw each other again at a club called El Flamingo’s (which no longer exists). At that time, Mark was roomies Kay, a girl I started to hang out with from work. So Kay and I were doing shots at the bar when Mark strolls up. By then, I was already quite buzzed and we decide to do another shot of tequila. So we do a shot all together and I suddenly cross the line from very buzzed to very drunk. For some reason, Mark and I then start to kiss. For the record, he kissed me! (Though we argue to this day who really kissed who. I swear he kissed me!). After the kiss, a wave of nausea just shoots through my body and I promptly throw up on Mark’s shoe. Was it the tequila or the kiss? Hehehe…. Then this big bouncer guy comes up and yells at me for throwing up. The bouncer basically drags me off and kicks me out of the club sans jacket in the middle of winter. Nice Mark felt compelled to come with me, and basically watches over me as I continue to throw up by the dumpster outside the club. Eventually, I think Mark helps me get back in the club. I spend the rest of the night sitting on the floor of a bathroom stall as the world spins around me. I don’t know what happened to Mark that night. We don’t talk for a while.
The Matchbook Incident: Early November 1998 at (the now-defunct) Pageant Lounge. Mark’s birthday. I get there with my friend Julie and chat with our friends. Mark was there of course, and we start talking. He was still clearly very interested in me. I was too and we spend most of the night talking. As it was, I also found his other friend quite interesting as well. Funny thing was, each time I tried to talk to Mark’s friend, Mark would be at my side with a quickness! Mark and I basically flirted throughout the night as Mark gets progressively buzzed. Before I leave, I write down my number and gave it to Tony to give to the friend. I say bye to Mark as Julie and I get into a cab. Tony then shoves Mark in the cab with us and before you know it, he comes home with me. I told me, "well I’m calling your brother to come get you." Drunk Mark does not speak. So we get to my room, Mark passes out on the floor. I keep kicking him and telling him he was not staying. I call his brother Daryl to come get him. Daryl comes over, and Mark mumbles "I can’t get up." So Daryl asks him if he can just stay and I reluctantly agree. As soon as Daryl leaves, Mark gets up from the floor as if nothing happened, goes to the bathroom to take off his contacts, and then proceeds to sleep on my bed! I tell him, "you are not sleeping next to me!" He again pretends to fall asleep. So I wedge a pillow between us, hit the lights, and sleep. I promptly kick him out the next day. He apologizes, claims to not even remember how he got there, and then tells me he has the matchbook with my number on it. A week or so goes by and we don’t talk. He didn’t even call to apologize. For some reason, I find myself calling him (pity, maybe?). We talk. Towards the end of the conversation, I once and for all, agree to go on our first date together. The rest is history.
For the record, this is the true account of how it all happened.
Happy Anniversary my love!
Labels: family matters, musings/personal stories
