looking for love...on the internet?

Liz and Kate had been best friends for a while. Kate hated seeing Liz so distraught over Max. Max was an idiot. But, Kate had never liked him. She never understood why Liz would cry over a man that she didn't love anyways. Why let someone steal your joy?

Kate pulled Liz aside at work one day and told her how concerned she was. Liz wasn't sleeping, she wasn't eating, she was just partying. Kate felt partially to blame, as in the beginning she went with Liz. She thought she was being supportive. Kate told Liz she needed to gain control back. She needed to stand strong and do what was best for her and her family.

Liz knew Kate was right. Of course she was. There were not many times in their relationship that Kate wasn't right. Liz did not want to be alone, though. She felt like she needed a man. Perhaps it was the way she was raised. Her mother had paraded men through the house throughout Liz's life. Liz's grandmother had been married nine times. Only divorcing one when the next one was lined up.

Kate had met her husband, Bob, online. Liz thought she'd give it a try. It was three days after New Year's and Liz had resolved to find one man. Maybe not the best choice, but certainly better than the many she was currently seeing. Liz placed a classified ad online. The ad was simple. She stated she was looking for a friend. Someone to go to dinner with, someone to go to the movies with, someone to talk to.

Liz had many responses to the ad. She talked to a few of them via email. A couple she began to talk to on the phone. One stuck out above the rest though. They would email back and forth from work, they began to text eachother, and eventually he called Liz. Liz was so nervous when he first called, that she sent him to voicemail. (Later she emailed him and told him to try again.)

They talked on the phone for hours. One night they spent six hours talking about their past relationships, their current situations, and their future dreams. The relationship progressed for two weeks before they decided to set a date.

Finally, Liz felt like she could start to breathe. She was not drinking anymore. She was able to sleep at night. And she was no longer blaming herself for her broken family and failed marriage. Yes, things were looking up for Liz.

It was six months and fourteen days after Max had left that Liz and J met.