"Oh, crap."
Lena stared at the profile on her screen, her stomach dropping.
She had just swiped right on him.
Noah Carter. The guy she had spent the last semester arguing with in her creative writing class. The guy who thought Pride and Prejudice was “overrated” and had once told her that her poetry “tried too hard to be deep.” The guy whose smirk made her want to throw a dictionary at his head.
And now?
They were a match.
"This has to be a mistake."
But before she could undo it, a message popped up.
Noah: Well, well. Looks like fate ships us.
Lena groaned. Of course, he’d have something cocky to say.
She considered ignoring him, but another message appeared.
Noah: Don’t tell me you actually like me, Harper. That would be tragic.
Her fingers hovered over the keyboard. Then, before she could stop herself, she typed:
Lena: Tragic is what I’d call your taste in books, but go off.
---
The Unplanned Date
Somehow, their chat didn’t end there.
What started as sarcastic jabs turned into late-night conversations, book recommendations (which neither of them would admit were good), and, eventually, a bet.
“If I win, you go on a date with me,” Noah had said one night after another heated argument over plot twists in movies.
Lena had snorted. “Please. Like that’s happening.”
“Scared you’ll lose?”
And that was how she found herself sitting across from Noah in a dimly lit coffee shop on a Friday night.
“I still can’t believe I’m here,” she muttered, stirring her drink.
“Trust me, I’m as shocked as you are,” Noah teased.
Lena rolled her eyes, but she wasn’t as annoyed as she pretended to be.
Somewhere between the jokes, the debates, and the ridiculously flirty texts, she had started to… like him.
And the worst part?
She was pretty sure Noah knew it.
---
Love, But Make It Chaotic
By their third date, Lena had officially lost control of her life.
They weren’t dating dating—at least, that’s what she told herself. But she had a habit of accidentally staring at him too long. And maybe she laughed a little too hard at his stupid jokes.
And maybe—just maybe—she actually liked him.
One night, as they sat in his car after grabbing milkshakes, Noah turned to her. “Okay, real talk. Do you still hate me?”
Lena smirked. “Oh, absolutely.”
“Cool, cool. So if I kissed you right now, you’d be mad?”
Her heart definitely did not speed up.
“I’d be furious,” she said.
Noah grinned. “Guess I’ll take my chances.”
And then, just like that, he kissed her.
And Lena realized—maybe fate did ship them after all.
---
The End.
