Some people let the whole world know how they feel about every little thing. Others are so cool calm and collected, one is often left puzzled by what moves them. Not this retro chic beauty. Charm was her mood, sultry was her secret, sass was her armor, but you had to see her on the dance floor.

Retro Mellow Yellow

Few use the words “laid back” and “mellow” to describe their relationship. Most friends thought there was something wrong whenever James and Alice expressed their lackluster relationship. It was supposed to be hot and spicy. They were not together that long. A handful of good years, but not long enough to have run out of steam. Yet, here they were, just enjoying life casually in no hurry.

Their friends, the ones with the relationship fury, seemed to have rocky bumpy days more often then not. As far as James was concerned, it was wise to go easy than to flame out early. To Alice, good… sometimes was the enemy of great. To feel James’ desire flare up every now and again was not such a bad thing to ask.

A typical morning would start off with a generic phone call. There was no expectations about who would place the call first. As luck would have it, they called each other at a pretty even pace.

“Hi Kit” James would usually start. Kit was the shortened nickname that Alice went by. Full nickname being Kit-Kat.

“Hi James” Alice would reply.

“What’s on your agenda today?” James almost always followed, quite predictably.

“Why so formal James Bowe?” Alice would say in her typical silly voice trying to get her boyfriend to lighten up the mood.

“Oh you know. I like to take care of business first, before pleasure” James would reply.

That was the rub. James was always business first. Alice seemed to favor play and silliness a bit more.

“Always the business man. When do I get to play with the artist?” Alice would pout over the phone as she pulled herself lazily out of her bed.

“My dear, you know my schedule. I was just checking in to make sure you had a great night” James would reply slightly annoyed that the routine phone dance always felt so dry.

“Of course. The schedule. Absolutely. Yes Sir!” Alice poked fun at James.

“So… lunch at our usual?” James switching over to his professional voice… signaling the end of their usual banter.

“Must we have lunch again? I’m trying to fit into my new dress… remember?” teased Alice.

“I love you babe” James countered.

“Do you really?” in her sultriest voice.

And with that, the pair would move on to their morning routine before rushing out their respective doors to work.

When Work Activities Collides

On this particular day, Alice got lost in her spreadsheet. There was a big set of acquisitions that her company was undertaking. This would not only boost their market shares but would increase their revenue flows without having to change their workforce. This entire plan was made possible because of a new innovative process Alice was perfecting.

The job paid the bills. The office was stuffy and stiff. Suits everywhere every day. Few ever broke the mold to wear something creative. Thankfully, the lead manager was a woman with sense who allowed two days a week for creative outlets. There was the standard casual Friday and there was Wacky Wednesday.

To be fair, it was not a full blown fare. Staff was permitted to accent their looks with something different and more relaxed. However, few took the opportunity to go wild.

The clock was moving at a fast pace and deals were being structured while the lawyers hammered out the details of the acquired assets as the ink slowly dried on the contract. Lunch hour came and went without so much as a peep from Alice.

On his end, James was not sure what was going on. Their plans had clearly stated that lunch was on for the day. The bit of humor that Alice used left some ambiguity that always left James feeling annoyed. This was one thing he wanted to change about Alice. She rarely confirmed plans directly. There was always a bit of sass and dance around her answers.

While this had never been a problem before, today, James’ biggest fears started to manifest themselves. Alice didn’t show up for their lunch date and had not called either.

Resisting the urge to text his lady, James opted to look around the square to see if there were clues as to what might be holding up his lady. All of her coworkers were out and about doing their typical shopping and rushing food back to the office. No signs of Alice anywhere.

On his end, James tried hard to understand the rigors of Alice’s work. He was an artist. Not the starving kind. As a well seasoned cellist, James had a full schedule of performances that kept his bills well covered. This meant that his days consisted of a lot of dedicated practices interspersed with managing his performances. The business of music was fun overall. Being told what to do by a boss didn’t appeal to James.

What ever could have kept Alice from their time honored date? James wondered to himself. Taking out his phone, James slotted an appointment in their joint calendars to discuss their missed date. For now, it was time to get on with the other half of his day.