Lucky

2

Friday.

The polar opposite of Monday. I like to think of a week as a spring, in that as the days go by starting Monday, it tightens and coils, slowly building that ever-tiresome tension. When you reach Friday the tension is released in a mighty eruption of pent up energy, leaving you feeling loose and unwound. Then, when Monday returns, it's all recoiled again.

This Friday evening looked fairly promising to Mitch, as he got into his old 2011 Honda. Kirstie had convinced him over lunch on Tuesday to attend a blind double date with her and Jeremy to the arcade they'd often gone to as kids. He was surprised to find that he didn't feel nervous, as he often did before dates. Especially one where he didn't know anything about the person he was going to be paired up with other than that they were Kirstie's co-worker. Kirstie had rambled on and on to him about his mystery date and how it would surely be love at first sight, but Mitch hadn't been fooled. Her intentions were completely stark to him; he could clearly see that this was all more attempt to get him over Scott.

Maybe that's why he didn't find himself anxiously pacing his room, desperately trying to decide between outfits as he often did. On this particular evening, for seemingly the first time, he found that he didn't care. Typically, he would be eager to make the best first impression possible, with thoughts of how their future could play out in mind. He would walk into a date with the mindset of finding a potential partner, which was a completely logical approach, but now?

Mitch had come to the somewhat pathetic conclusion that he would in fact never be over the dorky blond boy on vine, so why try to pretend? Don't get him wrong, he was determined to walk into this date with an open mindset and positive attitude, but he just didn't think it would work. And maybe it should've concerned him more than it did that he was so calm about setting himself up to inevitably dying alone, but he was in love. Cliche as that may sound.

He combed down his thin dark hair so that it was parted neatly, and debated for a moment on whether or not he should wear his glasses. He decided on yes, concluding that they made the bags under his eyes less noticeable and gave him an overall softer look. He really should get some better makeup soon.

    Despite his previously determined mindset of not caring, Mitch still regrettably found himself checking and rechecking his reflection in the front rear view mirror as he drove to the arcade. His self confidence had never quite been through the roof, to say the least. It had especially seemed to plummet last year in 2012 when he'd gained a considerable amount of weight from stress, courtesy of his schooling. He wasn't exactly petite anymore, and although he didn't voice his insecurities much, it killed him. Mitch had spent more time than he'd ever care to admit over analyzing his appearance every time he passed a mirror, or really anything that had a reflective surface. He hated that his skin wasn't always clear, he hated that he wasn't thin anymore, he hated that he had natural bags under his eyes that almost never went away. He hated how thin his hair was. He hated a lot of things about himself.

He arrived at the arcade three minutes early and was immediately greeted by small tanned arms wrapping around his middle.

"Mitch! Yay, you're here! Come here, I want you to meet your date." Kirstie grabbed his wrists and pulled him over to where Jeremy stood alongside who must be his date.

His height rose above Mitch by an inch or a two, and he had a mop of curly sand-colored hair atop his head. The first thing that struck Mitch about him was how out of place he looked. He was pencil thin and dressed up a little too nicely to be at an arcade. His chin was pointed, and his nose narrow, and he had the general air of someone who didn't get out much. His small hazel eyes looked Mitch up and down through his glasses, and Mitch shifted uncomfortably.