The Love Algorithm

Chapter 1: The spark of logic

The office smelled like fresh coffee and quiet ambition.

Inside a lab on the fourth floor of the Bangkok Future Tech Institute, the fluorescent lights buzzed softly, like they didn't want to break the silence. Desks were covered with screens, the walls were full of scribbles—equations, timelines—and from behind a glass wall came the steady hum of a tired server room.

This was Est's world.

And he liked it just the way it was.

At twenty-six, Est was already a quiet legend among data scientists. He once built a model to predict his professor's mood and never missed a deadline again. Talking to people wasn't really his thing—but understanding them through data? That, he could do.

Which is why he was here now, running the biggest project of his life: The Love Algorithm.

The goal? Create a machine-learning model that could predict how well two people would work together in a relationship—with almost perfect accuracy. It used thousands of anonymous relationship surveys, health data, and interviews to figure out what made people fall in love—and more importantly, what made them stay in love.

To Est, love was just data. Not a feeling. Not a risk. Not a fairytale.

At least, that's what he believed—until someone knocked on the lab door and shook up his perfectly organized world.

A head popped in. Santa, the always-smiling intern.

"P'Est? Your media team is here. From the funding board."

Est didn't look up. "I didn't agree to any media stuff."

"It's in the grant you signed," Santa said in a singsong voice. "You know... the part you didn't read."

Est sighed.

Before he could argue, the door opened more—and in walked someone Est could only describe as... distracting.

Tall, with messy hair that somehow looked perfect, a bright yellow hoodie that made the whole lab feel dull, ripped jeans, and a DSLR camera slung over his shoulder like it belonged there.

"Hi! I'm William," he said, like the room wasn't filled with awkward silence and serious work. "You must be so' Est. The genius behind the love machine."

Est blinked. "You're the media team?"

William smiled. "Sort of. I'm the subject, actually. They hired me to be in the docuseries—to, you know, make this whole thing feel more... human." He waved a hand toward the graphs and glowing screens. "The producers thought it'd be fun to show how real people interact with the model."

"I don't need a human prop."

"And I don't need a robot boss," William shot back with a grin. "But here we are. Fate?"

Est just stared. His screen saver kicked in, showing a spinning, heart-shaped animation he'd never bothered to change.

William laughed. "Nice. Is that part of the science?"

Est quickly moved the mouse. "That was... a test. For sentiment analysis."

"Mmhm. Totally buying that."

Est opened his mouth to respond, then stopped. He wasn't used to this. This kind of energy. This kind of person.

"Look," William said, already settling into the guest chair like it was his. "You keep doing your thing—code, analyze, frown dramatically. I'll follow along, ask dumb questions, and maybe we'll both get through this without losing our minds."

Est frowned. "...You're really going to be here every day?"

"For two weeks. At least. Maybe longer if the audience doesn't find me boring."

Est turned back to his screen, trying to focus on fixing a bug in the code. But he couldn't help glancing sideways.

William was flipping through a notebook, tapping his fingers, humming a tune. Just... alive.

Too alive.

"Fine," Est muttered.

William looked up. "What was that?"

"You can stay. Just don't mess with the model."

William smiled—not in a smug way, but warmly. A soft kind of smile that crept in around the edges.

"Thanks, P'Est. I promise I won't ruin your science."

And that was when something strange happened.

For the first time in months, Est's heart rate—normally calm and steady—spiked on the biometric tracker he wore on his wrist.

An unexpected input.

And Est hated unexpected input.

But strangely... he didn't ask William to leave.

Author's Note:
A heartfelt thank you to my dearest friends, Snowbellk6 and Crossroadbluesj2 , for inspiring the concept behind this story and for always encouraging me to keep writing. Your unwavering support means the world to me.