The phone rang three times before John could run and grab it. He heard the phone ring while he getting out of the shower and the hope of Margaret calling made him hurriedly wrap a towel around his waist and dash to his bedroom down the hall. His haste was rewarded by the sound of Margaret's voice on the other end.

"Hello? Is this John?"

John paused, trying to slow his breathing and his heart rate before answering.

"Hello? Is anyone there?"

"Margaret, hi, this is John."

"Did you rush to get the phone? You sound out of breath."

"Well, I did but it's perfectly alright. I just got out of the shower."

Margaret felt a rush of heat as the image of him getting out of the shower quickly formed in her mind. She responded, saying rather hastily "Oh goodness! I feel bad for making you rush out of the shower. I hate to do that myself… you know…rush out of the shower. That's why I always have to get up at least two hours before I'm due at work. I need to take long showers and then take some time after I get out." Realizing her nervousness was making her ramble, she stopped and apologized. "Oh, I'm sorry. Listen to me rambling on about showers. I'm sure that's not what you want to discuss on the phone."

John chuckled at her apparent awkwardness. She was normally very sure of herself but talking to him and on the phone (Margaret especially hated phone conversations) no less, made her less self assured than usual. "It's okay. I have to admit that I haven't really talked about showers to many people but I wouldn't mind discussing it with you."

Margaret smiled, feeling like a giddy schoolgirl, which in turn made her feel slightly embarrassed. She couldn't remember the last time a man had made her feel this way. "Well, there are a lot of things I would like to discuss with you but honestly, I would feel better discussing them in person. I honestly don't like talking on the phone."

"Are you asking me out?"

"I suppose I am." She smiled even more. She had never asked any man out. She was always assertive but never felt the inclination to ask anyone out, perhaps because she was never interested until now. She wondered what he had done to inspire this change in her. "I'm not busy today. We could go out for coffee if you like."

"Where would you like to meet?"

"There's a coffee shop not too far from me. Chestnut Hill Coffee on Germantown Ave. Do you know it?"

"Yes, I do. I go there sometimes after jogging."

"Perfect! We could meet there in…an hour?"

"That's more than enough time for me to get ready."

"Great! I will see you then."

They both quickly dressed, anxious to see each other once more.

As Margaret was about to head out the door, Edith stopped her. She was elated that Margaret was finally going out with a man without being coerced. She knew something had to be special about John if he had this effect on her cousin. Noticing that Margaret was picking up her car keys, Edith stopped her.

"Edith, what are you doing? I have to go. I don't want to be late."

"Oh, it won't matter. He'll wait for you. I saw how he was staring at you yesterday. Trust me, he'll wait. Anyway, Margaret, you must catch the bus. That way he'll have to bring you home and you'll be forced to spend more time together and alone."

"You're not serious?"

"I am. Plus, it's getting cloudy outside which means that it'll probably be raining when you leave. Then he'll be forced to bring you home in his car-which is probably so nice. No guy in his right mind would let a woman go home on a date on the bus."

"It's not a date. It's coffee."

"Date, coffee…tomato, tomatoe. You two are meeting alone and that's all that counts."

"You're being ridiculous. I'm taking my…"

Before Margaret could finish her thought, Edith snatched her keys and dangled them out of a window.

"You wouldn't dare?" said an increasingly angry and annoyed Margaret.

"Do you really have to ask?" responded Edith with a knowing smirk on her face.

Margaret knew the answer and begrudgingly got her jacket, wallet, and umbrella. "If I'm late and he leaves, it'll all be your fault. You know the buses don't run regularly on Sunday. If I catch a cold it'll also be your fault."

"Oh stop being so dramatic! You won't catch anything and he definitely won't leave. Now hurry and go!"

A bus came half an hour after Margaret arrived at the bus stop. She was already 15 minutes late and the rain was pouring so hard that her umbrella was of little use. She could've taken her umbrella and hit Edith with it. She could not believe that her cousin had put her in this ridiculous situation. However, she knew she was not far from coffee shop and the bus stop was across the street from it. So she tried not to worry too much. She had called John to tell him that she was running late but was on her way.

John was sitting near a window when Margaret's bus finally arrived near the café. When he saw her get off the bus, he instantly thought about why he hadn't asked her if she needed a ride. As she finally walked in, his face lit up despite the fact that Margaret was late and also damp from the rain. He motioned for her to come over to his table.

