CHAPTER 5: SPEED DATING
THE GIRL WHO CAN’T DATE
By Eleventh
CHAPTER 5: SPEED DATING
“I think when a friend brings you to a place without telling you ahead is a form of betrayal. Yes! When Maggie brought me to the Foundry and let me try speed dating, I totally felt betrayed.” – Ira P.
2017 JOURNAL
AT THE FOUNDRY
“NOOOO! I’m never gonna join that! Not over my dead body!” Ira screamed and scuffled like a baby who struggles with drinking some medicine.
“Ira! You need this!” Maggie held Ira’s shoulders trying to talk some sense with her colleague. “Listen! You need exposure. All your life you’ve always been surrounded by your brothers. This might change your mind about dating.”
“Ugh! But I really don’t want to change my mind about it.” Ira whined.
“Ira, please! You just have to try. It’s not as bad as you think it is.”
“I don’t find dating bad, okay? It’s just that I think I freakingly suck at it!”
Maggie crossed her arms and raised her eyebrow. “What made you say that? Have you ever tried this before?”
“No! Never did!”
“Then don’t make conclusions yet. You wouldn’t know if you’re good or bad at it unless you try.”
“Maggie! Maggie!” Ira held Maggie’s hands and pled. “Listen! In speed dating, I’ll be in a room full of people that I don’t know. And I swear, I really suck at making conversation with strangers. I’m a socially awkward person!”
“Excuses!!!” Maggie didn’t listen, dragging Ira going up the stairs until they reached the floor.
The room was dimly lit, accentuated with purple and pink lights. Ten round tables were arranged in a circle, each with a succulent, gold cactus with vibrant florals placed in a glass pot. A pair of a man and a woman were seated on eight tables waiting for the speed dating to start while two tables have men in it waiting for their partners. As the ladies searched for their way in, a voluptuous woman in a red chic dress approached the two with a bright smile.
“Perfect! We’ve all been waiting for you, ladies! Finally, we can start!” the host greeted them cheerfully and ushered them to their tables.
“Maggieeee!” Ira suddenly felt anxious when Maggie was led by the host three tables away from her.
“You’re gonna be fine!” Maggie mouthed as she waved her fingers goodbye.
Ira felt more uncomfortable when she looked at her partner. He had a square face with greasy hair. He had a chevron mustache that made him looked too old for her. And his body physique reminds her of Johnny Bravo. He even wore a white sleeveless just to flex the muscles in his hairy chest.
“Good Lord! What am I doing here?” Ira whispered a very soft prayer
“Good evening, ladies and gents! I am Sherra, your hostess for the night! In speed dating, you’ll be given 5 minutes to converse with your partner, get to know them, ask questions, whatever. After 5 minutes, the bell will ring and the men must move to the next table. Alright! Are we all set?”
Sherra looked at her clients and waited for their response. When nobody said a word, she assumed that everybody is ready. She rang the bell and the speed dating started.
Ira just stood there smiling sheepishly, waiting for her partner to start talking. The guy in front of her moved slowly as he placed his arm on the table and flexed his muscles.
Ira flinched.
“Hi!” with his very deep voice, the man in front of her greeted sexily.
“H-hello!”
“I’m Alfred. You are?”
“Uh-uhm! Jennifer.” Ira lied.
“Aaah! Jennifer!” Alfred moaned. “What a pretty name! As pretty as your face.”
“Thanks!” Ira bit her lower lip to stop herself from laughing. It wasn’t her plan to lie about her name. It just happened.
“So, Jen! Tell me? Do you work out?” Every time Alfred speaks, his eyes flash at her and smiles flirtatiously.
“Sorry, but no!”
“Wanna work out with me? Or do you want me to work you out?” Alfred winked and flexed his other arm, playing his mustache with his fingers.
Ira grimaced. “What are you talking about?”
Alfred giggled. “Don’t act like a virgin, please!”
Ira clenched her fist ready to strike when the bell suddenly rang. Alfred was saved by the bell. Sherra prompted the men to move, and as Alfred went to the next table, he threw a flying kiss at a disgusted Ira.
“That shitty pervert! Argh! I wish I could punch him in the face.” Ira hammered her fists on the table.
“Wh-what? B-but I am n-not a p-pervert! P-please! D-don’t h-hurt me!” a chubby guy trembled the moment he saw Ira all so worked up.
The next guy was less intimidating. His hair was very curly like a fuzzball. He had thick eyeglasses and braces. His face was round and his cheeks were red with pimples. He was wearing a checkered polo tucked in his brown slacks. And he stuttered a lot.
“Sorry! I didn’t see you there. I wasn’t talking about you.”
