The story so far: Tod saw me and decided he liked me. He persisted in asking me out until I agreed. Our first date kept us up all night. Now here's the second date--a continuation of the same day.
Our Second Date
During school hours, probably in the midst of third grade science, I got a phone call. I'm not sure exactly how that happened, but I know that Tod called and told me that he'd had the day off and had borrowed his friend Rob's car. Would I like to go to dinner with him at his parents' out in the suburbs that night? It was his mom's birthday.
Sleep deprivation may have had a part to play in my answer. I said yes. At 5 pm he picked me up from my apartment in Carrick--a neat and tidy place, sparsely furnished--in Rob's hand-me-down luxury car and drove us to a posh suburb south of Pittsburgh.
Tod's parents were charming and fun-loving. They welcomed me warmly, but thought he'd been keeping me a secret. They had no idea we'd only just met. I probably wasn't very good company that night, and I nearly fell asleep during dinner as puns volleyed across the table. After the cake and presents had been dispatched, I sat on the floor at Tod's feet and smiled as he relaxed in his dad's blue recliner. I listened and laughed but started a precedent for not taking part.
I don't remember much of that night, but Tod & I were inseparable after it. We saw each other every day. We took our breaks together at Coffee Express. I added my Jennifers to his numbered list (Jen Zbozny (#13) and my sister(#14)) and got to know his friends and many of the Jens. He wrote me poetry. I wrote him doggerel. We were sweet on each other.
It occurs to me that in this case, and when Tod first said hi to you and you growled at him, that he was seeing you as yourself--not with you best face forward. He took a liking to you for who you are, without any facade. Maybe that's why it worked.