The Misunderstanding

Gold cherry

By GlosKat

Sat, 14 Mar 2026
  • 148 reads
14 comments
 

They dumped the last of the cardboard boxes on the apartment floor, and stood up.

‘Glad that’s over’, said Sarah.  ‘Thanks Holden, much appreciated’.

‘You’re welcome’, said Holden, giving her his most winning smile and waiting for the offer of coffee and what that would imply ...

There was an awkward silence. Sarah looked puzzled, and then annoyed.

‘Excuse me not offering you a drink Holden, but I’m whacked.  I’m not even going to unpack, I’ll do that tomorrow.  I’m just going to go to bed now’.

Holden shrugged and spread his hands.  The winning smile again, which never lost. ‘Works for me’.

Her face shut down so fast he could almost hear the slam. She strode over to the door and flung it open.  A girl walking by stopped a second, then scurried off looking embarrassed.

‘Sorry Holden, I thought you were a friend’.

‘I was, I mean I am, that’s what I’m doing here, helping a friend’.  In all his thirty two years he had never been in a situation where a woman turned him down and he was floundering.

‘Yeah, but I didn’t expect to get handed the bill’.  She jerked her head. ‘Out’.

Holden walked past her into the corridor and turned.  ‘Sarah, I –‘.

This time he really heard the slam.

Certificate U
Story
Inspiration Point (work that responds to our weekly writing cue)

Comments

Submitted by insertponceyfre... on

Nice IP response GlosKat - hopefully fiction!

 

Submitted by GlosKat on

Thanks for the cherries Claudine !

Fictitious in illustration but not in principle.

I worked in IT all my life, so I worked with more men than women, certainly in the early days.  Often I would be the only woman in a team.  This meant I've always been perfectly relaxed about treating men as friends.

However, there have been occasions when I thought I was just being matey, where the man in question thought he was getting a come-on.  We all see what we want to see, I guess. 

Sometimes it would annoy me, sometimes amuse me, and sometimes get me into hot water...

 

Submitted by skinner_jennifer on

Hi Kat,

I get where you're coming from with this story, I've been in similar incident, but at the time I was living on my own and being the weak person I was, gave into his charms. But thankfully he was a D.I.Y. Expert, and I did get a lot of jobs done around my new home and he wasn't actually that bad.

By the way, I had a letter back from the hospital, it looks like their current thinking is Sarcoidosis, but they're still reviewing, so I have to wait for another letter.

Jenny.

 

 

Submitted by GlosKat on

There's a lot to be said for a DIY expert, I wish I could have found one, especialy a charming one !

Pleased to hear you're closer to a diagnosis.  The weather is going to really warm up next week so hopefully that will help you.

 

Submitted by celticman on

aye, I've often been misunderstood too. Now I'm old I'm no longer worth thinking anything much about. 

 

Submitted by GlosKat on

Now come on CM don't do yourrself down,  we think about you !

 

Submitted by Turlough on

You're thought of here whenever I look at the football results or read about Glasgow. I also think it seems a long while since I've read anything you've written about Glasgow. I hope there's a new release on the way.

Far worse things have happened in the world but that fire by the station left me feeling sad. 

Turlough

Submitted by Turlough on

There are different levels to this, in my opinion. At the bottom there's the dark threatening expectation of something intimate happening and at the top there's the cheeky innuendo. 

Cheeky innuendo makes the world go round. When I was working, many of my clients were women in their eighties and nineties. I loved making them laugh and it would only take a few slightly risqué words to have them in stitches. And some would reciprocate, often making it necessary for me to down instruments a few minutes because I was laughing so much myself. However, it was important to know and understand how their minds worked before introducing this sort humour as it was something many of them had no experience of. And I think the big age difference between us made it safe and acceptable.

For a fair few months I had a bit of a fling with a woman slightly younger than me who was the receptionist of a care home where I worked once a fortnight. When telling my friends that I was seeing somebody, the expressions on their faces were priceless as I mentioned that I had met her in an old people’s home.

Turlough

Submitted by GlosKat on

Thanks Turlough, yes it's all about reading or misreading signals isn't it.

 

Submitted by Turlough on

'Tis indeed Kat. Extreme care needs to be taken.

Turlough

Submitted by GlosKat on

This is quite the dilemma now that men and women work and socialize together on an equal footing. 

I read an article  not long ago with the title 'Mate or Date ?'.  For example, if a work colleague asks you (a woman) if you want to go for a drink one night after working late, is he asking you out on a date because he fancies you,, or does he really just fancy a pint after a long day ?    

As my mum used to say, it's all so much more complicated than it used to be !

 

Submitted by Turlough on

Knowing what to say, either way, is very difficult and explaining exactly what is expected or not expected from a simple meet up for a drink can take the shine off the circumstances that have led up to it. It's a huge shame that we have this problem in the world.

Turlough

Submitted by GlosKat on

mm I'm not sure it's a shame Turlough.  I think it's just an unavoidable side effect of us women being out there in the world on an equal footing with you chaps.  So long as it's handled with kindness, humour, honesty and sensitivity I think we'll all manage.

 

Submitted by Ewan on

 Short - anything but sweet - and very credible piece about something that must happen thousands of times a day.

[I must admit, I never even notice the signs and signals. (I might not be being sent any, of course)]

Anyway, that's why it's our Social Media Pick of the Day today. Well done.

Please share fellow ABCTalers.

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