“D-didn’t see mmmm-me? Oh! E-even here I’m ssstill in-invi… invisible huh?” the chubby guy dropped his head, and twirled his fingers under the table.
“N-no! T-that’s not.. hmpf! Ugh... sh..” Ira pursed her lips and clenched her fists in frustration. She breathed in deep as she tried to make a good conversation with this stranger, thinking of what to say to make him feel better. “I’m Marie. What’s your name?”
“Co-conrad! Mmm-my n-name is Co-Conrad.”
“Nice to meet you, Conrad. You seem like, uhm, a shy person?”
“Yeah. I-I am! Mmm-maybe you’re www-wondering why ah-ah I talk l-like this. I-it’s bbbec-bec—”
“…because?” Ira, with a forced smile, waved her hand to cheer Conrad to keep going. She was lending her ears and extending her patience as she tries to fill in Conrad’s words.
“… because I...”
Ting! And the bell rang!
“Okaaay! Conrad! Time’s up!” Ira weaved a deep sigh. She realized she had been holding her breath since she waited for Conrad to finish his words. Yet, she managed to smile at him though she’s barely managing her patience. “Too bad our conversation was short. You should go to the next table now because your time is running. You don’t want to waste your time, right?”
The night was very long. Ira met a lot of different species of men. She met someone who had bad breath. She seemed like she wasn’t breathing the whole time they were talking. The next one had a broken heart who just spoke about his ex throughout the time. Ira didn’t have the chance to talk about herself. The other one didn’t talk to her at all because he didn’t like the way she dresses. Instead, he just looked at his phone the entire time and played some games while waiting for 5 minutes to be up. She also met an arrogant man who just kept bragging about his achievements in college and how he started a business at a very young age.
Speed dating only made Ira exhausted and bored. It was a waste of time, plus she never found anyone she could like. She was also tired of inventing names. She doesn’t have much energy to entertain anymore when she’s finally meeting her last partner for the night. She reclined on the table, pressed her nape, and gave it a little massage, caring less about the guy in front of her.
“You looked very tired, already!” he said. His chin resting on his palm while looking at her smilingly.
Ira sighed and looked at him with a straight face. “Yes I am and I wanna go home.”
He chuckled as he handed out his hand for a shake. “Adrielle!”
“Micah!” Ira lazily took his hand and yawned.
Adrielle pressed his lips. “Is that your true name now?”
“Sorry! What?” Adrielle’s remark woke up Ira.
Adrielle chuckled again showing his perfectly clean, white teeth. “Earlier, I heard you introduced yourself as Liza, then Greta. I assume that you weren’t telling anyone your true name.”
“You heard that?” Ira was too ashamed to look at Adrielle now that she has been caught. “Was I too loud?”
“Not really. I was just good at eavesdropping.”
“Eavesdropping? Why would you eavesdrop on other people’s conversation?” Ira furrowed her eyebrows with crossed arms.
Adrielle clicked his tongue and fiddled his fingers on the table. “Mmm, let me think. Aah! I guess I have my eyes on you. You’re very interesting… at least to me.”
Ira suddenly felt hot in the face, a flustered feeling she could not explain. “W-what’s so in-interesting about me?
“You’re different.” Adrielle scouted the room.
Ira followed his gaze and realized that most of the ladies in the room wore a dress, a pair of stilettos, and red lipstick, while there she was looking uninviting in her sweatpants and hoodie.
Ira lowered her gaze feeling miserable for herself.
Adrielle was quick to notice it. He snapped his fingers in front of her and smiled when she looked up.
“Hey! I mean a good thing. It was a compliment. You’re different in a good way. Yes, I won’t deny you’re easy to spot on with your clothes but I love how you’re not trying so hard.”
Adrielle’s charms seemed to have lit the room when he flashed a smile at Ira, a kind of lure that she could not dodge. She never thought attraction would present itself in pale skin robed in a plain black shirt. It was undeniable that Adrielle was the most dazzling guy in the room. He kinda looked like a celebrity.
“Of course, I shouldn’t. I didn’t wanna be here in the first place.”
“I can tell.” Adrielle nodded his head in agreement.
“How old are you, Adrielle?”
“Twenty-two.”
Ira sighed in disappointment. “You’re too young for me. You’re just as old as my brother.”
“I may be young but I’m mature. And I believe that age doesn’t matter in love.”
“Love my foot! You can’t find love in speed dating, kid!”
“I think you’re just being close-minded. And, tsk… do I really look like a kid to you?”
Ira was speechless. Adrielle was such a smooth-talker.
Then the bell rang. Ira left her spot without saying another word to Adrielle. She went to look for Maggie while Sherra was giving the last instructions.
She found her friend exchanging numbers with the guy who did not talk to her.
“Come on, Maggie! Let’s get out of here!”
