If it weren’t for the email, it would have been a normal Saturday night. Julie and her partner Kevin took the day to tick everything off the extensive ‘to-do’ list Julie had prepared for them. They enjoyed a self-congratulatory bottle of Borolo, devoured Kevin’s signature seafood carbonara, and were settling in to pick a movie for the night.
“Popcorn?” Kevin asked as Julie flopped on the couch.
Julie was always amazed at Kevin’s ability to eat so soon after dinner. And annoyed. Men have it so easy! “Really? Come on, we just ate!”
“Ya, but it’s a movie. You can’t watch a movie without popcorn.” Julie rolled her eyes. “Come on, you know you want to.”
“Fine, but no butter!”
“Ogre.”
Julie snicked in agreement as Kevin headed back into the kitchen that he had just finished cleaning. She was grateful he enjoyed cooking so much more than she did and even more grateful that he didn’t expect her to help clean up. In their successful divvying up of household duties, she was more than happy to take on money management, vacuuming and dusting (done while listening to her favourite investment podcasts), and the occasional load of laundry. They ate out more than at home so it felt like a fair split to both of them.
After a few minutes of beeping, popping, and cursing as he emptied the steaming popcorn bag into a bowl, Kevin returned to the den to find Julie scrolling Netflix.
“Anything good?”
“Not yet; what do you feel like watching?”
“Not that crappy crime series we started last week. Horrible. Movie please.” Kevin said through mouthfuls of popcorn. Julie took a fistful and continued scrolling with the other hand. “We’ll be done this bowl by the time you pick something!”
“Fine, you choose.” She laughed as she stole the bowl from him as he focused on the screen. It was then that Julie heard the distinctive ping of a message on her work phone.
“Don’t do it…” Kevin warned.
“I’ll just check quick.” Although not entirely unusual for her to get a message on the weekend, Julie was curious what could be so pressing given they had just secured their biggest client yet at the firm. Julie went to the charging station where she relegated her work phone on weekends and read the text.
Hey, Jules. Can you set some time aside Monday morning to see me in my office? Thx.
Julie frowned. Her boss Rick was not one for vagueness and certainly not one for setting up meetings during the weekend. He had an assistant who managed his schedule and she never sent meeting invites on the weekends, one of the things Julie loved about her firm. Out of all of the marketing companies she’d worked for as she made her way from intern to VP, Gates & Morgan was the most respectful of their employee’s personal time.
“What’s up? Can I start the movie?” Kevin called from the den.
“This is weird.” And without saying anything to Kevin, Julie began to worry.