"John, I am so sorry that I am late. If I told you why, you wouldn't believe it."

"Margaret, there's no need to apologize. I'm just glad you're here." They talked for a few minutes until John noticed that Margaret was shivering slightly.

"You're shivering."

"No, I'm fine. I'm just a little chilly under this air conditioning."

"I'm sure being in wet clothes isn't helping. I feel bad. I had no idea you were coming on the bus. I would've picked you up if I had known. You're truly are soaking wet. I can't have you sitting here in wet clothes. I would feel terrible."

"Really, it's quite alright."

"No, it isn't. Would you mind if I took you home to change? You said you don't live far right?"

"Right, I'm about a 10 minute drive from here." Margaret paused to think. She barely knew him and she was already thinking about letting him take her home, albeit to simply change clothes. Damn Edith! Still, he didn't have to come into her apartment. He could stay in the car or in the lobby. Then again, that would be rude. If he came into the apartment, he could simply stay in the living room while she changed in her room. Besides, Edith was still there working on some project for work.

"Margaret?"

"Oh, yes. I'm not far at all. I would love to change out of these clothes. Where is your car?"

They walked to John's car which was in a parking lot behind a bookstore across from the café. The car was an impressive light green Lexus RX hyrbid. Stylish yet environmentally conscious she thought as they approached the vehicle.

"Margaret, I wish you had told me you needed a ride. I would've have picked you up."

"I didn't start off needing a ride. Hmm, I guess this would be a good time to tell you why I was late. I was actually planning on driving my car." She paused, thinking of what to say next. If she told him exactly what Edith's intention was then she couldn't be sure how he would react. "Before I could leave my apartment, my cousin and roommate told me that she accidentally misplaced my keys." She lied not wanting to tell him that her cousin had engineered this entire situation. "By the time she told me, I knew you would be on your way to the coffee shop. I didn't think the bus would take very long, so I decided to take it instead of inconveniencing you."

John thought of how different Margaret was from Anne as she was telling him why she caught the bus. Anne wouldn't be caught dead on mass transit. She was much too superior for that. Yet Margaret had no issue with it at all. It made him smile endearing her to him a bit more. "Well, if something like this ever happens again, you promise to call me right?" he asked. They had stopped at a traffic light which allowed John to more intensely look at Margaret than he had been able to a few moments earlier. She saw the genuine look of concern he had on his face. It was a pleading look that seemed to focus around his dark eyes. How could anyone refuse him when he had such an expression?

"Of course" said Margaret with a smile. Changing the topic, she said "This is a nice SUV" as she looked around the interior of the vehicle.

"Thanks! I got it at the same time I brought my sister's SUV… the girl I was helping yesterday. I kind of brought it on whim. I was only intending to buy a new car for her birthday but since I had been thinking of buying a new car for myself I decided to get this one as well." His comment made Margaret reflect on how much disposable income he must have. Although she knew he was the head of a corporation, his statement made seemed to impress on her just how comfortable he was. It was such a contrast to her middle class life and even more to the lives lead by the families she interacted with while at work.

"Well, this is my apartment building" said Margaret as they approached the parking lot of the building. As they entered the building and got on the elevator Margaret apologized to John for her apartment being slightly messy (despite the fact that most people would have considered it clean) while John assured her that he did not care, especially considering that his visit was a very impromptu one.

Arriving at her door, Margaret saw a post it with a note from Edith:

"Margaret, I know you expected me to be home working on a project but Max wanted to go for a bite to eat as well as a movie so I won't be home for a while. Take advantage of my time away. I hope you have fun today. Edith ;)"

Edith actually urged on Max to take her out and Margaret had suspected as much. She sighed and smiled as she knew that her cousin had probably taken a very unwilling Max out (he was a huge football fan and hated to miss Eagles' games).

"I thought you would get a chance to meet Edith again but it looks like she's out for the day." Margaret unlocked her door, showing John the couch. She then gave him a glass of water before heading to her room to get some clothes and finally taking a shower.

