Tonight I entered Del Taco around 1:00 AM. There were two girls in a booth, sitting back and not really eating, and a man eating alone. After ordering I went to a booth in the back and put on my headphones. I hadn’t turned on the podcast I was planning on listening to yet because I wanted to listen for my number. I was facing towards the rest of the restaurant. It’s hard for me to decide on which side to sit when I’m alone sometimes. If I face my surroundings it allows me to be mindful of others. People watching can give mild amusement as well if nothing else is happening. On the other hand, something else is happening – a podcast. If I face away, I don’t have to worry about awkwardly making eye contact or anything of that sort.
After thinking about this and deciding to sit facing everyone else, the man left. Then I began to wonder what would happen if the two girls tried to talk to me. I really did not want them to talk to me. I wanted to be left alone, not have to make some excuse to make them shut up so I could go back to my podcast. What’s the chance of some strangers striking up a conversation? Probably not likely. However, it was late at night, and I feel like that increases the chances of the people being abnormally out going, even if it is primarily because the people might just be drunk.

 
Anyways, on the way back from getting my food, the girls called out to me. They looked right at me and said “hey” a few times. I had my headphones on so I just bobbed my head (despite there being nothing playing) and walked back to my booth. As I was sitting down, they were giggling and waving their arms to get my attention. The fact that I walked across the restaurant and they were still looking at me eliminated the possibility that they were trying to get a worked from Del’s attention. I only saw them waving out of the corner of my eye, so I fiddled with my iPhone and then kept my eyes down, enjoying my podcast. I still have no idea what they wanted. Nothing was out of place or abnormal, so it couldn’t have been something like “hey mister, you dropped something.”
I don’t dread socializing or anything of the sort, but I don’t think there was a possibility of meeting a true friend through an encounter like this. I just wanted to be left alone and listen to my podcast. Listening to podcasts are a big reason why I walked to Del in the first place. If this was an xkcd comic, I’d wonder what the girls wanted for the rest of my life, always regretting not saying anything to them. Luckily, this isn’t xkcd. I got to listen Chris, Justin, and Ludwig, so I’m happy.