Gym date didn’t pull his weight
Getting him to talk was a workout, then he waited too long to make a move
Meghan is a 29-year-old teacher who lives in the west end. She says “Comfort is the most important aspect of an outfit for me, but I like bright colours and patterns.” Meghan says “I have an infectious laugh, and a great sense of humour. I think I’m sensitive in a good way. I’m the first person to start crying during a sappy movie. But, I don’t put up with any s--- from guys!” She likes “independent coffee shops, the Blue Jays — I’m a big fan — and travelling to big cities around the world.” Meghan has been single for a year.
I met Francesco on a dating app. His photos were all of him without his shirt on. He was very muscular.
After casually messaging back and forth, he asked if I wanted to meet up that weekend for a workout.
Gym dates are hit or miss. They’re a casual way to see if there’s any chemistry between you, and have the potential to be really fun and flirty — he gets to see you in tight clothes, and spot you if you’re lifting heavy. But it can be awkward. I decided to go.
In person, he was good-looking, but not exactly my type. He asked me what muscle group I was training that day. I told him I was doing shoulders, assuming he would do the same so that we could work out together. Instead he said, “Cool, I’m doing legs” and went off to do his own thing. I thought that was rude — I had travelled almost an hour to come to his gym.
I caught his eye from across the room a few times, but that was it. He texted me when he was ready to go.
We decided to go for an early dinner. It was so awkward! He didn’t ask me one question the entire time and didn’t seem bothered by the fact that he wasn’t asking me anything about myself, or by the fact that there were lots of long silences in our conversation. He showed almost zero interest in getting to know me.
I was scrambling to think of new things to ask him and a few times had to pretend to be looking intently at the menu just to give myself a break. At one point his eyes actually closed for a few seconds like he was falling asleep!
The bill came and he didn’t reach for it, so after a few minutes I suggested that we split it. He agreed.
As we were walking out of the restaurant, he asked if I wanted to go back to his place to watch a movie, and gave me one of those knowing looks. I thought I might as well get something out of this date, so I agreed.
We got to his apartment, and I sat down on one end of the couch, and he sat down on the other end. I thought it would only be a matter of time before he made a move.
He did not make a move. Almost two hours went by of him intently watching from the opposite end of the couch. The movie finally ended and I thought “OK, this is when it will go down.” But no! He showed me things on his phone instead. At that point, I decided to go home. It was clear that nothing would be happening that night.
I asked him to walk me to the subway because it was dark outside and I didn’t know the area well. He said no, that the subway was close, and that I would be fine on my own. Rude!
I was putting on my shoes when all of a sudden he started making out with me in the doorway! I was completely baffled, and just laughed and asked him what that was about. He was finally into it, but by then I was so over it and ready to go.
I called a friend to help navigate me to the subway, and like me, he could not believe what I had just experienced.
Meghan rates her date (out of 10): 1 Want to be a dating diarist? Email datingdiariescontact@gmail.com.