Family Outing

I went out with my niece and nephew this weekend. Yes, they're adults. My niece is a new 21, so it was the first time we've gone out. The three of us, along with their significant others, started out night at an arcade. (It's this bar that has a whole arcade game section. It's fine, if you're into air hockey.) The boys have this definite bond and ditched us immediately. That left us to judge the people there on dates--a surprisingly high number. 

Fortunately, the arcade didn't last long. We headed out to a different bar, which none of us had been to before. I started the night with some random sitting at the bar staring at me. A while later, he was hovering sort of near our table. Checking facebook on his phone. The five of us exchanged looks...do you know him? What's his deal? Nope, never seen him before. After a few minutes, my niece said, "Hi, are you single?" He looked a little startled and said yes. "She's single, too." She pointed at me. He looked away and my niece informed him that was rude. He turned back and put his phone away, said hi. "Amanda, he's tall. Stand up and see how tall he is." He introduced himself to us and sort of joined our table. 

Conversation was...sort of awkward? We chatted, but I felt no problem abandoning him to get up and dance. He hung around with us all night. He asked me several times how I was getting home, if I lived far, and informing me that he lived five minutes away from the bar. I GET IT, ok? 

Outside the bar at the end of the night, he asked if he could take me to dinner. I passed on giving him my number. He's a 22 year old European man here for his job. 22. He's a baby. He was cute but if I'm honest, I'm not sure what we'd talk about over dinner. He's the kind of guy you make out with in some corner of the bar and then sneak away from, leaving not even your lost shoe for him to track you down. Thanks, that was fun. (You can judge all you want, but at least I'm honest about it.) And I wasn't going to make out with him in front of my niece and nephew. I'm not exactly a conventional aunt to them, but that's a line I'm going to leave uncrossed. 

OH--nephew's wife also tried to hook me up with the bouncer. Meeting the 6'4" wall of a man, he looked me up and down twice before telling me I was a beautiful girl. (Surprisingly, I was not charmed by the action.) Then asked for my number. Pass, thank you. 

Laughing over pancakes at IHOP after last call, I was glad I hadn't gone home with the 22 year old or the bouncer. It was, however, worth it to watch my niece act as my wingwoman.