Hands to Yourself
The next morning
Sean was waiting outside the cafe when Maya arrived. He held the door open for her and they found her usual table inside.
He ordered their drinks at the counter. Walked back carefully, balancing two mugs filled to the brim. Set Maya's in front of her.
"Ugh," she said without looking up. "Of course it's taken."
"What is?" Sean set his drink on the table, then walked around to look at her screen.
"nextblock.com." Maya's fingers drummed against her laptop. "It looks like an old, abandoned website."
He bent toward the screen. His shoulder almost brushed hers.
"Um, well, okay...let's think." Sean moved to his side of the table and sat. "What else could we use?"
"It's fine." Maya straightened herself in her seat. "We can just do nextblock.social."
"Uh," Sean paused. "No." He put down his drink. "No, we cannot."
Her head came up. Met his eyes. "No?"
He leaned back in his chair. "It has to be dot com. Only dot com websites feel official."
"According to who?"
"Everyone."
She fought a smile. "That's not true."
"Oh but it is. I don't make the rules." He leaned in. "Try 'join nextblock dot com'."
She considered it. "Like an invitation?"
He grinned. "Like a movement."
She typed it in. "It's available."
Sean handed her his credit card.
23 minutes later
Maya looked up from her screen. Diego was walking over with the coffee pot. His face was serious. Then he saw her. His eyes went wide. He looked at Sean, head down in his laptop. Then back at Maya. Raised an eyebrow.
She pressed her lips together. Shook her head slightly. Don't.
He grinned. Pulled it together. Turned to Sean.
"Hey man. Are you ok? I'm so sorry about what's happening."
"Thanks." Sean nodded. Pushed his mug towards Diego.
"I can't believe they actually bombed Iran." Diego lowered his voice. "Is your family safe?"
Maya pulled out her phone. She was scrolling.
Sean's fingers stopped on the keyboard. "We have no idea. They cut off the internet."
Diego's face fell. "Every time I think it can't get worse." He refilled their mugs. Looked between them for a second. Then left them alone.
Maya was still reading. Her throat was tight.
She looked up from her phone. "Why didn't you say something?"
"There's nothing to talk about." He kept typing.
"Sean."
He stopped. "I can't call them. I can't do anything. So."
"We can call it a day."
"I don't want to go home and doom scroll." He shook his head. "I'm not letting Meta's algorithm feed me war propaganda today."
Maya put her phone face down on the table.
He leaned back. His eyes were darting. "Nostr is right there. It's right there and nobody's on it."
Maya watched him press his thumb against his bottom lip.
"I don't even trust what I'm reading online. I keep thinking if people knew they could post the truth there. About every conflict. Instead of getting censored by platforms that spent the last two years covering up a genocide."
He exhaled. "All this stuff exists. Bitcoin. Nostr. It's all right there. And nobody I know uses any of it."
He rubbed the back of his neck.
"I just wish I had convinced my family to set up a wallet. So I could send them money. So they could move theirs..." He stared at the table. "Not like we can do anything when the internet's out."
He closed his eyes for a second. She held her breath until he opened them.
"Yeah. I dunno." He sighed.
Maya nodded and pulled her laptop closer. "It sucks being the only one out of the matrix."
He forced a smile. "Let's just keep going."
They had work to do.
Four nights later
Summer was in full swing outside. Happy hours, music blasting from cars riding down the street, and barbecue smoke from someone's rooftop.
Inside Maya's apartment, the window was cracked open, letting in the warm evening air.
Salma was out on another date. Not the dentist. A new guy.
Sean sat on the couch. Settled in. His eyes followed her around the coffee table.
"We need a manifesto," Maya said, already in motion.
"A manifesto?"
"Yes. Like the Cypherpunk's manifesto." Maya stopped pacing and turned to face him. "It laid out their entire philosophy. Before any of the tech it needed even existed."
"Cypherpunk?" Sean tilted his head. "You're losing me."
"So. In the nineties, a woman actually, Jude Milhon was a hacker. There was this group of cryptographers in the Bay Area. She named them Cypherpunks. Like cyberpunk but with ciphers. Like data encryption."
"Cryptographers?" Sean stood and walked to the kitchen.
