Rachael, 28

Do you live in Seattle?
No, I live in L.A., I'm just here for the weekend.

Are you in a relationship?
Yes, I've been with my boyfriend for about twenty months.

That's a very precise number. How did you meet?
We met at in the comics section of Borders. We both reached for the same comic book.

Seriously? That sounds like the "meet cute" scene from some adorably geeky rom-com.
Yeah, I know. Nobody believes me when I tell them that story, but it's true.

Did you immediately bond over your love of comics?
He looked at me and said, "Marvel, or DC?" That's where we're different — I'm a DC fan, and he likes Marvel. He's into Spider-Man, the X-Men, etc., whereas I'm more into Batman and other DC characters. I'm more of a villain fan, whereas he likes the traditional "good" heroes. I can relate to villains more often, because they're more complex, and there's more to interpret. Heroes are all good in the same way, but villains are all different, and that gives them depth.

You and he like different superheroes. How have you managed to bridge the gulf?
For one thing, he's really, really good-looking. Like, movie star. He's an actor, which is how he ended up in L.A. Also, he's a great guy, and a total geek, even if he's not the exact same flavor of geek. We get along well, I think in part because we give each other space and the leeway to pursue our own interests.

Would you say that your boyfriend is a "hero" type in real life, and if so, does that play into your relationship?
I think he likes to think of himself as a hero — I believe that he wants to be good, whereas I understand that there are shades of gray, in life, love, etc. He's very much a gentleman, very manly. But in a way, I kind of rescued him...

How did you rescue him? Please, tell me a guy in a penguin suit was involved…
I wish. When we met, he stayed with me for a while, and after a few weeks, we were living together.

Wait. You moved in together after only a few weeks?
Yeah, he was living out of his car — he'd just arrived from the Midwest. It was kind of trial by fire, but so far, it's worked out.

How important is it that a guy shares your "geeky" interests?
I don't necessarily need a guy to be into things like gaming, or comics, or Dr. Who, or sci-fi, as long as he understands that it's a big part of who I am. Some guys can't process the fact that a girl can be an "authentic" geek. They act like women in geekdom are second-class citizens. Like, "Oh, look, she likes gaming, isn't that cute?" My boyfriend is into World of Warcraft and Final Fantasy, which I'm not as into, but as a gamer and a geek, he understands how I can get really into a game or a T.V. show, any other geeky obsession.

What was the dating scene like in L.A.?
Very spread out. It's a huge city, but people find a corner, and they don't venture out. Sometimes I would meet guys online, but they were only looking for girls who literally lived in a one-mile radius of where they lived. If you live three miles away, you might as well be in Bangladesh.

NEXT: "You get more face-time with people when you're bartending..."