Confusion

Ok readers... I need opinions. Was this a date? Have I been on a date with the Mysterious Stranger at all? Are we buddies? Is he just taking things very slowly? Confusion abounds!

So to recap: I met MS months ago at a party. We spoke for maybe 4 minutes and I thought he was cute and interesting. Flash forward several months. A friend at work meets MS and thinks we would be great for each other and suggests I contact him. I write MS and we have coffee a few days later. We have coffee 5 times over the course of about 2-3 weeks and then he suggests that we try cocktails the next time. I was delighted since coffee is not really a date but cocktails... well that has some potential. A few days later I got a text, dinner at his place - a further upgrade except it was supposed to be a bit of a dinner party with the coworker that sort of introduced us. Long story short... she couldn't make it but he knew that in advance and suggested we watch a movie after dinner. Well... in the gay world "watch a movie" generally doesn't involve watching a movie but I didn't really expect that from him since he's a nice guy.

So, my question is: Was this a date? ->

I got there tonight right on time. I was dressed up but not in a way that looked like I was trying to be dressed up... just jeans and a button up shirt - something nice that I would wear more or less any time or anywhere. He wasn't really dressed up either but not dressed down, just nice but still comfortable. This shed no light on if this was a date or not. He had candles lit, lots of them all over the house but it looked like he did this reasonably regularly anyway. His house was amazing... so beautiful... His taste is impeccable. I would say it is the same as mine but it is sooooo much better. Some of the things in his house are things that I wouldn't have given a second thought if I saw them elsewhere but in his house they worked and were beautiful. He has this one room that is painted this orange color that is simply to die for... but to describe it... it sounds horrible. So, he seemed a little flustered and mentioned a few times that he had all these things planned out but his timing was all off for the evening. He made cocktails for us. I wasn't sure I like it to start with but it grew on me and I ended up loving it. It was very old fashioned, strong, and not too sweet. Hmm... is that the sort of guy I like too? So, we drank our drinks and chatted and he showed me his collection of dishes and his "fun stuff" folder. This was a folder of things he had clipped out of magazines that he liked - home furnishings, furniture, room set-ups, that sort of thing. It was incredibly nerdy but super cute at the same time. We got to chatting and he forgot he had some nibblies to set out. He set them out and made a second round of drinks and we chatted some more. Then he got out one of his prized possessions - this fine press book about some designers house. It was a beautiful book and the rooms and photos were so quark and over the top, it was hilarious without really even meaning to be. Then he served dinner - this great chicken and artichoke baked dish over rice in these beautiful dishes, followed by salad, followed by a brownie sunday thing. The food was great! Here is where the confusion comes in. His living room has a large couch with chairs on either end of it. I made it a point to sit on the couch so he could sit next to me if he wanted but he made it a point to always sit in one of the chairs. We watched the movie and he sat in his chair and I sat on the couch. No touching ever took place at any given point. The movie got over - it was this really strange British film that reminded me of this absurdist play I was in a few years ago. As soon as the movie was over things seemed to get awkward. I tried to force a little conversation before ultimately thanking him for a lovely night and going home. He walked me to the door, got my coat out for me, and gave me a hug. I'm honestly not sure who initiated the hug, him or me... I gave him a little peck on the neck as he was hugging me and then he pulled me in for a second hug. It was all very strange and confusing. I'm not sure if this was a date... if it was a date it might have been a first date since coffee doesn't count... but even then a kiss at the end of a first date is appropriate, right? I know I could have gone in for the kiss but he seemed to be drawing this invisible line all night. Maybe he's just big into personal space. Maybe he's just shy. Maybe he moves slowly. Maybe he's only interested in me as a friend. In spite of myself I find myself falling for this guy. He moves to the next town over in less than a month so we have to have some sort of a mildly established relationship before he leaves if this has any hope of working out. Tell me I'm just being neurotic. No, don't do that... Tell me what you think. Based on this description, does MS want a relationship from me or just friendship? Leave comments, send me an email, contact me somehow and tell me what to do!

Random quotation from tonight: "Orange is the color of hope, that's why I use it in my house so much." How could I not fall for someone that would incorporate hope into his home?!