This is post #5 of our story. If you haven't read the others, start with #1 and read the posts in order.
I drove to his house and worked up the courage to knock on the door. He answered again, but instead of opening the door to let me in, he walked out onto the porch and closed the door behind him.
"Hey! My friend just got here from Argentina. He's enrolling at Weber State in the fall, but he doesn't speak much English. I was thinking he might be able to answer some questions for your paper as well. I hope that's okay. It would be kind of rude to speak in English the whole time since his language skills are limited. Would you mind conducting the interview in Spanish?"
*Gulp.
My stomach dropped, my throat tightened, and I pinched myself to make sure it wasn't just a bad dream. I was TOTALLY FREAKING OUT inside, but I tried to remain calm. I understand almost everything in Spanish and speak it fairly well, but my experience actually speaking with non-English speakers was pretty much all gained in the one month I spent during a study abroad experience I had in Costa Rica. That's where the language finally clicked for me, but it still made me nervous. I would normally prepare a little before conducting AN INTERVIEW in Spanish.
YIKES!! Now what? I'll have to translate all my questions as I go along and pray I understand their responses.
Let's just say that the focus of being nervous about having a crush on the kid totally shifted. I was now completely focused on the interview itself. Marcos had asked me to speak to him in Spanish before and I had refused. His English is perfect so I knew my "second language" would fall short and I didn't want to make a fool of myself. Now I HAD to speak Spanish with him AND some random stranger. To say I was uncomfortable, would've been the understatement of the century.
I can't tell you what I said or how it went. I guess my survival instincts kicked in and somehow I managed to get through it. At the end of the interview, I thanked Israel for helping me and let Marcos walk me out to my car.
*Heart pounding from the rush of adrenalin I received as my fight or flight kicked into high gear
*Heart pounding from the rush of adrenalin I received as my fight or flight kicked into high gear
Marcos was grinning from ear to ear.
Hmm...why is he smiling like that? Well, I totally rocked it! I'm sure he's impressed with my Spanish skills. I hate that I had to scramble and do everything in Spanish, but I have to say, I rocked that interview big time! Go me!!
Marcos complimented me on my Spanish and thanked me for being so polite and willing to adapt to the situation. Then he gave me a hug that eased my discomfort. It was a nice, long, I-really-care-about-you hug. My heart melted. He opened my door, helped me into the car, shut the door and stepped onto the curb.
As I was flipping the car around, he motioned for me to roll down my window. I thought he was going to say something charming for me to smile about the whole way home. Instead, his friend poked his head out the door and said, "Thanks for the interview. I really enjoyed meeting you. By the way, your Spanish is great."
Marcos laughed and waved as I drove away.
You have got to be kidding me? This kid just tricked me into speaking Spanish with him. Grr....game on, bro. Game on!!
I didn't know what to think. I was pretty mad at having been deceived by this dude, but I had to give him props for coming up with a plan to get me to bust out my Spanish. Somehow I was able to see past my irritation at being duped. I'm guessing it had something to do with being stuck in the romantic phase of love where all I could think about was how cute he was and how much I liked him. Thank you, limerence!
I don't remember a third interview. I'm guessing I decided that not only did I have enough information to write a paper, but I also wasn't sure I could handle much more embarrassment.
Marcos says...
Yeah buuuuddddyyyy!!!! Maria actually thought she'd never have to speak Spanish around me...really?!?! Well, my plan was awesome, if I do say so myself. Maria's Spanish was very good. Actually Maria knows more about Spanish grammar rules, conjugation and vocabulary than I do. If you say something, I can tell you if it's right or wrong, but I can't tell you why. Maria can!!! Anyway, that interview/date will go down in history as one of the most savvy moments of my life. Game on?!?! Oooookkkkk!!! I'm still waiting......
