"What's that?"
"Dating someone who makes a lot more money than me. I've spent most of my single life kind of being the guy who gets it done for my dates, through hook or by crook."
"Is that what it is, huh? Dating?"
A pleasant tension rose between us as I waited for Patrick's answer, as our smiles mirrored each other. It was like a small duel to see who would admit their attraction first. Finally, Patrick nodded, but before he could say anything, a roar came overhead as three National Guard F/A-18's flew overhead. Both of us jerked our heads to see the impressive aircraft fly past us seemingly inches over our heads, only to launch into a heart stopping vertical climb and disappearing into the late afternoon sky.
The game itself was your standard preseason game. The stars came out for roughly the first half of the game, which was actually the more boring half. Not wanting to risk injury on a game that didn't mean anything, they played conservatively, and at halftime the Spartans were ahead by only a field goal.
More importantly to me though was the time Patrick and I spent talking. The conversation was pretty light, nothing of soul-bearing importance, but just sharing what we liked and our points of view on various things. For example, I was surprised when Patrick stated that he was a big fan of hip-hop music. "I guess it was just what I grew up to down in The Playground, but if I were to put a soundtrack to my life up until now, there'd be a lot of hip-hop involved. I know it comes off as trite, but until recently a lot of my life was hip-hop and slightly older R&B."
"Oh? Any particular acts?"
Patrick shook his head. "You'd laugh if I told you."
"No, go ahead," I said. "I listened to more than my fair share of hip-hop and stuff when I was in Florida. I even remember going to a few junior high school dances to some stuff that was a bit moldy at the time, but still have some good memories for me. First person I kissed was to a Keith Sweat song."
Patrick laughed. "Blackstreet for me. Freshman year of high school, girl named Gwen. Can I ask you another question before the second half kicks off?"
I got up from my seat and went over to the snack table where there were fresh nachos waiting for us, a treat of the VIP section. Picking up a plate, I came back. "As long as it doesn't involve my prior dating life, go ahead."
"Actually, I wanted to ask you if you didn't mind that I'm not as educated as you. I mean, I graduated high school, but most of my so-called higher education has come via the school of hard knocks."
I took a bite of my nachos, and offered him some. Our fingers made contact as I passed over the plate, and both of us paused for a second to look at each other at the contact. A few of the tortilla chips rattled in the tray, but nothing spilled. "Don't sell yourself short, Patrick," I said. "Besides, who knows? Maybe you have knowledge and skills that you don't even know about."
The Spartan reserves ended up winning the game by two touchdowns, mainly due to the passionate plays of some of the guys lower on the depth charts who were giving their all for a chance to make the team. Driving home from the stadium, there was none of the nervous tension that I'd felt on a few other first real dates. We both knew we had enjoyed ourselves, and that we wanted to see the other person again, even if we didn't say as much. The only question to be answered was who was going to call or text the other first in order to make that first step.
There was one thing that I liked as our date progressed that I hadn’t expected. When I'd first met Patrick, he had a hint of a cocky air about him, nothing too over the top mind you, but there was a sense of self-confidence that bordered on cockiness. It was the sort of air that a lot of voters would like, but other people would get tired of after a while. Talking with him though, he opened up more, and I could see that while he was confident in himself, he wasn't cocky at all. He was actually intelligent and perceptive, and was willing to admit when he needed help or experience.
Pulling into the driveway at Mount Zion, Patrick put the SUV in park and looked over. "Well, you're home safe and sound. I hope your butler doesn't feel the need to kick my ass any longer."
I laughed. "Did Matt threaten you to act like a gentleman?"
"No, just in the way he looked at me, some of the questions we had back and forth, I can tell he cares for you a lot. He gave off that big brother vibe, it was actually both weird and sweet. You seem to inspire a lot of loyalty in your house staff."