DYLAN

It had been a hard day today at work, and I was feeling kind of down in my apartment. I lay down on the couch and just kind of looked through YouTube for a while at some trash videos before switching over to Tinder.

I wasn't really expecting anything to be on there. I hadn't gotten a message from anyone in a long time, and I was kind of tired of the whole scrolling and hoping something would come up thing.

But when I opened the app and was about to swipe, there was a picture of a woman.

And it wasn't just any woman.

This woman was out of this world beautiful.

She kind of looked a little like Angelina Jolie.

Which I guess was kind of funny since her name was Angelina Jones.

Maybe that wasn't her real name.

I'm sure tons of people told her she looked like her.

And I wouldn't blame her for not wanting to use her real name.

Or maybe she was just that perfect.

And she really did seem so perfect.

Not just her photos but what she wrote in her profile.

I hated saying it, but she sounded like any guys’ dream girl.

So I thought, what the hell, a girl like her would never be interested in a guy like me, so I swiped right.

And then my eyes widened in shock.

"A match!" I said to my empty apartment.

Yes, the girl sounded sweet, and she looked so hot it seemed impossible such a girl could ever be interested in someone like me. But I wasn't sure if I wanted to date anytime soon.

I know how it feels to get hurt, and I wasn't looking to get my hopes up again.

But no matter how long I put my phone away and tried to take my mind off it, I just couldn't stop thinking about her.

So I sent her a message.

I was doubtful anything would ever happen between us.

But yet.

There was something about her.

It intrigued me.

JACK

I was still getting messages throughout the night. I knew I was supposed to stop this whole charade, but I had to admit after a while it got addictive.

And I probably would've stopped and deleted the app.

If it wasn't for that one message.

One particular message caught my attention, and it was from a guy named Dylan. As I read through the message, I found myself intrigued by Dylan's wit and charm.

He was also a really handsome guy, and although my Angelina Jolie version of myself was really hot, I still didn't expect a hot guy like him to ever swipe right on her. I couldn't resist responding, and soon, a conversation was brewing. We talked for hours that night, and the next day, we exchanged numbers and continued talking every day.

It became a sort of routine in my day. I'd message him good morning, then we'd talk for a little bit. Then I'd go to work, and I'd message him throughout my break. Then at night after work, we'd stay up for hours and just talk. He made me laugh. He made me feel happy for the first time in a long time. I was so excited every day just to talk to him. He was the first thing on my mind in the morning and the last thing on my mind before I went to sleep.

I hadn't told my friends about this development yet. I didn't know how I would even bring it up. I guess I could pretend as if I was just taking the dare further. But inside, I knew it was more than that. This wasn't me trying to play a prank. There was something there. And I was afraid to admit what that was.

DYLAN

I still couldn't believe I'd met someone as wonderful as Angie. Ever since that first night we met, we haven't stopped talking. Tonight I expected Angie to go out with her friends or spend time with her family, but she told me she had given her friends a rain check to spend time with me. I felt guilty immediately and encouraged her to go out, but she typed,

"Believe me, there's no one else I'd rather spend time with."

I felt my heart warm from her words.

"Thanks, Angie," I typed. "You're so sweet."

"Not as sweet as you," she typed.

So that night we played video games together. I'd been quite excited to play with her, and there were a lot of multi-player games I thought would be perfect for us. I thought I'd have to teach her a little, but to my surprise, she was such a good gamer. I asked her about how long she'd been playing, and again she surprised me.

"I've been playing since I was eight years old," she typed. "I've always loved games."

"Wow," I typed. "That's impressive."

"Not really," she typed and sent a laughing emoji. "And you? What about you? When did you start playing?"

"Uhm, around eight or nine too," I typed. "I never thought I'd find someone that liked gaming as much as me."

"Well, you've met your match then," she typed with a wink emoji.

"I guess I have," I typed.

When we finally took a break and just talked for a while before getting ready for bed, I asked her,

"Have you thought of us meeting?"

There was silence for a while. Then she started typing and then deleted it again. Immediately I began to worry.

Had I brought it up too fast?

Should I have waited?

She probably thought I was an idiot. Or worse, a creep.

But then she responded to my relief.

"I have," she typed. "But I don't think it's the right time yet."

"That's fine!" I typed quickly. "We don't have to rush it."

"Are you sure?" she asked.

"Yeah," I typed. "I want you to feel comfortable when we meet."

"Thanks, Dylan," she typed. "You're so understanding. You're honestly the best man I've ever met. The best person too."

"That's how I feel about you," I typed with a smile on my face.

"I just wish... things were different," she typed.

"What do you mean?" I asked. "Sometimes I don't think I deserve you," she typed.

"Of course you deserve me!" I typed. "You're the most amazing person in the world. Any guy would be so lucky to have you. I want you. All of you."

There was a pause, then she typed, "Thank you, Dylan. You have no idea how much that means to me."

"We have our whole lives for me to find out," I typed with a kiss emoji.

She sent one back, and soon we settled in our beds and talked until we both fell asleep.

JACK

I've been feeling really guilty about making Dylan believe I was a woman. But I had to admit that the more time I spend with him, the more I wanted to talk to him. Every single day I'd tell myself this was it, that I'd stop, and he could move on and forget about me. But the selfish part of me wanted to keep him in my life. Because as hard as it was to admit, I was developing feelings for him. Strong feelings that I couldn't deny. It was terrifying because I felt like I crossed a line I should never have crossed. It was like seeing yourself heading for a cliff but not being able to stop it. And tonight, I was reminded again how dangerous this was.

Dylan has been trying to get me to go on a call with him. I didn't know what to do because I knew the moment he heard my voice, I'd be in deep trouble. So I lied and told him my phone was broken and couldn't take calls. I knew it sounded far-fetched, but he didn't pester me for any more answers. That made me feel even more guilty. He was so trusting. I felt so bad for taking advantage of it.

We watched a movie together on a website where we could chat at the same time. It was a romantic movie. I guess he thought I'd like to watch it since I was supposed to be a woman. It was kind of funny, though, since I've always loved romantic movies secretly. Seeing the couple together, I felt a hole in my heart because I wanted that. What they had. But I knew I could never have it. Because the person I wanted it with right now, more than anything, I couldn't. So instead, after we watched the movie, I spent the rest of the night talking to him. Pretending just for a while longer that maybe we had a future.