#cbcstart

Work had slowed enough for Heather to be lulled into a rhythm that allowed her to take some time to swipe on Tinder. “I’m just waiting for summer to come round so that all the fresh meat — I mean, interns, of course — can add some variety around here.” There was enough playfulness in her voice to suggest sarcasm, but not enough to be convincing. Her nose crinkled as she continued flicking to the left of her phone screen. She was rarely seen without the device. It had her music and social life, controlled her work life, and was rarely out of her sight. In an out of character move, she turned phone over to the other. “What do you think? Yay or nay for this one?”  

Quality whiskey was a quality start to the holiday season. Leon supposed that a perk of being the man standing behind the bitch who ran the universe was that your liquor cabinet was always well-stocked. Taking a measured swallow of his drink, he smoothed his traditional all-American friendly-people’s-representative smile back on.

Jamie felt a hand tap twice on his shoulder, and he turned into it, raising his eyebrows as he glanced back at the person responsible. He pulled out an earbud, even if it was just for show. The earbuds were usually quite effective at discouraging this sort of disturbance, despite the fact that he wasn’t listening to anything through them. “What do you want?” he asked, and stared at the other person, turning around halfway so he could look at the other person’s face more closely. “You want a soundbite on the vote, maybe try the Press Secretary. Full disclosure -- I’m not him.”

TEXT | Mariana & ???

The suitcase Jermaine carried dug into his palm as he climbed the steps to his apartment complex, his free hand digging in the pocket of his pants as he searched for his keys. For a moment, he was struck with panic as he couldn’t feel them in his left pocket. He dropped his luggage and rummaged through his other pocket, glancing over his shoulder in time to catch a glimpse of a familiar face.