The Story Of How Kyle And I Met

We get so many questions about how we met, so we decided to do a whole post where we both share the SAME story of our first date but from both of our perspectives! This is going to be a long one, so strap those seat belts and enjoy the ride because this story is GOOD! (At least my side is -Sam)  😉

Now this is a story all about how I met this long-haired kid who had a cat, meow. Alright, where should we start? I decided to go on Tinder for the first time in four years because I had no idea how to meet anyone in the city. You’d think living in a city full of so many people would have it’s dating perks! I had been in a long-term relationship that ended and I was ready to get back into dating. The last time I was on Tinder was back in 2014 (?) and I didn’t even know Bumble existed (definitely out of the loop), so I was happy to see there were more people taking Tinder seriously for dating now. I had the app for probably a day and a half before I swiped right on Kyle. He had a few questionable photos with intense filters on them (shout-out to the Valencia Instagram filter), but he looked like a nice dude and I liked that he worked at Nickelodeon. He also had really great hair and I’m not against dating a guy with nicer hair than me. Haha!

He messaged me first and started talking about flamingos. I had a lot of flamingos in my photos as if any of you are surprised. One thing I remember really well is explaining to him that even though my photos looked like I was super bubbly, I had the personality of 90’s icon Daria, which is very true. Unlike a lot of the other guys I had talked to on Tinder before, Kyle was actually engaged in our conversation and we talked about movies and our jobs before we agreed to meet for dinner that same night. SO many people since have told me that dinner is a bad idea for a first date, but I don’t drink so a bar was weird for me, and I didn’t want to show him my intense pinball addiction on the first date. Plus, I’m totally the type of person to throw all conventional dating rules out the window.

I picked a Japanese restaurant close to my apartment, not really understanding the magnitude of someone who is allergic to dairy and gluten. I figured there had to be at least four options on the menu for him to eat. Turns out, he could only eat the chicken wings…good job to me. So just know that everything that follows in this story is essentially my fault because I was lazy and wanted to pick a restaurant close to my place. Ha! I was actually a little late for dinner too thinking back on it which isn’t a good first impression at all. But in my defense, I was picking out a good outfit that summed up my colorful style, but also showed my cynical, sarcastic personality.

I was super nervous and texted him saying so when I got closer to the restaurant. He actually texted me something along the lines of “you can turn around and head home if I’m gross,” and that helped to calm my nerves. Not because I WOULD actually turn around and head home, but because he had a sense of humor. Even if he ended up being a Catfish, I probably would have still gone on a date with him haha. So the date started and I have no idea what we even talked about, the only thing I can remember are those stupid chicken wings. Once Kyle was done eating the wings, he licked ALL of his fingers. And we’re not talking just licked them off a little, but he put his whole finger in his mouth and licked off all of the sauce. I’m all for enjoying your food whatever way you want, and I know I said I don’t listen to traditional dating rules, BUT the memory of those chicken wings is still burned in my brain. You’re welcome for that mental image hahaha!

I decided to give him the benefit of the doubt and we ended up walking around for a bit and talking. He was into a lot of the same stuff as I was and was a bit nerdy too (always a plus), so the conversation was going great. After walking in circles forever, we went back to his apartment where I met Sabbath for the first time. She was such a cute little baby back then, they grow up too fast! Anyways, he put on a Death Cab vinyl (every Brooklyn boy listens to vinyl), and I try not to judge because I do like Death Cab, but it felt so high school romance days. But at least it was different from every other guy I’ve dated always listening to Radiohead! We played Star Wars Battlefront and he kicked my ass. I’m still waiting for a re-match, I was just rusty! I also remember this being the first time ever watching an episode of Rick and Morty, a show that I now LOVE, so thanks Rick and Morty for being part of our first date.

By the time we were done playing videogames, it was super late and Kyle called me a car home. I actually think the driver was waiting for me already, and we both went in for a kiss goodbye. The driver was the only other person to witness what was the worst kiss of my life. It was like when a distant relative you don’t know very well goes in for a kiss on the cheek and it’s so awkward you want to crawl into a hole and forget it ever happened. I’m not exaggerating either, and thankfully we never had another really uncomfortable kiss after that, but man that kiss was bad! Between the chicken wings and the kiss, I wasn’t sure I wanted to go on another date again but my best friend said I should give it another shot, and I obviously went on that second date! I couldn’t ask for a better partner in crime and that awful first kiss was totally worth it.

I’m actually excited to see Kyle’s side of the story, so take it away kid!

