Frog Hunting: So Unexpected I Almost Missed It

When I said previously that attraction and romance often sneaks up from the most unexpected places, what I meant was I often was so oblivious to guys liking me that I literally had to be told straight up. This happened with aforementioned coworker. I had no clue that he liked me until another coworker shocked me by asking me what was going on between us. Apparently I was acting interested even though I wasn’t (I think I had a tendency to do that, too). 

I did get one hint that maybe he thought of us as more than coworkers. Under the high stress and high stakes of the project we were working on, I started having stomach issues due to nervousness. He heard I wasn’t feeling well and immediately walked down the street and bought me comfort food and soda. 

It was totally sweet. But I was totally clueless. 

You see, I was under the impression that when guys like you, they tell you. 

Not always so. 

This one never told me. Not really, anyway. In fact, other than doing sweet things and talking to my coworkers about me, he didn’t ever really talk tome. If I hadn’t had the word of coworkers and a few sweet moments, I would have thought I made him nervous. But that’s all. 

Or, maybe the fact he had a girlfriend caused me to friend-zone him and never think otherwise. 

I guess I’ll never really know. 

That said, he was way more comfortable being gushy-mushy over text. The last week we worked together, he texted asking for another opportunity to see me again before he left town.

Our last night together, we swapped gifts. 

He gave me a CD with instructions to listen to a specific track the minute I got home. 

I gave him a book on purgatory. 

When I arrived home, I listened to the song. It was a deeply moving country song about a guy living with regrets and wondering what would have happened if he’d taken a risk. 

His gift was way better. 

Photo by David Clode on Unsplash