I'm Gonna Write a Book

The November 4th Incident

My father, John, Jared, and I are getting ready to leave. Jared was walking to his truck and as I'm walking towards the door, he opens it for me. I had never had any man open a door to a car for me, hell I don't think anyone has opened the car door for me before. When I heard the term 'gentleman' I used to imagine a prince from a fantasy; kissing a princess's hand. Telling her she was ravishing and asking if he could have this dance. Now, I think of Jared opening the door. It brought the word out of a fantasy and into reality. Maybe in this crazy world some of those old school values weren't an unrealistic expectation. (Come to find out he opens the doors because I accidentally slam them, but hey that's a win, win situation. Why can't we all be happy?).

I hop in and he closes the door. John and my father are in the back seat. Jared drives to the bar and drops them off. After they get out I was anxious, now instead of three people to balance the conversation, it was all on me. Jared then says something to immediately beak the ice, thank god. 

"The bar wasn't that far, those lazy fuckers couldn't walk?"

I laugh and add, "I was just thinking that, like it wasn't that far and they shouldn't be that eager to start drinking at 9:00am"

Jared responds, "I know, John has had lots of drinking escapades lately and I have a bad feeling about them going to the bar." 

"I'm more concerned about my dad, but I think they'll be okay. I talked to my dad about it and today is my ex-friend's wedding. She was a cunt."

He nodded and it got quiet for a bit. I read the gps directions and it didn't feel like awkward silence. I wasn't sure if he wanted me to keep reading the directions or not, so I read them then apologized, just in case. He seemed confused and said, 

"Why are you sorry? I don't know how to get there from here."

I said, "I wasn't sure, some people don't like being read the directions if they know where they're going."

"Better to have them read then miss a turn."

"Fair enough"

We were getting ready to turn right on Warner Ave and Jared says,

"One time in high school my friends and I were trying to get to Warner to get to the beach to surf and got lost. I go into this gas station and ask the cashier where we are and it turns out we were on the street the whole time."

That was funny. We pull up to the launch point and he unloads the kayaks all by himself. I kept asking if I could help with something, but he insisted he had it. I did put the handles on the kayak to carry them easier. After that we hopped and started paddling. It was quite peaceful. We were silent at first just looking at all the boats and houses. The sound of the water splashing against the kayak and the sun on my shoulders was very relaxing. 

Jared and I had a good conversation about the political correctness and the rules he has working for his company. I'd always wanted to work for the same employer he has, but was never successful. Before I booked the Huntington Beach trip, I applied for a job their one more time. To my surprise I got a zoom interview. 

After paddling around for a bit we made our way back to shore. As we were loading up the kayaks in the truck, a woman came up to me and commented on how pretty I was. It made my day, I had really tried to find a bathing suit that makes me look flattering. I had a pinup bun with a butterfly clip and matching pink headband. A part of me started to wonder again... Did Jared think I was pretty? Like I'm curious... it's just a question, calm down.

On the ride back home we continued talking about the nice houses and got a bit lost sightseeing. After we got back on track we agreed to meet John and my father at the bar. We drove back to the campground and decided to walk instead of drive. On our way to the bar, we can see two very drunk men stumbling in the distance.