Matched With an Appetite

Chapter 1

Chapter One - The Match

It started with something completely ordinary.

A notification on my phone.

You have a new match.

I'd been using online dating long enough that I didn't get particularly excited about notifications anymore. Sometimes you'd match with someone and never hear from them. Other times you'd exchange three painfully boring messages before one person disappeared.

I'd learned not to expect much.

Still, I opened the app.

And there you were.

I stopped scrolling.

You were beautiful, obviously, but there was something else about your profile that caught my attention. Your smile looked genuine, your bio had personality, and something about you gave me the impression that you'd either be incredibly sweet or an absolute menace.

Probably both.

I stared at the message box.

Writing Hey, how are you? felt painfully boring.

Eventually, I sent something slightly more playful.

To my surprise, you replied almost immediately.

One message became five.

Five became twenty.

Before I knew it, we'd been talking for hours.

There wasn't any of the awkward interview-style conversation I'd experienced with other matches.

What do you do?

Where are you from?

What do you do for fun?

We talked about those things, of course, but somehow our conversation always turned into teasing each other.

Over the next few days, seeing your name appear on my phone started becoming something I genuinely looked forward to.

Then one evening, our conversation took an unexpected turn.

We were joking about our profile pictures when you said:

"I hope you don't mind me saying this, but I actually like bigger guys."

I stared at the message for a moment.

I'd never hidden my size in my pictures. There wasn't much point. If I was eventually going to meet someone, I wanted them to know exactly who was turning up.

Still, hearing you openly say you liked it surprised me.

"Well," I replied, "that's extremely convenient."

A laughing emoji appeared.

Then another message.

"Actually, I like a guy who can eat too."

That made me laugh out loud.

"You've definitely matched with the right bloke then."

"That's a big claim."

"I'm a big bloke."

"Fair point."

I smiled at my phone.

Then you asked:

"What's the most you've ever eaten?"

I thought about it.

"Enough that I've regretted several life decisions afterwards."

"That's not an answer."

"Maybe you'll have to find out yourself."

There was a pause.

Then your reply appeared.

"Maybe I will."

From that moment, our flirting changed.

You started asking about my favourite restaurants, favourite takeaway and the foods I could never refuse even when I was already full.

At first, I assumed you were simply making conversation.

Eventually, though, I realised you were genuinely fascinated by my appetite.

There was no judgement behind it.

If anything, it seemed to attract you.

One night, I jokingly warned you:

"Taking me somewhere with a good menu could become an expensive first date."

Your reply came immediately.

"Maybe I want to see what you're capable of."

I raised an eyebrow at my phone.

"Careful. I'll take that as a challenge."

"I hope you do."

I stared at those words.

Then I typed:

"Friday night?"

Three dots appeared.

"Friday night."

You suggested a restaurant famous for generous portions.

That should have been my first warning.