Two Become One

My junior year at Tennessee State University I joined a team jeopardy club. The club traveled across states to participate in quiz bowls against other schools. One such event took our team to the University of Maryland Eastern Shore. Our school had won the national championship the year prior so, clad in TSU blue track suits, we had an air of confidence and the look of a successful (but slightly out of shape) sports team. Several schools converged at UMES not only for the HCASC quiz bowl but also for an Honors Program conference. Upon arrival, the greeters handed us our complimentary swag bag: An ink pen, some candy, a tee shirt, and a stress ball modeled to look like a globe. We had a couple of hours to explore the campus and meet other students before competitions and presentations began, so the team captain, Vice Captain, and I decided to walk around. As friendly and handsome as I fancy myself, I knew that I was a terrible conversationalist so it was reassuring to have Ishamel and Larry with me. We met a few people but one beautiful woman really cought my eye. She was tall and slinder with flawless ebony skin. Ishmael took the lead and introduced himself while I simply smiled awkwardly standing behind him. She was there to present a research paper and mentioned that her school's quizbowl team was not present. Ishmael mentioned that she should come watch us later that day or tomorrow. We didn't see her in attendance later that day. That night there was a game night but I chose not to attend. The next morning my teammates told me all about the adventures of game night. Larry could not stop talking about the beautiful dark skin woman we had all met earlier for apparently she was not only highly intelligent but we'll versed in pool. Let Ishmael tell it, he lost on purpose. Either way she beat them both in pool. This intrigued me greatly. I had to meet this legendary beauty. Sabbath morning, the Lord almighty answered my secret prayer. I was an alternate for the team so I found myself in the audience while my team competed. Not five minutes into the match, I turn my head and see the legend sitting a few rows behind and to the side of me. She was wearing a black tank top, black button up shirt, a grey pencil skirt, and black heels. I am not a fan of awkward small talk but I had to talk to this woman so I walked over and introduced myself. I asked her name, where she was from, and all the standard surface level questions I could think to ask on one's first encounter. As we chatted, I found myself lost in her smile. We talked for what seemed like an hour but in reality was maybe 5 minutes. But even though I had run out of things to say, I didnt want this to be our last encounter so I pulled out the globe stressball and asked her "will you hold my world for a bit. I'll come back for it later." At the time I thought it was charming and witty but in retrospect it doesn't make any sense. Regardless, she agreed to hold it for me and I walked away. Saturday night, the final event of the weekend was a dance. I am not a dancer by any stretch of the imagination but I can two step with the best of them. I spotted Maya dancing amongst her friends. She was wearing the same outfit save she had swapped out her heels for flats. Now that she was standing and moving, and now that I wasn't standing behind two people, I could fully see just how alluring she was (and how form fitting her Grey skirt was). Its intimidating to approach a woman when she's amongst a group of friends but I mustered up the courage. I should have asked her to dance. I should have been smooth. But instead I asked for my "world". She didn't have it. Let her tell it, she gave it back to me before the competition ended but that can't be true. I did have sense enough to ask for her Facebook page. That night I sent her a message. Though she lost my world, she won my heart.

The True Version It was coming to the end of first semester of Senior year. Senioritis on 1000%. There were two things pretty much near the bottom of the list of things I wanted to do before Christmas break: 1. Extra work, 2. Take a road trip for my least favorite class with my least favorite teacher! However, being a member of honors program at Elizabeth City State University I was required to present my thesis research at the National Association of African American Honors Programs National Conference. The conference was a way to connect members of various HBCU honors programs and highlight their achievements. So in spite of my lack of enthusiasm, I boarded the bus and took the drive from Elizabeth City to the University of Maryland Eastern Shore. The weekend was filled with various events, poster presentations, debates, and quiz bowl competitions amongst the schools. In between we had opportunities to watch other schools compete, attempt to network and get to know one another. After registration we had some free time and there was a pool table. Finally, the weekend was looking up, pool was my jam! Met and played a few rounds with students from other schools, taking no prisoners! There was a group of students from Tennessee State University that ended up being pretty cool and they took the L very well. One of the guys invited us to watch them in the quiz bowl competition, and I agreed even though quiz bowl was never very exciting to me. Sitting in the auditorium people watching, I see the once assumed shy Adrian flitting from girl to girl. He finally makes his way over to me like I hadn’t been watching him, and begins to make small talk. He was pretty funny and he made me laugh. Some time during the conversation he hits me with a pick up line. He asks me to “hold his world” (stress ball given as a conference gift in the model of a globe) for him and he’d be right back. Cute, but points taken off for reusing the same pick up line all day. He comes back some time later to collect his world. I return it to him and we exchange Facebook information. We don’t talk much the rest of the conference, but we see each other at the end of conference dance. Dancing my heart out, but he never asks me for a dance. The weekend ends, a lot more fun than I was expecting to have. Met some really cool people, made promises to keep in touch that we knew we probably wouldn’t be able to keep. Didn’t think much of the weekend again until I received a Facebook message after returning to school. It was from Adrian……. What began as a much dreaded weekend trip became the key to finding the love of my life.