Talia Bernstein heard Adele sing and felt inspired to make her move.
It was December 2015, and for months, she had a crush on Kristen Zublin, whom she had met during an improv class in Los Angeles. Even though their class had ended, the two continued to hang out with each other, often deep into the night talking.
As they were lying on a mutual friend’s bed, and Adele’s “Send My Love (To Your New Lover)” played through a speaker, Ms. Bernstein nuzzled into Ms. Zublin’s neck. “And she didn’t move away,” Ms. Bernstein, 34, said.
Both went home for the holidays, and after they returned to Los Angeles, Ms. Bernstein invited Ms. Zublin over to make pizza. But Ms. Zublin, who had never been in a serious relationship, was confused as to why their other friends from the improv class weren’t present. Their alone time had typically come only after everyone else had gone home.
“This is a date,” Ms. Bernstein said she told her.
“I was like, ‘Oh, OK,” Ms. Zublin, 32, said. “I was a hard one to date because I didn’t pick up on cues.”
With Ms. Bernstein’s guidance, their romance blossomed. By spring 2016 they were girlfriends, and about two years later they moved in together. Their shared career goals deepened their bond. The improv class, at the Upright Citizens Brigade, proved to be both women’s final foray into acting.
“We were both like, ‘We’re not performers, we’re writers,’” Ms. Zublin said.
