Honestly a lot of you guys are probably very correct in stating that this was the wrong way to go about it because of emotional connections. It was honestly the easiest way for me to start thinking about it because flirting online is easy and the progression to texts and phone wasn't intimidating.
I'm going to keep an eye on the emotional crap over the next week and if it seems like it'll be a problem, I can always rearrange travel plans.
Maybe a random stranger may be a better idea down the road. This just felt safer though I know it poses another set of risks.