Disclaimer: Nothing is mine, but Ashley and sometimes that's iffy!

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This chapter's quote:

"This is what happened the first time I met Undertaker, he chewed me out. I was backstage one night before a show and, just then, Edge was talking to me about something, and I was in the locker room fixing my hair. So, Edge is sitting there talking to me, and I'm looking in the mirror and listening the whole time, talking back to him, whatever. And, all of a sudden, out of nowhere, Undertaker got on my case so bad, asking me who I thought I was, why I didn't have time to pay attention, and I should take the time out from fixing my hair to listen to what Edge had to say to me." –Heath Slater

Chapter Nine
Dating Thoughts

Thursday Morning May 9, 2013

She was off today which was rare so she intended to enjoy it. The first thing she did was sleep well past the sunrise. She awoke at five after eight and she felt completely refreshed. She walked bare foot into the kitchen, wearing only a t-shirt which went passed her knees. One that Mark had accidentally left behind. As the coffee perked and sputtered she inhaled deeply, she smelled Mark and sweat. She hadn't washed it yet. She couldn't do it and she even tried to force herself to wash it. She didn't though but today she would. It was definitely time to wash it. She just felt … better when she was wearing it. Like he was there with her. Sappy, she knew.

Grabbing a mug from the cabinet, she poured her coffee and then added a healthy dose of sugar and chocolate caramel creamer. She then grabbed a banana and headed back into the bathroom. She sat her coffee down on the counter and turned on the water to the tub, getting just the perfect temperature for her luxurious bubble bath. While the tub filled, she put a few drops of her Rosemary mint honey bubble bath. As she waited for the tub to fill, she ate her banana and drank her coffee.

She wondered what Mark was doing? She knew he was WWE headquarters today and that this week he was training one of the Shield this week, Roman Reigns she did believe. She wondered if he was having a good morning. She wondered if he was having problems with Reigns or if he had a good night's rest. Was Randy, John, Glenn, or Sheamus around headquarters or were they elsewhere, practicing and rehearsing for Smackdown or working out and lifting weights to keep their muscular forms. She wondered if he would call her tonight like he did every night and she most certainly wondered when she would see him again.

She shook her head. She did that a lot lately. Wondering about Mark. She hoped she wasn't becoming obsessed with him, but it was hard not to think about him. She didn't really associate him as Undertaker anymore. He was Mark to her. A Mark that smiled, laughed, teased, loved her food, and genuinely liked being with her and around her. She was so thankful for every time she got to see him and spend time with him. She knew that eventually Mark would get tired of hanging out with her and go back to his usual ways, but she was okay with that. She would always remember the times she did have with him. After all he was a busy man.

Once the tub was filled, she finished her coffee, stripped, and sunk down into the suds. She didn't think about anything else but her plans for the day. She needed to go shopping, she was out of practically everything in her kitchen. She absolutely hated when she ran out of ingredients, made her kitchen feel completely empty. She chuckled softly to herself. She guessed in hindsight, her kitchen was empty when she ran out of ingredients. She was seriously losing her mind. Her days were filled with food or errands. Her evenings were filled with more food, customers and her crazy co-workers. Her nights were filled with Mark and sometimes one of the others called her too. She laughed hysterically the entire time she talked to John or Randy. They were so funny. However she enjoyed her conversations with Mark. He could always make her smile and laugh until she was sure she was going to pee her pants. He was just so different than his character the Undertaker. She had been meaning to ask him why he chose that particular persona, but she never thought of it once they were together.

Standing up, she let the water out of the tub. She grabbed a towel, wrapping it around her small form, shaking her head as she did so. She turned the shower on and stepped underneath the spray. She was still thinking about Mark. She really liked him and she knew she was beginning to think of him in other ways. She knew she shouldn't because he was much older than her, but his age didn't matter to her. He was strong, sexy, virile, sweet, lovable, kind, caring, funny, and so... hot. She couldn't help but blush just thinking that. He was just so down to earth and easy to get along with it. She would treasure his friendship always and that's why she would never pursue any other relationship besides friendship with him. It didn't matter what happened in the future, he would always and only be her friend. Maybe her best friend, but a friend none the less. She couldn't lose that. She couldn't lose him. She had a feeling he wouldn't be around forever, but she was okay with that. He was there now and that was all that mattered.


