Monica Jordan was still single at 36. It's not that she never had opportunities, it's just that they never panned out. In all her years on the dating scene she never met one guy who could be "the one", or even pretended like they wanted to be "the one." She wasn't a stick figure with a skinny body and tight abs who had guys drooling after her. She was a little fuller than most of the girls she saw, with a little extra cushioning on her chest and ass, and her legs were thick and shapely. Though she liked playing sports, she wasn't an exercise fiend, and definitely didn't diet. She always heard that guys liked a little extra meat on their women, but had never met a guy like that in real life. In fact, all the guys she'd dated let her know, subtly and not so subtly, that they found her figure less than ideal.
It always crushed her whenever she would chat with a guy online and hit it off only to meet in real life and see the disappointment in his eyes as he looked her up and down and realized she wasn't a size zero. She could see their shoulders slump as they released a sigh, as if bracing for a disaster. They would always rush the date hoping to get the night over with as soon as possible, making snide comments or acting annoyed whenever she suggested getting appetizers. Her attempts at conversation were brushed aside, and suggestions for drinks and dancing after dinner were shot down. After a while, it wore her down and she stopped going on dates altogether--that is until tonight.
It was Monica's first date in over a year. She still wasn't sure how it happened, but she was excited and nervous about it, and felt the familiar butterflies flittering in her stomach. It all started two weeks ago; she was sitting home alone (again) on a Saturday night, watching a re-run of The Notebook on TV, and eating from a carton of Ben and Jerry's Cherry Garcia. Her eyes watered as she watched Noah and Allie kissing on the screen, as she wondered why she couldn't find a guy like that. Getting up from the couch, she decided on a whim to check her online dating profile. As soon as she logged in, she got a message from Gabe345. He didn't have a picture on his profile, which made her kind of wary, but then she couldn’t complain. Her own picture was a slightly out of focus profile shot, that she thought hid her flaws. He got her attention with his opening line.
Gabe345: Hi there fellow Sherlock fan.
It was such a departure from the other guys who would message her with "Hey sweet cheeks", or "Wassup sexy," that she was intrigued. Not many guys would take the time to read her profile, and still fewer shared her interest and love of literature, especially Sherlock Holmes.
Monjo: Hey there yourself.
Gabe345: I saw your profile and noticed you were a Sherlock Holmes fan...and you watch The Jersey Shore. I knew I had to message you.
Monjo: Lol, yeah I’m a girl of varied tastes. What can I say, it’s my guilty pleasure. Are you saying you share my love of trashy television and classic detective novels?
Gabe345: I’ll only admit to the detective stories. I do have a reputation to uphold.
Monjo: Mmm hmm, and I assume you didn’t happen to catch the season finale last week.
Gabe345: My lips are sealed.
Monjo: You can keep your secrets. I probably wouldn’t admit to watching it either in real life.
Gabe345: Thank you. I've actually been trying to catch you online for the past week now, but you never seem to be logged in…sorry, did that just sound creepy?
Monjo: Uh…kinda, but I'll let that pass ;)
They chatted over instant messenger for hours that evening, discussing everything from their favorite books and movies, to more personal subjects like family and life goals. Monica learned that Gabe was in his early forties, and newly divorced. He was a businessman, but didn't delve too deeply into exactly what type of business he did. She told him about herself, her hobbies and interests, and about her boring job as a receptionist at the power company. The time seemed to fly by, her laughter echoed throughout her living room as he recounted an embarrassing incident in his childhood. It was with some surprise then, that she glanced at her clock and noticed it was already 4am.
Monjo: Oh wow! I can't believe we've been chatting for 5 hours now.
Gabe345: I didn't realize that either. Do you have to go to work in the morning?
Monjo: Nope, it's Sunday. I really have nothing to do tomorrow, it's just I haven't been up this late since college…God I feel old.
Gabe345: Hey if you're old, that makes me ancient.
Monjo: Well Old Man, I don't know about you, but I need my beauty sleep.
Gabe345: Ok…I had fun talking with you tonight…maybe we can chat again?
Monjo: I'd like that.
This started a routine of nightly chats that lasted into the early hours of the morning. Monica would rush home from work every evening, giddy with excitement. She'd scarf down her dinner and then plop down in front of her computer from 6pm to 2am every night. Every time she saw the messenger box pop up, her heart skipped a beat. She was having so much fun chatting with and getting to know Gabe. He never talked about himself much. He seemed much more interested in learning about her. Monica had never been showered with so much attention before, even if it was through cyberspace. Gabe was everything she wanted in a guy, and she didn't even know what he looked like. She just knew what type of person he was through his words.