I’m waiting outside a crowded pub near Waterloo with that confusing, cheek-flushing combination of excitement and first-meet flutters. I have a mental screenshot of Alex* and Sabrina*’s profiles saved in my head — Alex in a suit on some fancy looking rooftop, and Sabrina in a girl gang at Glastonbury — and wonder how different they’ll both look in real life. Presumably Glasto pics were taken pre-pandemic — will Sabrina look anything like that anymore? Will we have as much in common as our profiles suggest? And what’s my go-to excuse if I fancy an early exit?
In many ways, it feels exactly like the moments before a Hinge date - or perhaps one on hot new polyamory app Feeld. A carefully-curated profile in an attempt to make myself look fun yet approachable. A few weeks of swiping to see what’s out there. A time and a place arranged with seven days to go.
