No Date Intended

No Date Intended

Their weekly pizza and beer lunch had been subsumed by the Covid-19 pandemic for a year, and now they were on only their second zoom meet. The reason for this video meet was that all four of them were now two weeks past their second vaccination shots and were now part of the 12% percent of Americans who were fully immunized. And restrictions for the fully immunized had been loosened.

“How about this guys? Suppose I pick up an extra large pepperoni and bacon pizza from the Stained Glass Pub and you all come over to my place for pizza and wine. I get six bottles of wine every month from a wine club called Bright Cellars, and I still have four unopened bottles from last week’s delivery. I also have a few cans of beer in the fridge for you, Don, since I know you are not much of a wine drinker.”

“What about Peg? How will she feel about all of us suddenly invading your house?’

“Oh, I thought I’d told you guys. Peg got all QAnoned on me. Started buying guns and shouting ‘Fake News” at the TV when I was trying to watch the NewsHour. Said the Covid vaccine had chips in it, and accused all of us of being socialists. She split about four months ago. Said she was going home to Georgia so she could be with her patriot buds. Good riddance as far as I’m concerned. Just glad we never got married.”

“So, How about it? You want to come over?”

“Well, my little sister’s here visiting from Chicago. Would it be OK to bring her along?”

“Sure.”

“OK. Sis, come here and take a look at my pizza buds and I’ll introduce you.”

She did and he did. They all agreed to meet at Phil’s place in an hour and a half.

An hour later, while waiting at the pub for the pizza to finish cooking, the first cancellation came in. Seems Stu should have checked with his wife before committing. She would have told him that he had to drive her to a dentist appointment.

A text message arrived from Garin as Phil was pulling into his driveway. Garin’s daughter needed emergency child sitting help from the grandparents for some reason or another.

Anyway, that still left Don and his sister Patti.

Moments later Don’s car pulled up. Except Don wasn’t in it, just Patti.

It took a couple of minutes to explain that the pizza for five was now a pizza for two, that is if Patti still wanted to stay with just the two of them there. “You don’t bite, do you?’ Patti laughed. Phil assured her he didn’t, and Phil led her to the kitchen.

Four bottles of wine and a wine opener sat on the kitchen cabinet. “Why don't you pick one and open it while I get some plates and cutlery.” “No cutlery needed for me,” Patti said. “Pizza is a finger food.”

“I opened the Merlot,” as she opened a cabinet and found wine glasses.

The pizza was still hot, and delicious, and plentiful, and dripping with sauce, and demonstrably large enough for five. They were half way through their second bottle of wine and had finished relating two life stories filled with amusing and telling anecdotes before it dawned on Phil, “This is not like a pizza party, this is an unplanned date!”

Looking at Patti, He said, “Should we consider this our first date?”

“Hmmm?” She looked him over in mock scrutiny. “That depends. We can call it our first date, but if you don’t believe in kissing on the first date, let’s act like this is our second date.”

Phil raised his glass of Merlot to Patti and smiled, “Works for me!”