"Coders obsessed with privacy. But this was before most people even understood that they didn't have any online." Maya turned toward the kitchen as she continued. "A year later, one of them, Eric Hughes, writes this single page manifesto."
"Do I need to remember these names?" Sean filled the kettle.
She shook her head. "He basically declared they believe in the right to privacy. But instead of begging the government to care about it, he says, we'll get this done by writing code, not petitions. To inspire others, like let's get to work and build it."
"All that in one page?" Sean paused, looked back at her. "Where is your tea?"
"Because the long-term vision had to be clear. They saw what was coming." Maya pointed to a cart next to their kitchen island. "And can you guess what happened? What the government did."
He shrugged.
"They classified encryption as a weapon. Same list as missiles. One of the Cypherpunks wrote free encryption software. And gave it away. So the government opened a criminal case on him for it."
"For software?"
"For software. So he published the code as a book." She smiled. "You can't ban a book. Code is speech. That's how they won."
"Nice." Sean held up a box of tea bags. "Really? I expected better from Salma. I need to bring you ladies some loose leaf."
"You're judging our tea? While I'm explaining the birth of digital freedom?"
"Both are important."
"And then another Cypherpunk invented proof of work. And then another one designed digital cash."
He looked up from the counter.
"And then Satoshi dropped the Bitcoin whitepaper on a cryptography mailing list. The Cypherpunks had moved there by then. And of course, Hal Finney was the one to run the first node."
"Okay. Alright." Sean nodded as he poured the hot water into the mugs. "I think I get what you're saying. That is pretty cool."
She moved back toward the couch. "From one page, Sean. Thirty years later we're sitting here because of it."
"Okay, but writing a manifesto... " he stirred honey into both mugs. "I don't think we should be comparing ourselves to the Cypherpunks."
"Not comparing." She shifted onto her knees. "We're carrying it forward."
Sean walked over and handed Maya her tea. She took a sip. Held the mug with both hands.
"I guess..." He sipped his own. "Just feels like we're getting ahead of ourselves."
"I want the vision to be clear. So anyone else who agrees with it, can help make it real." Her eyes found his. "And I want you to write it."
Sean laughed. Took a step back. "It should definitely NOT be me."
"Why not?"
He set his mug on the kitchen counter. "'Cause I'm new to all this. And I don't think I've ever even read a tech manifesto."
She stood up. "You write for a living."
"Maya—"
"You have a master's in public policy." She counted on her fingers. "The Attention Marketplace is a public good. This would be its founding document. You've literally trained for this! And we both know you'll edit whatever I write."
Sean leaned against the counter.
"I write code, Sean." She pointed at herself. "Notes." Then at him. "Other Stuff." She grinned. "This one's yours."
Two days later
Sean texted the first draft.
Maya paced while she read it.
Immediately typed back. "This sounds like a government memo."
Sean's response came fast. "It needs to be clear."
"It's dead, Sean. A manifesto is a rant. Make it a rant."
Two hours later
Sean rewrote. Hit send.
Maya fired back. "Better. Make it angrier."
One day later
"Cartel?" Sean looked at the screen. "We can't call them a cartel."
"That's what they are."
"Maya. A cartel is a drug operation."
"A cartel is any group that controls a market. Look it up."
He looked it up. She was right.
"And I have an acronym." She sat up. "C.H.A.O.S. Corporations Harvesting Attention On Social Media."
"That's..." He read it again. "Actually that's pretty good."
"The C.H.A.O.S. Cartel." She grinned.
The acronym stayed.
20 minutes later
They argued about including creator rights.
Maya wanted to focus on marketplace mechanics.
Sean wouldn't budge. "Nothing has value on any of these platforms without the content creators."
"You're right." Maya conceded. "The manifesto has to be for them too."
Four days later
They argued over features.
Maya wanted to get rid of likes. Zaps only.
Sean wanted to keep a free way for people to engage.
"Likes are fiat." Maya shook her head. "They give no value!"
"Not everything deserves a zap." Sean wouldn't back down. "This is too drastic. People won't like it."
They couldn't decide. They left it out.
Maya said the answer would eventually come to them.
Two days later
The final version of the NextBlock manifesto called people citizens, not 'users'.
It laid out their master plan.
It was angrier than Sean's instincts. More structured than Maya's.
They signed it together. Both names at the bottom.
