How We Met...
My best friend started seeing a guy when my daughter was about 6 months old. He had just been -that really annoying, cocky guy' who was the bar manager of our favourite pub. He had swaggered around chewing straws and we always moaned about how great he thought he was. My friend later admitted that she really quite liked him and eventually they went on a date. The rest is history and 8 years on they are still going strong. Little did I know that that annoying, cocky guy would end up being best man at my wedding!
One night, after only a few dates, she asked me to come along on a night out and meet his friends. I was a little uncertain and didn't want to feel like a spare part, but she assured me they would all be very friendly. So off we went.
We met them at a caf???? bar taking part in a quiz. They were all sat around a table and my friend's boyfriend did the polite thing and introduced me to them all one by one. They all smiled and said a quick hello - until it got to the last guy, Adam.
He was sitting directly in front of me and therefore slightly excluding me from the group. I thought this might be an opportunity to squeeze in and make some conversation. He turned to look over his shoulder at me and looked as though he was putting his hand out to me. I went to shake his hand but was mortified when he instead grunted -alright?' and turned his back on my outstretched hand, returning immediately to his conversation. To make matters worse, he adjusted his chair with a loud screech so that I was now looking at his back - and completely excluded for the table.
WELL, I was not impressed! In fact I described him to everyone as -the most ignorant guy I have ever met in my life!
'
That guy is now my husband!
Without ever having engaged in any kind of conversation, I continued to hate him for quite some time....... He would occasionally run us home from gigs and I began to realise that he was very quiet indeed. He never spoke much, but when he did speak he would usually mumble something quite funny and everyone would laugh. I started to find him more quiet and mysterious, rather than downright rude!
Eventually, when we were out on Easter Sunday 2004, 3 months after our first encounter, things changed.
I had offered everyone, including Adam, a drink. When something astonishing happened...
He said -Julia, would you like a hand at the bar?'
I couldn't believe he had actually spoken to me. We waited at the bar together, with no one to talk to but each other. Within minutes we were chatting away, laughing and joking and I could not believe how badly I had misjudged him. He had made a terrible first impression, but in hindsight I now know that he is incredibly shy and awkward in social situations. It had taken a good drink to bring out the courage for him to speak to me.
That night we kissed and I decided he was wonderful!
We walked back to his friend's house and I discovered that he was very intelligent, interesting and funny. We gabbed away about the same nonsense we still gab away about today. I discovered he had a masters in philosophy. I was now in my third year of my psychology degree and this made for interesting debating all the way home. I also discovered that we had the same passion for music and obviously we both loved going to gigs.
When we got back to his friend's house Adam left the room - and never returned. I was a bit disappointed as I assumed he had left. Feeling like Cinderella I was very aware that I would be up early in the morning with my daughter and knew I had to leave. I only lived a block away and walked sadly down the street not able to understand what had gone wrong.
Only this year did I find out what had happened. Having had a tad too much to drink he'd gone to the toilet feeling sick. When he had come back out to find that I had left he ran out the door after me and ran around the streets looking for me, as he never knew where I lived!
