A Hot Mess Turned Around by a Glass of Merlot Forever!

All rainbows, roses and fairies my life was not! I was a “hot mess” who lived in a basement apartment that was being sold by the owner in weeks and felt I was at the lowest point in my life.

Every day, I went to my boring job as at McDonald’s, serving fast food to people who complained to me all day. “Ma’am, this is cold!” “Miss, this isn’t what I ordered.” I worked like a robot for the eight hour shift, detached mentally every moment, just trying to get by to go back to the squalor; which was my apartment. That was my escape and place to read and write despite the quality I was living in. It was all I had. I had high expectations for myself and great goals, having a masters degree in journalism, but the job search was an indescribable and hopeless disaster. I was stuck in a “carfuffle” that I needed to get out of, especially with the constant reminder that the house I was living in could be sold at any moment.

One month later, the inevitable news came that the seller of the home I was living in was being sold. My heart dropped and skipped a beat. I was devastated and flooded with the thoughts of homelessness and a crappy job that I couldn’t get out of. What was I going to do? I immediately searched the internet for affordable apartments but it was a lost cause. Finding an affordable apartment in downtown Manhattan was inconceivable. I was met with a rush of emotions and broke down into a long crying session, losing hope along the way.

One month later.... It happened. The doom of all disasters! I came home from my draining and monotonous job only to be met with a letter on my door that said “ The house is going to close and the new owner takes possession in a week. You have until then to vacate the premises.” I went weak to my knees. It was real then. Where was I going to go? I had no friends in the area. Was I going to be homeless? The questions running through my mind were endless. I was exhausted and just went to bed trying to calm my brain and hope that I could focus better in the morning.

KNOCK! KNOCK! I woke up frazzled as I had never had a knock on my apartment door before. I quickly made myself presentable as the knocks on the door got louder and more impatient. I opened the door and stood a young man with the most gorgeous eyes and hair; not to mention his clothes were of such a high caliber that I was mesmerized with what I saw. He said, “Ohhh, hello Miss. I am here to do the inspection on the apartment.” I quickly obliged and let the handsome looking man come in. He walked around inspecting the apartment and continued to make small talk with me all the while. I was inexplicably nervous as to what he was thinking while he checked the apartment talking to me. Was he going to yell at me for the condition of the apartment or give me even stricter rules to move out quicker? Luckily, to my surprise, when he was done with his inspection, he just thanked me, told me to have a good day and left. I let out a huge sigh of relief, while having my heart race at the same time.

Fast forward a week to the day before I was supposed to move out. I was getting ready for my shift at McDonald’s and again a loud knock at the door. By this time most of my personal belongings were packed with no place to go. I started to panic yet ran and answered the door. It was no other than the soon to be new owner of the home. I invited him in for a quick cup of coffee with anticipation of what we were going to talk about. To my overwhelming surprise, he stated “ I was thinking over the past week, ever since I met you, and I have a proposition for you.” I thought to myself “what the heck could he want from me?” He said “If you would join me for a proper cup of coffee at the local Starbucks and let me get to know more about the mysterious you, I’ll let you stay in the apartment if you’re interested.” I was thinking two things to myself: Oh my god this handsome man wants me to go out with him, and holy cow, I may be able to keep my apartment?!?! So I responded to him “ Sure, that would be lovely, but I have to get to work.” He looked at me with such a saddened look and said “I understand.” I was so frustrated with myself. Did I just make the biggest mistake of my life? So without thinking, I quickly said, “ By any chance would you have time to meet up after I get out of work?” I was nervous as to his response. Would he be annoyed and just kick me out right then or would he be understanding of my situation and agree to going out afterwards? Well... he replied “ I am free tonight around 7 if that works for you?” I quickly told him absolutely yes. He smiled and said “Great. Ok if I pick you up here and we’ll go to the famous Italian restaurant Martuccis a few blocks from here around 7:30?” Fancy, I thought to myself but of course I agreed. I realized one important thing; we never even exchanged names! As he was getting up I quickly stated: “ Excuse me sir.. I never caught your name.” “Oh my apologies young lady. My name is Stefan. May I ask your name? I’m sorry I didn’t ask earlier, we got into a nice conversation and I forgot. Where are my manners?” (We both laughed.” “My name is Amelia,” (which I said with a smile in my McDonald’s uniform; not my sexiest outfit.) “Great, that settles it then. I shall be here at 7:30 to pick you up Amelia. It was a pleasure speaking with you.” I thanked him and quickly escorted him to the door as I was running late for work. I worked the whole day with a smile on my face despite all the negativity around me.

