So, email's will not be Bold Italics. For chats, Porcelain will be underlined, LadyLochness will be italics underlined, PermanentVisitor will be bold, The Infuriator will be bold underlined.
Chapter Two
Porcelain stepped back from her computer, shutting the screen off. She had gotten a lot of matches, but she did not have time to respond to them all. She had a lot of responsibilities that needed tending to. It was strange, this experiment. Most people were probably doing it to get dates, but she had a boyfriend, and she was very happy with him. She just got lonely sometimes. She did not have any real close friends, anybody she felt comfortable confiding, and she thought maybe without having to put up the front, or deal with what people knew, or thought they knew about her, maybe, for once, she could just be herself. If she could find just one real friend out of the fifty-three responses, her experiment would be a success.
Chloe checked her responses. One of her matches had already written her five times. A little excessive, but intriguing. The reporter in her just had to see what the guy had to say to her so desperately, not to mention the girl.
Dear Lady Lochness,
I was thrilled when I saw we were matched up together. I was a little scared I would not get any matches. I did not get many. Well, that is not true; I got a few, but nobody who has responded yet. I hope you do, because I have this feeling in my gut. I like your screen name by the way. Where did you come up with it? I am curious. I hope that is not a too intrusive question. I am sorry. I am a little nervous. Who knew you could babble digitally? That was my attempt at a humorous comment. I hope it took, because nothing is more beautiful than when a girl lets herself laugh, really laugh, without worrying that she looks silly or pretending to laugh to be polite, and it takes a really good joke to do that. I know that sounds silly, the part about beautiful, I mean, considering I cannot see you, but a laugh is one of the few beauties that reflects the heart on the outside. If a laugh is real, it shows the persons beauty, and if she has a really beautiful laugh, well, then she is beautiful inside out. I hope this makes you smile, and I hope to hear from you.
~The Infuriator
Chloe smiled, surprised at the openness of The Infuriator, and intrigued by his romantic side. She wondered briefly if he was a woman, but shrugged that off, chastising herself a little for falling victim to a stereotype. He seemed like he kept bumbling around looking for the perfect thing to say, and made a bit of a fool of himself on the way, but when he got their, his words were perfect. Ever the skeptic, she checked what he said about laughter on the internet to see if her was copying the words, or even the concept, but it was clear it was original. She looked at his profile. He was interested in photojournalism, and hoped to work at the Daily Planet. He had characterized himself as ambitious and determined. No wonder the computer matched them up together. She checked the next email, which was a little eloquent, but mostly bumbley apology for sharing too much his first letter. The third was to thank her for not responding with the rude and demoralizing words that his two other matches had. His third was another apology, but this time, it was about the other two woman, saying he was sure they were nice, might even be friends of hers, he had been to sensitive of their rejection, and he should not have vented. The final one was to apologize for the excessive emails and to inquire if she planned to respond. She laughed to herself. This guy sure had some low self-esteem, but it was charming in its own way. And, she knew from experience, just because a guy had low self-esteem did not mean it was legitimate. Her thoughts turned to Clark. She wondered if he had found a match yet. Probably not, he was oblivious and slow, something she knew all to well. A part of her wished the computer had paired them up, even though she knew since they knew each other's screenames, they would have both dismissed it, to know that the computers formula thought there was a chemistry, a chance…but, she digressed. This little experiment was all about moving on. She started typing.
Infuriator,
LadyLochness here, which, since you asked, was because the Loch Ness Monster was the subject of the first big article I ever wrote for a school paper. And, by the way, you never have to apologize to a reporter for asking a question, intrusive or not. I appreciate a healthy curiosity. We all babble when we are nervous, and an online dating service would make Bill Tuohy shake. And, believe me, there is almost nothing you cannot do digitally. My laptop is my life, which sounds a little sad, but since you were honest about your insecurities, it seems only fair that I am honest about mine. It is impressive that you would put that out there without knowing who was going to read it. And if somebody is rude, and t hurts your feelings, there is nothing wrong with venting that, especially since you do not even know their real names. Feel free to vent to me any time. Just…talk about other stuff too so I do not start to think you are nothing but a whiner. I liked your thing about the smile, but why not tell me something about you. This is about getting to know somebody, really know them, and while I know you like pretty smiles and have a poetically romantic flare, I do not really know much else. Where did your screenname come from, since you asked about mine? Why photojournalism? Have you ever been published? You could send me a clipping of the picture without your name. Just make sure the picture has been copyrighted before sending it into cyberspace. You said you had a gut feeling. What exactly did you mean? Was it the screenname? Do you have any interest in the Loch Ness Monster, or any other myths and mysteries? Personally, I have a little Nancy Drew in me, which makes a good reporter, not to mention the spirit of Aleya Naiman often possesses me. When you get down to it, something that the world cannot explain is my bread and butter, and I love bread and butter, though I am more of a coffee gal, but that is only because it keeps me sane.
~Curiously Anxious for a Reply (Hey, what's that about?)
~LadyLochness
Chloe pressed send and then stepped back from her computer. This was actually kind of fun, in a bizarre way. But, alas, she had homework to do and articles to edit, so that took priority. She took out her trig book and flipped to the assigned page.
The Infuriator had been chomping at the bit, waiting for a response. He did not want to seem desperate, but then, who would know. He opened his response, and was surprised and pleased by what it said. He read it over five or six times, and then began to pen a response.