Sean read the final version out loud.
Maya was bouncing.
He couldn't stop smiling.
This was it. The whole vision.
Their vision.
Anyone who read this would get it immediately.
They sent it to everyone they knew.
Three days later
Crickets.
Six nights later
It was Leyla's birthday. Maya and her friends were bar hopping in Dupont.
They ran into Sean and his friends at their third stop, Cafe Citron.
4 minutes later
Ken bought a round of tequila shots.
17 minutes later
Salma bought the second round of tequila shots.
2 minutes later
Sean bought the first round of water bottles.
43 minutes later
They were all in a sea of salsa dancing on the main floor.
Maya and Sean were dancing next to each other, but not together.
Nima and Ken convinced Leyla to take one more shot. They pulled everyone back to the bar.
Only Maya and Sean declined. They kept dancing.
38 seconds later
"Remember to keep your hands to yourself?" Sean teased.
Maya held up her hands innocently.
She led him backwards.
Away from the dance floor. Further from the bar.
2 minutes later
Their shoes kept bumping. Shoulders too. Neither of them moved away.
"I LOVE THIS SONG," Maya shouted into Sean's ear. "IT'S BEFORE YOUR TIME."
"I'M OLDER THAN YOU," Sean shouted back.
48 seconds later
They were dancing closer.
People kept knocking into them. Pushing them together.
Someone very drunk fell onto the floor, next to Maya.
Sean put his hand on her lower back, to move her away from the crowd. His hand stayed longer than it needed to.
12 seconds later
Salma rushed up.
"Aisha's puking. I called David." She pointed toward the bathroom.
Turned to Sean. "So is your boy Ken."
28 minutes later
"Everyone home safe?" Sean texted.
"Home safe." Maya responded.
Five nights later
The humidity had been relentless. Corner Cafe was unusually busy for a weeknight. But Diego had saved their now 'usual' table outside. Somehow, a steady breeze kept passing their way.
Sean ordered a bottle of chilled rosé. Diego quickly escaped back to the air conditioning inside.
Maya already had her laptop open.
Sean leaned back. She hadn't looked up yet.
He watched her eyes track something across the screen. The slight furrow between her brows. Deepening with each keystroke.
Her lips moved slightly as she read. His eyes followed her hands as she tucked her hair back. The curve of her neck.
He swallowed.
"Sorry," she said without looking up.
Sean caught himself.
"Almost done." She typed faster, then stopped. Turned the screen toward him. "I built us something."
Her screen showed a readme file.
"The NextBlock C-Suite?" Sean read out loud.
"C for Context. Our AI executive team." Maya was bouncing slightly. "Everything we've talked about, all your notes, our manifesto. It's all in here."
He stared at her.
"You said you use AI like a coworker. It's a smart approach. I've been writing better code because of it. So...my muse...that's how we'll set up the company."
His cheeks turned red. "So it can do our accounting?"
"Kinda. Yes. It can pull together everything we'd need to give an accountant."
"How do I use it?" Sean pushed his chair closer to hers.
"Each persona is a company position. Need a marketing director? Legal counsel? Spin up that role." She clicked through. "We don't have to hire anyone yet."
"We have to do things by the book." He looked up. "We can't take legal advice from AI."
"Of course." Maya nodded. "But not before we have a roadmap. A business plan. The basics. With this, the grunt work is gone."
Diego appeared with the rosé and two glasses. "You two are always working," he said, pouring their drinks. "What is it tonight?"
Sean tipped his glass. "Maya built an AI workforce for us. No big deal."
She pretended to dust her shoulder off.
Diego raised an eyebrow. "Better not program it to brew your coffee." He handed her a glass.
She laughed. "Too risky. It'd probably give us decaf 'for our own good.'" She made air quotes.
Diego laughed, wiping sweat from his forehead. "I'll let you two get back to taking over the world." He headed for the AC.
"Saving the world!" Maya turned back to Sean. Held out her hand. "Give me your laptop."
Three days later
Maya heard the knock. Opened the door.
"I brought sushi." Sean stood there with three stuffed white bags. "Got enough for Salma too."
"You didn't have to do that." She stepped aside to let him in.
"I'm sorry for burning through all the credits."
She smiled. "I'm just happy C-Suite is helping."
They walked to the kitchen. Sean set the bags on the counter.
