Thursday, May 1, 2008

I'm Sorry!!

When I was about 13 I was in all-star cheerleading. We were training to go to Nationals in Dallas. Days spent doing standing backhandsprings and toe-touches to perfection left one in pretty good shape. I was 13 but looked about 16 or 17. Our uniforms were green, blue and white and we were the Cats. (A few years later Dustin Hawk cut the sides of that uniform to wear for Halloween but that is another story)

Looking back, I am not sure how my mother managed to pay for such an elite elective, but at the time I neither wondered not cared.

So I pack my bags, including the staple of hair ribbons and Asics, and we were off. The first night we got to Dallas we were taken to the Galleria for a evening of fun. We all split up and were told to meet back at ?:00. Me and a few friends walked around wishing we had money for clothes, laughing at the weirdies, and of course checking out any cute guys. And, of course, I found one. He was cute, with sandy brown hair that fell over his eyes and he was 17. We began to "talk", which meant I flirted and teased and he ate it up. I found I liked that feeling of power over the opposite sex. So, when it was time to go he asked where we were staying and what we would be doing tomorrow. I told him we were in town for Nationals and we would be cheering at ?:00. When I got back to the hotel he called our room. I began to find him a little annoying, already. So, we talked for a while and I made up some excuse about having to get some sleep for tomorrow and hung up. The next day, I began to hope he wouldn't find me among the huge throng of people. I was coming down an escalator and lo and behold right at the bottom looking up at me, there he was.

Shoot!!

So we cheered, he followed. Later, we found a place to sit and watch the other teams compete. He wanted to hold my hand, I wanted to escape. So, I did what every stupid 13 year old girl would do. I told him I had to go to the bathroom . . . and never went back. Can you believe that. How rude was I. Apparently during the 24 hours we knew each other I gave him my home address, because about three weeks later I received a letter. He was hurt by my escape and as he sped away from the arena he got a ticket for speeding, to add injury to insult. He wasn't sure what he did wrong and was hoping I would write back, which of course I didn't.

As I thought back to this story, I wondered how or if this experience shaped him. How long did he sit and wait before he realized I wasn't coming back? Did he feel rejected, embarrassed? Did this affect any future relationships?

What leads a girl to hurt someone like this? Stupidity!

So, to the guy I left in a dark arena over 16 years ago. Sorry!!

4 comments:

Pamelotta said...

You are HEARTLESS!!!

Just kidding. I did a similar thing to a guy I met on a ski trip. He went to a fancy private school in Dallas and I to a not-so-fancy private school in Arlington.

When we got back and went back to our separate lives, I called him and invited him to my senior banquet [that's code for prom at a baptist school that doesn't allow dancing] He agreed and I started getting ready for it.

A couple of days before the banquet, he called to tell me he had a really important football practice that night and he wouldn't be able to come, but he would meet me somewhere afterwards. I agreed, but only because I was a pitifully desperate teenager and I didn't see any choice....until after the banquet.

I was supposed to meet him at TGIFridays, but after the banquet, two guys that I hung out with asked my best friend and I what we were doing later and said that his mom had given him $100 bucks and he wanted to spend it, so we should go with them.

So we went with them, had a blast and later I heard that what's his lame ass had gone to TGIFriday's and waited on me, in a tux!

I really hadn't thought about how it affected him until after this post. I hope he learned the right way to treat a girl!

Brandi Wilson said...

When I was 16 I had gone to Taco Bell one day to get my family some dinner. There was this guy that was checking me out. The guy was WAY TOO OLD to be talking to a 16 year old and I knew it. He ended up asking for my phone number, and although I didn't really want to give it to him...I liked the attention and gave it to him.
Well, he ended up calling too much and I got bored quickly.
Instead of just telling him I wasn't interested I kept getting off the phone quickly because I was very "busy".
The guy didn't take the hint. This was before caller ID so I would answer the phone, wait for second to see if it was that guy, if it was then I did a fake Answering Machine message and sealed the deal with the microwave dinger.
It worked after a few times of this.

BUT, I'm Not Sorry...He was way to old to be talking to me! I'm sure he knew that!!!

Lydianna Bradford said...

When I was at college in Indiana we had a goofy orientation thing where we did square dancing. A recent graduate was in attendance and we danced together and it was fun. He started calling me everyday afterwards and wanted to get together. For some reason, I had decided that he was annoying and I didn't want to start school dating someone. So one night shortly after classes had begun I was trying to come up with an excuse and I blurted out, "I'm putting tabs on my Bible." He took the hint and I never heard from him again. He probably thought I was the biggest jerk!

Pamelotta said...

Ashlee, I think that's the christian version of "I'm washing my hair tonight!"