Jenny's Song

Let's go back 6 years. I was managing a cool, local restaurant where a lot of young people liked to come hang out. I had a boyfriend that I'd been dating for nearly a year that also worked there...and one Friday night I received a bouquet of flowers that I thought were from him. There was no special occassion...I just thought that for once he was doing something sweet and romantic which is normally not his strong suit. So I call him at home to thank him but he informs me that he has not sent any flowers. Ooops. What? At this point one of the servers discoverd the card which said "To Linny: 867-5309...Your Secret Admirer."

What the hell! I have a secret admirer?! My mind was racing, trying to figure out who it could be. I tried calling the number. Not in service...hmmmm I tried it with a different area code. Some old lady. Another employee who had been reading over my shoulder, said, "Linny...that's Jenny's Song." Like a moron I replied, "Who's Jenny?" He rolled his eyes and explained it was an 80's song (one which I knew of course, I just never knew the title.) So it was a song about admiring someone from afar. What the hell?

Another week went by with no news. Then, the next Friday one of my servers came in from outside and handed me a wrapped gift. The card had the same inscription....this time the gift was a really beautiful candle holder. Another week went by...my boyfriend was by now very PISSED. That next Friday one of our regulars came in. He was my age, cute and was always hanging around (and knew I had a boyfriend)...this time as I'm pouring his beer he tells me that this math problem has been running through his mind all day and says maybe I could help him with it. I smiled as the numbers fell from his lips...8675309. He returned my smile shyly then began to pour his heart out to me. Long story short, he said that he had really grown fond of me and since we'd met, he's had no interest in anyone else. He'd thought long and hard about it and he wanted to be with me. He went on to say how wonderful he thought I was and he wanted me to consider telling my boyfriend that I wanted to see other people. I of course was completely in shock. NEVER in my life...before then or even now...has anyone said such kind things to me or gone to such great lengths to impress me. It is a fond memory...I still have the cards he sent.

Because I had a boyfriend, I had to turn him down...very gently of course. But I will never forget, that once in my life....a man really and truly cared about me...and wasn't afraid to show it. If I could just go back in time....