Graves always prided himself on being a lone wolf, the kind of guy who didn’t need anyone. He’d built a life that was quiet, controlled, and, above all, solitary. Friends would tease him, tell him he was too stubborn for his own good, but he’d just shrug it off. “I don’t need anyone,” he’d say, with a confidence that felt unshakable.

But lately, the silence of his empty apartment had started to press down on him in a way it hadn’t before. The nights felt longer, the quiet more oppressive. He found himself scrolling through his phone aimlessly, looking for something to fill the void.

That’s when he stumbled upon the dating app on the Play Store. At first, he scoffed at the idea - him, on a dating app? Ridiculous. But the more he thought about it, the more he realized that maybe, just maybe, it wouldn’t hurt to have someone to talk to. He wasn’t looking for love, he told himself, just someone to share a conversation with, to make the nights a little less lonely.

So, with a mixture of reluctance and curiosity, he downloaded the app. The bright colors and cheery messages felt out of place on his phone, but he pushed through, setting up a profile and swiping through faces. Each profile felt like a roll of the dice, but he was in no rush.

One night, after another long day, he found himself swiping again. His thumb paused over a profile - something about it caught his eye. Maybe it was the smile, or the way the profile was written, but it felt different. Without overthinking, he swiped right.

A match.