It was a cool October day as Ethan looked out his bedroom window, admiring the splashes of orange and yellow that marked this time of year. He could be raking his yard, going for a walk in the autumn sunshine or heading to the store to get apple cider and Halloween candy, but none of that was appealing. Not when he had
love
on his mind. Ethan had ignored his dating profile for long enough and it was long past time to get back into the fray.
He sighed as he turned to his desktop computer. Ethan scrolled up and down his profile page wondering if there was anything he could improve. His bio was fairly straight forward. Confident but not cocky. It outlined his accomplishments without being too boastful. He had shared his varied interests and hobbies.
Ethan had posted pictures of himself from a number of angles. They showed off his medium build, full head of hair and his most dashing smile. The bio hinted at some of his proclivities, but never in an insulting way. He wasn't telling women to "swipe left" if they failed to meet some ridiculous checklist.
So many people were terrible at online dating, especially men, and it made the task even more difficult for those who weren't. It's no wonder women didn't want to spend hours scrolling through the profiles of obnoxious guys, many of whom were childish, entitled, overbearing and horny to the point where their brains no longer functioned.
It's regarded as cliche these days, but Ethan truly was one of the nice guys. Not a doormat, but someone who respected women and always treated them right. Not in an old fashion "chivalrous" way where there were expectations about gender roles. Just in a modern, normal way that viewed women as equal partners.
Despite his good nature, there was no getting around the physical. Some stigmas of the old world still remained. Ethan wasn't ugly, by any means, but he was quite short at only five feet, two inches and barely a hundred forty pounds. He was a little guy with a bit of an ass. Ethan would've made a fine
fem-boy
if he'd applied himself in that manner, but he had no desire to present himself that way.
He knew his short stature caused many women to dismiss him out of hand. Some of those women might've had a fantastic time with him, if they'd only give him the time of day, but they rarely did. That was their right, of course, but it was hard to feel good about yourself when you were rejected, so often, due to something you had no control over.
Most men, stupidly, obsessed over the size of their penis even though the vast majority of women didn't care about penis size and certainly didn't want a man who was too well endowed. Size Queens were a rarity, unless by "size" you meant height, in which case they were common. Short men knew the real struggle. Height was something that was immediately noticeable, ever present and inescapable. It colored people's perceptions of you instantly, whether they realized it or not.
Short men tended to deal with this in one of two ways. Either they sought out women that were even shorter than themselves or they went in the completely opposite direction and embraced the cultural taboo. Ethan was one of the latter.
He loved large women. The taller and stronger the better. Always had since he saw the 1960 classic film "The Loves of Hercules" as a young boy. Oh, to be Hercules and sought after by so many sexy, powerful women! Ethan had gotten his first erection watching Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons, grasp Hercules by the hair and thrust him down on her bed; demanding his affections.
Ethan knew he would never be Hercules. It wouldn't matter if he ate like a power lifter and worked out three hours a day. He didn't have the body type for it. The young man, swiftly approaching middle age, had moved beyond those kind of fantasies. He had friends and a steady, successful career as an accountant, but no romance. Now, he was looking for a BBW that either wanted, or at least was content to be with, a smaller man.
In many ways, the psychological and dating difficulties small men and big women experienced were similar. Their body types lay outside normative gender expectations and that made finding the right partner wearying. Ethan wasn't a "plumper" fetishist, so he wasn't looking for the kind of BBW that was more common in image searches. He didn't mind a woman with a little extra weight, but that wasn't what excited him. He liked a woman that was powerful and willing to lead the relationship.
In many ways, Ethan was looking for a needle in a haystack, but he hadn't given up hope after years of searching and he wasn't about to now. He performed a search for new profile matches and began scrolling through them. Ethan passed by the first few with only a cursory glance before stopping in his digital tracks on a certain woman's profile. His mouth hung open as his hand released the mouse.
A woman named "Ashaki" was presented in all her glory. She was tall, beautiful and well toned. Not
model beautiful
, which was good, since Ethan probably would've had no shot with her, but quite attractive. With her body type, she probably could've played in the WNBA if she'd wanted.
