Permission Granted

Four hours later.

Maya was three drinks in and tired of scanning the party deck. She grabbed her phone and zapped the DJ.

"I'm sending 1000 sats. Just to feel something." She clutched her chest, fell onto Imani.

"Woo! You know I love a fat zap." Imani raised her arms up and did a body roll. "This is a great set. But I gotta get back to the door."

Maya pouted. "He's probably not coming."

"He's coming." Imani checked her phone. "Relax."

"I'm relaxed."

"You've checked the door six times in ten minutes."

"Stop." Maya pushed her away. Imani laughed.

Across the deck by the entrance, Sean walked in. His eyes swept the room once. Then again, slower.

Maya saw him and froze.

Imani clocked it immediately. Grinned.

"Imani. Please." Maya tried to reach for her arm.

Imani slipped away. Quickly to the entrance. Right up to Sean. "Welcome to the Nostr After-Party!"

"Thanks." He still hadn't found her.

Above the DJ, a screen lit up. A notification: 2100 sats. Then another: 1000 sats. The DJ smiled every time one hit.

"What is that?" Sean pointed to a 'Tunstr' sign.

"People are paying the DJ." Imani darted her eyes to Maya. "Actually from all over the world. While he plays."

Sean watched the numbers climb. "Oh wow. With Bitcoin? This is so cool."

Still standing on the dancefloor, Maya took a deep breath. Smoothed her dress. Walked over.

"Hey!"

Sean immediately turned. His voice cracked. "Hey."

Imani slipped away, again. Pleased with herself.

Maya waited. Didn't fill the silence.

Sean cleared his throat. "Thank you for inviting me. I was absolutely wasting my night with those guys. Glad I'm ending my trip here."

"Dinner that bad?" Maya smirked.

"If I never hear the word 'ordinals' again..."

"Oof," Maya laughed. "What about tokens?"

"How are people still pushing tokens? Bitcoin savings account? Here's our token. Bitcoin life insurance? Token. This one guy pitched a 'Bitcoin Layer 2' that was just a more complicated Ethereum."

"Corporate Bitcoin." She held his eyes.

Sean almost forgot what he was saying.

"Is that what that was? I thought it was hell." Sean pinched the bridge of his nose. "Every pitch was a scam. And I think two of them already have term sheets."

"Gotta love those VCs and their great instincts." She grabbed his arm. "Let's get you a drink."

Sean stepped in. Let her lead.

Their night was finally beginning.

They moved through the crowd. Past vendor booths showing off new apps. Past an onboarding station where someone was setting up their first npub. Just like Sean and Maya the day before.

The main bar was packed. Music pounding. Sean fought his way up to the bar.

"WHAT?" The bartender cupped his ear.

"TWO MARGARITAS!" Sean shouted, holding two fingers up.

Maya turned to Sean, shouting. "HOW DID YOU KNOW I DRINK MARGARITAS?"

He said something. She couldn't hear him.

He leaned closer. Right next to her ear.

He whispered. "You had one earlier at the hotel." He paused. "You should know I pay attention."

Every hair on the back of her neck lifted.

When it came, he handed her the drink.

They clinked glasses. Tried to talk. Gave up.

Maya pointed toward the far end of the bar. Near the service door.

He shrugged. Followed.

"Nice crowd." He scanned the floor, appreciating the eclectic mix of people. "Why does it feel like everyone knows each other?"

"'Cause." Maya smiled. "We all met at a Nostr booth."

He watched the Bitcoin flying across screens. Neon pulsing below. The desert air was warm and still.

Sean was sitting next to the most interesting person he'd met in a long time.

It was a perfect night.

He turned back to Maya.

"How does this work?" he asked. "This party. The Nostr booth. Who's paying?"

"Community donations," Maya answered. "People volunteer to spread the good word of Nostr. They try to have one at all the major Bitcoin stuff."

"No company?" Sean asked.

"There are companies but this is grassroots." Maya leaned in like she was going to tell him a secret.

Sean leaned in to play along.

Maya whispered "#grownostr."

Sean grinned and matched her volume. "Why are we whispering?"

