Lunch Date

I skitter the bike up onto the brick sidewalk, turn off the ignition, and perch my helmet atop the side view mirror

Wander across the street and enter my favorite shop

Choose a low metal table adorned with chopsticks, napkins, spoons, and a tiny tray of chopped garlic and red chilies

As I squat onto the low plastic stool, I make eye contact with the bubbly woman, busy snipping at rice noodles with her kitchen shears, and placing small grilled balls of pork into bowls

She smiles at me, already knowing what I want

I wait only a couple minutes before she brings over a bamboo basket of greens, lettuce and shiso freshly washed and glistening in the sun.

With it, a plate of freshly cut rice noodles, and the fishy not fishy sweetened bowl of soup, sliced green mangoes, and carrots dotted with chunks of grilled meat

It’s a dipping meal,

One where process is equally as important as product

I find a balance. Greens, rice noodles, greens, rice noodles, back-and-forth

I allow the noodles to take on the flavor of the soup

Sweetened, just right

Slurp

Just as I’m starting to really enjoy my meal, he decides to sit, facing me

There’s not much room at any of the tables, so it’s common to have others sit down less than a meter away.

We barely make eye contact, and his phone immediately comes out,

Nothing to see here

And nothing to say.

I am not here to chat

it says

The wall is raised between us

As phones do

So, as I enjoy the slurp of my noodles, I lose myself in the latest news about my hockey team

It’s a brief moment to be here, by myself

Away from the stress of school. As I age, I’m realizing that I’m more of an introvert than I thought.

Need some time to recharge my battery.

But, his phone battery is full

As demonstrated by the all too loud, all omnipresent TikTok of the obnoxious person rating potential mates

She’s a

Zero

Zero

Not my type

How do I diplomatically ask him whether he’s aware that earbuds exist

But I hold my tongue for the moment

Until he swipes to the next reel

The one with the shrieking baby, followed by a smash cut to the baby and her mother dancing

It repeats three times

Blaring at the rest of the diners

LOOK AT ME

No one looks

Or says anything

I am being serenaded by the worst possible

Em oi

I quietly attempt to get his attention

Em oi

He doesn’t hear me at first, but when he finally does and makes eye contact, I make a dismissive wave towards his device

He’s not beligerent,

just completely unaware

As phones do

But once I communicate my distaste, he is quick to respond, and with a nervous smile, turns down the sound

And I am grateful.

I’m often nervous how these things might go. In this case he is sufficiently contrite and was simply unaware

The last thing I want is a confrontation

And luckily, he feels the same.

He continues to swipe, this time volume low, allowing the rest of us to fully taste this delicious meal, and avoid the distaste of his current diet.

I thank him, and give him a nod of appreciation

And wonder yet again, how lunch dates have gotten to this point.

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