Andrei.
âAndrei, we canât cope with comprehensive! How many times do I have to tell you? Weâre timid little creatures of limited brainpower. Itâs too much!â
âHow big a selection?â asked Andrei.
âI donât know. Ten. Twenty. Something we can get our heads around.â
âHow do I choose them? And donât say ranking. Donât say ranking. Rankingâs not the answer.â
âThen do it randomly!â said Kevin, who was just as sick of Fishbowll as Ben, and even more exasperated by Dan Cooleyâs recalcitrance to every blandishment he could think of. âDude, give us ten, randomly selected. OK? Thatâs it! Iâm getting dinner. Who wants to come?â
âIâm coming,â said Ben. âIs Charles around?â
âWho knows?â
âCharles â¦?â
They waited for a moment.
âOK,â said Kevin. âLetâs go.â
Kevin and Ben headed out. Andrei followed them, shambling down the corridor and down the stairs disconsolately.
They went down to the quad and headed for Ricker.
âDo you really think thatâs what I should do?â said Andrei as they walked. âCut down the long list and just give a selection of names?â
Kevin sighed. âDude! Please! Enough!â
âIâm saying that instead of these gimungous lists,â said Ben, âyou should give us a randomly selected list that we can handle. Ten names. Whatever.â
âPut a gender filter in,â said Kevin. âAt least make it so we can choose the girls.â
âItâs not a dating site!â retorted Andrei.
âDude, every place you can connect with on the internet is a dating site.â
âThatâs too depressing.â
Ben shrugged. âBenâs right, Andrei. Look at Dan Cooley.â
âWhatâs he got to do with it? Has he developed a dating site?â
Kevin laughed. âOnly way heâd get a lay.â
âDan responds to KevâI mean Jeff , because he thinks Jeffâs interested in him.â
âYou think heâs gay?â said Kevin, his face suddenly lighting up. âMaybe I can offer him some kind of discount on Adidas sneakers for, like, gay buyers.â
Ben looked at Kevin incredulously for a moment. âIâm not saying heâs gay. What Iâm saying is, Dan responds to Jeff because he thinks Jeffâs interested in him. It makes him feel special. Once you feel special, you respond.â
Andrei had no idea what that had to do with Fishbowll. âWhen you get a name on Fishbowll, itâs obvious why youâre interested in that person â because you share the same interest.â
âBut why that person and nobody else in the five million names on your list?â said Ben.
Andrei shrugged.
âExactly. You donât know. Look, Andrei, itâs got to be a journey, and the journey has to start with some kind of impulse.â
Andrei stopped and stared at him. âWhat does that mean?â
âI donât know, exactly. Itâs just â¦â
âDude, everythingâs a journey,â said Kevin.
âEverything should be a journey,â said Ben. âThis should be a journey of discovery.â
âIt is!â said Andrei impatiently. âYou choose a name and you connect and you see what happens. Whatâs that if itâs not a journey?â
âWell, if thatâs the journey, people arenât taking it. Itâs likeââ
âItâs like theyâre in the departure lounge and theyâve got ten thousand flights on the board and who knows how the hell which ticket to buy?â said Kevin.
âNormally, youâve got a ticket by the time youâre in the departure lounge,â replied Andrei coolly.
âAndrei,â said Ben, âwhether youâre in the lounge yet or not is not the point.â
âWhat is the