"Where's Salma?"
"Her room. Still working." Maya started unpacking containers. "She'll come out eventually."
Sean pulled out more from the bags. Drinks. Chopsticks. Extra soy sauce. "I got that green tea she likes. And sparkling water."
"Sean."
"What?" He was already moving to the coffee table, clearing Maya's laptop and notebooks. "We should eat properly."
Maya watched him arrange everything. Napkins folded, containers opened, drinks set out like place settings.
He set down the last container. Looked at what he'd done.
She was still watching him.
"This is nice," Maya said quietly.
"You deserve nice." Sean met her eyes. "You gave me someone to think with. All night. Who never gets tired."
She sat on the couch. Smiled at him.
"I ran everything, Maya. Business model, projections. The whole thing." He leaned forward. "This could actually work."
"Oh I'm well aware." She picked up her chopsticks.
"Like, really work. I think people would pay for this."
"I know."
"But," Sean paused. "It's going to be impossible to launch a social app. Not with just the two of us."
Maya stopped chewing.
"We were being too ambitious."
She cut him off. "We can absolutely build this."
"Hear me out." He handed her a spring roll.
She took it. Waited.
"Look. You keep telling me I'm overcomplicating things. For an MVP. You already said it's too many screens. And you're right."
Maya settled back into the couch.
"We first just need to prove advertisers will pay people directly." Sean set down his chopsticks. "Right?"
She nodded.
"What if paying for attention isn't a feature of the app? What if it IS the app? We prove that part works first, then build the social stuff around it."
She tilted her head. "I don't see people going into an app with just ads."
"Or will they?" Sean put his hands up. "For some reason, at one point 65,000 people visited a website every day. Just to see who was advertising on it."
"The Million Dollar Homepage?"
"Yup. And even more people will use Billboard. Because it'll pay them."
"Billboard?"
"Yes, that's what we'll call our first app. It's a digital billboard, just like you've been saying."
Maya's mouth curved.
"You like it?" Sean smiled.
"I do." She drummed her fingers on the coffee table. "It would make this a lot easier."
"Exactly."
"We set up the marketplace first. Get advertisers familiar, get their ads in there, to then get people to watch them..."
He cut her off. "We sell billboards. Not ads. And we introduce the term as the new experience."
"But billboards are ads. They're promotions."
"Ads are nonconsensual. Use your stolen data to target you. Profit off you. Billboards you visit by choice. You get paid exactly what you asked to watch it."
Maya put down her chopsticks. Started clapping.
He waved her off.
She kept clapping.
"Stop—"
She clapped harder.
He waved her off again. Almost blushed.
"I'm actually applauding myself," Maya said. "For building C-Suite for you. Those credits already paid for themselves."
She sat up. "No. Really. This makes sense. We just need to set up the attention marketplace to make revenue."
"Right? We would be testing the business model. Can selling billboards be enough to run the app? To raise money for us to build social next."
Maya grinned. "I think it can."
"And then we don't ever need to take VC money."
"Wait," she almost choked on her drink. "Never?"
A door opened down the hall.
"Well well well. What do we have here?" Salma appeared, stretching.
Sean stood up. "Hey Salma." He picked up the green tea from the coffee table. "Come, eat."
"Wow. Thanks." She took it. Looked at the sushi spread. "What's the occasion?"
"Sean just used all our AI credits to decide we don't need investors," Maya said.
He laughed. "I just got carried away."
"I can see that." Salma started filling her plate. "I'm not done working. You're a lifesaver."
"How much later?" Maya asked.
"Just waiting on an email. Then we can finish the season." Salma popped a salmon roll in her mouth. "Are you guys working though?"
"Just talking strategy."
Sean jumped in, "What show are you guys watching?"
"Silicon Valley." Salma opened her tea. "I think it's season four?"
"Really?" Sean leaned back. "I just binged that whole show. Like in three weeks. Right after Vegas actually."
Salma grinned. "Oh yeah?"
"Really because of Maya. After talking to her I wanted to know more."
Salma's eyes darted to Maya's. Maya's looked back at her. Then they both looked down at the sushi.
Salma continued. "So what did you think of the show?"
"It was great. Hilarious." He turned to Maya. "It's actually why I want us to avoid VCs. You'll see why when you finish the show."
