Post 7 – The Green Door Restaurant, Part 1
I arrived early at the restaurant and grabbed a seat by the window. I heard good reviews about this place so was eager to try the food. A buffet-style vegetarian restaurant, the food is seasonal, local, and the menu offers a broad range of internationally inspired dishes.
Myles took the kids to his parents for lunch and encouraged me to take as much time as I needed to reconnect with “an old friend”.
As I sat waiting, I scanned the walls covered with Seth’s paintings. I imagined my own paintings hanging and felt a burst of excitement. What a great feeling it would be to expose my work to the public everyday for a month! So many people’s eyes absorbing my art, my ideas, my passion. I relished at the thought!
I noticed Seth walk by the window and within a few moments he was sitting in front of me. We ordered food and started our conversation reminiscing about our University days. About thirty minutes into the conversation he said:
“You know…I used to have a really big crush on you!”
“Really?” I replied, shocked.
While I was flattered by his comment, I also felt uneasy. I wanted to express to him that I too was attracted to him years ago, but it didn’t feel right. If I revealed my feelings toward him, it could open the door to…intimacy…or infidelity? Maybe I was getting ahead of myself, but that’s how affairs get started. If we started hanging out more, talking more intimately, well… I can’t go there. I had absolutely no interest in having an affair with him or anyone else for that matter. Being attracted is one thing, having an affair is something completely different.
“Awe! Thank you! That’s really nice!” I said, then quickly changed the topic.
Within an hour we updated each other about our lives.
He’s married, no kids, and works as a manager for a government department. Apparently, he’s been married as long as I have, which means he was married at the time we attended University together. This was surprising to me! I often talked about Myles to him and my friends at school. Everyone knew I was married.
Seth never once talked about his wife…or mentioned the fact that he was ever married!
The conversation went on and he talked about his desire to have kids. He revealed that his wife didn’t want to have children, and he sacrificed not having any for the sake of being with her. I thought it was a grand and selfless gesture on his part. We stayed on the topic for some time, with him describing the different stages of life of his imaginary son or daughter. Then he said something strange that caught me completely off guard.
“I often thought about finding a woman who could have a child with me. I would still be married to Karen, but maybe have a child on the side with another woman.”
What? I thought. What does that mean?
“You’re fortunate to have kids. Would you like to have more?” He asked, fully engaged. “I mean…you know…” He raised his eyebrows, shaking his head in a “yes” gesture as if wanting me to agree with him.
Huh? What the…? Was he proposing we have a child together? Was that the real point of our meeting today?