“What’s a band you hate?” he asks across the table between bites of burger and sips of Oreo shake. I freeze up. Palms sweaty. I’d never felt the need to impress him before, but now I am straight terrified of upsetting him.
I bring the onion ring I’m working on away from my mouth and rest the heels of my palms against the cool tabletop. Debating lying. What’s a band everyone hates? What answer is safe? Take a deep breath. Decide to tell the truth, look him dead in the eye and say, “The Ramones.” Drop my gaze to the napkin holder, the ketchup, anything to avoid seeing his reaction.
He inhales sharp and my eyes dart back up to his face. Oh shit, I think, oh shit. I remember Jake standing on a table at a bar when I was nineteen, screaming down at me, “They are fucking brilliant! They changed everything!”
Staring straight ahead, trying to dissolve into a pitcher of beer. “They’re nothing but power chords and repetition,” I said to his knees.
“EXACTLY.”
Now here I am, almost ten years later, waiting for a repeat. He swallows hard and stares at me. “I can’t believe you said that.”
And my heart sinks. The first chink in my armor. His first glimpse of what is going to drive him crazy about me. My mind reeling. Not so perfect after all, apparently… I meet his eyes again and murmur a weak, “What?”
“I hate the fucking Ramones,” he says to me, smiling. And it’s not a break. It’s just another link.
Ruby Pipes 
Oh, the terrible hazards of being real in courtship are so scary. I’m glad it turned out OK and you wrote it so well.
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Thank you! Being real is courtship is a relatively new thing for me and it sure is scary.
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Awww, you made me smile.
But, for the record, I like the Ramones. 😉
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Your comment is sweet, so I will forgive your horrible taste. ;-P
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Look at it this way. If you hadn’t said “The Ramones” back in the day, you might not be where you are now. If for no other reason shouldn’t you not only like The Ramones, but adore them?
No need to thank me. 🙂
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Hahahaha! I like this theory. I will appreciate them as a concept and still hate their music.
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Boom! 😀
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Yeehaw.
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I’ve been harassed for my tastes enough times to know that it can be hard being honest. (“How dare you not like what I like!!??!!”) So kudos for your honesty!
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Oh yes. I know that one well. Thank you.
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Nothing feels quite like the time between when you say something and when your crush reacts. Thanks for capturing that moment.
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It’s totally true.
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