Page 48 of Capturing Love

Marlene flew through the door with her assistant trailing closely behind. A deathly silence fell over the room as we anxiously awaited her speech. Linda looked terrified.

“After ten amazing years, our little indie magazine has grown into something bigger than I ever imagined. It has the potential to be so much more and I’m both saddened and excited to announce that Maude has been bought by a much larger company that will help it grow into what it deserves.”

I threw Amy a sideways glance as Marlene continued.

“Representatives from the company will be here tomorrow to meet you all and discuss your future. Now, I’ve been assured that most of you will retain your jobs, however it is inevitable that some changes will need to be made and a few of you will be let go, but not without a glowing recommendation from me, of course.”

Gee, thanks, Marlene. You’re a real sport.

Amy leaned towards my ear. “I think I’m going to vomit.”

I rubbed her back, but I felt the same. “At least we still have jobs.”

“For now,” Pete muttered.

The meeting ended with Marlene hugging each and every one of us. It was fine for her. She would be retiring after they appointed a new editor. The rest of us had mortgages, rent, kids and bills to think about, and there weren’t many other jobs like this around.

I dragged myself back to my office and slumped into my chair, ignoring my office phone as it persistently rang. Instead of checking my messages, I picked up my cell to ask Lenny to leave a job open for me, but Pete interrupted from the doorway.

“We’re all heading to The Edge after work tonight. Want to join us for some commiseration drinks?”

I would normally decline any invitation from Pete, but this was different. He looked as drained as I felt. “Sounds perfect.”

His frown turned upward. “Perhaps we could grab a bite to eat afterward…”

I mentally face palmed. “Pete…”

“Okay, okay.” He chuckled before retreating down the hall.

Later that night, I stumbled into my apartment after consuming copious shots of whiskey to dull my anxiety for what the next day would bring.

“Hey Luuuuuci,” I slurred, cuddling my gentle giant until we were rolling around on the floor. Perhaps I’m a little drunker than I thought.

I searched the fridge for a snack and washed down some pain killers with three glasses of water, trying to avoid the inevitable hangover coming my way.

As I crawled onto my bed and under my blankets, I spied Grayson’s phone sitting on my nightstand. I picked it up and squinted my eyes as I attempted to turn it on, but nothing happened.

Twisting myself in the sheets, I hung my head over the side of the bed, my rainbow hair swishing over the floor. My blurry gaze met the power point on the wall and I groaned. It was switched off. I half-heartedly attempted to reach over and flick on the switch, but I clearly passed out instead.

* * *

The raspy vocals of Born to Run blared in my ear, and I knocked over my lamp trying to find the phone with my eyes glued shut.

“What?” I cried, when I finally focused enough to perform basic functions.

Amy’s voice was unusually low. “Josie, where the fuck are you?”

“Huh?” I glanced at my clock and my heart stopped. 9:15am. Please be Saturday? Please be Saturday? “Fuuuuuck! I slept through my alarm!”

“They haven’t arrived yet, but get here as soon as you can. I won’t be able to cover your ass this time.”

Launching out of bed, I came crashing down onto the floor, still tightly tangled in my bed sheets. Fuck! Quickly unravelling myself, I lunged into the closet and threw on my favourite jeans and my last clean shirt, along with my darkest sunglasses.

I grabbed my gear and raced out the door, down two flights of stairs and ran, all while my head screamed at me to slow the fuck down. I darted across roads and weaved around pedestrians, while cursing at myself for being so stupid. Of all the fucking days to be late!

Arriving to work in record time, I glanced at my phone and cringed. 9:40am. Avoiding the irritatingly slow elevator, I sprinted up the stairs, praying I would arrive before my new boss.

I reached my floor and pushed open the emergency door, panting heavily. Confusion set in. The place was empty. Perhaps it really was a Saturday and this was all some elaborate prank.