Tinderella

I come home from work on Friday evening and am suspended to see Emma at the kitchen counter. She usually works Friday nights and has left by the time I get off work. 

"Hey," I say when she doesn't look up at first. 

"Hey," she responds absentmindedly. I notice she's on her phone. I put my purse down on the counter next to her and start to take my heels off. 

"Not working tonight?"

"Nah." Emma shakes her head, still looking down at her phone. "DJ and I called off together and we're going on a date."

I laugh a little. "You're the manager, so you called him off?"

She smiles. "There are perks to being manager, yes." Finally she looks up at me. "I feel like I haven't seen you in ages."

It's true. The last time we spent any significant time together was when I was crying over Cam. Not my shining moment, I'll admit. Recently I've been spending a lot of time with Marie and Kolby, and while that's fun, I miss my best friend. 

"We should do a movie day or something," I suggest. "Or a girly spa day. I feel like I haven't seen you in weeks."

"We work different schedules," Emma says with a shrug. I frown. 

"Yeah, I guess so. Just let me know when you're off soon."

"Okay." Emma picks up her phone and starts walking to her room. "DJ will be here soon. I'm going to get ready!"

"Do you want me to do your hair?" I call after her. 

"No thanks!"

I'm left feeling a little dejected. Maybe I'm sensitive, but I do miss Emma. 

An hour later she's gone and I'm all alone on a Friday night. That's when I decide to download Tinder. 

Okay, so I've been single for less than a month. I'm not really ready for a serious relationship and probably won't be for any time too soon. I'm definitely not over Cam, and I'd be lying if I said I hadn't read his last text to me over and over. He'd never responded to my text, as I'd suspected, but I still sometimes read out last conversations. Maybe I'm not ready to go to a bar and hit on every semi attractive male in sight, but swiping left and right seems simple enough. 

And addicting. I download the app and after fifteen minutes, I'm hooked. It seems like one of those old Hot or Not games on facebook, except somehow more private. No feelings get hurt on Tinder. 

I also quickly discover how gross some people can be. Pickup lines are common, and I soon collect everything from "hey tinderella" to "sit on my face plz." Ew. 

After a slew of hipster-esque guys in urban outfitters and holding craft beers, I finally get bored. I'm about to end my Tinder binge when I see I have a new message. I open it hesitantly, expecting yet another "titties or gtfo" message, but no. It's from a guy named Bryan that I vaguely remember swiping right to. He's written: "hey! Just wanted to say that I like your bio. I've been scrolling for a while and haven't found anyone with an appreciation for Dr. Seuss yet."

My bio? I don't remember editing my bio. After a quick check I realize it's my Facebook bio from when I was in high school-- a Dr. Seuss quote indeed, from One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish. I laugh aloud. I should be embarrassed, but I'm intrigued. 

"Thanks!" I write back. "Can't go wrong with a few rhymes. I honestly had forgotten that was my bio."

Bryan writes back immediately. We have a short conversation, one that I'm surprised to discover that I'm enjoying. He seems witty yet kind, and it's been half an hour before I know it. 

Just as I'm wondering if I should take the leap and ask him out, Bryan suggests we grab coffee. I can't help it--once we work out the details and I give him my number, I squeal excitedly. Okay, so it's a Tinder date. And there's no way to tell if he's a psychopath. But then again, anyone you talk to or date could be a psychopath, and it's not so different than finding some dude at the bar. At least I can assume that Bryan wasn't chugging tequila sunrises as he messaged me. 

He texts me quickly to confirm it's my number, and I smile a little. We decide on Sunday, and I'm already a little excited and nervous. It may not be the most romantic way of meeting someone, but who knows? I could use a little casual dating.