Gemotions

My thumb hovered over the "Call" button. Liam. Just Liam, from the forum for obscure documentaries. We’d spent weeks, months even, dissecting films about deep-sea creatures and forgotten composers. The little blue dot next to his profile picture had been a constant source of nervous excitement for weeks. Now, thanks to some clever internet sleuthing (okay, a reverse image search and a bit of luck), I knew. Liam lived here. In *my* city.

A nervous energy coursed through me. I imagined his reaction, the surprise, the shared thrill. I composed a dozen opening lines, discarded them all. Finally, I just typed, "Hey, this is weird, but…" and hit send. My heart hammered against my ribs.

I paced my small apartment, the worn rug under my feet offering little solace. He responded within seconds. "Woah. You live in Portland too? Seriously?" The message felt like a jolt of electricity. I couldn't stop grinning. This was insane.