The Lord of the Geeks

III. Love in the Time of Search Engines

Eddie waited for Stella to reply, while repeatedly banging his head against the wall of his hotel room. Why did he have to sound like a bumbling fool and say all that in one breath? Naturally he scared her off!

Finally, after what seemed like eternity, but in reality just a few seconds, Stella spoke. "I believe I am that Stella, the caffeine addict. I'm not sure about the rest of that bit you just said." Her voice sounded musical, the kind that brought sunshine to every room. This made Eddie smile. Widely.

"Well, um... Hi," he brilliantly muttered. "I'm glad I caught you in a cheerful mood."

"Haha, I was kind of mean earlier, wasn't I? I'm just not a morning person. And I didn't get much sleep the night before." Stella was determined to show she had a pleasing personality. Because she had a compulsion to please people, even not-so-strangers of whom she should be wary, actually.

"Much as I'd like to ask you why you didn't get precious shuteye, I won't." Boyfriend trouble? Late flight? Insomnia? Eddie wanted to get to know everything about her. It was not his normal behaviour towards women, but he was going with it. He decided to push his luck. "Stella, I was just wondering, why did you call?" Eddie was a simple man. He asked what he wanted to know.

"Eddie, I believe you're the one who rang me this time." There was a hint of a smile. He could tell.

"Yes, but I was just returning your call." Pushing his luck even further...

"Ok let me just remind you that you gave me your name AND phone number?!" Stella retorted, to Eddie's amusement. He could almost see her sparkling eyes flashing and he couldn't help laughing.

"What's so funny?" Stella asked, not really sure if Eddie found her cute. But she was curious.

"You! It's like I'm seeing two versions of the same woman. You're just a powerhouse of emotions, and I should really be careful around you. If your life were a movie, this should be what your poster would say: 'Life is like a box of Stella. You never know what you're gonna get.'"

"Either you just compared me to chocolates, or you diagnosed me with bipolar disorder," she said, beginning to care, despite herself, what this geeky guy she just met thought of her. What was wrong with her?

"I meant it in a good way! You're full of surprises... And I'm going to change the subject. What did I miss after I left Hobbiton? I really think they didn't give us enough time to explore."

"You mean you didn't get to go shopping for key rings and mugs and other stuff? We had $10 off any purchase."

"I hate shopping so I waited in the bus while the driver rushed the others through the store," he stated. This, Stella knew to be the universal truth among men, except Richard. She closed her eyes and willed herself to think of Eddie, not Richard. The present, not the past.

"They sold bottles of the special brew they developed for the dwarves in 'The Hobbit'," she said. "It had about 2% alcohol, so the actors could appear tipsy without actually being drunk. It had a cool name, I just can't recall it right now." She suddenly remembered that Eddie was in another tourist spot, and asked, "Hey, how are those hot springs you were raving about? Are they as good as you expected?"