Swipe Left for Love
never knew that I’d only get the rest of her life. People can slip away from you so fast. You never know how much time you really have with someone. I wanted more than the eleven years I got. I wanted more kids with her, gray hairs, grandkids. Cancer didn’t care what I wanted. Life didn’t care what I wanted.” He stood from the table, leaving his plate. “It’s the one time in my life I lost. Don’t lose over something you can control, son.”Zac didn’t see him leave, but he felt his absence. He wasn’t sure what bothered him more, the talk about his mom or the fact his father was right. The hole in his chest ached as he remembered his mother’s last days. Her hair was gone, her skin pale. She joked about looking like a vampire without fangs. Even through the cancer, she kept her sense of humor. And that was the worst part for him. Zac couldn’t remember anything but the cancer. He never told his father that. It would hurt too much if his dad knew. Even staring at family photos before she was sick felt like he was looking at someone else’s life. After she died, he lost his father for almost a year. There was a shell of a man who took him to school, fed him, and made him do his homework, but it wasn’t his father. Not really.
That was what Zac was really afraid of. The realization smacked him in the chest. It wasn’t about being rejected. It was about being left again.
But what if? That was the question circling his brain. What if she’s the one? What if she’s everything she seems to be? What if? What if? What if?
Zac opened up his tablet. No new message. He’d messaged yesterday about something trivial and hadn’t heard back yet. They’d steered away from anything philosophical or deep lately. Not anymore. He needed to know if this could be real. He began to type.
CHAPTER SIX
The reception area was larger than the space for the anchors and their mirrors, which reminded Macie of a backstage theater complete with messy desks and makeup strung about. The anchors’ desk space was slightly larger than an actor’s though, more like a combination of an open office cubicle and a makeup table. It was odd. The graphics department was jammed into a large closet with three cubicles stuffed inside, one of which was empty. Could she see herself in that space? At this point, she didn’t care. She just needed a job.
Macie didn’t have to wait long after her tour before she was ushered into the office.
“Have a seat,” Nancy said. “Dwayne at channel nine thought you’d fit in here. That’s the reason he sent me your resume.”
Macie swallowed hard and nodded. Nancy Carter was everything Macie expected. Strong-willed, determined, and a roaring bitch. Not that Macie cared. It was an interview, a potential job. If Nancy hired her, then Macie could suck it up and deal. The station wasn’t as big as Macie thought it would be. It was incredibly small actually.
Nancy spent the first ten minutes asking standard interview questions, most of which Macie had prepared herself for, and then asked for Macie’s portfolio. She handed it over with solid confidence. She’d spent the previous night reviewing the station’s website and watching news clips from recent stories. The graphics they used were simple and clean. And not too difficult. The job wouldn’t be hard. She could do most of these in her sleep.
“Ms. Regan, your portfolio is good. Very good.” Nancy said as she flipped through the art Macie had printed. Macie made sure the ones she had available matched what the station was already known for. “But we’re looking to add some...” Nancy rolled her wide hand in a circle as she searched for the word or paused dramatically, Macie wasn’t sure which. “Pizazz. Yes, that’s the word. They need to stand out more in this market. As you know, the news department has only recently been rebooted. We need to go the extra mile to knock our competitors out of the way.” She leaned in and Macie fought the urge to lean back. “Do you have anything else?”
Macie didn’t break her gaze and she reached down into her canvas messenger bag. Her tablet was so old Macie was almost embarrassed to let Nancy see it. But she bucked up and unlocked it and opened the file before handing over it over. She’d been working on a portfolio for freelancing work while she waited. Some were book covers, some book trailers, others were ads for small companies. Macie needed a backup plan to no job and that was what she had come up with. She’d also added some of her favorite fun graphics to the mix along with wedding invitations and such.
Nancy’s face lit up. The hard lines around her eyes and mouth softened. A smile lifted her cheeks, taking ten years off. The station manager wasn’t old by any means, but she was clearly battle worn with the lines to show it. By Macie’s guesstimate, Nancy was only in her early fifties. Her potential boss cleared her throat and pointed at the screen. “Wedding invites?”
It was time to throw her cards on the table. “My friend is getting married in a few months. And since I haven’t had a lot of job offers thrown my way, I thought I’d do freelancing work in the meantime.” She cringed at how that sounded because it sounded like she wasn’t good enough to get hired anywhere. “It would keep my work fresh as I continued to look.”
Nancy nodded. “Smart. Do you plan on freelancing anyway?”
“Maybe. It would depend on my salary.” Stop talking. Stop talking. Stop talking. Macie cringed again. “I had to take out student loans.”
“Back up plans are always a good idea.” Nancy handed over the tablet, and Macie’s heart sank. The woman stared at her for a moment until Macie