Salma laughed. "Oh she knows why."
Sean looked at Maya. Maya looked at Sean.
Maya nodded. "I've seen every episode probably fourteen times."
"Maya's definitely a Gilfoyle." Salma filled up her plate a second time. "So smart. And so angry about everyone else being dumb."
Sean burst out laughing. Maya rolled her eyes.
Salma kept going, "She was so upset at the Bitcoin episode. When they cut off his presentation."
He wiped a tear from his eyes. Tried to stop laughing.
"Whatever. He's usually right though." Maya took a sip of her drink. "I'm proud to be a Gilfoyle."
"Who are you Sean?" Salma popped a piece of spicy tuna in her mouth.
"Oh I got this one." Maya beat him to it. "Erlich."
"OUCH." Sean pretended to pull a dagger from his stomach.
"No, come on. Hear me out." Maya held up her hand. "Think about it. You can communicate ideas so well. And make what we're doing sound so revolutionary. He understands what the company needs to be."
"And he's charming! Sean, you're a prince for getting us dinner. " Salma checked her phone. "I'm free guys! Brief was reviewed. Let's watch."
Maya queued up the episode.
Together, they finished the season.
Three days later
Maya was at her usual table for Bitcoin Saturdays when Sean entered the cafe.
Ms. Patrice was next to her. Waved him over. "Hayyy fellow wholecoiner!"
Maya pulled her arm down. "Now come on. You don't even know if that's true."
Sean's face relaxed when he walked up to their table. "Oh it's true."
He winked at Ms. Patrice.
"Don't tell me I don't know about my own family." She stood up and hugged Sean. "How you doing baby?"
"I'm doing great Ms. Patrice. Are you still holding?"
"You know it!" She grabbed her coffee and purse. "Take my seat. Keep our girl company."
She left. Sean slumped into the chair.
"How was the Iranian Relief meeting?" Maya turned to him. "Did you see Leyla?"
He nodded. "Two hours trying to figure out how to get $12,000 to Tehran. Every bank we've worked with is suddenly 'reassessing their risk tolerance.'"
She closed her laptop.
Sean rubbed his temples. "It's humanitarian aid and they're treating us like we're buying weapons."
Maya watched him process.
"This is insane. We can send a Lightning payment to anyone in Iran in thirty seconds. But because we want to do it 'the right way,' through banks..."
She waited for him to finish.
Sean leaned forward. "Let's each put one in."
"One what?"
"Bitcoin. Into NextBlock."
Maya blinked. "Sean, that's—"
"This is what Bitcoin is for. It's fuck you money, right?" He sat up.
Maya stared at him. "You have a whole bitcoin to put in?"
"You do too." Sean grinned. "Fellow wholecoiner?"
She opened her mouth. Closed it.
"Don't tell me." He put his hand up. "But. Is one too much of your stack?"
She shook her head.
"Same."
Maya tilted her head. "Sean. You can't be serious."
"We hold it. Together. And we don't need anyone else's permission. We decide what to do with it. Nobody else."
She pushed back. "I can't take a whole Bitcoin from you."
"And you're not. We'll set up multisig. Company account. I'm not giving it to you. I'm giving it to NextBlock."
"You're just riled up from this meeting."
"No. I'm riled up because despite sanctions and the broken banking system people still don't want to understand Bitcoin."
She laughed.
"People won't even consider Bitcoin. Even when there's literally no other option."
She looked at him. His eyes were focused on hers.
"But NextBlock will show people what Bitcoin can actually do. By letting them earn it instead of buying it."
She smiled. "Yeah. By the time they notice they own some, they're already in."
"And we'll make it all back. Eventually." He paused. "Maya, I believe in it."
Her smile faded. "You're sure?"
"Fuck yes I'm sure."
She bit her lip.
"We need a team. Designers. Developers. People who can build what we can't." He leaned in. "The Bitcoin funds the team and we won't be stretched too thin from everything else we have going on."
She just listened.
"The idea is good, Maya. We just have to build it right. It can't be some shitty vibe-coded thing."
He stopped. Waited for her answer.
"Fuck it." She slammed her hand on the table. "Let's do it."
Two days later
Sean incorporated the company in Texas.
Three days later
Sean took a personal day.
