The Blind Date

Katie repeated to herself the thousandth time that she looked okay. She stood in front of the waist length mirror of her cupboard, placing her hands on her waist, she turned her sides toward the mirror like a model on a ramp walk. She then judged the area of the cleavage her blue gown displayed. Was it too big? Or too meager? Should she invite him in displaying a little more? Ah, no, she wasn’t going to sleep with him at the very first date. She wasn't going to sleep with someone at her very first date. 
She scanned the shade of the red lipstick she’d worn. She pouted close to the mirror, scrunched her nose. Brushing the lips with each other for a while, she still wasn’t content with the shade. She grabbed a white hankie from the drawer and wiped a calculated amount of color from her lips, brushed them against each other, smiled once, pouted twice. Ah, this was never going to end. What about the intensity of the perfume she was wearing? Would he like the smell? Was it too deep? Would it nauseate him? The last thing that came into her mind while leaving was the full name of her blind date? What had he said? Adam? Yes, Adam it is. But Adam what? Ah, she had no idea.

When she entered Café Latte, it was 8:30. The night was cold, she was shaking under her thin cotton gown, at times she would try rubbing her bare shoulders with her palm, but it wouldn’t work. She tried exhaling a deep breath to stead herself, but after a while, she only shuddered more.

She felt quite warm as she entered the café. It was lit bright by the festivities of the Valentine’s Day, a healthy fire was playing its role in the center of the café. Almost all the tables were occupied by the couples, flashing their white teeth and looking at each others’ eyes. At one spot, she even encountered a gay couple clasping each others’ palms on the table with their ardent eyes.

A moment later, a pot-bellied waiter neatly dressed in black waistcoat above white shirt, wearing spotless black pants and boots, and a bowtie, came to her from nowhere, gave her a bow and asked who her Valentine was.

“Emm. Mr. Adam he is,” she said in a voice so subdued that she wondered if the waiter heard her. She bit her lips and damned herself for not knowing his last name.

“Ahh… Mr. Adam Artwood he is, right?” asked the waiter with a smile. He was a short man with whiskered moustache, probably in his late thirties. The waiter costume suited him so much that it seemed he was born to be one, and his pot belly only added to it.  “He’s been waiting for you for around half an hour now,” he added raising his brows mechanically.

“Emm,” Katie nodded, trying to escape a smile. She wondered why Adam arrived half an hour earlier. In fact, she was certain she was on the exact time.

“Please come with me, young lady,” the waiter offered her his white gloved hand. Katie held his hand with her soft one, and walked with him.

“I forgot to ask your name, young lady,” the waiter said midway.

“Katie, Katie Cooper,” she said in the same reserved tone. The waiter said nothing as if he didn't hear her. He took her to the east corner of the café. The hubbub of the elated couples was more conspicuous here which was turning Katie’s cheeks redder, her beats faster. She would be seeing the man in a few while. What if he looked ugly? Or what if he didn’t like her? “Ah, we’ll see,” she muttered determinately.

At one corner, there was a man with blond hair and brawny muscles fiddling with a rose in his hands, his eyes on the table. He looked fetching from that distance but seemed bore. “I didn’t ask him to come earlier,” Katie said to herself.

“That man, Miss Katie, is Mr. Artwood,” said the waiter as they approached the table.

The man stood up as he saw the waiter come along with Katie. He smiled at her, the waiter gave her hand to the man saying, “All yours,” and left with another gentle bow and a smile.

Adam held her soft hand, bowed and kissed it. He then served her the chair other side and sat on his own adjusting the lapel of his coat.

Katie’s hand tingled with his touch. She tried to look into his eyes, but her throat felt only dry.

“Is this your first date?” asked Adam.

Katie nodded silently with a smile, her eyes on the table. She realized that he looked even more attractive from close.

“Oh, I almost forgot,” said Adam holding the rose on the table. “This is for you.” He offered her the red flower. It was real and looked fresh.

Clenching her jaws, Katie endeavored to look into his eyes. “Oh, thank you,” she told on his face, and smiled her best.

They talked for a few minutes about weather and stuff, Katie talked a little, but she now could at least look into his eyes while she talked. At times she would lose her focus staring at him as he talked, and he would have to repeat his question.

“So, how do you like me? I mean, we have seen each other the first time,” he said at one point.

“Well, you’re good.”

“You still nervous?”

“A little.”

He clasped her hand on the table and said, “You don’t have to be, Emily.”

The touch of his palm had pacified the whirlpool of emotions swirling in her heart. Then she realized he was saying her name wrong. Emily, that must have been his ex-partner. He must have loved her a lot. She felt a stab in her heart, but the warmth of his palm on her hand surmounted it.

She nodded. “And… how do you like me?” she asked looking into his eyes.

“Well, you’re shy and beautiful. Those are the two things I like in a girl.”

She smiled. He reciprocated the smile.

A waiter appeared after a while with the orders. Katie supposed he had already given the orders. She glanced at the dish on the table. Cheesecake? She absolutely detested it. The waiter served red wine in a moment. Red wine? Didn’t he know she was a teetotaler? What was he thinking when he ordered those dish?

“I suppose these are your favorites, Emily?” he said casting another smile.

Alright, he was crossing limits now. The water was up to the head. He must be a psychopath. He had called her with the name Emily twice and now the dish she absolutely hated. Katie was stymied. This man might be charming and hot, but she thought, was equally absurd.

“Emie?” he said noticing her silence.

“Adam,” she said with a smile. “I know you must have loved her a lot, but it’s me now, Katie, not Emily.”

