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You’re The Boss

11/28/2023

Sarah knocked at the mayor’s door. “Maggie?”

“Take a seat, kid.” She pointed at the chair in front of her ornate oak desk.

She sat down and looked around the office. “I don’t know if Carol told you, but—”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah, I heard about how you quit.” She waved it away. “Look, I spoke with her last night. She had to go to the city with Paul’s doctor. I need you to step up for the week.”

“But I—”

“Grow up, Sarah. If you want to go into business for yourself someday, you’re going to need a bit more grit. I need you to keep the thing on schedule while she’s away. Capiche?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“The good news is that you’ve got Megaman all to yourself until she gets back.”

“I thought he was on bed rest or something.”

“Doctor okayed him for go slow. Don’t break my superhero.”

“Tell him not to break my heart.”

Maggie facepalmed. “Kid, you really wear me out. Look, you’ve got him all to yourself this week. Do something about it or don’t. That’s not my concern. Just keep the Jingle thing on schedule.”

“Jingle Bell Jubilee.” Sarah stood up. “Okay, I’ll take care of it.”

“Great, kid. He’s down in the planning room waiting for you.”

“Did Carol say why she had to go to the city? I’m pretty sure she has a regular doctor here in town.”

“She caught whatever Megaman has.” Maggie picked up a folder and opened it. “Shoo already.”

Sarah trudged down the hall. She hadn’t counted on being roped into this again. “When Carol gets back, I’m going to quit once and for all. Third time’s the charm.” She paused outside the door and took a deep breath before entering. “What did you do?”

Paul was sitting on the other side of the table. “I’m sorry.”

“We’ll see about that.” She unlocked a cabinet and pulled out a tablet. “Tell me what happened to Carol.”

“That was my fault. I should have known better.” He looked so crestfallen, it nearly melted her heart.

“Okay, be mysterious if you want. We’ve got to get this show on the road.” She waited for the tablet to turn on.

“From what she was saying, we’re just going to check in with the guys at the park.”

She fixed an icy glare. “That may have been her plan, but I am responsible for this while she’s out. I need to be sure those cottages are properly stocked.”

“You’re the boss.”

“And don’t forget it.” She headed for the door. “Keep up.”

“You were a lot nicer over the weekend.” He followed her out to the hallway.

She locked the door and turned to him. “That was before you kissed her instead of me.”

“If I had, you’d be at the Wisler Institute instead of Carol.”

“The Wisler Institute?” She hissed. “Isn’t that where they keep the supervillains? What did you do to her?”

He walked down the hall beside her. “I’m not supposed to make direct contact with people when I’m using my powers. I wasn’t thinking about it. When I grow up to my public appearance height, it doesn’t feel like I’m actively using my powers.”

“So, you kissed her under the mistletoe and you mutated my boss into a supervillain? Oh. My. God! To think I had a crush on you. Jeez…” She pushed through the door to the lobby.

“She’s not a supervillain.” Paul followed her outside. “Phillipe thinks they’ll be able to help her control or even suppress her condition.”

“Condition?” Sarah screeched as she waved her key fob at the little blue coupe. “What happened to her?”

“Nothing terrible, really.” He circled around to the passenger side. “It’s actually kind of cute.”

Sarah plopped into the driver’s seat. “Cute? Are you kidding me?”

“It’s pretty harmless.” He buckled his seatbelt. “For now…”

She clutched the steering wheel and honked the horn with her forehead. “Tell me what you did to Carol!”

He winced. “She makes little holographic Christmas decorations when she hiccups.”

“Makes them how?” She started the car.

“They, um…” His head drooped. “They fly out of her mouth.”

“Dear, God. Just stop talking. We’ll go check in on the guys.”

He nodded and looked out the passenger window.

“Why aren’t you in bed?”

He started pantomiming.

“Stop playing charades! Just tell me.”

“Carol wanted me to be her remote cameraman.”

“Of course she does.” Carol pulled into traffic. “Well, I’m here and Maggie said I’m in charge while she’s away.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Sarah wiped tears away as she drove to the park.

“I am sorry.”

“Why? I’ve got you all to myself this week.”

He nodded. “Is everything alright? You seem to be out of sorts.”

“I was minding my own business, trying to have dinner—”

“Was it bad?”

“No, dinner was fine, but Ryan was there with some Chinese-looking girl. He jumped up and yelled at me, right in the restaurant. I was so scandalized.”

“I’m sorry.”

“I don’t know what his problem is. He’s got some kind of persecution complex about me.” She turned into the parking lot at the park.

“He shouldn’t hang that on you.”

“Exactly.” She found a spot and pulled in. “You want to make it up to me? Keep him away from me.”

“Sure. I can do that.”

Carol was sitting up in bed when the doctor came in. “Good morning, Dr. Wisler.”

“You can call me Becca.” She smiled as she tucked a lock of auburn hair behind her ear. “Phillipe explained your situation to me. I think we can probably suppress that for you.”

“You sound so familiar.”

“My brother modeled HEARTH’s voice on mine. It’s kind of unnerving, actually.”

“I imagine. How would you…”

“We’ll be running some tests while you’re here. Depending on what we find, we should be able to develop a six-month inoculation for you.”

“So, I’d need to come here every six months for a booster?” She hiccuped and a holographic wreath sprung from her mouth. It twirled in the air with the holly berries twinkling before it popped into a plume of vanishing snowflakes.

“Wow.” Becca itched her head. “That’s the first time I’ve seen something like that.”

“I wonder if they’ll change to Valentine’s images after Christmas is over.”

“Hopefully, you won’t need to find out.”

“Do you have any idea how long that might take?”

“We should have you home by Friday.”

“That would be perfect. Say, do you have a wifi password? Paul thought he could show me the progress our guys are making on the changes at the park.”

“I really adore Paul, but he’s not the brightest bulb on the tree. We’re electronically sequestered to keep certain patients in and the Watchers out.”

“The Watchers? Paul told me about them.”

“They used to be techie superfans, but once they started attracting serious hackers…”

“Somehow, they hacked all the phones at our Black Friday weekend event and took pictures remotely.” Carol looked around the glistening white room. “So, there’s no way to receive messages here?”

“Sorry. We’ll get you seen so you can get home soon and see the progress in person.”

‘Oh, boy.’ She smiled. “Alright. Thanks, Becca.”