[2022 Wattys Winner] When love cynic Madison Watson starts university, she vows to follow three simple rules.
One: Work out at least twice a week.
Two: Get an internship.
Three: Stay away from men.
But after a chance encounter with th...
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Literature surrounding the topic of contemporary dating laments the failure of technology to aid positive romantic outcomes (Finkel et al., 2012; Adelman & Ahivia, 2009). Moreover, in some cases, it proposes that the digital age has increased the prevalence of negative outcomes (Lewis, 2014; Thompson, 2005). This paper contests that literature by, first, finding that the obligation to make the most of available data sets falls on the user. Second, it argu—
"Hey, girlie!"
My beaming blonde roommate bounced through our door, her sudden (and loud) entrance causing me to jump in my desk chair.
And completely lose my train of thought.
"Hey," I replied simply, turning back to my desk to confer my notes.
"Do you have class this afternoon?" She opened her closet doors noisily, throwing an array of obnoxiously pink clothes on her equally pink bed. Her silvery-blonde hair was long and straight, secured off her face with bright pink clips.
I forced down a deep breath. "No."
"Great! I'm helping out at this carwash thing for one of the clubs. They need an extra pair of hands and asked if I knew any hot girls who ... Ohh! What's this?"
She was hovering right beside me when I looked up again, gawking down at the large ring on my right hand.
"You never wear jewelry!"
"Oh, it..." I paused, shocked by the realization that she paid close enough attention to notice that I seldom wore jewelry. I, meanwhile, couldn't even remember her name. Kelsey? Keira? "It was my grandmother's."
"Was?" she pried.
I blinked up at her, but she didn't seem to get the message that her interrogation was less than welcome.
So I threw her a tight-lipped smile. "She died. One year to the day, actually."
"Oh."
The conversation lulled, but she didn't retreat from the swelling discomfort. She didn't seem to feel it at all. She merely leaned over me to peer at my laptop, scanning the page intently.
"So, whatcha doin'?"
I instantly readjusted my body so that it blocked most of the screen from view. I had no reason to think that she knew either Holly or Dex, but it was best to play it safe on the off chance that she did. Besides, didn't she have any concept of personal space?
"You wanted to ask me something?" I prodded her.
"Right!" She clasped her hands together, her ornate rings catching on the sunbeams spilling in through our window. "Yeah. The carwash. You in? They're offering gelato..."
My awkward smile was quickly turning to a grimace, my discomfort rising with every second that her eyes left mine to study something else. My rings. My laptop. My textbooks. It was like she was trying to absorb as much information as she could about me in that one conversation; not that there was much to absorb. I didn't have photos of friends or family on my desk. No notes from home. No trinkets. Clean. Sterile. A fresh start.
