my first missed connection!

It's 1:12 am. I just got back from watching the France vs. England rugby game at the Champs de Mars, right in front of the Eiffel Tower. It was pure insanity. England won. Anyway, besides that being the setting, I just had my first missed connection tonight. And it wasn't even with a French boy. It was with an adorable British guy with a broken arm who was in Paris to watch the game with his friends.

I'll quickly describe what a "missed connection" is. It's when you have a moment with a complete stranger that sort of sticks in your mind, and you never really meet the person, you sort of either just lose them forever or you make the effort to find them. Hence the "missed connections" section in Craigslist where I first saw it. I'd read the "missed connections" section at work back in SF. They ranged from people who make eye contact and then lose each other on the metro (he gets off or she gets off or whatever) to people whining about who keyed their car.

So, I went to watch the rugby game with Kristin, Morgan, and Kathy. We fought through throngs upon throngs of people (it was a huge mosh pit to get there), and finally we settled next to a group of hot, young British fellows. We got to talking with them, and, when they won, we celebrated with them.We didn't take our shirts off of course, but this was very amusing to us. As the crowds parted, and the sad Parisiens went on their way, the British boys and us hung around. They were all just so happy to have won. Among them all, one boy stuck out to me.

He was only a couple of inches taller than me, and the shortest among his mates. He wore a rugby shirt and jeans and his left arm was in a blue cast! He was adorable. We talked for a little bit after the game. He asked if we were going out tonight, and I said probably. He asked if he should change his shirt, and I said yes, he should, if he didn't want to get beaten up by an angry mob. Then he went away. And that was it. That was the last time we talked, but it wasn't then that we had our moment.

Before actually leaving, since we didn't feel like going out, I was standing between Morgan and Kathy. Then I see the boy, he's walking away from his friend, and then, a couple of feet to my right, he stops and we sort of look at each other. It only lasted a couple of seconds, but it felt like the longest look I ever held with any stranger before. And everything became quiet, and all I can hear in my head was, "Talk to me. Talk to me one last time because I know I'll never see you again." He seems like he's contemplating it. I smile, just a little bit, to acknowledge him. I'm too shy to make a move to go talk to him. He makes his decision and turns away to go to another group of his friends. Oh well.

It's so typical that this happen. Only yesterday did I change my status from "It's Complicated" to "Single". That's right, I'm single, folks, and just in time for school! No, but seriously, I'm not looking for a relationship, I just want to make friends. It just wouldn't make sense to date someone here, I'll only be here for a year. But I'll keep an open mind, especially if it's a cute British boy with a broken arm.

And if you're wondering about the boy in SF...well, he knows how I feel. I still like him, and, last time I checked, he said he liked me. But so much can happen in a year. So much.

A lesson to all guys: Don't be so shy!