Maya bit her bottom lip. Her eyes drifted to his mouth. "Because it's mind-blowing." She drew the words out slowly. "And I'm trying to ease you into it."

His glass stopped halfway.

She laughed.

Someone squeezed in next to them to order.

Maya pressed into Sean to make room. She got distracted by his cologne.

"So." She cleared her throat. "There's no algorithm on Nostr—"

"Right."

"So... what could you use to find new stuff?" Maya said slowly, gesturing for Sean to finish her thought.

Sean thought.

Maya waited.

"Hashtags?"

She nodded.

"Oh, man." He pounded his fist against his heart. "You just made me nostalgic for the early internet."

"Well, you're welcome!" She tossed her head back.

"I haven't used a hashtag in years." He laughed. "I don't even use it to search stuff."

"Wow." Maya pretended to clutch her pearls. "The algorithm really got you."

"Damn." Sean conceded. "You actually may be right."

Maya waved her arm over the crowd. "Set yourself free. You don't need it. People can find old ways to connect. We've been doing it for generations."

"If it's something people want, they find a way." His eyes were wide.

"Nostr is quiet at first when you join. But somehow you can fill up your own feed." She dropped her voice. "I just mute accounts that piss me off. There's no reason. I'll never zap them."

He was trying hard to not move. "So that's the goal on Nostr? Zaps?"

"For me? Hell yeah." She swayed in place. "I love zapping. It feels so good spending Bitcoin on the future."

Sean clocked it. "Okay, so you have a good stack."

"Maybe," Maya said coyly. "But I just want to find cool shit on the open internet. And give the people who made that cool shit Bitcoin."

She was talking faster now. Eyes bright. Hands moving.

He was watching her mouth. The way her whole body moved as she got more excited. He forced himself to look at her hands instead.

She stopped. Caught him staring. "What?"

He shook his head. Still smiling.

"What?" She moved her hair behind her ear. "Is your mind blown?"

His eyes moved between hers. "Constantly around you."

They were close. The music was loud enough to justify it. They didn't need the excuse.

Maya smiled. Pleased.

Sean let out a big exhale. "I'm about to say something. And I need no judgement."

"Okay." Maya gestured him to continue.

He set down his glass. "This was actually my first Bitcoin conference."

Maya's head tilted. She mouthed 'oh.'

"It's been enlightening." He turned his glass in his hands. Met her eyes. "Especially thanks to you."

Maya's face felt warm.

"So now," Sean picked back up his drink. "I'm trying to figure out how to go back to a normie life that denies this is all real. Now that I've watched people tip a live DJ Bitcoin."

"Your FIRST? This is your first Bitcoin thing?"

"Yeah."

"That's why you were hanging out with Dave and the bros."

"I had literally met him two hours before you saw us."

"HA!" Maya's arm shot out and she pushed his shoulder.

"I was young! I was naive!" He cried. "Now I know where to find the cool shit."

Maya smirked. "Let me pull you out of the matrix."

"And into Nostr?"

"Exactly. Come be yourself." Maya sipped her drink. "No one can erase you. But no one has to listen to you either."

"Oh shit." Sean laughed. "I like that."

"Right?" Maya almost danced. "Nobody's coming to save you. And nobody's coming to stop you."

Sean scrunched his face. "But what if someone posts something illegal?"

"Whoever's hosting it takes it down." Maya rolled her eyes. "It's not pure anarchy."

"It's a fair question." He shrugged. "Cause censorship resistance always has its limits, right?"

"And if one app bans you, you're not stuck. You take everything to another one."

Sean remembered. "Right. And IG would never let you take your stuff to TikTok."

"Exactly. On Nostr, they all just pull up. Even the comments on the videos. And every zap they ever got."

Sean turned to look at the DJ booth and dance floor. When he turned back, their shoulders touched. Neither moved away. "It's wild this all already exists. And I almost missed it."

"Yeah," Maya said. "Now, we just need the rest of the world to join us."

Sean turned and stared at her.

"What?" She laughed.

"It's just," he said, almost to himself. "I can see this all matters a lot to you."

"It should matter to everyone." Maya met his eyes. "If we have to ask for permission to say something on the internet...that's not free speech."

"And free speech is what matters to you?" Sean held her gaze.

