I was testing out the matchmaker app I'd written for my senior software engineering project, and it had matched me with Elijah, a physics major. We were in his lab, his idea of a date-- not mine.

"Charlotte?" he asked. "Are you paying attention?" He peered into my eyes.

My pulse speeded up. "Sure, Elijah." Did that sound sincere? Yes, I was a little worried about my app. I smiled.

He smiled back. He did have a really nice smile. He pulled out a stool for me. What a gentleman! "Sit here. I want to show you something really neat." He rustled around with something in his rather large satchel.

I sat in front of a bunch of mysterious physics equipment with lots of wires. This did not seem romantic. And should I be worried about the satchel? What was in there, anyway?

He pulled out a bottle of wine and two wine glasses. "I don't usually drink in the lab, but this seemed like an appropriate occasion. Would you like some?"

Suddenly, this date was looking up. "Sure."

He poured me a glass of wine and then turned on some soft music.

I sipped. It was a yummy cabernet sauvignon. Maybe I should add something about favorite beverages to the app? I listened to the music and relaxed.

Now, Elijah was rustling with the equipment in front of us. Finally, he straightened and cleared his throat. "Thanks for coming, Charlotte," he said. "I wanted to share my senior project with you. I thought it would help us get to know each other."

That sounded reasonable. Maybe the lab date wasn't so bad. Maybe my app wasn't so bad. "Okay. What do you want to show me?" My curiosity was piqued.

"Did you know that matter is made up of molecules, and those molecules are made up of atoms?" he asked.

It sounded familiar. "Sure." I nodded. "Me and you and the other stuff in your lab are made of atoms."

"Those atoms are made up of smaller things called elementary particles," he said.

I laughed a little. "It's a lot to think about."

"Particles are subject to quantum mechanics, which is super neat!" He smiled broadly. "This means they have special quantum waves associated with them."

"Uh, okay," I said. Maybe this would be better with more wine? I started sipping more quickly.

"I built the apparatus you see before you," he said. "It detects and measures quantum waves." He stared at me like he was expecting some reaction.

"Uh, okay," I said again. "Cool. Show me."

He flipped a bunch of switches, causing some lights to light up. He typed some stuff on a computer keyboard. Then, he brought up some kind of plot on the computer screen. "Ta-da!" The lines moved to the right across the screen.

"Ta-da?" My first instinct was right. This date was a dud. Sip.

"It's great, isn't it?" He beamed as he pointed at the screen. "That's the quantum wave."

"The quantum wave of what?" I asked. Sip, sip.

"The particle." He pointed vigorously at the center of the table. "It's monumental. I might win a big prize if I do say so myself." He was so enthusiastic it was hard not to get caught up in it. My mind started racing.

"What other stuff can you detect the quantum waves of?" I asked.

"The particle." He pointed. "I told you."

"But if everything is made of particles and all the particles have waves, you should be able to detect these quantum waves off everything, right?" I asked.

"Uh…" He froze, and I could practically see the gears and wheels moving in his brain.

He finally shook his head gently and then stared at me. "I guess you're right. Theoretically, I should be able to read waves off everything. But I'm not sure what happens for bigger macroscopic things since they're made up of so many particles."

"Why don't you try it out?" I asked. "The detector-thingy isn't dangerous, is it?"

"No…" He trailed off, and those wheels started turning again.

I stood up. "Do me. Measure my waves!" I resisted the urge to giggle.

"I guess that would be okay…" he said slowly. After a few moments, he pointed what looked like a ray gun at me and typed something on his computer.

Now, I couldn't resist giggling.

"What?" he asked quickly. "Can you feel it?"

"No," I said. "This just isn't how I pictured my evening."

A bunch of lines had appeared on the computer screen, coalescing into one thicker line. I

leaned towards it. "Is that me?"

"Essentially," Elijah said. "This is wild. I'm going to save this." He typed some more.

I sat back down. "Let's do you! What do you look like?"

He handed the ray gun to me, and I pointed it at him.

A new series of lines appeared on the screen.

He stared at it. "I guess that's me."

"Ooh!" I said. My brain was tingling with an idea. "Let's compare my waves and your waves. Can we do that?"

He fiddled around, and both series of waves appeared on the computer screen.

"We look similar!" I said, jumping up again. "I think that means we're compatible, after all."

He glanced at me, frowning. "What do you mean 'after all'?" His attention turned back to the screen. "Our waves do look similar. My highs are compatible with your highs. My lows are compatible with your lows. It looks like constructive interference."

"Constructive sounds good!" My app probably was good. Woo hoo!

I had an even better thought. "Can you build me a detector? It might be just what I need for matchmaking."

He looked hesitant.

"There's a lot of money in matchmaking," I said.

"We could be partners." I smiled. "In more ways than one."

"I like the sound of that." He smiled back at me. "I guess I can't argue with constructive interference."

Ta-da, indeed.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Lesley L. Smith has a Physics Ph.D. and a Creative Writing MFA. Her short fiction has appeared in various venues. She has published several novels, including The Quantum Cop, A Jack By Any Other Name, and Conservation of Luck. She's an active member of the Science Fiction/Fantasy Writers of America.