When She Flirts Back

the caller

Alice's heart was still racing from the moment it happened. She’d flirted with a girl, and the girl flirted back. The nerve-wracking rush of it all left her in a daze.

Was she doing this right? Was she in over her head? Desperate for advice, she grabbed her phone and dialed 911, hoping to get some clarity. Maybe this was a real emergency.

Alice: "Hello, 911, yes, hi. I—uh, I flirted with a girl and—oh my god, she actually flirted back! What do I do now?!"

There was a pause on the other end. Then, a familiar voice responded.

Risa: "Alice... you’ve got to be kidding me."

Alice froze. She’d heard that voice before. Her heart skipped a beat as she recognized the calm tone of none other than Risa, the one she’d just flirted with.

Alice: "R-Risa?! What are you doing answering 911 calls?!"

Risa: (chuckles) "Apparently, saving the day. But first, we need to talk about this emergency you’ve created. You flirted with me and now you're panicking? What happened to all that confidence?"

Alice gulped, suddenly feeling like a deer caught in headlights.

Alice: "I—I didn’t expect you to flirt back, okay?! Now I don’t know what to do! Help!"

Risa: (mockingly serious) "Well, Alice, you’ve got two options: 1) You can continue being adorable and hopeless, or 2) You can try being a little braver and take this... flirting thing... somewhere interesting. What do you think?"

Alice: (flustered but intrigued) "Are you... are you flirting with me now, Risa?"

Risa: (smirking) "Maybe. I’m just following the protocol, Alice. The emergency has been escalated."

Alice’s cheeks burned as she clutched her phone tighter.

Her mind raced, trying to process what was happening. She'd called 911 for help, and instead, she found herself in the middle of a playful back-and-forth with her—Risa, the girl who had completely thrown her off earlier.

Alice: "Okay, but this isn't fair! You're supposed to be, like, neutral or professional or something!"

Risa: "Neutral? Alice, you called 911 over flirting. The handbook doesn’t exactly cover this kind of scenario."

Alice: "It felt like an emergency! My brain short-circuited, okay?!"

Risa chuckled, the sound warm and teasing. Alice could practically picture her leaning back in her chair, enjoying every second of this.

Risa: "Alright, let’s assess the situation. You flirted, I flirted back. Now you’re panicking because...?"

Alice: "Because you’re you, okay?!" The words tumbled out before she could stop them. "You’re confident and cool, and I’m... not used to people like you actually noticing me."

There was a beat of silence on the line. For a moment, Alice thought maybe she’d said too much. But then Risa’s voice softened, losing some of its teasing edge.

Risa: "Alice, you’re selling yourself short. You're bold enough to flirt first—that's already impressive. Besides, I think you're pretty hard to ignore."

Alice’s breath caught. Was Risa... being serious?

Alice: "So... what now? Do I hang up and let you get back to saving actual lives, or...?"

Risa: (lightly) "That depends. You want me to call you after my shift, or do you prefer dialing 911 every time you need an excuse to talk to me?"

Alice couldn’t help it—she laughed, the tension melting away.

Alice: "I think I’ll take the first option. But don’t be surprised if I panic-dial again."

Risa: "Noted. Emergency flirting services, always on call for you, Alice."

As Alice hung up, she couldn’t stop smiling. For once, her impulsiveness had led to something good.