Today's Reading
Charlotte sped up to pull open the door at the end of the hall. "You were great, though."
"Eh, I was fine. Thanks." Mita breezed past her into the main waiting room of the courthouse. "I shouldn't have asked what he was doing at the bus stop. I should've asked where he was going."
"No, no, it was good," Charlotte said, half jogging to catch up with her again. She had put on her nicest sneakers for court, but Mita was still outpacing her in heels. "It put him at ease. And I couldn't see his attorney's face, but it probably put him at ease, too. They didn't see the bus routes thing coming at all."
"You're probably right." Mita smiled at the guard as they passed the security checkpoint and exited the building. "I just don't like making mistakes like that."
"Call it a strategy, not a mistake," Charlotte suggested as they stopped outside. She squinted in the midafternoon sun. "That's what I do when I play board games with Landon. He believes it every time."
Mita fished a pair of sunglasses out of her bag and put them on. "Are you sure I can't pay you for your help?"
Charlotte hesitated. Sure, it would've been nice if she was getting paid for the work that she—somewhat reluctantly—enjoyed. But while she had recently allowed herself back into detective work—investigative consulting—she was determined not to let it consume her entire identity like it had when she was a child. And getting paid for it felt like a dangerous step in the direction of making it her entire identity.
So, she shook her head. "It's just a hobby; I'm not trying to monetize it. Besides, I'm starting my new job next week. Soon I'll be swimming in it."
"'Swimming in it'?" Mita said teasingly.
Charlotte gave her a "you're right" face. "Wading in it. Dipping a toe in it."
Mita smiled. "Well, thanks again. Let me know if you ever need me as a reference—I'll give a glowing review."
"Just please don't give me more than two stars on Rate My Detective," Charlotte said with feigned gravity. "I'm trying to keep my score at a solid three-point-five so I don't get overwhelmed with emails."
Mita laughed. "Alright. See you around."
Charlotte waved as Mita departed down the sidewalk. It wasn't until she'd disappeared around the corner that Charlotte realized she was still waving.
An almost-perfect interaction, she thought, dropping her hand as she pulled out her phone. Recent texts from her friend Gabe appeared on her screen.
Gabe: 911 emergency
Gabe: pls come asap
Charlotte typed out a response:
Charlotte: I made Mita laugh
Charlotte: you owe me cash
Charlotte: five dollars
Gabe: HELLO???
Gabe: NINE ONE ONE
Having been friends with Gabe for upwards of ten years, Charlotte knew "911 emergency" could mean anything from "someone is in the hospital" to "a celebrity I like tweeted something mildly problematic." Feeling victorious after her interaction with Mita, she headed for her car to drive to the shared apartment of her two best friends.
Charlotte barely got one knock in before the door flew open. Gabe stood on the other side, his brown eyes wide behind round, wire glasses.
"I had a dream last night that I was playing the Emcee in Cabaret in high school but couldn't remember any of my lines, and then I realized the audience was actually an amusement park, and then I got really sad because for some reason I thought I'd be too short to ride any of the rides, even though we all know I'm five-foot-ten on a good day."
He stared at Charlotte intently. "What do you think that means?"
"Why are you wearing your glasses?" Charlotte replied.
Gabe self-consciously adjusted the frames. "My new job doesn't give me vision insurance, so I'm conserving my contacts. Do they look okay?"
"Yeah, they look great."
Gabe was twenty-five, Filipino American, with warm brown skin and dark brown hair that was pushed out of the way as he adjusted his glasses again. He was wearing a burgundy crewneck sweatshirt with the sleeves rolled up, and dark jeans cuffed at the ankles.
He crossed his arms. "What do you think my dream meant?"
"Did you eat anything right before bed?"
"Cheese Danish."
"I think it meant you had a cheese Danish right before bed.
Also, we need to go over the definition of '911 emergency.'"
Gabe stepped back to let her enter the apartment.
...
