A Dubious Plan Gone Awry

Behold, a dusty memory from my tender youth of 50 years ago:

A good friend of mine had suddenly acquired his first ever girlfriend, and he was of the opinion that this was the bestest thing ever.

And since he was my friend who wished every good thing for me, and since I had no girlfriend, he picked out a girl he thought would be perfect for me.

The first time I told this story to my wife, it was at this point that she interrupted me: “Am I going to be jealous of this girl?”

“Well, let me finish the story and you decide.”

That seemed a naïve and dubious plan, but my friend cheerfully talked me up to this girl, and vice versa, and before you knew it, he was introducing us in a crowded church lobby.

She certainly was a winsome lass, I had to admit, as she looked up and said, “Ooooh, how cute are you?”

…to the winsome young lad to my immediate left.

They hit it off smashingly, and quickly became engrossed in conversation as I discreetly and quietly slunk away.

“So, Alice… were you jealous?”

“No,” she said, laughing.

“Actually, now that I think on it, I may have dodged a bullet there, don’t you think?”

She clung to one of my arms possessively. “Yes. Yes, you did.”