“Katie?” he frowned deep. “Who’s Katie?”

Katie exasperated. She was right, he had lost his marbles. She should have never dated a man from some random dating site. And that too, a blind date.

“Are you boozed? It’s me, Katie,” she said and regretted at her choice of words.

“Huh?” he frowned looking the other side. “Hold on a second,” he raised his palm toward her. “So, you mean to say that you’re not Emily?”

“Who…Who’s Emily? I’m Katie. Aren’t you Adam?”

“Of course I’m Adam, Adam Artwood. Who were you looking for?”

“Adam?”

“Adam what?”

“Adam, well, I don’t know,” Katie blushed so red as if whole of her blood had gathered on her face. She could now gather what was going on. There must have been a blunder. This was a wrong man. “Damn,” she swore under her lips.

Adam burst into a guffaw. People in the nearby tables turned at him. As if conscious of that, he slowed down his laughter.

“What were you thinking? There are so many Adams in the world, in the US, in Virginia. I think that’s the most common name in the world,” he said lifting his brows, showing the flat of his palms.

Katie blushed more. She was humiliated. Her judgment of his being absurd was wide of the mark. In fact, it was the other way around. Though she wanted to say that Adam was not the most common name in the world, it was Mohommad. But she, of course, didn’t say that.

After a fidgety moment, she asked pinching her fingers, “I think I should leave,” she tried to smile but failed. “Sorry for taking your time. You Valentine must be arriving any minute here.”

“Ah, I’m so sorry for you,” said Adam flipping his expression with a sympathetic tone.

“No, problem. It’s my own stupidity.” She threw a wide smile at him this time, as if genuinely.

“Hey,” called Adam as she turned the other side. “What did you say your real name by the way?”

Katie turned at him, and said, “It’s Katie, Katie Cooper.”

“Good to see you Miss Katie. And good luck for your Valentine. The real one must be waiting for you.”

“Thank you,” she said.

“And nice gown,” he said raising him thumb.

She smiled and left.

Katie scrutinized for the waiter who had escorted her to the wrong man. It was not that she wanted to rebuke him, it was her own fault after all, but she wanted to ask if there were more Adams in the café. What if there were many? If only it was not a blind date. But well, there must have been a real Adam waiting for the real Katie Cooper. After a minute search, she finally encountered the pot bellied waiter with a thin moustache. She approached him trying to appear calm and maintain her charisma. 

“Hahahaha,” the waiter burst. “That’s one fun thing, lady,” he said. “But don’t you worry. You’re not the only one. Many people suffer this on blind dates. So I recommend you not to do too many blind dates. Some people simply seem to enjoy this.”

“Well, this is my first date,” said Katie.

“Ah, I see,” said the waiter in his usual high pitched tone. “That must be a pain for you.”

“Exactly,” said Katie. “But the man was good, though wrong.” She had no idea why she said that.

“Haha, so, you’re looking for Adam, but you don’t know his last name?”

“Emm…”

“You poor creature,” said the waiter with a real sad face. “But no problem,” he smiled again. “I will search the list if there are more Adams here and waiting for any Katie Cooper.”

That seemed to perk up Katie.

But unfortunately, neither was there any more Adam in the café and nor was anyone looking for a girl named Katie, let alone Katie Cooper. The man was wrong. Adam was so not the most common name in the world.

The fact that the one she had come for tonight had not even showed up in the café left her blue.

“You sure Café Latte was the name he gave you?” asked the waiter, kindling some hope.

“Emm.” Katie nodded with a bleak face.

“There’s no other Café Latte in the town as far as I know.”

Katie was about to leave the café as blue. The flashy decoration, the humdrum chitchat of the elated couples and the glow of the eve had begun to nauseate her. She just wanted to go home, dive on her bed and maybe weep till her heart’s content. And she would never go on a blind date again, if not on a date. She felt as if she had lost her virginity and the boy had turned out to be a philander.

As she was walking through the reception of the café, a man quickly passed by her side brushing his shoulder against hers. She nearly tripped over, but regained her balance. The man looked back, and said sorry. He was the same wrong Adam again. She smiled at him and wished if only he was the real one. He came back to her and acted more apologetically.

“You leaving so early? What happened?” asked the Wrong Adam as they walked out.

“Well, he didn’t show up,” her face dropped again, but she managed a smile.

“Ah, I’m so sorry,” Wrong Adam clasped her shoulder lightly. Katie felt one more wave of tingle pass through her body.

“Don’t be,” she smiled. They were walking outside the café now. “What happened to yours? I thought you were waiting for some Emily?”

“Ah, don’t ask. Mine turned out to be a bitch,” he said in a spiteful voice. “She said she couldn’t come.”

“Ah,” Katie exasperated. “Was yours a blind date too?”

“Well, yes. And I suppose yours as well.”

Katie laughed covering her mouth lightly with the back of her palm. Adam stared into her face and watched her laugh.

“Well, Katie Cooper?” he said. “What are you going to do now?”

“Emm… Return home, watch some horror stuff, and sleep.”

“Wow, why horror?”

“Coz I’m in no mood of watching anything romantic?” she said. “And I watch horror stuff when I’m sad.”

Adam smiled looking directly into her eyes. “Cool,” he said.

“What about you?”

“Well, I really don’t know. Maybe I’ll just watch TV, anything but romantic, and sleep.”

After a moment, they were about to part. Adam scratched the back of his head and asked, “Katie?”

Katie looked at him. Their eyes met again.

“Wanna have some coffee?” he asked.

“Well,” Katie looked the other side with a smile. “It’s better than watching a horror movie alone.”