Down the Alley

Jasmine rolled the heavy ball down the lane and watched it hit the gutter and roll to the end of the lane.

“Bowling,” she said again, “you could have picked anything at all. You know that, right? I would have done anything with you. And you picked bowling!”

You laugh as you watch the vision of beauty walk toward you in rented shoes as a zero appears on the screen above her head.

“I like bowling,” you say, “and it was kind of last minute, so I shot from the hip.”

“This is not how I imagined my first date with a man would go,” she joined you in your laughter as she joined you on the plastic seating, “back when I was in high school, my friends would tell me stories about guys pawing at them, forcing them into things they weren’t comfortable with. I don’t remember any bowling stories though.”

“Those stories probably wouldn’t be as interesting,” you say, “and trust me, some guys are like that, but there are plenty of good guys you’d have a great time with.”

“Ugh,” she made a guttural noise of disgust, “guys are gross. I’m gay, remember?”

You stared at her for a moment in disbelief before she realized what she said.

“Except for you!” She scooted toward you and grabbed your hand in hers, “you are the exception to the rule. You I love. You I adore. But when I think about other guys…”

Her face went sour again. This whole thing was just so weird. You doubted that anyone out there had a grid for understanding what you were going through, but you weren’t complaining.

“It’s okay,” you said, squeezing her hand then standing up, “I get it,” although you don’t. Then, to change the subject, “Lets see if I can do any better than your gutter ball.”

You grabbed a ball and lined yourself up carefully, started your approach, then released. The ball roared down the lane, spinning to the left, knocking down three pins.

“Not too bad,” you said, going to grab another ball.

“I mean,” Jasmine said quietly, a pensive look on her face, “if you wanted to be like those high school boys, pawing and taking, you could you know. I wouldn’t mind, as long as I was with you.”

You abandoned the ball and walked toward your date. Squatting in front of her, you take both of her hands in yours and stare into her beautiful brown eyes.

“I’m not like those guys,” you said, “and I don’t pretend to understand why you suddenly love me, but I won’t treat you like that. I promise. When you’re with me, you’ll be treated like a human being.”

Jasmine leaned forward and softly pressed her lips against yours. Then she pulled back and sighed, “Our first kiss. In a bowling alley. I had wondered what it would be like to feel your stubble when we kissed. I kind of liked it.”

“See? Guys aren’t all bad,” you smile, “stubble on a kiss! Add it to the list of things that are alright in dating a guy.”

“Ew, gross,” her face went sour again, “I can’t even picture myself kissing a guy. Only you. Funny how that works, hey? I guess that means you’re special.”

The evening went on like that, a little bowling, a little flirting, a little profession of deep and undying love. You kissed a few more times, and Jasmine was a little bit bolder bolder each time. Finally, as you finished your last frame, she congratulated you on your win with a prolonged kiss, heavy with tongue, her hands firmly on your ass, pulling your body into hers. As you came up for air, you saw a look of pure bliss in on her face.

“Wow,” you said, “I mean, it was just a bowling game.”

“It was our bowling game,” she replied, “something I’ll remember for the rest of my life.”

You walked out hand in hand. Neither of you want the evening to end, but you are hesitant to take things further. It was, after all, only a first date. Despite the fact that you had enjoyed a crush on Jasmine for years, that crush had been from afar. You hardly knew her! Until today you didn’t even know that she was a lesbian. What else didn’t you know about her.

You walked her to her car, enjoying the cool evening breeze. “I think I’d like to see you again,” you ventured. You didn’t know why you felt so nervous bridging them subject, since you were pretty sure of her answer before you even asked it.

“Yes, yes yes and yes,” she said, “If you’ll see me, I’ll see you every night.”

“Okay,” you said, “tomorrow then. Let’s do tomorrow. You laughed at bowling, so tomorrow you pick what we’re doing.”

Once again her mouth found yours, and you found yourself engaged in a kiss soaked in hunger. This time you couldn’t help it. Your penis grew erect, and for what you guessed was the first time, Jasmine found herself having a boner pressing into her body.

“Oh my!” She exclaimed with a smile, “I guess that comes with the territory.”

“Yeah, sorry,” you answered sheepishly, “I didn’t mean…”

“Don’t apologize,” she cut you off, “I’m flattered. And tomorrow I promise that it’ll be great. I’ll text you details. Now, unless you want me to, you know,” she reached down and touched your erection through your pants, “I’ll say goodnight.”

“Yes, goodnight,” you said, taking every ounce of willpower to not take it further, “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Yes, tomorrow,” Jasmine the beautiful librarian said as she sat down in her car, “I love you!”

And then she closed the door and drove away, leaving you alone with the breeze. Tomorrow couldn’t come soon enough.