At The Super Market

She had only been here for ten minutes and her cart was already full. She had three gallons of milk; two whole milks and one skim for her. She found that her boys (yes she liked calling them her boys because they) would rather have whole milk than skim milk and she hated them to be disappointed. She got two boxes of eggs; five dozen in each box. Each one of them could eat a whole dozen scrambled eggs by themselves so a lot of eggs were a must. She had two gallons of orange juice because she loved orange juice and to her delight so did Mark. She then added butter (and lots of it… for baking of course), cottage cheese, sour cream, cream cheese, yogurt (twenty containers of regular and ten containers of Greek), cinnamon rolls, packaged cookies (just in case) and she got five different kinds of cookies; two packages of each. She then tossed in six different kinds of cheese in shredded and blocks. She also added Kraft singles because let's face it; nothing was better than Kraft singles. After adding bottled water, four different kinds of chips, two packages of the individual fun size bags of chips, two cases of Cola and a twelve pack of root beer (floats… duh!), two bags of peanut M&M's, two bags of plain M&M's, five different bags of other candy, paper towels, toilet paper, trash bags, bacon, sausage, two large hams, a very large turkey, twelve boxes of cereal (not her fault… she couldn't decide which one), all-purpose flour, self-rising flour, cake flour, and bread flour, several five pound bags of sugar, several bags of brown sugar and powdered sugar, salt, pepper, several other spices, liquid smoke, baking soda, baking powder, vanilla, karo syrup, maple syrup, tea bags, saltine crackers, ritz crackers, and two other kind of crackers, and two cases of gatorade, her cart was full and she wasn't through shopping.

She knew that with Extreme Rules being in St. Louis there was a huge chance she would have company. In fact, she was counting on it, hoping for it. And she planned on each one of her boys leaving with a care package to take with them. Plus she wanted to make sure that they all felt completely at home at her house and she wanted them to have plenty to eat. She would cook for them yes but these guys could put away the food. She needed to make sure she had everything on hand. She was so focused on her lists and her cart and her boys, she nearly ran smack dab into a familiar face.

"Ashley, is that you?" He made it into a question, but by the sound of his voice he knew exactly who it was.

She shook her head, clearing her thoughts and looked up. She instantly smiled. "Dr. Forrester, hi." Her voice was warm, pleasant.

He returned her smile. "You look good, healthy. How are you feeling?" He was concerned. She could feel it.

"I'm doing great, Dr. Forrester." She exclaimed. He saved her life and she was grateful, but she liked this doctor for other reasons. She just wasn't sure of those reasons.

His smile warmed and went into a different direction. "Call me Jordan, please. I insist." His words almost seductive.

Ashley blushed, ducking her head. He was older yes, but she didn't care about age. Age never mattered. He was handsome and intelligent. He was a doctor and way past her league. But hell, so was Mark.

"Thank you, Jordan. How are you?" There was hesitation in her voice. She was unsure of how to continue this conversation. He made her nervous. She didn't understand why.

"My day is definitely looking up, Ashley." His voice was husky.

Another blush flushed her peaches and cream complexion and she stopped the giggle from escaping. What in the world was happening to her? She needed to get away. She needed to finish her shopping.

"It was very nice seeing you again, Jordan, but I must continue my shopping." She kept her voice even and her words came slow but precise.

Jordan reached out and touched her arm as she tried to scurry away. "Wait please." He was suddenly on the verge of shouting. Not because he was angry but because he was now nervous and unsure.

Ashley turned and looked into his dark eyes. They weren't brown or black but a mixture of in between that. She thought they were beautiful. Not as much as Mark's green eyes, but beautiful.

"Yes?"

"I know it's sudden and last minute, but would you go out to dinner with me this evening?" He sounded confident but something told Ashley he was anything but.

Chewing on her lower lip, she wondered why he was asking her out. He took her silence for hesitation and the last thing he wanted was for her to say no.

"Just give me a chance. Please." He was begging but then he wasn't quite really begging.

"Why tonight?" Ashley asked after a few moments of silence.

He relaxed, his stance visibly going lax. "Tonight is my last night off. Tomorrow morning I go back on call for the next week. And trust me; working in the emergency department is non-stop chaos." He gave her a light smile, a non-predatory smile.

