A "blind" date and a good friend...Confused.

[laboheme]

So here's the deal: I've got a late dinner date set for tomorrow with a guy that I met online. We've talked online several times, once over the phone, and exchanged pictures. I don't know what I think about him -- obviously I can't know for sure until I meet him in person.

 

Part of me is excited to be going on a date with somebody for the first time after The Breakup this summer...but I'm also having second thoughts. First of all, there's a 5 year age difference (I'm 20, he's 25)...and I'm concerned that he's going to be after only one thing (we all know what that is). And he lives in a different town...so it makes me wonder why he needs to come to my town to meet a girl. To me, that either screams desperate or sketchy. Plus, I talked to a coworker about it today and told him everything I knew about this guy...and he seemed a little disappointed in my choice of a date.

 

At the same time, I've got a guy friend that I'm slightly confused about. He knows the whole situation with the date and knows that I'm freaking out a little bit. We talked today and he told me not to worry, but also told me that he thinks it's a bad idea and encouraged me to cancel it...and then said that he can call me during the date to check up on me, and that if anything goes wrong, I can call him and he'll drop whatever he's doing and help me out. And when we were watching a movie with a group of friends today, there was more physical contact than usual between us...Obviously, I can't jump to the conclusion that he likes me, but I've been feeling more drawn to him lately for some reason...Back in high school, there was a time where I liked him, then he liked me, then both of us went on to have serious relationships with other people, and now both of us are single...And I guess I like him a little bit, but I don't know if I could come to terms with some of the things he does (smoking, for example), so I probably should try to keep any potential feelings in check because it wouldn't lead to a healthy relationship...Or maybe I'm confusing good friendship with something else...I just don't know.

 

So my question is...tomorrow morning, should I call the guy I'm supposed to be meeting and tell him that I decided against the dinner date? Or should I just go through with it and see how it goes? And what should I do about my guy friend? Spend more time with him, or create more distance (keeping in mind that there are no obvious feelings on either side, just a hunch)?

[renaissancewoman101]

If you like your friend but don't know how he feels about you, I would spend more time with him to find out. He sounds like a sweet guy. As for your date, since you already set it up, I would just go on the date and if it doesnt work out, excuse yourself and have your friend come pick you up (as he offered to help you).