Her drink was a pull of overpriced espresso and her career was a constant search for part time work that hopefully paid at least nine dollars an hour. His drink was a black coffee brewed through a Chemex and he worked over sixty hours a week as an ER nurse. They sat across from each other at the small coffee shop and made small talk. She was an animal person and so was he, so she thought that might be a good place to start.
“Do you have any pets,” she asked, her blonde hair pulled high up on her head.
“No, but maybe someday,” he responded, his tan fingers fidgeting with his to-go cup.
Silence.
She spoke, “So, have you lived here long?”
He nodded, “Yeah. About five years. My grandparents used to have a condo here. What about you?”
“I graduated from New College a few years ago.”
“Ahh, one of those kids.”
She rolled her eyes and let out a polite laugh at his stereotypical reaction. Of course with his medical profession he’d look down at the alternative school where no grades were given and students seldom wore shoes to class.
Silence followed again. They both looked around at the other patrons buying overpriced coffee and working on their MacBooks. She wanted him to ask the next question, but wasn’t sure how long she could sit in silence. The room was filled with the murmurs of other conversations and the growl of a massive, green espresso machine. She wondered if anyone else could sense their silence.
“So,” she began, “Why Tinder?”
“I’m not sure, it’s free so that’s nice. Plus it’s just easy to use I guess.”
At this point she didn’t want to admit she was looking for something more serious, but couldn’t afford another dating site, “Yeah, me too. Just looking to meet new people.”
Silence.
This carried on for about another thirty minutes before he braced both of his hands on the edge of the light wood table, “Well, I really should get to work. My shift starts in thirty minutes,” he hesitated before continuing, “This was fun though. We should do it again sometime.”
She nodded, “For sure.”
They exchanged an awkward half-hug and she noticed he smelled of cheap aftershave and sweat. He noticed she smelled like linens. No emotions were elicited from the contact. They exchanged a nod and he headed out into the heat and down the street towards the hospital. As he paced down the road he pulled out his phone and opened his Tinder app. He unmatched her.
She sat down and ordered another coffee. She retrieved her phone from the back pocket of her dark, fitted jeans and opened her Tinder app. She was already unmatched; he beat her to it.
Her drink was a pull of overpriced espresso and her career was a constant search for part time work that hopefully paid at least nine dollars an hour. His drink was a mocha and he taught high school English.
