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“Oh yeah.” He grinned. “You, my friend, are gonna be one of my test subjects.”

“For your hook-up app?”

“One, it’s not a hook-up app. It’s for dating. Making a proper connection, not just a quick shag with someone you’re never gonna see again. Two, you’ve split up with Lucy, and you’re not bothered about it, so that means you’re free and single and ready to mingle.”

“You are such a knob. Did anyone ever tell you that?”

“Yeah, you. Frequently. Takes one to know one.” He grabbed my phone from the kitchen table. “I’m just gonna get the app set up.”

I held up my hand. “Wait. Before you do that, I want you to tell me exactly what it is this app does.”

“Okay.” He slid onto the bench seat next to me, pulling his phone from his pocket. “So you know how there’s thatHookdLDNapp, which is just for London?”

“Isn’t that a hook-up app?”

“Not important. The point is, it’s localised to the area, so users can find people close to them. Makes it easier, y’know. So, my app works the same way, except I’ve localised it even more, so it’s restricted to LSU students only. You have to sign up with your student email, so we won’t get any randoms.”

“An LSU student dating app. Yeah, I can see the appeal. I still think people would use it for hook-ups.”

“Maybe. I can’t control that. But I’ve set it up more like a dating app, with a bit of a twist. You have all these questions— Wait, I’ll show you.” He tapped on his screen, swiping through his apps until he reached a blue square with “LSU” in block letters. “Ignore the logo, I haven’t finished that yet. But see here, I have these questions.”

I began reading them aloud. “What’s your usual coffee order? If you could go on a date to any of the following places, which would you pick?” My brows rose. “Which of the following is your favourite LSU location?”

“Well, yeah. They’re all multiple choice, too, so the algorithm I coded will work out your closest matches based on your answers. And the best thing is, there are no photos. So it’s like a way to even the playing field.”

“No photos?”

He waved his hand between us. “Take you and me, for example. If we were both single and on the app, and someone matches with both of us. Who are they gonna pick? The good-looking footballer with the body of—of someone who works out way too much? Or me? The blue-haired beanpole with no muscle definition to speak of?”

“Not everyone’s that shallow, and you shouldn’t sell yourself short, mate.”

“I’m not. I’m realistic, and you know it’s true.”

“I guess…yeah. I can see what you’re saying. If I matched with more than one girl, I’d pick the one I was most physically attracted to.”

“And that’s why my app isn’t a hook-up app. It’s all about finding a connection with someone you might not look twice at ordinarily.”

“Alright. What do you want me to do? Just sign up for it?”

He nodded. “Yeah. I’ve got to get my lecturer to sign off on it, and once that’s done, I’ve been given permission to include the details in the LSU bulletin—the one that gets sent out to all the students. Hopefully, enough of them will sign up to give it a decent sample size. I’m giving them an incentive, too. Anyone who signs up will have their email address entered into a draw to win fifty quid of credit at the student union. They can use it in the shop or the bar or whatever.”

“Good idea.”

“Yeah, I do have them occasionally.”

“Ha ha.”

“With you, I wanna do a little interview after you’ve been on a date or even a couple of dates. Just a few questions about your experience with the app and if you thought it matched you with the right person, things like that.”

“I can do that. Want me to get set up now?”

“Yeah. Technically, I’m supposed to wait for my lecturer to sign off on it, but you’re my test subject. You get to go first.”

My phone buzzed. “Shit. I’ve got football practice in half an hour, and I haven’t even showered yet. Here. Install the app on my phone while I shower, and I’ll fill in the details later.”

“I’m holding you to that. I’m gonna be asking you questions about your experience of filling in the questions. Oh, forgot to say. Ignore it if it gives you a weird name.”

“Weird name?”

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