To miss the ServiceNow contract kickoff meeting they'd make him lead.
He spent eight hours in C-Suite instead. Designed their corporate structure. Opened a bank account at Mercury. Called Maya twice.
One week later
Sean opened a Bitcoin business account for the company at Strike.
Two weeks later
Maya took a deep breath. "We're really doing this."
Sean nodded.
"No investors." She recited.
"No debt."
"Not spending. Investing." Maya's voice got stronger. "In ourselves."
Sean transferred 1 BTC to the company wallet.
Maya transferred 1 BTC to the company wallet.
They set it up so neither of them could touch the money alone. Moved 1.5 BTC into cold storage. Three keys. Maya held one. Sean held one. Unchained held the third.
They kept half a Bitcoin in Strike. For paying the team.
Then NextBlock hired the Peak Shift design team.
Paid them in Bitcoin.
Both leaned over Sean's phone, watching the Lightning payment go to Belgrade.
Three seconds later
They high-fived when it went through. Shoulders still touching.
Two days later
NextBlock hired Stud House, a web development team. Invoice paid in Bitcoin.
Four days later
Maya was trapped on call all weekend.
She had to miss Bitcoin Saturday at the Corner Cafe.
On Monday morning, she decided to quit.
She announced it was her last day in the morning team huddle. Her camera stayed off.
Maya leaned back in her chair and exhaled. Finally free.
Three hours later
She texted Sean: NextBlock just got a free, full-time dev.
Six hours later
Maya laughed for the first time that day, looking at Sean in her doorway.
"Hey there champ." He was holding bags and bags of takeout. Thai, Indian, and Mexican.
She waved him in.
"Didn't know what you were in the mood for." He smiled. "So I got everything."
"Are we celebrating?" Salma walked to Sean and tried to take his bags. "Erlich would never bring over dinner. Maybe you're a Jared?"
"That's somehow worse." He kept the bags and nodded at Salma. "Hey." He set them down.
"Yes. Let's celebrate. I am happy." Maya went into the kitchen to grab plates. "Just pissed I didn't do it sooner."
"She ran into my room after she quit. Shaking." Salma grabbed three cups.
"From anger?" Sean took the plates from Maya, and the cups from Salma.
"I was processing." Maya shrugged. "I was just in shock that I actually did it."
"Maybe this can help." Sean pulled out two joints and a pack of edibles.
"And he's back to being Erlich." Salma snatched one and reached for a lighter off the coffee table.
Maya laughed. Mouthed 'thank you' to Sean.
He held her gaze for a moment. Then turned to the TV.
Together they watched five more episodes of Maya's comfort show.
One week later
"The roadmap needs a metaphor," Maya circled the living room. "Something people can visualize."
Sean was throwing Maya's Little Hodler plushie back and forth between his hands. He leaned back on her couch. "You know what I'm gonna say."
"What?"
"It's a city."
She winced. "Like a city government?"
He almost laughed. "Like exploring a city. Instead of the internet. Hanging out on a corner. Bar hopping. Checking out different neighborhoods."
Maya leaned against her counter. "So Billboard is a city?"
Sean shook his head. "It's NextBlock City. Everyone gets their own block. Like a profile page. And Billboard is literally what you can put on your block to promote it."
"Right. Not ads. Billboards. Like you'd see walking around a real city."
47 minutes later
Maya was pacing, squeezing her plushie between her crossed arms. "So the Billboard experience brings money into the city."
"But in this city, instead of taxing citizens, we just need people to sell their attention." Sean tracked her from the couch. "The attention marketplace serves them."
"Where they earn money they can spend." Maya smiled. "Zapping whatever they like."
"And." Sean jumped. "Our manifesto is the city's declaration of independence!"
"YES."
They high-fived. Their hands pressed together a beat too long.
23 minutes later
"So...after we know Billboard works, like the marketplace is running smoothly, we launch the Social app." Maya was drawing on her whiteboard.
"And then the organic reach can happen. Free attention." Sean was watching her draw. "People find each other. Build neighborhoods. The city grows."
She stepped back from the board. Stood in the same spot she kissed him only two months ago.
Sean came up beside her.
She turned to him.
His eyes were stuck on the board. Staring at what they'd designed together. In just two months.
Three hours later
joinnextblock.com was live.