Hookah Halloween

I can’t believe it is already Monday. It’s finally Halloween! Have you started celebrating? Oddly enough most of my celebrations and weekend activities haven’t followed a Halloween theme at all. I haven't even picked up a costume yet. (I'm saving myself for the parade.) So far, the highlight of the extended weekend is Saturday night. (Although I return home very early Sunday morning, I don’t drink nearly as much as I did last time that I stayed out that late.) The evening arrives and my friend Nekhbet invites me and others to a private party at an Egyptian club. She knows the guy who’s hosting it so we’re on the list. (This is great because it means that our group of 8 doesn’t have to pay the $20/each cover.) We arrive. It's dark inside, but I can see that the 2-story venue is decorated beautifully with dark red tapestries on the walls. The DJ plays a mix of Arabic music, reggaeton, and dance music. Hookah pipes are present on nearly every table. Fairly authentic, everyone at the party--including the live belly dancer--appears to hail from a short list of 23 countries. The only exceptions are Kelly, me, two Irish-American guys and a small group of early 20-something girls dry humping each other on the dance floor. One of the Irish-American guys ( … I know he’s Irish-American because he tells me so) is extremely attractive and he hits on me the whole night. He appears to be a few years younger than I am, but that’s fine. (I like younger men. They’re so … spry.) I have on heels and we’re almost the same height, eye-to-eye. He has short dark hair and blue eyes that literally twinkle when he smiles. The flirtfest continues and, at the night’s end, he walks me outside of the party to say a proper goodbye. “See you next time,” I tell him and cup the side of his face in my hand. Then, I hold my arm out to hail a cab. “That’s all?” he asks softly. I take his hand in mine and squeeze it gently. “Sweetie, that’s all.” No one-night stand. No numbers exchanged. No expectations. I’m not ready to put myself “out there” in the dating world just yet.