Right Down The Line

3

Bee's POV:

My eyes shot open at the blaring sound of the ringtone that I had set for Whitney in my phone. Disoriented, I stared up at my ceiling fan for a moment before looking out the large window to my right, seeing grey clouds blanketing the daytime sky. I wondered if I had missed my alarm.

Usually I worked from home every Friday, making the hangover from Karaoke Thursdays a little less painful. Aside from a couple of morning meetings, it was usually a slow and easy day, meant for writing in the comfort of my own little oasis of an apartment. With my salary increase with this job, I could've moved to a larger space months ago. But I had everything I needed here and I loved my neighborhood so there was no need to move. It also didn't hurt that the building's property manager hadn't increased my rent since I moved in several years ago.

I grunted out a whine and rolled over to grab my phone from the bedside table. Seeing that I hadn't missed my alarm - the time read 6:45 AM - I grunted again and furrowed my brows at my phone screen while I propped myself up on my elbows, considering whether or not I was going to answer. I watched it ring for a few more seconds before swiping my thumb across the screen and putting it to my ear.

"Whitney?" I didn't bother hiding my groggy voice since we were well outside of business hours.

"Bee, hey, sorry to call so early," her voice was rushed and she sounded winded.

"It's fine," I cleared my throat, "What's going on? Are you okay?"

"What?" She sounded confused. "No, yeah, I'm fine. Hey listen, can you get to the office in uh..." there was a pause, "In thirty minutes?"

I frowned. "Um..." I rubbed my eye with my free hand. "Why?"

Whitney's breath huffed into her speaker. "So many questions."

"Whitney, it is seven in the morning on my work from home day." I deadpanned. "What is going on?"

"We have a meeting," she said. I heard a door open and shut, then the sound of an engine whirring up. Whitney took a quick breath, as close as she probably ever gets to taking a deep breath. "It would be very beneficial to have you there. I would really appreciate if you can make it in, and I am sorry for calling you so early."

I rolled my eyes at her flat tone but I didn't miss the attempt of kindness from Whitney's end, telling me she was truly desperate for help.

"Alright, I'll be there in thirty." I pushed the covers off of my body and sat up, waiting for her to hang up first, which she did.

These last-minute requests and meetings were pretty common from Whitney, just not usually this early in the morning. But problems - or opportunities - were likely to occur with clients who were in different time zones. Being on the west coast, we're always behind everyone. I couldn't help but feel a little excited, thinking of the leads I had had out for bands and artists on tour in New York and thinking that maybe one of them wanted to have a phone/video meeting with us.

After showering and brushing my teeth at the speed of light, I kept my hair up in a claw clip and whisked on a bit of mascara. I scurried back up to the loft to begrudgingly put on a bra and underwear, then decided to throw on the same outfit I wore yesterday since it was hanging conveniently on my chair. I sniffed the black shirt to make sure it didn't smell like a bar, then pulled it over my head and slipped on the long flowing polka dotted skirt right after. Grabbing a pair of socks and my work bag, I headed down the stairs to tug on my low heeled boots and was out the door with a slight headache, but time to spare.

The drive was quick and easy, with light traffic in the still-darkened city and a convenient parking spot in front of the building. I was chilly without a jacket but I welcomed it since I had been so rushed, hoping that the cold breeze would rid my cheeks of any flushed redness.