She wasn't busy tonight by any means. Tonight was her night off and she had only been planning on cooking and baking but she could do that tomorrow before and after work. She would just make sure she was home by ten because Mark usually called her after ten.

"I would like that, Jordan."

He looked relieved. Honest to God relieved that she agreed to a date with him. Ashley was a little confused but she shrugged it off. He gave her a huge blinding smile.

"I'll pick you –"

She interrupted. "How about I meet you somewhere." She offered softly. She didn't want him knowing where she lived. At least not yet.

He nodded, not at all offended. She was a smart woman. That made him happy. "Where would you like to meet?" He asked her.

"Do you know where Harley's is?"

He nodded. "I do."

"I'll meet you there out front."

He smiled. "I'll meet you there. At seven."


Friday Night May 9, 2013

"I know this isn't exactly your normal go to place to eat on a date, but I just had a feeling you would enjoy it." He may have had a feeling, but he was still nervous about whether or not she would like it or not. She could hear it in his voice.

She had dressed in a white eyelet A-line skirt. It reached mid-thigh on her slight form and made her feel girly and feminine. Her festival pink sleeveless scoop-neck tank was flirty and fun. Her matching low heel sandals completed her casual date look along with some light pink eye shadow, mascara, and light pink lip gloss. Jordan had told her she looked beautiful. She still wondered if he meant it.

He was dressed in a pair of khaki colored chinos and a dark blue button down short sleeve shirt. His hair was causally disheveled and his dark eyes twinkled. He reminded her a little of Hugh Jackman. She really liked Hugh Jackman.

She looked at her surroundings and her eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "What is this place?" She asked curiously.

"Well I know you're a chef so … I… well…" He cleared his throat and tried again. "You've heard of cook offs, right?" He asked and she nodded eagerly. She liked the idea already. "This is the ultimate cook-off. They give you a scoring sheet once you pay the entrance fee. There are over an hundred different booths and each booth is a different category. There's apple pie, beef stew, chili, steak, lamp, chicken, chocolate cake, and so much more. Each booth is numbered so you know how to judge."

Jordan paid the twenty dollar entrance fee for them both and together they walked in. Ashley let out a gasp at the massive turn out. Jordan was right, there were lots of booths and the aromas were making her mouth water. She was going to enjoy this.

"Where do you want to start?" Jordan asked, looking a little lost.

She looked down at the score sheet and smiled. "How about number one?" She replied, licking her lips.

Jordan's dark eyes locked on her mouth and nodded. "What's booth one?"

Licking her lips again, she made a little mew sound. "Chocolate cake." She told him.

That snapped Jordan out of his trance and he chuckled. "You're such a girl." He teased.

She nodded enthusiastically. "I am for chocolate cake."

He laughed as they walked towards booth one. Each booth held three people which equaled three samples. The sample was a little smaller than a deck of cards. They both tried all three of the chocolate cake before deciding on which one they wanted. Ashley liked number two better because it was dark chocolate cake that was moist and it had white frosting that wasn't too sweet, but Jordan liked number three which was milk chocolate cake and dark chocolate frosting. She thought it was too sweet. Booth one they did not agree, but that was okay with her. She wanted them to have their differences. They moved on to booth two after grabbing a bottle of water. There were also booths set up in between the food booths that held beverages. Bottles of water, orange juice, white milk, chocolate milk, Cola, Pepsi, Mountain Dew, Sprite, Diet Cola, Diet Dr. Pepper, lemon tea, unsweetened tea, and sweet tea made sure that everyone had abundant of choices.

Booth two, three, and four were all chicken dishes and Ashley loved them all. Jordan wasn't so sure about booth three, but he finally tried it and liked it. Booth five was pizza and Ashley wasn't so sure about this one. It didn't look like regular pizza. It didn't look like hers either. But a small nibble, she stole Jordan's from his plate. Jordan laughed and voted for number two at booth five. Ashley voted the same. Booth ten was blackberry cobbler. One of Ashley's favorites. Jordan didn't like blackberries.

"Try it." Ashley urged.

He slowly shook his head. "I'm not too fond of blackberries. Well I don't really like any berries."

Ashley gave a little pout and put a little whine in her words. "Please. For me. It would make me really really happy."

