On her friend’s suggestion, Maria downloads Tinder to distract herself from the thoughts of her deceased husband. But things take a devastating turn when she matches with his profile, and they start texting.
Maria sat in her living room, her mind racing with the haunting images of her husband’s accident: his car engulfed in flames, Dan trapped inside and crying for help that never came.
Although several months had passed since Dan’s demise, Maria felt like it had only been yesterday. She missed his love, laughter, everything. Nothing made sense without him.
“You can’t stay locked in this darkness forever, Maria,” her friend’s voice snapped Maria out of her thoughts.
Maria wiped her tears and looked at her side, where Jane sat, consoling her.
“Life’s got to move forward,” Jane continued. “Think about…the debts. We need to figure out how to manage them. You don’t need to deal with it alone.”
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“I know…” Maria nodded, fresh tears streaming down her cheeks. “But…I can’t forget Dan and move on like nothing has happened, Jane.”
“Look, don’t hate me for saying this, but you’ve grieved him through and through. There is room for someone new,” Jane suggested. “Just…meet people. Go out to nice places. Maybe try Tinder?”
The idea seemed ridiculous to Maria. However, in the evening, she found herself making a profile on the app. She used a stranger’s pictures.
Maria then began swiping through profiles, and her breath was caught in her throat when she stumbled upon Dan’s profile. It surely can’t be him, Maria thought initially. Someone was using Dan’s pictures. She swiped right, and they matched.
Maria didn’t know what to expect next. She went to the kitchen because she wanted to make lasagna all of a sudden.
Suddenly, her phone pinged with a message from Dan’s profile: “Hi, what’s up?”
Maria held her breath as she answered, “Hi. Making lasagna. You?”
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“I knew someone who made excellent lasagna,” the guy replied. “I was looking for plane tickets.”
“Really? You’re planning a trip?” Maria asked. Her heart still raced with anxiety, but she pretended to be calm.
“Yes, decided to take a break. Can’t choose which country to fly to.”
“I’ve always wanted to visit Italy,” Maria replied. She wanted to go there with Dan, but he always thought the Italians were too emotional for his liking and that the...
