Chasing Chase
"You can't be serious?" Sally said in dismay, staring blankly at her roommate.
Annin smiled mischieviously and nodded.
"You set me up on a blind date," the former stated, to confirm it once more.  Annin just nodded again and Sally's arms were thrown into the air in defeat.
"I can't say no now, can I?" she said, not dropping the issue.  She rarely did.
"Why don't you just go?  Maybe you'll have fun," Annin offered, which didn't sit well with her friend who took the opportunity to continue her ranting by herself.
"Of course I'll have fun!  That's the problem.  I'll fall for him and he'll just want to be friends."  She began pacing around the room her hands moving as rapidly as her mouth.  "Friends!  You can't just be friends!  Not if one of you likes the other.  Never works.  And if I don't like him then he will be in love with me.  And it's never just like.  They always fall in love!  Love!  Hardly!"  She began pointing wildly at Annin, who was patiently waiting for her to finish.  "And those boys are always insane.  Insane! I tell you!  They become obsessed or depressed or repressed!  And somehow I'm always the bad guy and they're the victim!  How does that work?  Look at my record" She began to name off former boys and the problems.  "One left after one day of dating.  One day!  Another found a new girlfriend!  The two who cheated on me.  TWO!  The boy who fell so in love it became scary!  Wouldn't leave me alone even after I broke up with him.  Or the one who would come over late at night and would never leave even when I was sick! Never called before hand either!  And then the one who wanted to get married.  Could you imagine me married?  I was only eighteen at the time!"  She paused to get a breath.  "Why can't I ever just meet a normal guy.  It's not like I want to get married or anything.  I just want to have a boyfriend."
"I know, I understand.  You just want to have a nice, normal relationship.  You're young though.  You still have time," Annin said, cutting in.  Her sensibilty caught Sally off guard and she was forced to realize she had been rambling.
"I hate you," Sally said with a smile.
"I know," her friend said, smiling back.  Sally shook her head and went into the kitchen to stir her dinner.  A knock at the door triggered the usual response.
"Come in Jared!" She called, and in swept a dark-haired boy with deep blue eyes.  His smile was mischievious and friendly as can be.
"Hello there beautiful," he said lovingly, pulling Annin close and kissing her.  Sally wasn't even in the room, but she knew automatically.
"Eww, you two are gross!" she called, as the couple laughed.
"Just wait until you find someone!  Then we'll walk in and say the same thing!" Jared said.  It was now Sally's turn to laugh.
"You two will be married with three kids by that time!"
"I know!  Isn't it great!" Jared said, grinning from ear to ear and kissing Annin again.
"You are so scandalous," Sally muttered, shaking her head and smiling all the while.  She bent down to grab a pot for her green beans.  She silently envied Jared and Annin in the other room.  They were so in love, and she watched every day as they expressed that love to each other.  It made her happy for them and sad at the same time.  She was beginning to think she would never fall in love.  Not that she didn't think she'd get married.  She planned on it.  It was just her ideal love, her dream, would never be a reality.  Romance didn't happen like the movies.  No guy would fall head over heels for her at one glance or even a hundred.  She wouldn't have a friend who she just realized one day that she loved or vice versa.  It wasn't just that fact though.  She was afraid of herself.  In Sally's mind, she couldn't quite picture what kind of man she would marry.  Her self-image was a bit distorted and confused.  She wasn't quite sure if she liked herself or not, and she had no idea who would like what she was.  What kind of man would love her?  And at times she worried that it would be the kind of man she usually ended up dating.  Perhaps she would have to settle for good enough.  The idea haunted her, because she, like so many other girls, had always dreamed of some fairy tale romance.  Or even a romance with some strange twist.  But a romance just the same.  The glimmer in her eyes began to fade as she moved the spoon through the tangle of thin, green vegetables.  She glanced over at Jared and Annin once more time and sighed.  Maybe Annin was right.  She would just have to wait and see about this blind date...

"Does my hair look all right?"
"Yes."
"What about my outfit?  It doesn't make me look like I'm trying too hard does it?"
"No.  Sally, you look beautiful.  He won't know what hit him," Annin said, smiling sweetly.  Sally blushed slightly and messed with her hair a little more.  She headed out into the living room and paced slightly as Jared sat watching from the sofa.  Annin joined him, and they were cuddling in no time at all.  Sally didn't make any comments this time.  She was too nervous.  At least it would be a double date.  Her hands were fixing a curl, straightening a wrinkle, checking her lipstick, browsing her purse, and in general, keeping as busy as possible.
"Jared, I look ok, right?" she asked, wanting a guy's opinion.
"Believe me.  I'm going to have to beat this guy with a stick to keep him off of you.  You look great," Jared said jokingly.  He, like Annin, had not only grown accustomed to Sally's fussing, but also had come to appreciate it as part of who she was.  He felt slightly protective of his fiance's roommate and was certain to give the guy a hard time to test him.
The knock finally came and Sally's eyes widened.
"This is it," she said, crossing to the door.  She took a deep breath and turned the handle...