As soon as my shift was over, I quickly rushed home to rummage through all my clothes that I literally just boxed away, looking for a nice dress suitable for a restaurant; whether it was a date or not. Bam... Success... Found my red dress that I hadn’t worn in ages and quickly threw it on, without ironing mind you, as there was no time for extreme measures. I washed up, did my hair and makeup and just as I was gathering up the money I had scattered around for a rainy day fund (as I couldn’t really afford the restaurant) there was that familiar Knock at the door. The blood rushed through my veins and my heart raced like I had just run a marathon. I quickly answered the door and greeted Stefan. He shook my hand (so proper he was) and said “ Are you ready Amelia? Shall we take off?” I replied “ Let me grab my purse and I’ll be ready.” We left for the restaurant.

On the way to the restaurant, a thousand thoughts ran through my mind; was it a date? Were we just talking about the status of my occupancy of the apartment? My brain was a mush of scattered thoughts and emotions; especially with this handsome young man next to me in the car. We arrive at Martuccis and Stefan opens my door. (What a kind gesture I thought to myself) We enter the restaurant, which the ambiance was beautiful by the way, and we get seated.

Stefan and I were both handed a menu and a wine menu. He kindly asked me what my favorite wine was. I panicked, since I didn’t have a vast knowledge of wines, so with a joking voice I said “How about a glass of Merlot since it matches my red dress.” We both let out a little chuckle and he responded “ sure a glass of Merlot would be lovely. Let’s start with that.” So we ordered our wine and began to talk about ourselves. He is an architect for a major firm that works on buildings in Manhattan. He stated he wanted to buy the house I was currently living in as a secondary home as it was closer to his place of business. Myself, always being interested in math and architecture, found his job quite interesting. Trying to be polite and acting like I wasn’t worried about the status of my apartment; I replied “That’s a great idea to have a second home close to work where you can crash on late nights. I love architecture so I know the long hours it requires.” Shocked at my love of mathematics and knowledge of architecture, our little conversation and dinner that started with a glass of Merlot, lasted 3 hours and a 4 glasses of wine later. He asked all about me and my story. I told him I had a Masters degree in Journalism and a minor in Mathematics and was in the process of looking for a job. I explained that I made the courageous move to Manhattan with the hopes that I could land a writing internship or job but with no job in sight, I had to settle for any job that would pay the rent while I continued my search. He told me that was very respectable and to not give up as he found my passions for my reading and writing were quite apparent. Stefan was quite enamored with my dress and as we were about to settle the bill, I reached for my purse and he said “I’ve got this one.” I thanked him and smiled. As we get up from our table, ready to leave the restaurant, he said “ You look lovely in that dress by the way. Sorry I didn’t mention it sooner, I get nervous around pretty ladies.” I blushed and thanked him. We got in his car and he drove me home.

I was perplexed as to why we didn’t talk about the status of the apartment. After all, it was the whole point for the dinner. Did he just forget? Was he interested in me and didn’t want to bring it up? Thousands of scenarios went thru my mind. It was late so I put on my pajamas and went to bed. The very next morning, I opened my door to grab the newspaper and to my surprise there was a bottle of Merlot (the exact brand we ordered at the restaurant) with a note attached. I quickly grabbed the wine and the newspaper and ran inside. I sat on my couch and quickly read the note. It said “ Dear Amelia, thank you for joining me for dinner last night. I truly enjoyed your company and our conversation. I hope you enjoy this wine and it reminds you of me. I have a confession to make. I didn’t bring up the apartment during dinner because after seeing you in that red dress and hearing about your aspirations, I wanted us to enjoy our time together. I figured dropping off this wine would give me the chance of a second date, while at the same time sharing some good news with you. If you’re interested call me later at 524-2277. With care, Stefan.” I sat there in silence with a huge grin on my face. So that was a date, I thought to myself. (Nervous) Do I call him now? Do I call him on my break at work or do I call him late in the evening? I didn’t want to seem desperate.

