The dark-haired man that Veronica Ann Fitzpatrick matched with on Hinge in November 2022 seemed too handsome to her to be real. She thought surely, he must be a “bot.”
“The dating pool does not breed confidence,” said Ms. Fitzpatrick, 40.
So, she initiated a conversation with Kevin Mark Fay and learned that not only was he genuine, he was chivalrous. Mr. Fay had suggested that they meet somewhere between his home in Methuen, Mass., and hers in Providence, R.I. After Ms. Fitzpatrick divulged that she didn’t have a driver’s license, Mr. Fay readily agreed to make the 90-minute drive to her.
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Their first date was on Thanksgiving Eve, at Fortnight Wine Bar.
“I was totally taken aback by how warm he was — and sincere,” Ms. Fitzpatrick said. First dates tend to be formulaic and rote, she said, but this one felt organic and special. At one point during the evening, Mr. Fay placed his hand on Ms. Fitzpatrick’s shoulder as he got up to use the bathroom, a moment she described as “cinematic”; it felt like heat was radiating from his hand.
Ms. Fitzpatrick had also told Mr. Fay that she was a “holiday orphan,” that she’d be spending Thanksgiving alone. Her mother was out of the country, visiting the Philippines. And Ms. Fitzpatrick was new in town, having recently moved to Providence to work as an adjunct assistant professor of film studies at Brown. (She has a bachelor’s degree in English and women’s studies from Michigan State, a master’s degree in creative writing from Notre Dame, and a Ph.D. in English and film studies from the University of Pittsburgh.)
They both joked that Mr. Fay should bring her to his family’s Thanksgiving dinner. “We both kind of weirdly wanted to spend the holidays together even though we just met,” Ms. Fitzpatrick said. Ultimately, she did not attend the Fay family festivities, but Mr. Fay offered to come back the day after to help Ms. Fitzpatrick put up her Christmas tree.
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