Sunday, February 18, 2007

Crush

The Sunday Scribblings prompt this week is "crush." Ah, crushes. Such wonderful and horrible things. I have story ideas swirling in my head about crushes, but no time to write them. But I can remember crushes I have had.

In Italy, there was a boy named Gennaro. Gaeta was a small town and each evening everyone in it went strolling around, kissing each other's cheeks and eating gelato. And during the day (at least in summer), everyone walked up and down the beach in their bathing suits, similarly kissing cheeks and eating gelato. So when you had a crush in Gaeta, you looked out for him as you walked. I was twelve, and I had a pair of hot pink polka-dotted pants from Benneton that I loved. (And I still think they were awesome, and would probably wear them today.) I had a red bikini from the sprawling tuesday market, and I had a tan such as I will never have again in my life. Gennaro was probably sixteen. He was polite, disinterested. He fell in love with a French girl in a pink bikini that summer, and I would see them walking hand in hand, and splashing each other, and even -- oh, this was hard -- kissing.

In highschool there were various unfulfilled crushes. The big one, hm, I think of him now and I don't see the attraction! Even a few years out of highschool I ran into him -- we went to the same university -- and I wondered: WHY? Why? He had sleepy eyes and a flop of dark dark hair, and there was some indefinable cool about him, but smart-cool. This was Orange County, and I guess surfer-cool was the prevalent cool of the day. That wasn't him. He was bookish. My best friend Lori and I both fell madly in crush with him at Model United Nations conferences. He didn't go to our school and we practically adopted his school and his friends in our madness for him. How ludicrous! When that crush ended, it was like the moment in The Snow Queen when the shard of the enchanted mirror finally falls out of Kay's eye and his spell is broken. It was over, just like that.

There were other crushes, sure, but nothing great until much later, in art school, and that one was very very sweet! There was this guy with long ginger-colored sideburns and really broad shoulders. He parked next to me on the first day of school and then was in my first class, Illustration I, where the teacher assigned us to draw each other! And the next day, he was in my painting class too. He was funny and talented and I married him! In fact, he just walked past wearing plaid flannel pants, putting expensive moisturizer on his face. (Hi sweetie!)

18 comments:

paris parfait said...

Laini, such a cute story about meeting Jim. "And the next day, he was in my painting class too. He was funny and talented and I married him!" Those two sentences remind me of the Jennifer Garner character in the movie "Thirteen." How fabulous - a crush that turned to love. I so enjoyed reading this piece.

Liza on Maui said...

a delightful stories of crush, with a "happy ending" of marrying one :) I enjoyed your story :)

rel said...

Laini,
I came, I read, I enjoyed!
An enchanting chronicle.
rel

Waspgoddess said...

I particularly enjoyed the Italian crush; how you all strolled around, kissing each other and eating gelato... how civilised! And your polka dot pants sound fabulous.

Left-handed Trees... said...

You and Jim are absolutely adorable together (now that I've seen it--however briefly--with my own two eyes I can vouch for that)...so sweet to marry your biggest (and best) crush, though the other ones had their place and were beautifully described here!
Love,
D.

Regina said...

Aw... I loved your "last" crush... I married one of those, too!

Shelby said...

I love that!!

January said...

Yes, the story of the last crush is certainly the best!

sundaycynce said...

I too married my best crush--it's a truly happy circumstance. And, it keeps that happy crush memory fresh. Thanks for sharing how you met Jim.

Anonymous said...

Aw, I love this story! You and Jim seem positively fated to be together. :)

Tinker said...

Oh, that is so very sweet! Fate and art school brought you together...what a memory to treasure - may you be telling your family that story for many years to come!

Amber said...

Such a fun read. Isn't it funny how people look to us later, after we have gained a few emotional pounds?

I didn't write it, but I only saw one old crush that I was still able to say I was right to be giddy over year later. His name was Lathrope, and he was beautiful boy from El Salvador...*sigh*. And he was even more sweet than I remembered him to be.

Ya for your last crush!

:)

Michelle | Bleeding Espresso said...

Yeah, well, those Italian guys are trouble anyway ;)

gautami tripathy said...

Great narration. I like the ending. To have a crush turn to love..:D


gautami
Painfully yours..

madelyn said...

humph!

french girls in pink bikinis
are quite overated...

well, i think so anyway:)

lovely post!

flannel pajamas are sexy!

Jone said...

I loved reading this. From summer fling to real love. Nice.

love.boxes said...

Once I went for pizza and the orginal group became friends and friends of friends and here came this guy wearing this wool cabbie hat. No ones wears hats and although I want to say that he looked ridiculous, I can't because he just didn't, he should have, but he didn't & I fell in love with him and married him 8 years later. 13 years after the wedding, he's still dreamy looking.

Fletcher of the Day said...

I remember the cad of which you are speaking in the 'OC' crush. That was a valuable crush for me. While I didn't end up with the cad (thank goodness for small mercies), I did get to share a brief but very intense part of my life with you. Chasing the loser had a benefit after all!!

Lori Lee