Date Lab

Noah: It was totally within context at the time, but I can't remember how.

Amory: [Afterward,] we walked to my car. He wanted to hold my hand and kept asking me to come up to his apartment. I turned my cheek when he aimed for the lips.

Noah: I invited her up for a drink. We'd been talking about our condos earlier, so I wanted to show her my apartment. [Instead,] we hugged and had a little awkward peck on the lips. It ended with her saying, "Let me give you my number."

Amory: It was a safe way of not being too rude. I'd rate the evening a 3 [out of 5]. We're not the best match, but I'm not entirely convinced that if I went out with him again, it'd be awful.

Noah: I'd give it a 3.7. I didn't feel like I got to know her well, but there were no red flags. I definitely want to see her again.

Interviews by Jill Hudson Neal

UPDATE: Noah called and texted Amory several times after the date. She, in turn, e-mailed us saying she'd "realized how inappropriate Noah's behavior really was," and listing 14 things he'd done that "you should never ever do on a first date."

Okay, sometimes we don't make the best matches. Think you could do better? Our Valentine's Day special will give you a shot! See http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/artsandliving/datelab/redate/index.html.