She leaned on the bar. "Speech and choice. And this is freedom tech, right? It makes it much easier to build things that could guarantee those rights."

"We need somewhere governments can't control. Where they can't silence the truth." She set her glass down. "Most of the internet is censored right now."

"Yeah, I actually..." Sean looked down and cleared his throat. "I, I work for the government."

Maya stopped mid-sip. Set down her glass. "What?"

"Nothing too horrible." He looked down. "But yeah, the federal government."

She studied him for a moment. She leaned away. "A fed?" She winced.

He sighed. "I've been telling people I work in 'consulting' all weekend."

"That ashamed?" she said sympathetically.

"Kinda. Surrounded by people building on freedom tech. Are you kidding me? Admitting I work for the government feels like..." He trailed off.

She tilted her head. "Like revealing yourself as the enemy?"

"Wow. Harsh." Sean pretended to pull a dagger out of his heart. "I'm actually one of the good ones."

"That's what they all say!" Maya rolled her eyes.

"Hey. I've pushed for a lot of changes." He straightened up. "Done a lot to modernize things too."

Maya chuckled. "Oh, it must be so bad there."

Sean rubbed his temples. "We still have ticketing systems that use paper. So people have to scan copies to email for signature clearance."

Maya kept laughing. "That's actually depressing."

"Very. But I found a pretty solid and cheap way to automate it," Sean bragged. "And we'd build and manage it in house. Not with a team of contractors."

"That is the right way to do it." Maya considered him. "You're wasted in government."

"No. I'm good there," Sean tried to assure her. "They value me. I love the mission. The general mission of public service."

"There are other ways to help people, without serving the system that oppresses them." Maya winced again. "I'm sorry—"

"It's fine." Sean held up his hand. "You're not wrong. I know most Bitcoiners want to burn it all down. That's just not me."

Maya frowned. "I just think things are so much worse than you know."

"What is?"

"You know. Just how much we've been lied to. About how things are." Maya seemed far away. "Our history."

He tried to meet her eyes. "That's true. But that's every government. Americans can romanticize government too much. They're all doing this."

"I… yeah, you're right." Maya sighed. "The propaganda works too well. Even I used to believe in it."

"Trust me," Sean leaned against the bar. "This government has broken my heart many, many times."

"But yet you stay?"

"Well," He lifted his glass to his mouth. "I am a patient and loyal man."

Maya squinted at him. "I had a feeling you didn't work with freedom tech."

She stepped back in. Close as before. Closer, maybe. Her arm brushed his. "Neither do I. Most people here don't."

"Really?" Sean's shoulders relaxed. "I can't imagine you in an office, working on anything but this."

"Oh, so you're imagining me?" She bit her lip. Made sure he saw.

Sean almost choked on his drink.

"I work remote," she clarified, grinning. "At a stupidly well-funded startup with no real path to making a profit."

Sean laughed.

She let herself pause to enjoy his laugh.

"It's just a day-job though." Her thumb traced the rim of her glass. "I've been working on something else. Just myself."

He leaned in. "You holding out on me?"

She almost blushed. "So, okay. I'll tell you."

"Let's hear it."

She cleared her throat. "I hate ads. Right?"

Sean nodded.

"I mean, I zone out whenever I see one. Out of protest. But it's hard. They're everywhere. Right?"

"Yeah," Sean groaned. "I actually saw Uber has ads now. They play after you've requested a ride."

Maya laughed. Louder than she wanted. "So you're paying them to show you ads. They made money off you twice."

"Damn." Sean stepped back. "You're right. That's fucked up."

"So fucked up!" Maya grabbed his arm without thinking. "They're all doing it to us. Every so-called free app."

"Yeah." Sean didn't move. "They still show the ads even if you have a subscription."

"Yes! Exactly." She jumped. "They stay greedy."

She still had his arm. She let go. Smoothed her dress like nothing happened.

"But I don't think we can escape it." He held up his phone and shook it. "We're too addicted. I am, anyway. To social media."

"Yeah. That's by design."

A warm gust rolled across the rooftop. Maya tucked her hair behind her ear. The lights below them cycled from blue to pink.

