In high school, I was in classes w/ 2 of his best friends. I ended up dating one of them but even then, Bobby & I never hung out other than to say a quick, “Hey, how are you,” so we hardly knew each other. After he graduated, we drifted into an orbit of “people you knew once.” Facebook kept us “acquaintances” for years: likes on milestone photos & posts, the occasional birthday comment. Safe, distant, nostalgic. In late 2023, I was bored 1 night & saw his name pop up on Words w/ Friends. Challenged him to a game. Kicked his behind repeatedly. “How are you winning these?!” I laughed but he countered by annihilating me at Solitaire for best time. Soon, the games became daily. Game talk turned into real talk, greeting me good morning & goodnight, asking me how my day went. He mentioned bouts of vertigo that wouldn’t quit. I’d been deep in essential oils for nearly 8 years for my own health so I thought I could help. Me: “I should have you try this essential oil blend. I almost never experience vertigo anymore. I can drop it off if you want to try it.” Him: “You’re still in Vallejo?” Me: “Yup. You?” Him: “Nice. Me too.” We decided to meet up for a quick handoff. He suggested Bud’s, a beloved burger joint in town. The plan: give him the oil, we maybe grab food or not, either way should probably take us 15-20 minutes tops. “Hey, hey,” he drawled. “Hey, we got here at the same time,” I sang back. “Yeah, perfect timing.” I gave him a quick hug & when we got to the door he held it open for me. He ordered first & I added my burger on the same order, then pulled out my card & paid for everything. I didn’t want him to think this was a REAL date! I’m just bringing him this oil, I told myself. After we got our soft drinks, he texted his parents to see if they wanted anything but they wanted food from JJ’s, so he planned to go there afterwards. We sat down for “just a sec” while we waited for our to-go order. The “sec” turned into stories. He told me about his job, kids & divorce. I told him about my job & my spiritual journey that led me to Christ. We laughed at some things, not realizing how much we had in common. He smiled while I excitedly showed him photos of my beloved dog, Mona. With each new story & revelation, we felt a spark but held back. “This is my exes’ best friend,” I thought. “This is my best friend’s ex,” he thought to himself simultaneously. The to-go order came up & we decided it wouldn’t hurt to dine together instead. It shouldn’t take long, right? We happily eat our food & continue chatting. I checked my phone at looked at the time; we had been chatting for over 2.5 hours! “Weren’t you supposed to get food for your parents?” “Yeah, but they grown. They can wait,” he replied. But we both stood up & got ready to leave. “Oh, I almost forgot!” I reached into my purse & handed him the little amber roller. He read the label then looked at me. “You said this stuff works?” I replied, “Yes, I’ll send you the instructions.” We walked outside and gave each other a good, long hug. “It was nice hanging out. We should hang again sometime,” I said. Or was it him? Either way, we both lingered, believing this would be our first & last time hanging out alone together. Me: My exes’ best friend. Him: My best friend’s ex. We ended up chatting a little bit more but when we said bye & walked to our own cars, I turned back & I asked, “Can I get another hug?” I left w/ butterflies & just as I pulled out of the parking lot, he called to ask if I was OK since another car had almost hit me. We continued to chat again & I invited him to another Words w/ Friends rematch. A day later I asked if him if he wanted to hang out again… Turns out some essential oils don’t just help with headaches. Some open doors you thought were closed way back in high school. P.S. His best friend is happily married & yes, very supportive & excited for us both.