She thought, brightly, This is the worst life decision I have ever made! And she marvelled at herself for a while, at the mystery of this person whod just done this bizarre, inexplicable thing.

Margot meets Robert. They exchange numbers. They text, flirt and eventually have sex the type of sex you attempt to forget. How could one date go so wrong?

Everything that takes place inCat Personhappens to countless people every day. ButCat Personis not an everyday story. In less than a week, Kristen RoupeniansNew Yorkerdebut became the most read and shared short story in their websites history. This is the bad date that went viral. This is the conversation were all having.

You Know You Want This, Kristen Roupenians debut collection, will be published in February 2019.

Kristen Roupeniangraduated from Barnard and holds a PhD in African Literature from Harvard. She is a Zell Fellow in the University of Michigan MFA program, and has received numerous awards for her work. She has studied with Laura Kasischke, Jeff Van der Meer and Claire Vaye Watkins.Cat Personbecame a viral sensation when it was published by theNew Yorkerat the end of 2017, dubbed the most talked-about short story ever. Her first book,You Know You Want This, will be published by Jonathan Cape in February 2019.