Jordan turned to mush. He couldn't refuse her pretty face or that sexy voice. He took a plate and tried a small bite. He moaned in his throat and Ashley giggled. He finished sample one and tried sample two and got the same response as did the third one. He finished them all and threw the plates in the trash can next to the booth.

"You were right. Blackberry cobbler is delicious." He told her, pouting a little.

She gave him a slight jab in the ribs with a small elbow and he grunted. Rolling her eyes, she motioned to his score card. "I'm always right. Now which one are you voting for?"

"Two was the best." He said after a moment.

Ashley nodded and checked the same box he did. "Two was the best. I agree."

He smiled smugly. "I knew you would."

She rolled her eyes and they continued on to booth eleven. Ashley frowned.

"What's wrong?" Jordan's voice almost frantic.

She sighed. "I'm allergic to oysters so you're on your own with this one." She was disappointed, but it happens.

Jordan grasped her hand and pulled her to booth twelve.

"What are you doing, Jordan?"

Jordan pulled Ashley against his side. "I don't really like oysters." He told her, winking.

Ashley smiled and nodded and they continued onto booth twelve. He was sweet to do that for her. He didn't even resent her for it. She would remember that.

"This is lamb chop stew." Jordan stated, sounding a little wary. Ashley giggled and grabbed a bowl.

"I bet it's delicious." She replied, taking a bite. She smile quickly turned into a grimace and she wrinkled her nose.

Jordan laughed. "Not your thing, Honey?" He teased.

She politely smiled at the lady who handed her the cup of soup before tossing it into the trash. She motioned for Jordan to lean down. "I love lamb stew. That is not lamb stew. Don't eat it." She whispered in his ear.

Jordan inhaled sharply as her soft breath caressed his ear. Who knew that could turn a man on? He knew it now. He nodded, grinning. "I will not try the stew." He accepted her word and they carried on to the next booth, skipping the other two lamb stews.

Before they knew it they were on booth thirty-six and Ashley was so full she wasn't sure if she could continue. "I don't think I can continue, Jordan. I'm so full from all this food."

Jordan once again grabbed her hand and together they walked to entrance of the building. Ashley felt comfortable with Jordan, but not as comfortable as she was with Mark.

They turned in their score cards and headed out to Jordan's silver Mercedes sedan. It was almost nine and Jordan had one more thing up his sleeve. But first –

"Are you ready to go home or do you have time for one more stop?" He asked, eying her closely. He wanted her to go but he didn't want to force her.

She shook her head. "I'm not ready to go home." She didn't smile, but it was in her voice. She was having a good time.

He smiled this goofy smile and Ashley felt her insides go all soft and gooey inside. He was very handsome. They rode in silence for the ten minute drive. Ashley was anxious and excited. She couldn't wait to see what Jordan had in store for her next. The cook-off thing was totally outside the box and completely fun. She never would have thought the good doctor would take her to a cook-off, but she was glad he did.

They pulled into a parking lot and Ashley let out a gasp of surprise and delight. "The Science Center! We're going to the Science Center!" The excitement in her voice was contagious and Jordan let out a laugh.

"I guess that means you like the Science Center." He teased.

Ashley eagerly nodded. "I love the Science Center. I've been at least a hundred times and it never gets boring. But I didn't know they were open this late." That part definitely confused her a little.

"At least a few times a year they keep the Center open until midnight. With so many tourists coming in for Spring break, this week they've got it open until midnight Thursday, Friday, and Saturday."

"I never knew that."

"I'm a doctor. I know all." He replied with a pretend air of smugness.

Ashley snorted making Jordan laugh. "Well excuse me Doctor Jordan, I bet you don't know it all." Ashley replied with a soft smirk.

He touched the tip of his finger to the tip of her nose. "I bet I know I'm going to kiss you."

Ashley blinked and stumbled over what she had been going to say. She sucked in a breath. "What?" She was honestly shocked. She hadn't seen that one coming.

He chuckled softly, the sound filling the interior of the sedan. "I know it's completely unethical, but I've wanted to kiss you since the first day I've met you."

She swallowed the lump in her throat. "You mean when you saved my life." She didn't know what to think about that.

He shook his head. "When you came in that night all I was worried about was saving your life. When I went into your room to introduce myself to you, I just wanted to scream, screw the rules and regulations of you being my patient. I wanted to hold you and kiss you. There's just something about you." He spoke softly and barely audible but she heard every last word and she didn't know what to say.

