Completely unaware while my boozy voice filled the watering hole with a karaoke tune, Tyler was sinking stripes or solids in corner pockets. He was in his corner of the room, and I was in mine, two drifters on an average night. We had a brief encounter outside. I doubt I would ever see him again. Last call for alcohol! and I had a hankering for strawberry pancakes, so to the Diner I went. No, sooner I had reached the door to inhale mouth-watering flat cakes, the most obnoxious, burble-burping BMW came to parallel rest across the street. I have it on authority as he noticed me during my walk to the Restaurant that he had hopes of picking up where we left off as he sauntered from his car to hold the door for me. In a friendly manner to open conversation, again, I asked him If that was his vehicle. He flashed his key fab at me and combined the gesture with “I do not have this for nothing” My expression went flat, and the only thing I could do was engage my wit. Volume 11 “Would you like to try that again? I was simply trying to compliment you on your competition wheels” Mission pancakes. He wheeled his jaw back in after removing his foot from his mouth. and we entered the Diner together and separately enjoyed our meals. I was either eating quickly which is far from the truth, or he was stalling – the truth, but we exited the Diner relatively at the same time. I looked over at Tyler and said goodnight. He made the wise choice to drop the act and try again. With no fear of rejection as he already failed before, he approached me with the most honest eyes and said “I have to try; would you mind giving me your number?” He handed me his I-phone and I keyed in my number and called myself. I received a text message 10 minutes later. What can I say? The man really knows how to wait for love. It has been 500 days and counting and I have yet to come up with a better story. I know that jumping in front of a train or simply asking someone for new bathroom towels and kitchen appliances is easier than marriage but while we enter this alliance, my beloved will continue to forget everything I tell him or ask me why I am watching my stuff on his streaming profile when I have my own profile, but I look forward to stealing his name and matching his socks while doing my best to establish dominance by forgetting to refill the toilet paper. The happiest years of our lives will now be spent texting one another “Do you need anything from the store?” until one of us dies.