Grabbing Maggie by the arm, she rushed to walk out the door without looking back.
“Slow down, Ira!” Maggie followed Ira’s footsteps as they run down the stairs. Didn’t you enjoy the evening?”
“I’ll never come back here!”
“Seriously? Didn’t you meet anyone nice?”
“No, I didn’t!”
“But it was so much fun! I even had a great night.”
“Well, I didn’t! And I wanna go home!”
Ira dragged Maggie harshly until they got out of the building. She checked the time and it was already eight in the evening. Remembering that she forgot to inform her brothers that she’d be home late, she felt worried.
“I’ll be dead if my brothers found out I’m still not home.” Ira trembled when she sought for her phone in her bag.
Maggie crinkled her forehead in disbelief. “What in the world? You’re already 25. You’re an adult! They can’t possibly scold you for being out of the house at this hour. Besides it’s not yet late!”
“They won’t not unless I asked for permission.” Ira found her phone at the bottom of her bag and began to dial her brother’s phone number, while Maggie was looking at her pathetically.
“Ira?” Before Ira could make a call, a familiar voice called her from a distance.
Ira dropped her jaw seeing Eros walking closer to where she and Maggie were standing. She swallowed her saliva and instantly held Maggie’s arm.
“Don’t ever mention speed dating! Understand?” Ira’s face was rattled.
Maggie was confused. “Why not?”
“Because I would die in embarrassment. Surely, my brothers will laugh at me and will never stop teasing me if they find out about it.”
“Which one is your brother by the way?” Maggie had to ask. She never met anyone in her family despite hearing about them for five years. Two men, both tall, fit, and good-looking, were approaching in their direction, one has pale skin and one’s a tan.
The light from the lamp post was yellow and dim. It was hard for Ira to identify the other guy, but she can tell who her brother is the way Eros walk.
“The one wearing a black long sleeves polo.”
Maggie spotting a fetching man that looked like an angel walking in the dark pinched Ira on her arm.
“Ow! What was that for?” Ira caressed her arm with an annoyed face.
Maggie faced Ira with disbelief. “How come you never told me you had a gorgeous brother?”
“Haven’t I mentioned that he was a ramp model? That should tell you he had a pretty face, duh!”
Maggie was incredibly amazed at Eros’ pretty face. “Wow, Ira! I believe in your words now.”
“What words?”
“That you don’t look like any of your brothers.”
“I hate you!” Ira crossed her arms feeling more annoyed.
“What are you doing here? Why aren’t you home yet?” Eros and his fried were finally inches closer to Ira and Maggie. Looking at the building behind them, Eros smirked as his suspicions grew.
“Sorry I dragged your sister for a cup of coffee. We had a lovely conversation that we didn’t notice the time.” Maggie explained cheerfully.
Eros shot his cryptic eyes on Maggie and smiled sexily as he gave out a hand. “You must be Maggie. My sister’s only friend.”
“Hey! What do you mean my only friend? I have a lot of friends.” Ira complained.
“Shut up, Ira! We know your brother’s right. I am your only friend.” Maggie reached for his hand without breaking eye contact with Eros. “You must be Eros. Ira talks a lot about you.”
“Hey! I don’t talk a lot about him.” Ira complained once more.
Then she rolled her eyes knowing that they were both flirting.
“It’s wonderful to finally meet you.” Holding her hand, Eros gently stroke it with his thumb and kissed it.
Maggie responded with a smile holding herself not to be too excited. “Me too.”
“Okay! That’s enough! Time to go home!” Ira pulled their hands off from one another. Dragging Maggie again, she called for a cab and pushed Maggie inside. “Bye, Mags! See you tomorrow. Call me when you get home!”
And the cab left. Then she turned to scold Eros.
“Eros, I’m warning you!”
“Why? What did I do?”
“Don’t play dumb with me, bro!”
“I really don’t know what you mean, Ira!”
“If you do something stupid to Maggie, I swear I’ll shave your head.”
Meanwhile, the other guy with Eros chuckled as he watched Ira so agitated. Ira wasn’t pleased that she looked at him with scary eyes.
“What are you laughing at?”
“I’m sorry, Ira Bear! It's fun to watch you act feisty.”
The guy stepped into the light and when Ira saw the man and his dimples, she froze for a moment, and a slight curve in her lips formed.
“J-Joey? Joey delos Santos?”
Joey walked a bit closer to Ira until he was inches away from her. He lowered his back to meet Ira’s eyes because she was too short, and patted her head like a puppy.
“Feisty but still very cute!”
Joey smiled. It was a killer that Ira felt like she was going to die when she saw those dimples again. She couldn’t speak. Her heart raced. She stopped breathing. She can’t believe that her first love who was gone for a long time is right in front of her.