The name, dark hair and light olive tone to her otherwise fair skin suggested she was of middle eastern origin. What country her family hailed from, originally, wasn't listed in her bio and was impossible to tell from her looks alone. She was probably a second or third generation descendant of immigrants. In one of her pictures, she stood in front of a waterfall with one of her friends. She was head and shoulders above the other woman. The picture showed off just how tall she really was.
Ethan consumed the rest of her bio hungrily. Her profession? A personal trainer "in multiple ways." He didn't know what that meant, but Ethan couldn't wait to find out. She was looking for "fun times" and "something long term with the right guy." Fantastic! She wasn't just looking for hookups. And the best part? She was marked as
online
right now!
He took a deep breath and rubbed his hands together. You only get one shot at a first impression. Ethan thought carefully about how he'd message her. His gut said to keep things cool and casual. Don't be weird or try too hard just because she's, physically, everything you love in a woman. Your personalities might not even match. Just go in easy, play it smooth and see if there's a spark!
Ethan hit the heart-shaped
like
button on her profile and then opened the window to message her. His eager fingers flew across the keyboard.
Ethan
: Hi there! How's it going? The site matched us up and I looked at your profile. Loved everything I read, so thought I would say hi.
Now the hard part. The waiting. Her status still said
online
so hopefully it wouldn't be long. Then again, a woman like her probably had tons of messages to respond to. The tension built as he waited for a reply. Ethan could look at more profiles in the meantime, but he didn't want to. He scrolled through Ashaki's pictures again as he waited.
*CHIME*
The
message received
sound triggered and he flipped back to the IM window immediately.
Ashaki
: Heya! I'm doing good, thanks. How are you? Hang on, I'm gonna take a look at your page.
Ethan
: Having a great weekend so far. Sure, take your time. :)
'Don't get too excited... Yes, she answered, but she hasn't even looked at your pics yet.'
Ethan grabbed a stress ball from his desk along with a pen. He began squeezing and tapping away, channeling his nervous energy as he waited for a reply. Ethan knew he was being silly, but he couldn't help it. Could this woman be his Hippolyta?
Ten long minutes passed. Ethan began bouncing his stress ball off the ceiling as another five minutes crawled by. He was starting to lose hope that he'd hear from her again. Another woman who'd taken one look and passed him by?
*CHIME*
Ashaki
: Sorry, had to take a phone call. I like your bio. You're cute.
Ethan's heart leapt. Sure, "cute" wasn't the compliment most men were after, but it was still a compliment. He'd take it. And now that she'd mentioned the physical, he could respond in kind without it feeling too forward.
Ethan
: It seems your parents named you well! "Ashaki" means "beautiful woman" if I'm not mistaken?
Ashaki
: Oooh! Thank you! Did you know that already or did you look it up?
Ethan
: I may have done a quick search.
Ashaki
: Haha! Fair enough.
Ethan
: It's a pleasure to meet you, Ashaki.
Ashaki
: Just call me Asha. It's what I go by. The full name is awkward.
Ethan
: Sure thing, Asha. :)
Ashaki
: So, you're one of "the chosen people", huh?
Ethan
: Yep. I'm really more of a cultural Jew. Not overly religious. I hope that's not a problem?
Ashaki
: Not at all. Momma tried to steer me toward successful Jewish men when I was younger. She loves you already.
Ethan
: I'm no doctor or lawyer, but I've done pretty well as a bean counter.
Ashaki
: That's less important to me than the kind of person you are. If you've seen my pics, you've probably noticed I'm tall, which tends to scare off a lot of men. I don't list it in the bio, but you should know, I'm just over seven feet. Are you comfortable with that?
'Seven feet! Holy shit!!!'
Ethan
: Absolutely. As long as you're comfortable with a shorty like me?
Ashaki
: Very comfortable. Makes you easier to throw around. ;-)
Ethan
: Oh, wow! Hahahaha! =D
A little unusual and very forward, but Ethan didn't care. He liked where this was going.
Ashaki
: Just kidding! Or am I?
Ethan
: You certainly look like you could do it. It says you're a personal trainer? Maybe you could help me bulk up?
Ashaki
: I stick to female clients in the gym, but sometimes I give men private training elsewhere. ;-)