So, more or less things never really took off or w/e with her (I'll refer to her as Linda) though I made a few attempts to get Linda to do something outside of work with me. Then I got offered the chance to be promoted up to a supervisor position at work, which I decided to take even though it meant I would not be able to hangout with my co-workers outside of work, to avoid favoritism. The position was actually open because the last supervisor had moved in with some ppl who she worked with and had to change stores. With that move I was kind-of giving up on Linda, even though I still had a crush on her.
Now we get to just a few months ago. I'm not exactly sure why, but at some point I had the notion of doing something for Linda on Valentine's Day. Had an idea for a gift I could give her; thought about it a bit, and decided that it would be a bit weird (possibly creepy) and would very likely cause issues at work. I still wanted to though, so I did. Lol. Put some effort into my idea, fleshed it out, and felt really good about what I had. Linda has a couple small pets, and my idea was to put together a little care package of goodies for her and her pets along with a couple drawings of her pets I made (kinda cartoon images of them based off their names & what kind of animal they were). The way things went I decided to leave the gift (ended up being like a gift basket) in her locker at work as I closed the night before Valentines and she opened the next day. I also decided to leave my name off of everything to help minimize any work related issues, though since we work at a small place with ~12 ppl and since my handwriting was on the note I was positive Linda could figure out who it was from. I didn't expect anything much, but did kinda expect some kinda reaction on the 14th... got nothing. So I'm freaking out a little wondering if she somehow missed the gift, should I show up at work? Should I poke her via txt and suggest she check her locker? I manage to calm down some, and decide to stop by later in the day at work when Linda will be gone (if she didn't want to contact me I wasn't about to force a weird situation at work) and just make sure she found the gift. Linda had found it as it was gone, and I was then left to wonder what her reaction had been for the next few days until I worked with her again. When I did next work with Linda I made sure I was going to be on a break when she came in so I could talk with her (being in charge has it's perks ^.^). She came in kinda looked at me, but mostly went about her business so I caught her gaze, gave her a serious look, and asked "So... Did I make things totally awkward?" She laughed, told me No and that she had thought the gift was cute and had made her smile. Feeling like I had already pressed my luck, I just tell her I was glad she liked it and asked if her pets had enjoyed their treats. Basically that's all that came from that, though I did have to have a chat with my Manager who reminded me that if anything should start between us one of us would have to leave, and that any further gifts should be done outside of work ^.^
Oddly, nothing really changed after that. Linda and I chatted a little more and it felt like we were maybe a little more comfortable around each other, but it was still work so mostly business as usual. I knew I should just ask her out, but it was still too weird kus of work and it did not feel fair to either of us to bring up leaving the job (I say leave because there is an option to transfer) as we both really enjoy the people we work with... some more than others ^.^
That's how things were, and then a little less than a month ago Linda decides it's time to quit and do something else. She'd started a better paying job at the start of the year though it's only part time so that was part of why she quit, but there were other reasons. When she first tells me she's thinking of quitting my reaction was half "Oh No! But it's so fun working with you!" and half "Hey, whatcha doing after work?" (I only said the first half, lol). After it's official that she's put in her notice I finally feel like there's nothing by my own fears and doubts keeping me from asking Linda out, I man up and ask her out. Well... ok there's actually a story here as well, but this blog is already long and I still need to get to the next bit so I'm just going to jump ahead till last night.
We go out Nothing fancy, just out for some drinks and play some pool. Was a fun night, pretty casual and it ended in a drunken hug. So can't really say we're dating or anything, but it's a start. Persistence can be pretty useful it turns out.
Thanks for reading!