Written in the Stars(46)

Wasn’t that the truth. And not only when talking face-to-face, either. It was as important in text, which mattered more than ever. One too many exclamation points and you’d sound too eager. Whether you chose lol, rofl, or haha said something about you, about the conversation. How you spelled the word okay mattered, each iteration distinct in tone. K, of course, was in a league of its own, and if there was a period behind it? Chances were, things were not, in fact, okay.

But not everyone was aces at that, understanding how what they said mattered or how it might be perceived. How a single reply could sink a conversation or how a joke gone wrong could get you blocked. Or ignored. Ghosted.

Texting was a minefield of miscommunication and uncertainty, especially since everyone had unique styles of—

“Margot, you are a genius.” Elle lurched over the table and kissed the side of Margot’s head.

“What?” Margot’s eyes widened behind her lenses. “What did I say?”

“OTP’s chat feature. You know how OTP already does an awesome job of encouraging dialogue? Like when a conversation lags and no one texts for two hours, you get a notification with a helpful hint from the person’s profile? ‘Jenna enjoys watching Euphoria. Why don’t you ask her about the latest episode?’”

Margot nodded.

“What if we pitch it to Brendon and the rest of the team that, in addition to those helpful profile convo starters, if users upgrade to premium, they’ll get guidance on how best to communicate with their matches based on what sign their Mercury is in?”

“So premium users would basically be getting us as virtual dating assistants?”

“When you put it like that . . .” Elle winced jokingly.

For whatever reason, it was easier to solve other people’s problems than her own.

A slow smile tugged at the corner of Margot’s mouth. “This is amazing, Elle. Not only would we potentially be able to increase the number of conversations that lead to first dates, but encouraging users to continue to text through the app versus their regular messaging platform would increase retention, which increases revenue from ads. Brendon’s going to eat this up with a spoon.”

Elle snatched her phone, itching to tell him before he heard along with the engineers during their next meeting.

ELLE: mar and i have the coolest idea about the apps chat feature. youre gonna have kittens

On second thought, he’d have kittens and then demand to meet up for coffee to talk about their idea ASAP because impatience was Brendon’s middle name. That conversation would undoubtedly somehow segue into a chat about how things were going with Darcy and no. Elle’s headspace was wacky enough when she was on her own; adding Brendon’s interference into the mix would only convolute her already tangled web of feelings. Elle pressed the back button, deleting the message. Maybe, for now, avoidance while letting Margot run interference was the smartest solution.

While Margot jotted down a few notes for their next meeting with OTP, Elle started a new list for Oh My Stars based on How the Zodiac Signs Text.

As soon as she was finished, she flipped over to her own text messages, rereading the last messages she and Darcy had exchanged earlier that morning.

ELLE (3:14 A.M.): do you think hotel california inspired season five of american horror story?

ELLE (3:19 A.M.): the whole checking out but never leaving part

DARCY (5:32 A.M.): Why were you listening to Hotel California at three in the morning?

ELLE (7:58 A.M.): because that’s the best time of day to listen to the eagles

ELLE (7:59 A.M.): obvi

DARCY (8:07 A.M.): You know the song isn’t actually about a hotel, right?

DARCY: (8:09 A.M.): It’s about disillusionment and the American Dream.

ELLE (8:16 A.M.): wooow

ELLE (8:16 A.M.): what song are you gonna ruin for me next darcy?

ELLE (8:17 A.M.): you’re beautiful? time of your life? every breath you take?

DARCY (8:20 A.M.): Just a suggestion, but maybe you should google those.

They had extremely different styles of texting, Darcy using proper punctuation and full sentences whereas Elle couldn’t be bothered. She could try, but so far it hadn’t seemed to hinder their communication, or her success rate. Darcy always responded, even if she wasn’t as instantaneous with her responses as Elle was. The way Darcy texted made it possible for Elle to imagine Darcy actually speaking her response, her sense of humor—often dry, sometimes dirty—shining through.

Margot was still engrossed in her notes, so Elle opened a new message.

ELLE (4:16 P.M.): favorite movie

ELLE (4:16 P.M.): go

DARCY (4:19 P.M.): Just one? That’s too difficult.

ELLE (4:20 P.M.): fine

ELLE (4:20 P.M.): action comedy rom-com and idk drama?

DARCY (4:25 P.M.): Comedy would be History of the World Part One. Action . . . God, I don’t know. The Mummy, maybe? Rom-com . . . America’s Sweethearts. Drama would have to be Dead Poets Society.

ELLE (4:26 P.M.): the mummy?!?

ELLE (4:26 P.M.): i credit that movie for my bisexual awakening

She waited, watching the little dots dance up and down, up and down . . .

DARCY (4:28 P.M.): Oh?

ELLE (4:29 P.M.): yeah

ELLE (4:30 P.M.): did I want to be evelyn or did i want to ride off into the sunset with her?

ELLE (4:30 P.M.): both obviously

DARCY (4:32 P.M.): So you came out after watching The Mummy?