"It's a great racket," Sean said. "Get 'em addicted and push as many ads as you want."

"And how many ads are we even seeing?" Maya pretended to swipe. "One every minute? Five every minute? Does it matter?"

Sean shook his head. "Not like I'm watching them."

"So... what does that mean, for someone who has some cool shit. How do they share it with the world?" Maya asked. "Without supporting that racket."

"Right. It's kind of like a..."

She cut him off. "Like there's a cartel? And we're the product it's selling?"

"Well damn," Sean took a moment.

"We've been for sale under the lie of free." Maya let the line sit. She loved it. She'd been saving it.

Sean just stared.

"That's what I want to fix. The broken attention economy." She looked at him. "Make it...consensual."

Now it was Sean going red.

Maya continued. "You want to promote something. Why pay a platform? Just pay the person watching it."

"Yeah...but the platform spent money to be a place you'd go to," Sean countered. "Don't they deserve to make money?"

Maya just looked at him.

"What?" Sean couldn't stop smiling. "Was that a wrong question?"

Maya looked down. Composed herself. Looked up. "No. It was a great question. I'm just a little tipsier than I realized." She paused. "Ask me again later."

Sean laughed. "Would it sober you up if we roasted Dave a little more?"

Maya rolled her eyes. "Did they talk shit about all this?"

"Oh, aggressively." He sipped his drink.

"Ghost town. Yeah." She waved her hand over the crowd. "Some people have lost the plot, I swear. They don't want to meet real human beings. They want to connect to an algorithm."

Sean smirked.

Maya raised her glass. "To Dave."

Sean clinked. "May he never find the cool parties."

They drank.

Sean set his glass down. "Wait...so journalists..."

"Yeah?"

"If they get paid directly. Zapped by their readers and that's their salary..." He was talking faster now. "And their articles would never get censored by any publisher. Theoretically?"

Maya settled against the bar. Watching him pace. Gesturing with his drink. Connecting dots she didn't have to draw. Something had clicked. He already had his own ideas.

"Why wasn't this the entire conference?" He was almost out of breath. "Nostr could fix so many things. What am I missing?"

Sean felt something on his chest.

He looked down.

Maya's hand.

He looked at her. She looked as surprised as he was.

They both froze.

His heart pounded under her palm.

"Look," she said. Didn't move her hand. "You're not missing anything."

She let go. Slowly. Her fingertips dragged against his shirt.

"Right. Yeah." Maya set her hand on the bar. "We're just that early. Bitcoin started in 2009. Nostr in 2021. On Bitcoin's timeline, we wouldn't even have mining companies yet."

He still hadn't moved. "I see. So we're just college kids mining on our laptops right now?"

"Exactly!" She jumped again.

"Wait," Sean said. "What am I mining then? Zaps?"

Maya shook her head. Cleared her throat. "You are mining...attention!"

Sean tilted his head. "Huh?"

"I have a protocol!"

The crowd shifted towards them. Someone pushed past and Maya stepped back. Right into Sean.

His hands found her arms. Steadied her. Neither of them moved.

His thumb caught her strap where it had slipped. Slid it back onto her shoulder.

For a second, they were very close. Closer than they should have been. In a room where everyone seemed to know her.

"Hi," he said.

She laughed. "Hi."

"I should probably let go now."

"Probably."

He didn't. Not right away.

Neither did she.

"Can we?" He gestured toward the tables. "I want to hear this."

"Yeah. Yes."

The crowd parted around Sean as they walked over. He didn't notice it. Maya did.

They found a table. The string lights above them cast everything in warm amber. Quieter here. Almost intimate. From here she could see the whole rooftop. The dance floor still pulsing, the crowd thinning around the edges.

Sean flagged down a server. "Hey! What's good?"

The server shrugged and handed over a small late-night menu. "All of it's fine."

"Then we'll take it all. And two waters."

The server left.

Maya shook her head at him. "Do you think you got enough?"

Sean shrugged. "You're drunk. I'm hungry. Seemed efficient."

"Oh, is this that government efficiency I've been hearing so much about?" She winked.

He rolled his eyes.

Food quickly arrived. Five small plates. They both reached for the same spring roll. Their hands touched. Both pulled back.

