Two years ago, my best friend Madelaine and my good friend, Selina, had a falling out because, of many things, a boy. A boy named Andrew. Selina knew of Madelaine's longing desire, so when she saw how long Madelaine took to make her move, she went in for the kill and snatched Andrew, closing him for business, and closing any possibilty she and Madelaine had for a life long friendship.
Of course, Selina's senior year romance had the shelf life of a gallon of milk before it began to currdle, proving once and again that choosing a date over a friend is never good. And seeing how Andrew chose Selina over Madelaine, I wasnt sure what to make of the situation, when Madelaine told me he sent her a text last week.
MADELAINE: It was just weird that he remembered my number after so long...wait hold on, I have another text coming in.
ME: Madelaine, I dont know. I wouldnt get...
MADELAINE: It's from him! "Hi Q-T! Uve ben on my mind all day...hope u had a good day 2!" Isnt that sweet? What should I text back?!
The girl was gone. One text from Andrew and Madelaine was already making weekend plans with her new beau in mind. But I didnt trust the guy. If he chose someone else over my friend Madelaine once before, what was to stop him from doing the same again? Still, Madelaine believed in second chances, which meant, Andrew would be a part of her life, whether I agreed or not.
Meanwhile, in a school campus across town, my other good friend Maria was also finding love. His name was Topher, a "hot" twenty-one year old, biochemistry/physics-major. AKA nerd. According to Maria, seeing Topher in his white lab coat made her beaker boil. It was a scientific expression gone good...or would have been, had Maria not made the horrific discovery that Topher was already spoken for.
MARIA: He's so perfect for me David...but he has a girlfriend. She's twenty-six, and already she's having him think about his future and finding a job and settling down.
ME: Well, that's good then. She wants to prepare him for the future.
MARIA: But he's not ready to settle down like she is. She wants kids and a house and she's even telling him what kind of job to get. She wants to turn him into her perfect match.
ME: Oh, that's so not good.
MARIA: Yeah, and it's because they're not on the same page. When you have that much of an age difference, it never works out.
I couldnt tell if Maria was just speaking about Topher and his relationship, or if she was hinting towards my own illicit affair. And if so, I knew I had to take notice. Maybe everybody had a point. Maybe conducting a sexual relation with an authoratative figure who had a family, wasnt the best choice of my college career. But then again, neither was Maria's.
MARIA: And he keeps talking about moving out and breaking up with her. And I think I should help him break up with her, so he can be single and then we can date and then we can be together.
ME: But Maria...that means you're gonna be dating a guy who left his girlfriend for another, younger woman. You're the younger other woman!
MARIA: Yes, but it's ok, because we're perfect for each other. They're not. Why would you keep perfect and non-perfect together?
What was it about Labor Day weekend that was making otherwise smart people become fools in love? And why was it ok for everyone else to have a horrendous hook-up, but me? Are there certain exceptions that I just dont know about or what?
Of course, Selina's senior year romance had the shelf life of a gallon of milk before it began to currdle, proving once and again that choosing a date over a friend is never good. And seeing how Andrew chose Selina over Madelaine, I wasnt sure what to make of the situation, when Madelaine told me he sent her a text last week.
MADELAINE: It was just weird that he remembered my number after so long...wait hold on, I have another text coming in.
ME: Madelaine, I dont know. I wouldnt get...
MADELAINE: It's from him! "Hi Q-T! Uve ben on my mind all day...hope u had a good day 2!" Isnt that sweet? What should I text back?!
The girl was gone. One text from Andrew and Madelaine was already making weekend plans with her new beau in mind. But I didnt trust the guy. If he chose someone else over my friend Madelaine once before, what was to stop him from doing the same again? Still, Madelaine believed in second chances, which meant, Andrew would be a part of her life, whether I agreed or not.
Meanwhile, in a school campus across town, my other good friend Maria was also finding love. His name was Topher, a "hot" twenty-one year old, biochemistry/physics-major. AKA nerd. According to Maria, seeing Topher in his white lab coat made her beaker boil. It was a scientific expression gone good...or would have been, had Maria not made the horrific discovery that Topher was already spoken for.
MARIA: He's so perfect for me David...but he has a girlfriend. She's twenty-six, and already she's having him think about his future and finding a job and settling down.
ME: Well, that's good then. She wants to prepare him for the future.
MARIA: But he's not ready to settle down like she is. She wants kids and a house and she's even telling him what kind of job to get. She wants to turn him into her perfect match.
ME: Oh, that's so not good.
MARIA: Yeah, and it's because they're not on the same page. When you have that much of an age difference, it never works out.
I couldnt tell if Maria was just speaking about Topher and his relationship, or if she was hinting towards my own illicit affair. And if so, I knew I had to take notice. Maybe everybody had a point. Maybe conducting a sexual relation with an authoratative figure who had a family, wasnt the best choice of my college career. But then again, neither was Maria's.
MARIA: And he keeps talking about moving out and breaking up with her. And I think I should help him break up with her, so he can be single and then we can date and then we can be together.
ME: But Maria...that means you're gonna be dating a guy who left his girlfriend for another, younger woman. You're the younger other woman!
MARIA: Yes, but it's ok, because we're perfect for each other. They're not. Why would you keep perfect and non-perfect together?
What was it about Labor Day weekend that was making otherwise smart people become fools in love? And why was it ok for everyone else to have a horrendous hook-up, but me? Are there certain exceptions that I just dont know about or what?
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