"I don't –"

She broke off, unsure and suddenly shy. She liked Jordan, but she wasn't sure how she felt about him.

Jordan once again smiled. He thought her shyness was rather cute. He leaned closer and touched her mouth with his. A whisper of lips and he felt it to his very core. She however felt nothing. She parted her mouth and he took advantage, deepening the kiss, tasting her more. She wanted – no she hoped – to feel more for Doctor Jordan Forrester, but she did not. As Jordan swept his tongue inside to caress her mouth, her thoughts went to Mark. She wanted to know what it was like to kiss him. Would it be as boring as this or more exciting?

She jerked back, startling Jordan. "I'm sorry." She was horrified. She was kissing one guy while thinking of another.

Jordan cupped her cheek and smiled. "It's okay. I'm just moving too fast. Come on. Let's go check out the Science Center."

She nodded mutely and followed Jordan's lead. She didn't know what else to do. Her thoughts were now filled with Mark. Kissing Mark and touching Mark. Making love to Mark too. But that was all in her dreams. It would never happen. She needed to get over that and accept her new relationship with Jordan. Who knew? Maybe she could feel the same way about Jordan as she did with Mark.

She snorted. Yeah right. Like that would ever happen.

"You okay?" Jordan asked, concerned.

She smiled and nodded. "I'm fine. I promise." Even to her own ears, it sounded forced.

Jordan accepted it, kissing her cheek. They continued on their way to the Science Center. Her thoughts still on her friend and their next phone conversation.


Friday May 10, 2013

She checked her phone for the gazillionath time and let out a very sad sigh. She got home last night at quarter after ten to find that her phone had died in her purse. She plugged it up and waited but not a phone call came. She didn't have caller id on her house phone, but no one had left any messages. Her cell phone had been just as silent. Mark did not call her.

At first she didn't think nothing of it, but as time went by and last night turned into today she started to worry. She started to wonder and ponder the reasons why he didn't call. He was a busy man and Ashley didn't expect him to call her all the time. Maybe he was just so tired that he went straight to sleep. She wouldn't have blamed him at all. He definitely needed to sleep and to get his rest. Maybe he worked with Roman Reigns so long that by the time he got in it was late and he didn't want to wake her up. Maybe he had a date and … She didn't really like that idea so she discarded just as quickly. She knew in the back of her mind that it could be true but she didn't want to think about it. Not that there was anything wrong Mark dating because there wasn't because after all she just had a date. The chances of her and Mark were slim to none. Because even if he was interested in her –like that would ever happen – she didn't want to ruin their relationship so that was out of the equation.

She shook her head. She just couldn't seem to get a reign on her emotions. She was all over the place. But she needed to stick with the facts. Mark was a successful, good-looking man that could have any woman he wanted. She was a small town chef that was too shy. No man like him was going to want any woman like her. They were friends and she loved that he considered her important enough to be her friend. She was going to be thankful for that. She believed she got the better end of the deal anyway.

She smiled to herself and went back to what she was doing. Prepping for that night's dinner service. She looked around the kitchen, her eyes settling on her fellow chefs one at time. Antonio, Eric, Megan, Rainie were all here and in their own little worlds just as she was in hers.

She couldn't wait to tell Mark about her date. She wanted to wait until she saw him again so she had to keep a lid on emotions until then. Even though Jordan and her didn't have a lot of chemistry, she still had a lot of fun with him. She believed with time she could maybe fall in love with Jordan. But first she needed to tell him about Mark and the rest of her boys. She did tell him that she had friends coming next weekend so she wouldn't be able to go out anywhere. He had asked her about the mountain of food in her cart and she couldn't help but laugh. He teased her about her friends having a healthy appetite. Yes they did.

Mark, Randy, John, Sheamus, and Glenn were arriving Friday night and it would probably be late; some time after three or so in the morning. She was going to bed early Friday night so she could be up to fix them a big healthy and hearty breakfast before they crashed in bedrooms. Randy and John were going to take one bedroom while Glenn and Sheamus took the second bedroom. Mark of course would sleep in her bedroom. That seem to bother him at first but she realized he didn't want to kick her out of her own bed, but she didn't mind and she told him that. End of argument.

