Date: February 11, 2026
Jude,
Attached you’ll find the revised slide deck with the team’s input incorporated. Let me know if you have any additional changes. I’m happy to make them.
-Veronica
February 11, 2026
iMessage
Jude T.
Hey, just got your email. Thanks for sending the slides!
We still good for Friday? I was thinking of Alinea at 7 and can pick you up.
Send me your address?
Veronica C.
Actually, I’m going to have to get a rain check, I’m sorry.
Jude T.
Oh, sure. No problem.
Is everything okay?
February 12, 2026
iMessage
Jude T.
Hey, I’m just checking in. I feel like the vibe took a nosedive. Did I do something wrong?
Veronica C.
No, sorry, I just started feeling a little overwhelmed with the idea of how fast this moved. I think I just need a little time.
Jude T.
I understand.
Let me know when/if you’re ever up for dinner, or even a cup of coffee.
Chapter Ten
Jude
I’m significantly more bummed about this Veronica thing than I should be, given that it’s only been going on a couple of weeks and I’ve never actually met her in person.
The thing is, we had a good energy. She made me laugh. She’s great at her job and clearly brilliant. Her honesty told me she could be a great communicator in a romantic relationship. I thought I had a sixth sense that we’d be good together.
But she’s ghosted me. By Saturday—freaking Valentine’s Day—I haven’t heard anything else from her, and it feels like a hole has been punched in my daytime hours. I am a deflating balloon.
Jason and Kelly invite me over for dinner, Adam asks if I want to meet for single-dude beers. I decline both; I’m not feeling particularly social. I find myself sprawled on the couch with a basketball game on in the background, DoorDash containers spread across the coffee table, and an open beer propped on my stomach. I’ve become a slo-mo montage set to an acoustic cover of a sad pop song.
