A Series of Love Stories

Things with Book Boyfriend are going well. Really really well.

But first...

Wine, Walking Pads, and a Knock at the Door

The first week my ex-husband moved out of my house, I entered my hot mess era. I entered it hard. I thought it wouldn’t be that different from how things had been. We were already avoiding each other in the house anyway. I was wrong. The first few days went okay-ish. I was starting to figure out that bedtime for my son was a solo activity now. I got accustomed to setting the house alarm before going to bed and taking out the trash. Yeah, everything was going great... until I decided to try and make spaghetti for dinner.

Why won’t this open? The table was set, the wine was poured, the pasta was cooked, but I could not open the jar of tomato sauce. I looked up every hack in the book. Warm water? Nope. Hit it with a spoon? Didn’t work. Can opener? Hit it on the counter? No and no.

He wasn’t there to open my jar of tomato sauce for me. No one was there to open my tomato sauce for me. Oh no… I think I’m alone.

The following night, I chose not to make spaghetti or anything else. Instead of eating, I opted for a bottle of rosé. Needless to say, I wasn't sober. Alone and bored in my house, I remembered a walking pad I had recently ordered from Amazon, which sparked an idea. I moved an end table next to the walking pad to hold my glass of wine. Then, I began strutting on the walking pad, listening to music and drinking wine alone. To make matters worse, I convinced myself that I must look super cute and decided to record my strutting on camera. I then sent my "adorable" videos to Book Boyfriend.

A few moments later, I heard a knock at the door. Excitedly, I rushed over with a glass of wine in hand and opened it. There he stood. Wow, he's so cute. As he walked in, he immediately noticed my wine glass and the empty wine bottle on the coffee table.

“Having fun?” He asks me.

“I am now.” (Honestly smooth girl)

He laughs and steps inside the living room. He asks me why I felt the need to drink alone. At first, I lied and said, “Just wanted some wine!” with a goofy grin. When he pressed a bit more, I told him I was sad because I couldn’t open my tomato sauce jar the other day. He goes to the kitchen to see if it’s there so he can open it for me, but I had already thrown it out in a fit of rage like a toddler.

He smiles and pours me a glass of water. He asks me what I ate today. I say, “a cheese stick and a protein shake.” Less than an hour later, nachos are delivered to my door. He watches me eat them, gives me more water, and tells me it’s bedtime.

I go to sleep with a full tummy and a smile.

Change of plans…or not?

One evening, we have plans to go out for dinner. He texts me asking if we can eat earlier because he has a friend visiting whom he wants to meet. I tell him that's fine and ask if he wants to postpone our dinner instead. He still wants to see me.

That evening, I introduced him to Cracker Barrel. It's a good thing he didn't cancel, or he would have missed out on the euphoric experience that is their biscuits. I even bought us cowboy hats for the occasion.

After dinner, we drive back to my place, and I get out of the car, telling him to enjoy his time with his friends. He says he can stay a bit longer. He ends up staying for hours. We eat cheesecake. I hope his friends don’t mind that I kept him out so late.

Romance

He gets into a car accident. He’s okay, but his car isn’t. He’s going to need to buy a new one. He wants to try out some rental cars before making a decision. One night he tries out a Tesla. We drive for hours. We press all the buttons and laugh at the silly features the car has, like making it dance or fart sounds. He squeezes my leg in the car, and I’m about to pass out because he touched me. My cheeks turn bright red, and I look out the window instead of at him, because when I look at him, my mind goes blank. We start to get a little hungry, so we stop at Wendy’s for cheeseburgers. He parks the car by the ocean and puts the car into “romance mode.” A tiny digital fireplace starts playing on the screen. We laugh and enjoy our romantic Wendy’s meal together in his rental car. It’s still one of the best dates I’ve ever had.

One night

One night we decide we want pie for dinner. We can’t find a bakery that has pumpkin pie, so we settle for cookies and hot cocoa.

One night we go go-karting. I’m terrified and he’s delighted. I get rewarded with homemade pasta for my bravery.

One night he buys me a keychain because he saw it and thought about me.

One night I’m sad. He arrives at my doorstep with Thai food. We cuddle and watch a movie. A few hours later, strawberry cake is delivered to my door.

One night we make a secret handshake.

One night we couldn’t hang out, so we had a virtual cheeseburger-making contest. We took pictures to determine who did a better job. We decided his bread was better, but my toppings were better. A tie.

One night he called me "sweetie", and I think I grinned the whole way home.

I think I might tell him

Things are going well, but I still haven’t met his friends or family. He still hasn’t met mine, but I keep inviting him.

He won't let me follow him on social media.

He doesn’t really kiss me.

Ping.

“Aw, he texted me!”

I think I might love him.

I think I might tell him.