You’re in your junior year now, right? Still doing your same redacted sport? Still studying your same redacted subject?
From: [email protected]
Date: February 14, 2022
Subject: Re: Look who’s back on top Ha ha yes yes I am still playing the sport and still studying the thing. In fact I can tell you that my sport is lacrosse because I’m pretty sure if you were at Madison you never saw a women’s lacrosse game, or if you did, you probably weren’t very impressed （yes, this is team slander and I welcome trash talking in response）。 I can give you a small hint and say that my school’s women’s team is very good. Because I took a year off, I still have 1.5 years of eligibility left, which is good because I hope to be captain next year.
From: [email protected]
Date: February 14, 2022
Subject: Re: Look who’s back on top Lacrosse is pretty badass, T. You will get no trash talking from me, especially coming from Irvine where I’m not sure whether even 50% of our community could successfully differentiate lacrosse from field hockey. I cannot tell you my sport because it is a small but successful team at Madison, and you’d be able to figure me out with a simple Google and we all know how you feel about that.
From: [email protected]
Date: February 14, 2022
Subject: Re: Look who’s back on top This is going to be forward, but I’ve gotta shoot my shot: Will you be home at all this summer? If so, do you want to meet up? （If you have a girlfriend, tell me because in the interest of full disclosure, I have had a little crush on you for years now and am basically asking you out on a date.） （I will also immediately panic once I send this email.） From: [email protected]
Date: February 14, 2022
Subject: Re: Look who’s back on top Okay well I know what you mean about having a crush because I’ve sort of had the same What If thought a few times. But I’m so sorry, T. I would love to meet you, but I do have a girlfriend and agree that if we did connect in person, it would inevitably feel like a date. I do hope you have a very happy Valentine’s Day, though, and will still be getting dumplings tonight as tradition requires. Until next year?
Yours,
C.
Chapter Ten
2023
From: [email protected] To: [email protected] Date: February 14, 2023
Subject: Happy Valentine’s Day!
I love winning.
From: [email protected] To: [email protected] Date: February 14, 2023
Subject: Re: Happy Valentine’s Day!
You were destined to win this year since I would absolutely not be the first to send the email after asking a taken man out on a date last year! Happy Valentine’s Day, C!
From: [email protected] To: [email protected] Date: February 14, 2023
Subject: Re: Happy Valentine’s Day!
I’m not taken anymore, if that helps . . . And I’ll be in Irvine for the last two weeks of August.
From: [email protected] To: [email protected] Date: February 14, 2023
Subject: Re: Happy Valentine’s Day!
Not only do I have a boyfriend, but he is moving to the same city I am for graduate school, and we are packing up for the road trip over—you guessed it—the last two weeks of August.
From: [email protected] To: [email protected] Date: February 14, 2023
Subject: Re: Happy Valentine’s Day!
Goddamnit.
From: [email protected] To: [email protected] Date: February 14, 2023
Subject: Re: Happy Valentine’s Day!
Lol i know. TEN Valentine’s Days, though. Ten!! It’s so cool that we’ve done this since we were 14 and 16 years old. Happy Valentine’s Day, C. Maybe next year we’ll meet. Even if it isn’t romantic, it will be so good to see you in person someday.
xo
T.
Chapter Eleven
FEBRUARY 14, 2024
From: [email protected]
Date: February 14, 2024
Subject: Happy Valentine’s Day!
HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY, FAVORITE
From: [email protected]
Date: February 14, 2024
Subject: Re: Happy Valentine’s Day!
Hey! Happy Valentine’s Day. What are you up to?
From: [email protected]
Date: February 14, 2024
Subject: Re: Happy Valentine’s Day!
My roommate and friend are dragging me to a party. I broke up with the bf a couple weeks ago, and there’s a non-Valentine’s thing at the house of a friend of a friend or something—honestly, I don’t even know. I’m just preemptively annoyed because I’m sure there won’t be soup dumplings there.