Aside: Halloween! Getting Picked UP

I know most girls get picked up all the time and think it's nothing special, but this is my first time, so I'm going to write about it. Plus it might be a good learning experience now that I've been on the other side:

On the way back, I am picked up for the first time in my life by a girl while waiting for the train. Well first time picked up. Anywhere. I'll explain. It was an amazing experience. So I was there playing a cellphone game alone. When out of the corner of my eye I see a shape approaching me from 11 o'clock. Now there was only 1 feet of seat to the left of me, so I was thinking, why would someone try to squeeze in there. Crap. Does he expect me to scoot over? Then I sense the person is in front of me, but still I don't look. Suddenly I hear "happy halloween" and a hand extended at my face for a high five. I look up and almost directly in front of me is a girl wearing a Hello Kitty shirt. I think, is this a joke? I look at her hand and it looks clean so I slap it. "What are you dressed up as?" she asks. I answer, but thinking to myself, do I know this person? No. Why is she talking to me? What does she want? Does she want the time? Crap. Now I gotta exit my cellphone game. I don't even think I can save it. She takes a seat to the right of me and starts talking. I figure she just wants to chat. So I oblige. She was doing all the work. I wasn't even trying to impress. She asks me if I am a college student and if I went to a party. She explained who she dressed up as but couldn't party because of work. Although I was tried and I was feeling quite like a loser sitting by myself waiting for the BART on Halloween, I kept the conversation going and asked her a few questions because I am a friendly guy. But I was always a little uneasy, wondering what did she want? We get on the same train and I pick a door and a seat to see what she would do. She follows and sits beside me. Interesting.

She makes a comment to a black girl. She starts talking about how she tried to watch a movie, but couldn't get in because she didn't have her id. I'm like yeah. That happens to me at clubs usually, but never a theatre. I am boring as hell. Some stuff about music. I am not even trying. She tells me she'll "be right back" suddenly and goes to talk to some random people in costumes. She high fives about all of them. I watch her a bit. I think she's not coming back. She's just a chatter. To my surprise, she comes back. Then she says, so what's up? And makes me say stuff. She follows up. I try to show disinterest with some body language because I wasn't into her. Then she says, "do you have a number?" I think about lying. But she saw me playing on my cell phone. So I say yes after some hesitation. She says, "maybe I can call you some time?" I think, are you kidding me. Now this is in front of two black girls, and another asian guy. Thoughts race through my mind: How can I say no somehow? What will she do if I say no? How awkward would that be? What excuse can I give? What the hell is going on? I guess since I already said yes, I guess I'll say yes again. Instead I say, "uhm yeah sure." Now I think I should of been honest and have said no I am not interested. But I also wanted to see where this would lead. But next time, if I ask for a girl's number, if there's any hesitation or she says it unenthusiastically like I did, I'll say "you know what never mind". But sometimes that is hard to read. So she asks the people around us for a pen and she tears a piece off a newspaper and writes my name. Spelled, "Tiger." I am impressed she remembered. I had forgotten her name by then. She waits and the long pause forces the answer out of me. I think should I give a fake? I am charged by the minute you know. Should I give my home number? She isn't entering it into her cell phone so she can't check it. But I give her my cell. I think, why does she want to call me? She doesn't know anything about me. I didn't even say thing that would make me desirable. I know my Australia hat has been getting me eyeballs all day and comments, but I am more than good looks. She puts the number in her purse and she gets off at her stop shortly after. She ended it with a high five too. But then she added some other stuff to make it special. I think, wow I don't even like her but it felt good. To be hit on. That was a nice compliment. Wow, I just got number closed.

Lesson: So even if the girl I try to pick up doesn't like me, she'll feel good that I tried to pick her up.

I worry a bit that she'll call me one day and it makes me uneasy. I guess I can just not pick up and not return her voice message. Now I realize how scary this is for girls. I am never giving out my number again.