second chances?

today was interesting... I ran into the two guys I met while dating the NowEx that I wished I'd met at a different time.

yes, both in one afternoon. sometimes things happen that way. when it rains it pours...

I had just finished up my (hopefully) last appointment with the spine doctor, a follow-up to the injection I had a few weeks ago. I walk around the corner right into Dr.BlueEyes (literally). I had to go see him for an ankle injury last summer. he is absolutely gorgeous. and nice and funny. (and, well, obviously smart).

during my appointment, he was being very friendly (not inappropriately so, but more friendly and inquisitive than most docs) and if I would have been single at the time, I may have gone for an unneeded follow-up visit, just so I could see him again.

the girls at my physical therapy clinic were encouraging me to make another appointment. (they didn't think NowEx was worthy of my time, if I'd only listened to them earlier.) they even found out some more info about Dr.BlueEyes, being as they are sort of colleagues. he was single, looking, had just moved here, didn't know anyone... etc. they kept coming up with these great "plans" for me to meet him. (perhaps a couple of happily-coupled people trying to create more.)

since at the time I was not single and tend to be outrageously shy around guys that interest me, I did nothing about it.

now, the shy-around-guys-I'm-interested-in part unfortunately hasn't changed, but the other obviously has... so when I ran into Dr.BlueEyes today, I... well... I wimped out. I just smiled at him. he did smile back, but that was it.

and I headed home.

**sigh**

then, as I'm driving home from the doctor's office, stuck in traffic, I glance over at the cute guy in the car next to me. wait, he looks familiar. could it be? well, same kind of car and bike racks on top... hmmm...

being as I'm driving in rush-hour traffic, attempting not to get into an accident, I can't get a great look at him. (how embarrassing would that be, to find out it was indeed MusicFestGuy, when he stopped to recount his version of the accident to the cops?)

so, in between stealing glances at maybe MusicFestGuy, I began remembering everything about the weekend, and how I kept running into him.

my friend J, a couple of the guys from work and I went up to the mountains for the annual two-day music festival. NowEx was supposed to join us, but, as he was occasionally known to do, he bailed and didn't come up that Friday, and was maybe going to meet us the next day. (perhaps NowEx's bailing was the start of my wishful ticketing?)

I was a little annoyed at NowEx and ready to have fun with my friends and Mr. Citron at the local bar. we were all dancing and I remember MusicFestGuy joining us. he was wearing some crazy hat, which J of course borrowed, as she's been known to do. he and his friends bought us a couple of drinks, we danced some more, but as tends to happen at crowded bars on festival weekends, people wander away.

the bar has a great outdoor area in the summer, and we're all outside enjoying the crisp air, when I again bump into him. J was on a mission for another tasty beverage, so we were left to chat. it was so easy to talk to him. he wasn't pretentious like guys I typically meet in a bar, even though he did point out his new set of wheels (how I knew the car today was maybe his).

we talked about jobs and hobbies and music. he actually thought it was interesting that I'm an enginerd, and was excited that I ski/hike/bike/camp/etc. (unlike NowEx, who never wanted to do any of those things with me.) and MusicFestGuy was psyched to see many of the same bands I wanted to see over the next two days.

at this point in the evening I half-realize it has been awhile since I've seen J. I glance around and find her sitting with my friends from work (who are themselves working on a couple of, um, interesting chicks). J's not looking too thrilled with me. so MusicFestGuy and I walk over and try to include her in the conversation for a while. but being it's Friday, she's tired and we decide maybe it's time to head to the condo.

J tries talking my work friends into leaving, while MusicFestGuy and I talk a little more. he asks for my number, I (very unusually) have a card with me, so (even more unusually) I hand it to him.

he then asks if I'm dating anyone. (yes, the order of the questions was weird, the whole night was a little surreal, so at the time it didn't strike me as odd.)

being a horrible liar, I tell him yes, and ask him the same question. he says yes, he's dating someone, started dating her about a month ago. he asks how long mine's been around, and I tell him a year, to which he raises an eyebrow. and I explain how I'm extremely annoyed with him (and why), but yes, I'm still with him. MusicFestGuy asks if I would really want him to call me back down in the city. and I truthfully tell him, yes, grabbing coffee or hiking or something sometime would be fun.

as we're leaving, he gives me a friendly kiss on the cheek, this is when J notices his friends are also HOT. hmmmm... this could mean tomorrow night will be more fun. oh, wait, what's his name is maybe coming up tomorrow. oh, well. if he does, I can still talk to MusicFestGuy as wing-woman, right?

the next day, NowEx calls when he gets to the fest, and I head down to the gate to meet him with his ticket. I've had to leave the festival to do that, so I now have to circle around to get back in.

I hear my name and turn to see MusicFestGuy about 5 feet behind NowEx. I walk over, he hugs me and I say I'll see him inside. (NowEx saw this, and sadly all I could think at the time, was good, maybe he'll be a tad jealous.)

we went to the local bar again that night, NowEx along. we had a bigger group that night, other friends had gotten into town, also, and one of them knew some of MusicFestGuy's friends, but MusicFestGuy wasn't around.

not-surprisingly, NowEx bailed early. (he was supposedly sick, part of the reason he'd waited to come up until Saturday.) and as NowEx was leaving, I see MusicFestGuy. he walks over to talk to me.

more friendly dancing and harmless flirting ensues. and although he asks if he can give me a kiss at the end of the night, I offer up a cheek, instead. he offers up their condo for all of us to continue the party in. but as J and I get to their condo door, I'm feeling a little bad about NowEx, she decides she's tired and we head on back.

I see MusicFestGuy one last time the last day. he says he'll call so we can grab that coffee sometime. and that was it.

today, as I glanced over at his car one last time, I've convinced myself that it's him, he's exiting at his exit after all. wait, is he smiling back at me? I can't really tell.

but it makes me wonder a little why he didn't call. was it:
because I had a boyfriend and he was dating someone? (understandable)
because he lost or washed my card? (understandable, but unfortunate)
because he wasn't really all that interested? (utterly unbelievable)
I suppose I'll never know.

**sigh**

well, perhaps my second chances of today will become third chances someday...