She would have the whole weekend with them because she already asked Jason if she could have the weekend off to spend with her friends that were coming in from out of town. He readily agreed since she had never asked off before. She was so excited about them coming in. And then her date too. She practically floated through the rest of her shopping trip but that was okay. She came back with everything on her list and a whole lot more.

To make things even better, the man that tried to kill her twice had completely disappeared. She still didn't understand why he wanted to kill her or why he just vanished off the grid. She wanted to believe that he had had the wrong person the whole time, but that was just a horrible thought as well. She was still on defense about all of it and she did NOT want to think about it.

Everything was going good for her right now. She just hope Mark called her tonight.


Friday Night May 10, 2013

"Hey Mark!" She was so glad he called. She really wanted to tell him, but she had to keep it quiet.

"Baby girl, how are you?" He sounded as happy as she did.

"I'm great! How are you? Is the Shield giving you any more trouble?" She asked, disgust rising in her voice at just the mention of the Shield. She really didn't like them.

Mark laughed softly. "I'm pretty good actually. Reigns isn't as bad as Ambrose."

"Reigns is the one with the long black hair, right?" She wasn't entirely sure which one was which.

"He is."

"I thought so, but I don't really care for any of them. Kind of jerks, aren't they?" She asked with a grin.

"More like overbearing assholes, but yes I agree." Chuckling as he replied.

She giggled. She couldn't help it. "Are you ready for Extreme Rules?" She was totally ready for Extreme Rules, but for different reasons.

"Oh baby girl you haven't a clue how ready I am." He let out a sigh.

She giggled again. She couldn't stop them. She was happy. "I'm super excited. I totally bet you're going to put them in their place."

"I'm glad you're confident in me, Darlin'."

"I'm always totally confident in you, Mark. You are awesome!" She was giddy, she was having trouble keeping it in check. She didn't even really understand why. She knew she had fun, but so far there was no chemistry.

"You're happy tonight, baby girl." He sounded curious. Oh crap. He was going to figure it out. She wanted to tell him face to face.

She giggled again. Maybe it was a nervous thing. He was so going to be on to her.

"I'm always happy, Mark." She replied with a snippy tone, trying to throw him off.

He laughed, she knew she was busted. "You are, but tonight it seems more so than usual."

Another giggle. Definitely a nervous habit. She needed to stop that. What she needed was to change the subject.

"You didn't call yesterday and while I know you don't have to and I definitely don't expect you to, why didn't you?" She asked. She really wanted to know what he was doing. Maybe he had a date too. She would be happy for him.

"I did call yesterday. You didn't answer, baby girl." He told her in his own snippy tone.

Ashley didn't know how to respond to that. He did call? Her phone never rang. "Cell or home, Mark?"

"I called both and you didn't answer." He didn't sound mad, she hoped he wasn't. She would never not answer his call.

"What time?" She couldn't help but be sad. She missed his call.

"It was earlier than usual; around eight or so."

"Oh." OMG! She couldn't believe it! The first time she goes out and spends the evening elsewhere, he calls. And. She. Missed. It. But what was she going to tell him. She still wanted to tell him about her date but she wanted to tell him in person. Not over the phone.

"Where were you, Ashley?" Now he sounded a little upset. Crap. She didn't want to lie, but she would. Just this once.

"I was out last night with friends. I must not have heard my phone going off." The lie was a little forced, but she was sure he wouldn't notice.

"Were you safe?"

Crap. He sounded skeptical! He didn't believe her. She didn't blame him.

"I was. You know it." She told him smugly.

"Where did you go?"

Crap. He wasn't going to let this go. She hated lying.

"Just out to hang out." That definitely sounded more natural. Right?

"Ashley, you're lying."

Crap. He knew! She was busted!

"What?" She squeaked. She couldn't help it.

"You're lying. Why?" He wasn't upset or at least he didn't sound upset.

"Why do you think I'm lying?" Hurt clogged her throat and she felt stupid for feeling that way. She was lying to him not the other way around.

He chuckled. Why was he chuckling?

"Because you are, baby girl. What are you keeping such a secret about?"

She was sure he was smiling and if he was smiling he was happy. Right? Maybe she should just tell him. She didn't want him to think that she was harboring some horrible secret. It was a good thing she wanted to tell him so she would.

Before she could stop herself, she squealed. "I had a date!"