The Adventure Continues At Chevy's On The River

If you have not already read 'The Adventure Begins', please be sure to do so before you read this post.

Part 2- The Adventure Continues

The big day was finally here. 

I had asked the most gorgeous girl I'd ever seen out on a date, she'd somehow actually said yes, and now I was on my way to pick her up.

Most guys would probably be nervous about what the parents would think when he came over to pick up their only daughter to take her out on a date.

I was not.

Don't get me wrong.  I WAS nervous, just not about what the parents would think.  I was one of those rare and unlucky guys that practically all parents loved, and all girls wanted to be best friends with.  I once had one of my girl-friends (not be confused with girlfriends) practically puke when she even considered the idea of dating me.  At least that was the look on her face.  On the other hand, I once had a parent offer me a dream car if I'd marry his daughter.  I'm still not sure if he was totally serious, but it makes me feel good to think he was.

My entire life, I'd somehow managed to get all the ladies dreaming........


of the day their daughters would marry me.


Unfortunately, in todays new and modern world, the daughters all seemed to have something to say about this.  And that something never bode well for my dating opportunities.  You have to admit, there's something to be said for arranged marriages.


My nerves were on edge, because I really wanted to impress this girl.  I'd spent a great deal of time cleaning my car.  Because, of course, that will really impress a girl.  I tried to wear the best probably-out-of-style clothes I owned.  Because, of course, that will really impress a girl. 

I finally arrived at her house.  I honestly don't even hardly remember what I said to her parents, other than where we were going and what time we would be home.  At this time in our dating relationship, Rachael did not even have a curfew, but I figured we'd safely be able to go to dinner and miniature golf and she'd be safely home by midnight. 

Oh, how wrong I was.

Little did I know that at midnight that night, Rachael, her mom, her brother, and I would all be in the hospital together.

With absolutely no thoughts of hospitals, I had decided that we would go to Chevy's on the River.  At this point in my life, I don't think I even knew that Chevy's was a chain restaurant.  And this Chevy's didn't look like most of the others I have ever been to since.  It was built over-looking the American River just outside of Sacramento.

It was romantic.  Because, of course, that will really impress a girl.

I had thought of everything I knew about how to impress a girl.

Except for one thing.

How do you maintain the calm, cool, collected persona you have worked so hard to foster when you can't even keep a conversation going?

It appeared that Rachael was as nervous as I.  And her nervousness seemed to manifest itself by an inability to speak.  Or eat. 

We somehow managed to get through the meal without our nervousness growing.  Looking back, there was definitely a mutual attraction taking place.  Though at the time, I was too ignorant to realize that.  All I knew then is that this girl seemed to be the sweetest thing ever. 

And don't forget the gorgeous part.

We finished dinner and headed to our next destination.  There used to be a miniature golf course on Fair Oaks Blvd. in Sacramento.  I'm not sure if it's even still there, but as we were driving towards it, Rachael commented on the fact that this was where she used to go to school.  Possibly because these were some of the first words I'd heard all night, and probably because I was quite eager to please this lovely lady, I asked her if she wanted to stop and check it out.

Probably because she was so nervous, and because she was probably also trying to please, she said yes.

We parked the car, and went for a short walk. 

We ended up standing under a beautiful tree in a fairy-tale like perfect setting that seemed conducive to standing and staring in each other's eyes.

We did this for about 1/2 a second before I was pretty sure I wanted to kiss her.  Not a big old wet and sloppy kiss, just a nice gentlemanly peck on the lips. 

I leaned in.

My heart was beating so fast.  My nerves were on edge.  I was worried about trying to kiss her on the first date, but it seemed like a good idea at the time.

She didn't scream, or slap me, or run away. 

I took this for a good sign.

Our first kiss probably lasted about 3/4 of a second.

But it was a wonderful 3/4 of a second.  A life-changing 3/4 of a second.

We stood there for a short time and then walked back to my car.  Being the perfect gentleman, I went around to open Rachael's door for her.  We stood there talking for a few minutes.  As we were talking, I noticed her eyes start to look funny.  She looked like she was no longer there.

And a minute later, she wasn't.

Check back soon to find out what happens next.  It's no wonder we fell in love.


Be sure to check out Rachael's post for her side of the story.

For an index to The Valentine's Day Series Posts, please click here.