It was 8 pm, I had just gotten home from work, and with a nervous sick stomach I dialed the number on the note. Ring, Ring, Ring, (my heart races) I hear “hello, this is Stefan, how may I help you?” I gulped and said “ Hi Stefan, it’s Amelia. Thank you for the wine and note. I’d definitely like a second date with you. Let me know when you’re available and I’ll make myself available as well.” Stefan (in an excited sounding voice) said “ Are you by chance free tomorrow around 7? I have an early day tomorrow and you can pick the restaurant.” I said “Sure, that works perfectly. How about Indian to switch it up?” Stefan said “That’s perfect, I’ll pick you up at 7. Looking forward to it. See you then.” We both said goodbye and hung up the phone. I was grinning from ear to ear.

7 pm approached quicker than I expected the next day but I was prepared with my blue dress on and my grandma’s sparkling white pearls. Knock, knock, knock at the door. The time has come. I ran to the door and there he was, as stunning as ever. I was greeted with “ Hi Amelia, you look ravishing.” I of course thanked him and we headed to the restaurant. Once we got our seats, without even asking, Stefan ordered “my” Merlot. (A very sweet gesture.) So once we ordered, our conversation flowed with ease. We got to know each other more deeply. I was increasingly mesmerized by the second. As dinner arrived, the inevitable apartment situation came up. (I sigh in my head thinking “here it comes.” ) Stefan says “ So... about the apartment. I was thinking hard and I have an idea that will suit us both well. How about you stay in your apartment rent free and while I’m at my primary home you take care of my plants, bring in my mail and newspaper and take care of the grass. It’s a win win for both of us. I’ll have my home taken care of while I’m not there and you can save money to find your dream job.” I was shocked and at a loss for words. There was a moment of silence and then I graciously agreed. Stefan smiled with content. He then stated “ok I take over the home in 3 days so you can relax, unpack and once I move my things in we can get together again and go over everything. Sound good to you?” I of course happily agreed and we continued our meal and amazing conversation. When we left the restaurant and he dropped me off, I told him “I look forward to seeing you in 3 days” and before I could get out of the car he leaned over and gave me a quick kiss. “See you in 3 days Amelia.” I got out of the car smiling and walked to my apartment in a sway full manner.

The three days quickly approached, Stefan came over and he took me to his main part of the house and explained what he wanted me to do to help while he was gone. We went over every detail and then he and I both had to go to work so he told me he’d call me later. We spoke many nights on the phone for weeks while he wasn’t at the home, all the while me taking care of his place. At times he would pop in and we would talk for a bit and then he would leave. Of course, I was happy to see him every chance I got with his busy schedule. Slowly, as time progressed, I noticed he had started spending more time at the house and our interactions became organic and more frequent. We started going out for meals more often and he had me stay and watch movies with him. He even cooked, yes cooked, me dinners. It was a friendship connection with an average spark, which was comfortable for me since I hadn’t had many romantic encounters in the past.

After about 6 months, Stefan was at the house over 5 days a week. I still took care of the house as it was part of our deal but he really didn’t need it anymore. By then I felt it was a way for us to keep spending time with each other, which I was quite content with. One night while I was watering his plants, he came home with a dozen roses, a bottle of Merlot and a movie.” He said “ Amelia this is for you. Are you up for dinner and a movie?” I said of course and he leaned over and kissed me. My heart skipped a beat and was fluttering. We ate dinner, drank the Merlot, watched the movie and fell asleep cuddling together. I ended up spending the night. Eventually, our encounters became more frequent and grew more romantic. Before I had even realized, we began spending almost every evening together, which each evening becoming more romantically serious. (I still had my apartment at this time.) It was an unspoken love for months until one evening the unexpected happened. Stefan asked me to move in with him and make my apartment a studio for my writing. I was shocked and although our love was unspoken; we had slowly grown a genuine bond and affection for each other. I,without hesitating, said “YES, Stefan, it would be lovely.” He hugged me and I felt his heart through his blazer, he was so excited that I could see the gleam in his eyes.

I moved in with him the following week and Stefan turned my apartment into the writing studio he had promised. As time passed, things got more serious with Stefan and I had finally landed my dream job as a journalist on Wall Street. Everything started to fall into place. A weird love story that started out with someone I viewed as a possible enemy evicting me, to a possible landlord, to a friend, to a business proposal to a relationship and eventually to a proposal of marriage. The Merlot we had joked about that started our first date became our little spark and habit that we kept alive every date night throughout our marriage. “ A glass of Merlot please.”