Computer Loves and Telephone Calls

Ralf Hütter and Florian Schneider-Esleben were both 22 year-old musicians from Germany who connected over a passion for electronic music.

Though the pair had never met in person and had only communicated via Tumblr and WhatsApp, they were best friends and chatted about anything and everything. Especially their favourite bands: OMD, Depeche Mode and New Order.

***

Ralf had a crush on Florian that he had been constantly fretting about since their first conversation. He knew it was unseemly for an upper middle class gentleman, but he felt like he might literally combust every time Florian messaged him (gay panic is a hündin).

'I should probably tell my friends about my feelings on one of my side blogs', he thought to himself. (He would never post something so personal on his main blog, where Florian could see it. He's not a dummkopf.)

After several minutes of debating with himself, he finally managed to open Tumblr on his new MacBook Pro (a present from his friend Wolfgang) and created a textpost.

'Okay, I have a confession to make. I have a crush on one of my friends. His name is Florian and we're mutuals on here. We talk every day about things no one else understands because they're too "weird" and "obscure". I think I might be in love with him. What should I do?'

Once he had reread his confession multiple times (and written a pros and cons list), he published his post. He closed the tab with a satisfied smile on his face, sure he had done the right thing.

A few minutes later, he was anxious to read his followers' responses and went back online. Upon opening Tumblr, he recoiled in horror as he noticed something catastrophic: he posted it on his main blog instead!

"Scheisse!" Ralf paced around his bedroom, wringing his hands together and muttering expletives in German, English and French, alternating between languages every few words. He couldn't believe what he'd just done and hoped Florian hadn't seen it.

Once he'd finished pacing, he flopped dramatically on his bed and sighed heavily; placing his left hand over his eyes, while his right gripped onto the metal frame of the bed as if it was a lifeline.

Out the corner of his eye, he noticed his phone and decided to talk to Wolfgang to take his mind off it. He was sure Wolfie would be kind enough not to mention his stupidity.

Ralf: Hello, Wolfie. How are you?

Wolfgang: Hi. I'm ok thanks. You are not though. I have seen your Tumblr post and I think Florian has too. You've vermasselt and I'm afraid I don't know how to help you this time.

Ralf: I think I'd better delete it. If he has seen it, he may never speak to me again!

Wolfgang: You always overthink things. If you weren't such a perfectionist, you would know how to cope with stress. Instead, you panic over the slightest thing that goes wrong.

Ralf conceded. Wolfgang was right, he did have a tendency to overreact because he didn't know how to deal with his anxiety. It had always been his biggest shortcoming, although he never actually noticed until he read Wolfgang's message.

"Why is he always right?" He asked aloud to the empty room, knowing he wouldn't get an answer.

He slowly stood back up and stalked his way over to his desk, still feeling embarrassed about posting his confession to the wrong blog.

***

Meanwhile, Florian was sitting dazedly on his bed. After a beat, he started ranting to himself for what he perceived to be a misunderstanding on his part. He was extremely baffled by the latest post on Ralf's blog and was starting to feel overwhelmed.