"You first," he said.

"No, you—"

"Maya. Eat."

She grabbed a spring roll. He took a dumpling.

Someone walked over to Maya. Dropped a backpack on the empty chair. "Can I leave this here? Be right back."

She nodded. The person left.

Maya turned to Sean. "That's going to happen now at least four more times."

"What is?"

"We have a table. Everyone's going to leave their stuff here."

Sean looked around. "Oh, I see. So now we're the coat check."

"We are the coat check." She popped a fry into her mouth.

Someone waved at Maya from across the room. She gave a quick nod back but didn't move.

"So." Sean leaned back. "Can you feel your face yet?"

"Getting there." Maya touched her cheek.

"Then pitch me. The whole idea."

She sized him up. His interest. His inebriation. "You sure you want to hear this? It's... a lot."

"Try me."

She made herself comfortable in her seat. Then began. "So I've been writing code for a long time. I've seen a lot of good app ideas. But most of them never know how they're gonna make money."

"Right... most start with investor funding." Sean crossed one leg over the other. Locked in.

"But eventually what do they do? Even if they're successful?"

Sean grinned. "They put in ads. Like Uber."

"It's the only thing that makes money." Maya leaned in. "But they avoid it as long as they can. Cause everyone hates ads. The founders and the users."

"So how are you fixing this?" He picked up a water bottle to open.

A zap notification flashed across the screen above them. 5000 sats. Someone was having a good night.

She grabbed another spring roll.

"That ad model never had Bitcoin. It definitely didn't have Nostr." She set down the spring roll. "But now we have both."

He picked up the other water bottle. Twisted off the cap. Handed it to her.

She took it. "So let's innovate. Right? Make cool shit."

"Definitely."

Two people walked up simultaneously. One with a messenger bag, one with a hoodie.

Sean stood up. Took the messenger bag. Put it on the chair. Took the hoodie. Hung it on the back of another chair.

"We're full service now," he said, sitting back down.

Maya started laughing.

"What?" he asked.

"Nothing. You're just," She shook her head. "Good at this."

"At coat check duty?"

"Just keeping up in general."

"I'm trying. So with these," he paused for dramatic effect, "revolutionary technologies, what can we get?"

"Something better. Cooler. Sexier." Maya twirled her hair with her fingers. "An app that pays you to watch ads."

"With Nostr?" Sean asked. "How can you put ads into something with no algorithm? Wouldn't people just unfollow it?"

Maya finally took a sip of her water. Set it down. "They'd have the choice. If they want to watch, they'll get paid." She held his gaze. "It's consensual. Every time."

Sean finally blushed that time.

Maya opened her mouth. Closed it. Forgot what she was going to say next.

"You okay?" He smiled.

"Shut up." She covered her face. "Where was I?"

"You said there's a choice."

"You get prompted each time. 'Wanna sell 30 seconds of your time for 500 sats? 50 cents.' Your choice, every time."

He thought for a second. "And this doesn't already exist? No one is already doing this?"

"Kind of. But they all pay you in fake coins or their own token." Maya waved her hand. "Useless outside their system."

"But yours uses..."

"Bitcoin!"

"Of course." He was thinking out loud. "Make it actual currency you can spend. Like you worked and earned real money."

"Yeah, and what's more valuable these days than someone's attention?"

"Maybe just Bitcoin?" Sean joked.

She leaned in. Their knees were touching. "So...what's a minute of someone's full attention worth?"

Sean paused and thought. "Digital ads are a huge industry."

"Hundreds of billions of dollars," Maya corrected him.

Sean leaned back and crossed his arms. "But not everyone's attention is worth the same."

"That's why everyone picks their own price. Then an advertiser sets the most they'll pay."

"Ah. Like a bid."

"Yeah. Match the ad's bid price, you get paid."

Sean was nodding.

"And it'll never listen to your phone to 'find you better ads'." She made the air quotes with her hands. "Whatever that means, right? This just needs to find you the best price."

Two women approached. "Maya, are you coming to—"

Maya shook her head. "Not tonight."

They exchanged a knowing look and walked away.

Sean noticed. "You're popular."

