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That Kiss
11/27/2023
Carol squinted at her phone. ‘7:15? So much for sleeping in.’ She swept to answer. “Maggie?”
“Happy Cyber Monday, Carol. Take a peek at the photo I sent you and call me back.”
“Maggie?” The line had already dropped. She searched for Maggie’s text. “Oh, boy.”
The photo featured Megaman dipping her and kissing her under the mistletoe.
‘That kiss.’ She set her phone down and sunk under the covers. ‘I haven’t even talked to him about it. What am I supposed to tell Maggie?’
Sarah popped her earbuds in and rolled her yoga mat out. She had her wake up tunes cued up. “Press the button and get stretching.”
After her wake up routine, she showered and dressed for a long overdue day at home. She’d been waiting to spend the day in her big floppy sweater and fluffy socks, just bumming around the house.
“I wonder if Paul goes for the comfy bum look.” She puttered around, waiting for her herbal tea to brew. The aroma brought a smile to her face as she cleaned up the few dishes that were waiting for her.
“Hmm, now to see what’s playing.” She mused as she poured herself a mug of tea. She squeezed some honey out of the little plastic bear and a bit of juice from a plastic lemon. “He said it was okay for me to pick. So, do I take full advantage and pick a chick flick? Do I indulge him with some action deal or meet him in the middle? Maybe a comedy…”
She unplugged her tablet from the docking station and tapped the microphone icon. “Movies playing in my area.” She collected her tea from the counter.
“Okay, I’ve found movies playing in your area.” The mechanical voice replied.
She took a sip of her tea, savoring the warmth as much as the flavor. It had been a really cold weekend, and she was glad to be staying home at last. “What’s this?”
She saw a notification in the corner of her browser window. She tapped the exclamation point. A miniature menu dropped to display a count of new hits for the Jingle Bell Jubilee. “Work stuff can wait.” She rolled her eyes and returned to the movie listings.
Carol’s phone chirped. She sighed before answering.
“Well?” Maggie said with feigned annoyance.
“I remember he dipped me, but I had no idea it looked like that.” Carol sat with her head in her hands.
“Oh, it looks like something alright.”
“It wasn’t. Honestly.” She said as if the phone laying on her kitchen table would believe her any more than the mayor would.
“Wow, Carol. If that’s nothing, I’d hate to see what something actually looks like.”
“Maggie…”
“That’s my name. Don’t wear it out.”
“Who even took that?”
“I don’t know, honey, but it’s all over the news.” Maggie snickered. “Truth be told, I can’t decide if it’s a scandal or the best publicity this sleepy little town has had since the Senator stopped for brunch at the Marbury.”
“The news?” Carol gasped.
“Yep, I’ll bet they’ve heard of the Jingle Bell Jubilee in Mumbai, Timbuktu and Saskatoon.”
“You’re having entirely too much fun with this.”
“Maybe so, but that’s the best I can do at putting a positive spin on this.” There was a tone in the mayor’s voice that put Carol’s teeth on edge.
Sarah scrolled through the movie listings. Nothing caught her eye. Not a big deal. If things went as she hoped, she wouldn’t be watching the movie anyway.
She took another sip of her tea as curiosity got the better of her. Might as well check the media listings quick. Herbal tea sprayed from her mouth as the mug dropped from her grasp and spilled on her fluffy socks and kitchen floor.
“What the—”
Jeb was scrambling some eggs when Paul’s wristband beeped. “Do you really need to take that?”
“Might be more instructions from Phillipe.” Paul shrugged. He was sitting at the table, wrapped in a thick robe.
Jeb nodded.
“HEARTH?”
“Message from Sarah MacInnes.”
He looked at Jeb. “Maybe she picked a movie?”
“I don’t know if you’re ready for that.” Jeb said, stirring the eggs.
Paul looked at the holographic text of the message. “Looks like she’s not ready for it, either.”
“That’s good. Right?” He portioned some eggs onto a plate.
“No, not really.”
Carol was pacing around her living room when the phone rang. “Hello?”
“Hey,” Paul said. “I think we should talk about this.”
She coughed nervously. “This?”
“Have you seen the picture?”
“Under the mistletoe?” Her voice cracked.
“Yeah.”
“It’s just…”
“Look, we’ve got these guys.” He paused just short of forever. “They like to try to get compromising pics of us.”
“Us?” She sat down, the phone clenched in her quaking hands.
“The Sentinels.”
Her heart dropped. “Oh, I see. Who are they?”
“They call themselves the Watchers. They’re equal parts fan and muckraker. They like to catch us doing anything that can sell a picture or a quick video.”
“How did they get that photo? I didn’t notice anyone.” That one stuck in her throat. ‘You didn’t notice anyone because that kiss melted your brain, genius.’
“My team tells me they’ve gone virtual paparazzi these days. They could have gotten it from somebody’s phone that was pointed in our direction. I’m sorry.”
‘Dear God! I’m not. That kiss.’ She smacked the arm of the chair. “Sorry?”
“I thought since I was way out here…”
“Well, you couldn’t know. Could you?”
“No, apparently not.” He exhaled hard.
“It’s not as bad as all that.”
“Well, it is and it isn’t.”
She shook her head. “Come again?”
“It’s bad because it means I’m not being situationally aware. I’m even more compromised than I thought I was. Jeb’s right. I need to stay out here a while and get my head straight.”
“Okay, that’s the ‘it is’ part…”
“It’s not bad because…”
Her heart nearly stopped. “Paul?”
“Well, it’s no reflection on you. That is. I mean, a random kiss under the mistletoe. Right?”
“Paul.”
“I didn’t mean it like that. I mean, it was random but…”
“Yeah. I felt it, too.” She whispered.