Once upon a time, it was 2016. I was a sad, lonely, emo, hipster boy, living on the border of Bushwick and BedStuy. I had spent the past 3 months soul searching and swiping on Tinder, Bumble, and OkCupid, desperately seeking any woman who would settle down with me to raise a family. Then one day I came across Sam’s profile, and man was I blown away. She seemed like the perfect package, but I was wary of swiping on her, because all of her photos were so nice looking! Plus, she seemed so colorful and happy, which was far from what I was. But then I saw it, a conversation heart pillow in the corner of one of her photos that said “Forever Alone.” It was love. I swiped right and then went about the rest of my day, which I think was actually my night, which means I went to bed.

When I woke up the next morning, I was greeted with an amazing sight: a match had been made on Tinder. I anxiously opened the app, and there in my inbox was Sam. She had swiped right on me! I opened with an amazing one liner: “Something about flamingoes,” I knew I had her. We started talking and pretty soon, we had agreed to meet for a date. I told all my coworkers about it. One of them even knew who she was, which only made me pine for her more! Who doesn’t want to date someone who is famous?! One of my good friends even followed her. It was weird. But that didn’t daunt me at all. We set up a date to meet at a Japanese restaurant near Sam’s apartment that evening, and I spent the rest of my work day dreaming about how well our date would go.

When the time finally came to go on the date, I put on my best outfit, a flamingo t-shirt (to tie in with my opening line) and khaki shorts, with a pair of disgusting, beat up Toms. I showed up early to the date, and I was super nervous. Sam texted me and said she was nervous too, but was on her way. To reassure her I said “If, when you get here, I’m ugly or creepy, you can just walk away and never talk to me again.” I thought that was a kind gesture, I’m not sure if she agrees. Surprisingly though, she still approached me, so I guess I was handsome enough! At this point, the date was already breaking all kinds of records for me, and I was so excited. She was wearing something super cute, but honestly, I don’t remember what it was, maybe overalls? We headed into the restaurant and sat down to order. I had let Sam choose where we were meeting, because she told me she didn’t drink, and I had told her I had dietary restrictions. Unfortunately for me, the place she chose ended up only having wings for me to eat, but I didn’t mind; the conversation was great and Sam was even more pretty in person than she was online.

I personally hate dinner dates for a first date, because honestly, what could be worse than eating in front of someone you’ve just met? What if they talk while they chew? Or what if they eat food a weird way? Like drinking all the broth out of their ramen before eating the noodles. That’s always the risk you run with a first date dinner, but to my relief, she was as normal as she could be when she ate. By this time, dinner had run it’s course and she excused herself to the ladies room. I was feeling pretty good about how it was going, so I flagged down the waitress to pay for the meal and have everything removed, all before Sam could protest or attempt to split the check. I was feeling super suave. When she came back, I told her everything was taken care of, and said I’d like to keep hanging out if she was also game to. She agreed, but we couldn’t decide what to do. We ended up walking around her block and talking.

After walking for about 30 minutes and just enjoying her company, I suggested we go back to my place to hang out and listen to vinyl (classy right?). She agreed, and I immediately began to think of which vinyl I would play for her to woo her. Anyone care to guess? When we got to my apartment, I gave her the grand tour, and we settled in with baby Sabbath to listen to Transatlanticism by Death Cab for Cutie, while we talked about life. I know what you are thinking “Kyle, is your life seriously ripped from an indie rom-com?” and the answer is yes, because I try my hardest to make it that way! As much as I was into Sam, I still felt extremely nervous, and tried my best to seem like a cool, nice and genuine guy. We picked out more vinyl to listen to, and talked about lots of things, all of which I don’t really remember now. We even played a little Xbox, which was truly like heaven. I also distinctly remember staring into her beautiful eyes for long minutes while we talked, and if you haven’t tried that, you should next time you see her. They are really pretty, sort of like looking at a galaxy or nebula that has faint shifts in color.

By the time the night was coming to a close, it was almost 3am. Time had literally flown by, and I hadn’t even realized it, despite the fact that I had work at 8am that morning. As I walked Sam out to her car, I fought with my nerves to try and get the courage to kiss her. As we said our final goodbyes, I went in for a kiss, and she did too. And it was truly terrible: I’m not going to say that it was the worst kiss of my life, but honestly it was not a good kiss in the least. It was limp, it was weird and it fell so short of what my expectations had been, I was super disappointed. But I played it off and hoped that she didn’t feel the same way about it, because if she had, she would absolutely decline a second date…

Whew! Are you still with us?! Ha, now we’re just waiting on that Tinder sponsorship! But in all seriousness, I love when Kyle gets to jump in on blog posts, he’s much more entertaining than I am. Let us know what else you want to hear about!