While she was in the bathroom, John looked at some pictures that were around the apartment. He noticed one of Margaret, Edith, a gentleman unfamiliar to him (it was Max), and Henry. They were facing the camera, smiling with their arms around each others' shoulders and wearing t-shirts that read "Penn". He thought it was uncanny that they shared the same alma mater. The picture also made him reflect back on his time in college. How very different it was from Margaret's. She seemed so carefree and she obviously had friends to share her joy with. He was much more serious and had no close friends at all. He had acquaintances but no close friends. His father's death forced him to be extremely focused to the point of having little time for a social life and even less time for a romantic life. At the time, he didn't think much about it but now that he was older, he did occasionally wonder what his life would be like if his father had lived and he had a chance for a normal life without all of the burdens he bore.

He saw some other pictures of middle aged couples who he assumed were Margaret and Edith's parents. As he was perusing the pictures, Margaret came out of the bathroom dressed and dry. "I see you're interested in our photos" said Margaret stating the obvious.

"Ah, yes. I assume they're photos of your family and friends."

"Yes, they are. Would you like me to tell you who they are?"

"Sure."

"This photo you're currently looking is one of me and my brother Fred. He's a couple of years older than me. He's currently working at the American Embassy in Spain so I don't get to see him much. I miss him a lot but he's quite happy there. He even has a fiancé named Dolores.

"This photo here is of my Aunt Shaw and Uncle Phil, Edith's parents. Next to them is a photo of my parents, Maria and Richard. They're both professors. They actually don't live too far from me." As Margaret mentioned her parents' names and profession, it dawned on John that Margaret's father must be his professor for the upcoming term. He knew his professor was named Richard Hale but thought it was merely a coincidence that he shared a last name with Margaret.

"Your father is a professor where?"

"At Penn."

"And what does he teach?"

"He teaches in the Religion and Classics departments there. Why? Do you know him?"

"No. Well, not yet. He'll actually be my professor this fall. I'm taking a course with him titled 'Politics and Moral Vision.' What a small world!"

"Really? You'll love him. And he really loves teaching that course. I have to say that I didn't expect you to take college courses though. I mean with your being older than your typical college student and already being a CEO of a corporation."

"Quite a few people tell me that. I take them to keep my mind fresh. It's nice to have the stimulating conversations and to have new material to read that I may not have read otherwise."

"I find it nice that you like to 'keep your mind fresh'. I would like to take college courses too again to distract myself from job sometimes but alas, I'm paying off debt from grad school."

"Ah, yes, the burden of student loans."

Margaret found it odd that John would ever have student debt. His present position made her think that he was always wealthy and she found it surprising that he didn't. However, not thinking it appropriate to pry too much in their first date, she kept her thought to herself.

John continued, "Now that you mention it, what do you do for a living?"

"I'm a social worker. I work for the Department of Human Services."

"So you work with children. I admire that. I think it takes special people to work with them."

"Thanks! I really like working with children. It can be so heartbreaking at times but I also find that children can be the most rewarding population to work with. I really think that my work with most of them will make such an impact for the rest of their lives."

"Tell me more."

"I will but first I think we should decide what to do for the day. Honestly, I'm no longer in the mood for coffee. You seem comfortable here. Would you mind if we ate here?"

John responded that he wouldn't mind and they decided to order in. Margaret and John discussed her job which segued into a variety of other topics that ranged from Ani DeFranco (Margaret was pleasantly surprised that John actually listened to her) and politics to sports and the arts. While their opinions were often divergent-especially when it came to various political issues, for Margaret was fiercely liberal while John was moderately conservative-they found that they actually enjoyed these disagreements. It was the type of intellectual stimulation that they often found missing from their day to day lives and that they had found they could not receive from their previous partners.

The day had passed quickly with John and Margaret soon realizing that dusk was upon them. John decided that he should leave since he was expected at work the next morning. As John rose to walk to the door, Margaret followed him. Standing in front of the door, he turned to face her. The faint light of the apartment made her soft features appear even softer. "I really enjoyed being with you today" he said in a low, husky voice while looking at her longingly. "I enjoyed being with you too" she responded softly. He wanted to kiss her at that moment but decided that would probably be too much for a first date. Instead, took her hand and kissed it tenderly. There was a soft silence that enveloped them momentarily as they took each other in. Breaking the silence, Margaret said "I definitely think we should see each other again." "Definitely" he responded as they both smiled, feeling that they both stumbled upon something special.