"You've been in a cheery mood lately," Krista said, sitting across from Carl at one of the tables in the coffee shop.
It was a gloomy day outside, and the shop was never busy on gloomy days. Krista had on her "rain as a metaphor for emotional distress" playlist, and Rhythm of the Rain by The Cascades was playing.
Carl smiled. "Neil and I had our Date Number Four yesterday."
Krista laughed. "I see. I take it it went well."
"It was fun," Carl said, blushing.
"Is it more than fun?"
"What do you mean?" Carl said, finishing off his coffee.
"I mean is there an emotional connection, or is it just physical."
"I don't know," Carl said. He had been wondering the same thing. He and Neil hadn't really talked about it. "I think we're just seeing how it goes and keeping it casual."
"Is that what you want? You strike me as someone who wants more than casual. I know you've been lonely, but you shouldn't settle."
Carl shrugged. "I don't know. This is good enough for now. Something is better than nothing."
"I'm sorry," Krista said. "I shouldn't have been a downer about it. I think it's this playlist. I think I'll change it to something less melancholy. Do you think an all Burt Bacharach playlist would work? A little Dionne Warwick?" She laughed.
Carl laughed. "I don't know," he said, getting up. "But I have to get to work anyways, so don't change it on my account."
"OK," Krista said, getting up, too. "Try not to have too bad of a day."
***
As Carl crossed the parking lot to the office, he spotted Mike getting out of his car.
"Mike!" he called out. "What are you doing here on a Monday? Do you have a meeting with someone?"
Mike stopped and waited for Carl. "No, I actually came in to see you. I would have texted but I thought it would be better to do this in person."
Carl was confused and concerned. If Mike had been his manager, he would have been worried he was being let go. "Do what in person? What's wrong?"
"Nothing serious," Mike said. "We just need to talk about something sensitive and..." He smiled. "Don't worry, it's not bad. It's just...not something I want to do over text. What are you doing for lunch?"
"Nothing right now," Carl said, his heart beating hard with anxiety. "Do you want to talk over lunch?"
"Yeah, let's do that," Mike said, smiling more. "It's not bad. I promise."
Carl tried to smile and relax. "OK," he said. "I'll believe you."
YOU ARE READING
Missing Things - FIRST DRAFT
General FictionA first draft of a mess about a guy, a pandemic, and an empty office. It's about missing things. One of the things that's missing is a plot. As I said, this is a first draft and it's here for funsies. At some point it'll be taken down because I'll w...