"I'm here all weekend. They'll survive." She leaned forward. "Now, where were we?"

"You were sharing your genius idea with me." Sean smiled.

"Thanks. I mean, that's the idea." Maya smiled back. "Oh, and if you don't want to see the ad again, you can block it from future matches."

"I have more questions." He straightened up in his seat. "What's your price?"

"For what?"

"Your attention. Right now. What would I have to pay?"

Maya's face warmed. "You can't afford it."

"Try me."

Neither of them said anything for a second. They didn't need to.

Then Sean's eyes lit up. "Wait. This is like the Million Dollar Homepage."

Maya's water stopped halfway to her mouth. "You know about the Million Dollar Homepage?"

He raised his hands. "I was very online as a teenager."

She nodded. "Okay. I see you."

"It was some kid back in the 2000s, right? He sold single pixels on a website for a dollar each. Made a million dollars. And people actually paid for those tiny squares of attention."

She set down her glass. "That's... actually a really good analogy."

"Except yours is better. His was static. Yours is dynamic. And instead of keeping the money, you're giving it to the people who look."

Maya stared at him. "Yeah. That's exactly it."

"What happens when Meta copies this though? What's stopping them from paying people right now?"

Maya shrugged. "Nothing is. But they won't."

"But if they do?"

"Then we win."

"How is that winning?" Sean didn't follow.

"Because you can't steal an idea that's open source code," Maya explained. "If Meta did this, it would mean they were using Nostr and Bitcoin."

"Oh. Yeah. Fair point."

"Right? It would be historic adoption actually. Validation."

"So what's this called?" Sean uncrossed his legs.

Maya took a deep breath. "The Attention Protocol."

"Nice name."

She grabbed a napkin and started drawing. Boxes, arrows, the flow of sats. He leaned over to watch. His chin almost on her shoulder. She kept drawing.

"The hard part is doing it alone." She set the napkin down. "I need another dev. Someone who actually gets Nostr."

He held her gaze. "Well, you're a good teacher. You could catch anyone up."

"You'd be surprised. It's been hard to get my vision across."

"Have you tried just… building it yourself? Even a rough version?"

"I've been trying. With AI." She started playing with her fingernails. "But it can only get me so far."

"What do you mean?"

"It's like talking to a genius with amnesia. Every conversation starts over. I explain the protocol, it writes something great. Then I need that piece to connect to another piece and it's like..." She snapped her fingers. "Gone. Start over."

"So it can build the parts but not the whole thing."

"Not yet. And this isn't a simple app. It's a protocol, a relay, a matching engine, a client. They all have to talk to each other. I'm spending more time re-explaining than building."

Sean nodded. "Wow. Yeah. I mean, me too. I keep expecting AI to just... know. Like, we talked about this yesterday. Why are you asking me again?"

Maya laughed. "Exactly! Like Groundhog Day."

"Like having a coworker who'll do anything you ask. Like, anything. Works stupid fast. But every morning they walk in like they've never met you."

Maya almost spit out her drink.

"Every. Single. Time. 'Hi, nice to meet you! What are we working on?'"

They laughed together. Hard. The kind where you have to look away and then look back and it starts again. Sean wiped his eyes. Maya pressed her forehead against the table for a second.

The laughter faded. They were just looking at each other. The string lights swaying above them. Neither rushed to fill it.

"So I started making these context documents," Sean said, catching his breath. "Everything the AI needs to know, the whole picture, written down. Upload it every time."

Maya nodded.

"Like onboarding a new employee. Who's incredibly fast, does anything I ask, but has no memory."

Maya tilted her head. "That's... actually brilliant."

"It works."

"Why hadn't I thought of this?" Her mind was already racing. "This could help."

"You're welcome." Sean was pleased with himself. "Now go try again to build this."

"I just know my idea could work. It would be a Bitcoin faucet for Nostr. That just keeps paying people to watch ads."

Sean nodded slowly. "Depending on what you make, yeah. You could tip that out to a lot of creators."

"Just zap it out. To a podcast. A comedian. A new artist. Even an old one. Listen to a song you love and tip it cause it still hits."

"Zaps could change the game." Sean shook his head, smiling. His knee pressed against hers under the table. She pressed back.

