I waited for his response, which was unusual, but I could see he was typing.
The little I learnt about him today made me assume, it was one of his long messages again.
Finally, the typing stopped.
And the message dropped.
Tomorrow it is, is 12:00pm okay for you?
Oh no.
That was too early.
I normally liked waking up at 12:00 sharp. I know that sounds weird, but that was my form of freedom. No work, no pressure, no nothing.
But… I guess I'll make tomorrow an exception.
So I just typed a simple reply.
Yeah it is
I sent it, then immediately turned off my phone like I didn't want to deal with my own decision anymore.
I closed my eyes.
And just started replaying everything that has happened in the past two days like a quick recap in my head.
First—airplane drama and Jake.
Then the hotel.
Then the casino.
Then Daven and his friends.
Then the hotel mix-up situation.
And now this text.
Isn't all of this a bit too much for just two days?
Vegas really moved like it was on fast-forward.
But then again…
Was I even doing the right thing with this date?
What if it turns out weird?
I've never gone on a one-on-one date before. Not even close.
What if I'm not prepared?
Why did I even agree to this?
I sat up slightly.
You know what.
I should probably search everything about first dates. That way I can avoid anything embarrassing.
I grabbed my phone again.
Turned it on.
Opened Google.
Typed:
How To Act Normal On A First Date?
First result popped up immediately.
Focus on the present moment. A first date can feel intense, but when you treat it as casual, it becomes easier for both people.
Ways to stay relaxed:
• Don't overthink mistakes
• Keep conversation natural
• Let things flow instead of forcing them
• Smile and stay calm
Then I scrolled up and found a snippet. You know, like a date advice.
"Use your smile as a weapon. It keeps you relaxed and draws you closer to his heart."
Hold on.
No.
No no no.
Damn it, Google.
Closer to his heart??
It's just a friendly date. Come on.
I can't believe I was actually reading this like it was a survival guide.
Maybe I'm just overthinking this whole first date thing.
It'll just be like any other day.
I locked my phone again.
Paused.
Then unlocked it again.
And somehow ended up on YouTube instead.
After typing in my search, I played the first video that popped up.
"Hey, beautiful girlies all around the world watching this. Just wanna let y'all know how my first date went down."
In case you're wondering… yeah, she had an accent.
"So get this—there was this guy that asked me out and yeah, he put a ring on it just after the first date. Lucky me people!!!"
It was a saved live video and someone sent this comment
"A ring!!!!"
She saw it and instantly responded
"Common y'all, I don't be going on a first date and then boom—ring. We gotta be realistic here, I was just kidding. Now on to the main hot topic."
Girl bye, you don't be making an overthinker overthink more okay?
I rolled my eyes.
This is exactly my problem.
Why am I even watching this? You seriously can't take people on the internet serious these days. They'll say anything just to make sure you watch till the end.
You know what… I should probably just go to bed and let tomorrow deal with itself.
I know myself though—because even when I say I'm going to sleep, I still don't stop thinking.
So I turned on my phone, connected my earphones, and played something that could clear my head… something soft enough to help me sleep.
I dropped my phone on the locker close to my bed, closed my eyes, and let the sound settle in, like it was slowly drowning out my thoughts.
And soon enough, I drifted off.