Chapter 8: THE SETUP
Tuesday came faster than expected.
I'd spent three days preparing for this moment—checking in with Karen, researching Donna Tartt (the book club's next selection), and practicing looking casual while technically stalking a bookstore. The system had recovered to 85 FP, which felt like luxury after the Brooklyn expedition.
And then, at 4:47 PM on September 27th, everything changed.
[Experience Threshold Reached]
[Level Up: 2 → 3]
[New Ability Unlocked: Timing Sense (Crude)]
[Timing Sense: Host can detect optimal windows for romantic encounters. Warning: Ability is imprecise at Level 1. Accuracy improves with use.]
[FP Maximum Increased: 100 → 125]
[Current Status: Level 3 | EXP: 0/1000 | FP: 85/125]
I was standing in my kitchen, making coffee, when the notification appeared. The level-up felt like a warm pulse spreading through my chest—not painful, but noticeable. Like stretching a muscle I didn't know I had.
Timing Sense. The ability to feel when moments were right.
I tested it immediately, focusing on the evening ahead. Karen going to the book club. Daniel being there. Their second meeting.
The response came not as words but as sensation. A pressure behind my eyes. A certainty in my gut. Tonight. Between 7:15 and 7:45. The window is there.
Imprecise, like the system said. But real.
I could feel the right moment coming.
At 6:30, I took the subway back to Park Slope. Not to attend the book club—that would be weird, and also I knew nothing about The Secret History beyond what Wikipedia had told me—but to observe. To make sure everything went according to plan.
Pages & Prose looked warmer at night. Soft light spilled from the windows, and I could see figures moving inside—book club members gathering, settling into mismatched chairs, holding coffee cups and dog-eared paperbacks.
I found a bench across the street. Close enough to watch, far enough to not be creepy.
Okay, I was definitely being creepy. But professionally creepy.
Karen arrived at 7:02. She was wearing a nicer sweater than strictly necessary for a book club—something blue that brought out her eyes. She'd put thought into this. Effort.
Good sign.
She hesitated at the door for a moment, took a breath, and went inside.
Through the window, I watched her scan the room. Find Daniel behind the counter. Smile.
He smiled back.
[Timing Sense Active]
[Optimal Window: Approaching]
[Current Reading: 73% alignment]
The book club started. I couldn't hear anything from across the street, but I could see the body language. Eight people in a rough circle, most of them focused on whoever was speaking. But Daniel and Karen kept finding excuses to look at each other. Small glances. Shared reactions to something funny.
Their strings had brightened since the first meeting. Not intertwined yet—that took time—but definitely aware of each other. Two threads reaching toward something that could become real.
At 7:23, someone made a comment that had the whole room laughing. Karen's laugh was visible even from outside—head thrown back, unselfconscious. Daniel watched her with an expression I recognized.
The expression of someone realizing they might be in trouble.
[Timing Sense Alert]
[Optimal Window: NOW]
[Alignment: 89%]
[Note: Natural chemistry exceeding projections. Host intervention may not be required.]
I stayed anyway. Watched the book club wind down around 8:15. Watched people gather their things, say goodbyes, drift toward the door.
And watched Daniel catch Karen's arm as she was leaving.
I couldn't hear what he said. But I could see her face—surprised, then pleased, then something softer. She nodded. Said something back.
They walked out of the bookstore together, strings pulsing bright between them, and turned toward the coffee shop two doors down.
I sat on my bench in the Brooklyn dark, grinning like an idiot at two people who had no idea they'd just started something that could last the rest of their lives.
[Quest Progress: Make Your First Match]
[Contact Established: Karen Mitchell ↔ Daniel Park]
[First Extended Interaction: Successful]
[Compatibility Confirmation: 72% (stable)]
[+200 EXP | Quest Status: 50% complete]
The pizza place down the block was still open. I bought a slice—pepperoni, too much cheese, exactly what I needed—and ate it standing on the sidewalk, watching Karen and Daniel through the coffee shop window.
They were still talking. Animated. Leaning toward each other across the small table.
This was the job. This was what I was supposed to do.
Not just see the strings, but help them connect. Not just identify the matches, but create the moments where they could happen.
A homeless man shuffled past, noticed my expression.
"What are you so happy about?"
I reached into my pocket, found a five-dollar bill, pressed it into his hand.
"I'm good at my job."
He looked at the money, looked at me, shrugged.
"Whatever, man. Thanks."
He shuffled away. I finished my pizza.
My phone buzzed.
Karen: "ETHAN."
Karen: "The book club guy."
Karen: "He's amazing????"
Karen: "How did you know???"
I typed back, still smiling: "I have a system."
Her response: "A GOOD system. Whatever it is. Keep using it."
I pocketed my phone, took one last look at Karen and Daniel in the coffee shop—they'd ordered food now, settling in for a longer evening—and headed for the subway.
Fifty percent complete. Halfway to my first real match.
The system was working. The business was working. Everything was falling into place.
I should have known that meant something was about to go wrong.
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