"I keep thinking what would we make if money chased love instead of rage?" Maya's eyes were sparkling. "Instead of rage bait."

The rooftop had emptied around them. The DJ was packing up. It was just them. Table. Half-eaten spring rolls. The city glowing below.

"And no one else is trying to do this?" Sean asked. "Ads on Nostr?"

"Not like this. I can't even get another dev to work with me on it. People hate ads."

"That just means you're that early." He winked.

She shrugged. "Maybe. At least too early to find anyone to help me."

"You will." He put his hand on her knee, still pressed against his. "It's a great idea."

She stared at him. Most people checked out after twenty minutes of technical talk.

He kept going. "And now I'm mad I'm not getting paid when I watch ads. So I need you to build this."

His face was now inches away from hers.

She felt her heart race.

He waited.

"Hey." She straightened herself in her seat. "How long have we been sitting here?"

Sean lifted his hand off her knee to check his phone. "Three hours."

"Three!" Maya looked around. The crowd had thinned. The coat check pile on their table had disappeared. "Wow. I didn't even notice."

"Me neither." He was swiping away notifications on his phone. He finally looked up.

She was smiling at him.

"What?" he asked.

"Nothing." Her eyes held his. "Just that...this was nice."

The music had shifted. Something slower.

"Let's walk a little?" She nodded toward the balcony.

They stood up together. He followed her, his hand settling on the small of her back. Light. Barely there. She didn't move away from it.

She led him to the edge of the balcony. Away from the speakers. Away from the vendor booths and education talks. Finally away from everyone.

The warm desert air hit their skin. Fremont Street stretched out below them. The famous LED canopy. People everywhere.

"This is better," he said, looking below them.

She leaned against the railing. Tried to steady herself. "Much better."

She could feel him next to her without looking. The heat of him. The space between them that kept getting smaller.

Sean glanced at his screen again. The flight reminder stared back at him.

Maya noticed. "You okay?"

"Yeah. Just—" He put the phone away. "I'm here."

She was quiet. Looking out at the lights.

If he kissed her now, he wouldn't stop. And he'd miss that flight.

He moved closer anyway.

"Maya."

She turned to face him. Her breath caught.

They were so close now. She could see his pulse in his neck. The way his jaw tightened. His eyes locked on hers. Not looking away.

She was suddenly aware of every inch between them.

The noise from the street and the DJ faded. It was just them.

His hand left the railing.

She leaned in. Let herself. She hadn't done that in a long time.

Permission.

His hand found her waist. The fabric of her dress thin under his palm. She felt it in her throat.

She didn't pull away.

He pulled her closer. Her hand pressed flat to his chest. His heart was racing. Faster than hers.

She could feel his breath on her lips. One inch. Maybe less.

She wanted to close her eyes but she couldn't stop looking at him. At his mouth. At the way he was looking at hers.

The desert air had gone still. Like even Vegas was holding its breath.

And then his phone alarm screamed in his pocket.

Loud. Insistent.

They both froze.

Sean's face dropped.

Maya's hand was still on his chest. She left it there for a breath. Then let go.

"Do you need to get that?"

"It's my flight." He pulled out his phone. Silenced it. "I set an alarm. To remind me to leave."

"Oh." She made an exaggerated frown. "Then you probably should."

"I don't want to." Sean stared at the screen like it had betrayed him.

"I know." She smiled. "But you set an alarm for a reason."

He had. Three days ago. Before he met her. When missing a flight was the worst thing that could happen.

The music stopped. House lights came up. Around them, people started gathering their things. Their eyes still locked. Neither willing to be the one to look away.

"I should help Imani." She took a step back. "And you need to go. Please. I don't want to be the reason you're stranded."

They stood there. Neither moving.

"DM me," she said. "You have my npub. In the zap. We could talk more. About the protocol."

He held her gaze. "About the protocol."

"Yeah." She tilted her head.

"I'll DM you." He didn't move.

She smiled. "Now go."

He took a deep breath. Turned to leave.

She told herself she wouldn't check if he looked back.

She did.

He did too. Twice.

She waved. Small. Involuntary.

Then he was gone.