I open the app to smiling brown eyes and a tight blue tee. Zoom in on a cigarette. Ugh! But dimples! Before I can swipe left, you call. We haven’t talked in years, except holiday texts and game-day good lucks. Can’t remember when I last saw you IRL. Do you know I’m looking for someone to hold my attention before you do again? I’m afraid to answer. Your voice–it melts me every time. I zoom in on app guy’s face. While you and I talk, I imagine your voice is his and he knows me as intimately as you do.
Chicana feminist and former Rodeo Queen, Tisha Marie Reichle-Aguilera is a PhD candidate in Creative Writing and Literature at USC and works for literary equity through Women Who Submit. Find Tisha at tishareichle.com, on Twitter @msreichle, and on Instagram @writertish.