Date Lab

Can a Verbal Smackdown Be Sexy?

7:30 P.M., OVERWOOD, ALEXANDRIA

Lauren: I got to the restaurant first. Devon was late -- like 30 minutes. I was like, This guy's not going to show up.

Devon: My directions were just all backward. I was feeling a little anxious and kind of embarrassed, but I called and let the restaurant know. [When I got there,] I thought she was very attractive. My type is beautiful, so she fit the bill. I gave her flowers and told her I was sorry a few times.

Lauren: The flowers were a nice gesture, and he was an attractive guy. He had a nice smile; he dressed nice. He just kind of looked warm. We got our drinks and appetizers and started talking, getting the groundwork of the person: What do you do for a living, where are you from, that kind of stuff. He has a job, he's intelligent, attractive and funny. My last boyfriend had kids, so I was ecstatic [that he didn't]. But we were both pretty nervous. He was more quiet-nervous; I was more I'm-going-to-find-something-to-talk-about nervous. Then we started talking about football.

Devon: She told me she was from Pennsylvania, but I didn't want to automatically assume she's an Eagles fan. So, I didn't say anything about it in the beginning. And then we got on the subject, and I'm a diehard Cowboys fan. That's really where we opened up, on the whole football thing.

Lauren: We argued for probably 10 minutes -- "My team's better than your team" -- just talking a bunch of mess. Then I asked him what he likes to do. He said dance, and I said, "Oh, I like to dance." [So we talked about] how I'm going to show him up on the dance floor and how my team is going to beat his. He complimented me a lot. Like about how I could beat him in PlayStation -- he basically said, "Your looks won't be able save you."

Devon: I could tell that if we met under any other circumstances, we would click. I felt that we can be friends, and probably grow into something more. She brings out the competitive side in me, and I like that.

Lauren: [After dinner,] we had a couple more drinks. He said, "Can I get your number?" and I said yes. He walked me to my car. He showed me some Cowboys stuff that he had in his car, and I showed him my Eagles stuff. He gave me a hug.

Devon: She said she lived 10 minutes away. [Ten minutes later,] I was still on Route 66, so I text-messaged to see if she got home safe. When I got home, I got on her MySpace, and she added me [as a friend].

Lauren: I had a good time. [On a scale of 1 to 5, I'll give the date a] 4. We had a lot in common, so it doesn't seem like it would be hard to find things to do -- even if it means beating him in "Madden [NFL]." We're looking forward to hanging out. Potentially, there's a chance for a romantic relationship.

Devon: I'll [give it a] 4. She's pretty outgoing, a confident, strong woman. That's very attractive. She told me she has her alter ego on the dance floor; I'm pretty curious to see what that's like, so hopefully I'll be able to get her on the dance floor soon.

Interviews by Elizabeth Chang

UPDATE:"I'm a big fan of his, and I've pretty much talked to him every day" since the date, says Lauren. "So far, so good," seconds Devon. "Everything that she's saying, I like."

WANT DATE LAB TO SET YOU UP? Go to washingtonpost.com/datelab for details.