Chapter 1 DAY ONE

PROLOGUE

7 days.

168 hours.

10,080 minutes.

That is how long this story is. Our story, or what I thought would be our story. What started with a swipe of a screen, would end with swiping tears off my cheeks. Hopeful in searching for love only to end in heartbreak. A new-age Romeo & Juliet type of story. And so, it begins…

It was a warm and bright August morning. The glittering sound of a harpsichord played from my phone, awakening me from my slumber to let me know it was time to start my day. I rolled over and sat up half asleep to turn off the alarm. The screen displayed today’s date: Thursday August 20th.

I had been on this search for a couple of months now, to get over him. It was my first real breakup from my first real relationship. The others before this didn’t hurt this much, probably because I never cared for them as I did for him. He was the first person I had given my heart to, the first person I laid it out all for. The first person I changed for (other than myself) and the first person I regret doing it all for.

It had taken me a few weeks to pull myself out of that depressive trance the split put me in. I was surviving on nothing but bottles of wine and romance movies, which obviously weren’t doing the job I thought they would.

When Vanessa had let me know she had found him on a dating app during those few weeks, I felt gutted. How could 3 years be thrown away so quickly? I guess it’s easy when you secretly start pulling back from the relationship 5 months before its end. Also not letting me know there were issues that could have been resolved; a simple conversation would have kept this love going. As she sent me screenshots of his profile, my mind was beginning to fill with thoughts of revenge. How could I get back at him for looking for my replacement so soon? The only solution: create my own profile. He must know I was also ready to be back on the market and looking for my next conquest.

As I am pulling up my black trousers, I hear a notification go off on my phone. YOU HAVE BEEN MATCHED flashed across the screen. Hmm, I wonder who this is I thought to myself. I unlocked my phone and proceeded to the app. Who had appeared was someone I swiped right on the night before. Adrian: 6’4, with dark brown hair and eyes. He was built like a Roman god and well dressed, definitely a businessman. He liked sports, wine, and conversation. Someone that I could see myself with.

I felt flushed and nervous, as if I were meeting him for the first time in the middle of my bedroom. 
“Good morning beautiful” the message read. 
“Good morning to you too, handsome :)” Oh my god, I thought, I can’t believe he messaged me this early.
“What is a girl like you doing on this app?” He asked. “The same reason a guy like you is on here :P” I playfully replied. 
“Well, I am glad we matched. Here, this is my phone number. We can text more ;)”
 Whoa! I can’t believe it’s been 5 minutes and I already have his number. “Thank you!”

Thank you? THANK YOU?! Really, you reply with thank you? my subconscious questioned.

“Haha, hopefully I will get a message from you sometime today.”

I pull up to work at the same time my work buddy Daren did. We were pulled from different teams at the office to work on a project. I would tell him all about my dates with guys from the apps and he would give me the male perspective I needed. He helped me a lot, actually he saved me from a lot of mistakes. As soon as we sat next to each other in our makeshift office in the boardroom, I pulled out my phone and showed him the messages.
“This is a good sign, right? I didn’t need to ask for his number!”
“Well, yeah that’s actually pretty amazing” he said, “you girls have it so easy, I swear”.
“Yeah yeah,” I waved him off, yanking his attention back to my situation. “So, do I wait to message him? Is this still a rule or can I just do my own thing?” Daren was 5 years younger than me, and although there was that age difference, he was mature for his age. “I think you should message him. I don’t get this whole waiting thing. If you like someone, let them know.” I knew I could trust him. “You’re right. What do I have to lose anyway?”. I spent the morning thinking of the perfect message to send him, trying not to come off as desperate but also not wanting to seem cold. I figured I would just send a friendly check-in. 
“Hey, how is your day going?”. Perfect, I thought. It shows I care without seeming like I am prying.

“Hey :) It’s going great, just got out of a meeting actually. How is yours going?”

Wow, fast. But I guess he must have had his phone in his hand.

“That’s great! I am just working away like a busy little bee.” 
And you wonder why you’re still single, my subconscious snarked at me.

“A sexy bee :P What do you do for work?”

“I work at FedEx, in customer service typically but right now I am working on a special project for the big guys. You?”

“Wow, that’s great! I am a Business Account Manager.” 
“Ooh fancy. So, you dress in sexy business suits all the time ;)” I flirted. But it was also a truth, he looked damn good in a suit.

“Oh you mean like this one?” A mirror selfie from this morning appeared, not too certain if it was meant for me or someone else but at this moment none of that mattered. He was dressed in a grey suit, with a white shirt and a dark blue tie. His hair slicked back but still a little messy. He looked damn good, and I stared at the picture for longer than I should have.

“Oh yes, definitely like that one. You pull off suits very, very well :)”.

As I closed my laptop for the day, I glanced over at my phone. No new messages from him, just one from Sarah asking if I’m still attending tonight’s weekly girls’ dinner. I loved these girls’ dinners every Thursday. It’s helped me get out of the funk of sorrow, plus the restaurant turns into an ultra cool lounge after 8pm and the hottest guys flock there. I turn into the driveway at home and rush through the door. It’s 5:30 I thought, I have less than an hour to get ready. I head to the kitchen where the smell of grilled chicken and corn waft through. My dad loves grilling in the summer, he’d grilled ice cream if he could.

“Hi sweetie. How was work?” my mother asked. “It was alright, the same as every other day” I replied and ran up to my room to get ready for the night.