THINGS ARE ABOUT TO GET INTERESTING, FOLKS.
I headed down to Norman,
for the third home game in a row, with a low-grade fever and swollen lymph
nodes. Even though I mostly felt fine, I popped 2 Advil to kill the fever and
got ready for a great day of Sooner football.
Pete and I texted all
morning as I was out test-driving cars. He was planning to come down to Norman
after the game to go out and I was looking forward to seeing him and
introducing him to Kirsten.
Getting ready for the
game, Kirsten, her dad and I ate lunch at Seven47 and enjoyed a Frozen Bull
(Red Bull, vodka & strawberry slushy). We went to our friend’s tailgate and
played a few rounds of flip cup. Before we knew it, it was game time!
The game was...hot.
Very, very, very hot and sunny. I had
only had the one drink and one beer, which I was thankful for, but felt like
the sun was beating down on me. In the first quarter, I chugged an entire
bottle of water and a Strawberry Lemon Chill to cool me down and soothe my sore
throat. I felt sicker by the minute. Half-way through to the second quarter, I
thought I would pass out or vomit if I stood for a minute longer. I went under
the seats to fill up my water bottle, cool my arms and face down with water and
sit for a while. I didn’t know if I would be able to last throughout the rest
of the game and debated leaving, though I didn’t want to waste the money I had
spent on my ticket.
During half-time, swarms
of people flooded the concessions and bathrooms area. I tried to focus on what
it would take to get me to feel better and stared at the ground. I happened to
look up for a second and saw one of The Hottie’s friends…one with whom he
shared season tickets. I kept my head up only slightly, and there he was. I
breathed deeply and looked away. He was just as handsome as ever; I remembered
why instantly why he was just so irresistible. But, I didn’t feel well and I
was trying to forget about him. Luckily, I avoided eye contact as my breathing
returned to normal.
Two minutes later, I saw
the boys returning to there seats. The Hottie saw me, smiled and walked over
toward me. He helped me off the ground, picked me up and hugged me tight. As he
put me down, I saw his two friends looking very uncomfortable. Understandably,
they didn’t know how to react around me. The Hottie and I made flirtatious
small talk about how we were doing, my face tattoo, then about his upcoming
move to LA. He told me I looked great, which was nice to hear considering I
felt like crap. I felt so uncomfortable. I couldn’t really talk to him with his two friends right there in front of me.
I could have talked to him for hours, but knew we’d have to keep it short and
casual. The Hottie asked me to come sit with them in the fourth quarter, and I
told him I’d think about it, but I was only at the game with one friend and her
dad, and I didn’t want to ditch her. We said good-bye, and he told me to text
him.
I went back to my seat considering
now my adrenaline was in high gear. Within 5 minutes, The Hottie had already
texted me: “hey it was good seeing you!
Watcha doing after??” I replied that I didn’t know if I would stay in
Norman or go back to the city and that I may come over there in the last few
minutes of the game. I didn’t. I stayed with Kirsten knowing that her cell
phone was almost dead and off for the game. Reception would be terrible in
Norman for the rest of the night and I didn’t want to lose her. I wanted to see
Pete after, but now I wanted to see The Hottie, too. I didn’t want to play a
mental game of back-and-forth between guys, but I could instantly feel the
internal conflict. I decided to take things as they came. I knew that if Pete
came down, I would spend time with him and leave The Hottie to his own
entertainment.
The Sooners scraped by,
barely, with a win. I had obviously underestimated how sick I was getting
because I could barely stand up and my throat was raw. Kirsten, her dad and I
walked to O’Connell’s, fought for a seat and drank several cups of water. Once
I had gotten out of the sun and regulated my body temperature, I realized I
burning up. I had chills and body aches, all the signs of a full-blown fever. I
left the restaurant to go sleep at my friend’ house while traffic died down.
Once I got there, I sent out two texts.
The first was to Pete: “I’m sorry…I’m not going out tonight. I’ve
had really swollen lymph nodes all day and now I feel miserable :( I just want
to go home.”
The other was to The
Hottie: “It was really good to see you
too. I’m not going out tonight bc I’m running a fever. If I don’t see you again
before your move, good luck!!” It was the only thing I could say without telling
him how I really felt about his move. I didn’t want him to leave. I didn’t want
him to be with this other girl. He was, so I was dating other people and trying
to get to know Pete better. But, I still had feelings for him. Big, strong,
frustrating feelings
I rested at my friend’s
house for a few hours before heading back to the City to go to bed. My last
text message before falling asleep was from The Hottie: “Oh dang! I didn’t realize you were that sick :(. I hope I get to see
you before I leave….” Perfect. In case I wasn’t confused enough….
No comments:
Post a Comment