It?s been ok here, weather wise ? everyone is having a lovely time and a much needed break.
A quick update. I?m going home on Friday afternoon for a couple of nights, leaving the dcs with my amazing friends who claim not to mind taking responsibility for them all for a bit. My dad is coming out of hospital and I?m going to make sure he?s settled in, and give my step mum a hand for the first couple of days.
So, I thought I would seize the moment ? there?s been a small amount of emailing back and forth about not very much. I wouldn?t call it flirting but it?s certainly not particularly relevant to anything that needed to be said. I replied to one of his messages to say I was coming back briefly and did he fancy trying to reschedule our drink, as I?d be free on Saturday night, and he said yes (just yes, not ?oh wow, yes please, that would be amazing..?). So that?s my chance ? if it goes badly, I escape back to Wales on Monday to lick my wounds for a week or so.
I?ve got a tan, and I have a new dress that I picked up in a spare moment last week, which I will wear. And the awful haircut looks a bit better than it did...so that?s all good.
I think it is going to be low key ? at the end of the evening, I plan to say something along the lines of ?I really enjoy the time we spend together, and I wonder if you?ve ever thought about whether there is more to this than friendship, because I?ve been wondering. I don?t want to do anything that puts our friendship at risk, because it?s very important to me, but I would certainly be up for trying a date, rather than a friendly get together, if you would be.? So plenty of wiggle room but suitably direct that it can?t be misinterpreted ? and then if he says yes, I will suggest a date-style dinner before we go to the opera the week after next. If he says no, he says no, but at least it?s out there.
I?ve been weighing up the signs he may or may not be interested...he remembers details of what we have talked about, he definitely laughs at my jokes, teases me and finds what I say interesting, and we have masses and masses in common. We both love the same slightly obscure music and have the same taste in books. That said, he loves diving and hell would have to freeze over before I put on a wetsuit and diving mask, and he has a cat and cats make me sneeze.
I?m not sure about body language ? he smiles and looks directly at me, but I don?t think he has ever touched me apart from the usual hello and goodbye kiss. He?s not seeing anyone else. But he has several female friends who he speaks to in a similar way. I don?t think he spends nearly as much time with any of them, but I?ve been slightly engineering the situation over the last few weeks.
He does email me out of the blue, but not consistently, and he can be quite functional and to the point in his replies ? and he doesn?t seem able to pick up on my (admittedly quite oblique) hints about things we could do together. Sometimes he does, but sometimes he doesn?t ? I am sure if I ever said ?why don?t we do xx?? he would say yes, and indeed he does, but he doesn?t always take an opening and make the suggestion. He did mention the France trip again when I last saw him ? no mention of the other friend coming but perhaps he thinks that goes without saying.
And, of course, he has never made a move of any kind!
Anyway, none of that is very interesting ? I?m just trying to do a list in my own mind to try and convince myself that the balance of probabilities is that I should go for it on Sunday...
There you go, MN supporters. I will let you know how I get on. I think I?m brave enough. What?s the worst that can happen?