2. Spoilers
2
Spoilers
Saturday morning, I sucked my spoon clean, letting it linger like a tongue depressor while I skimmed social media and online forums. The usual moral questions and confessions of the day gave way to pop culture memes.
One was captioned: The other murderer in The Widow when the spider showed up.
What the hell? I dropped my spoon, the metallic clank sending my black cat skittering from between my legs. “Sorry, Jinx,” I mumbled. That meme should have been marked for spoilers. The movie had only been out for a day.
I flagged the post and resumed scooping cold, ring-shaped cereal. What did they mean “other murderer?” Were humans involved? Did the spider have babies? That’d make good sequel material.
I cracked my neck. Maybe I needed to lay off social media until I saw the ending for myself.
I placed my bowl onto the floor as a peace offering to my cat, then made a post.
Who wants to see The Widow with me? [smiling imp emoji][spider emoji][black heart emoji]
My younger sister Tori commented with a wide-eyed, blushing emoji.
Scaredy cat :P I typed back, petting my actual feline as he snuggled up to my leg and sniffed at my leftover cereal milk.
Privately, my sister texted me a follow-up question.
Tori: I thought you went to see that spider movie last night to celebrate your promotion?
Oh, she was concerned I’d been ditched by all my friends. Well, coworkers.
Me: I had to miss part of it. I’d love to see it again for the full experience.
Tori: Ok well…I’ll be your backup next weekend :)
She was sweet, but I could imagine her slinking down in her seat and covering her face with her jacket much like Willow had done with her hair. At our parents’ house, my sister would cuddle up next to me with a blanket and do nursing homework while I jokingly quizzed her on how to treat disembowelment and demonic possession. We couldn’t do that in a theater–and I was not bailing on the show to take care of someone again.
After cleaning up breakfast and making sure Jinx had his morning kibble, I went to the mall for my opening shift. About five minutes into my walk past the metal detectors, my phone buzzed. An old classmate commented on my post.
Yo, we’re going tonight at 6 if you want in
Me: I’ll be at work :’(
A few other people commented, but no one could go to the super late showing tonight or tomorrow. Stupid weekend hours. Stupid plans. How long was I supposed to avoid the internet?
I unlocked the store and flipped on the lights.
A few minutes later, AJ saluted me on his way in for his shift. “Hey, boss.”
“Hey.” I still had the urge to check over my shoulder for my predecessor whenever someone said that.
He jerked his chin at the west side of the mall. “Thanks for organizing the movie last night.”
“No problem.” It would’ve been nicer if I actually got to watch it.
“Are we gonna be doing more of that? Because the theater has a whole series of horror movies this month.” He grinned, his glasses shining with the overhead lights.
“Maybe, I hadn’t planned on it.” But it’d have to be something family-friendly if Willow was joining in. “Any music requests?” I asked.
“Nah, go ahead,” he said.
I selected a nostalgic band and hoped the memories of experimenting with winged eyeliner and hanging out in people’s basements would distract me from the urge to read movie spoilers. After all, I’d seen plenty of spiders in those days. Nothing to obsess over. Jinx would probably bat them into submission if they dared to take on the dark corners of my apartment.
The workday was fine until AJ put some chain belts on a hook. “Oh, this reminds me of that scene in The Widow–”
“No spoilers.” I balled up a discarded dressing room shirt and tossed it at him.
“Sorry.” AJ gave me a sheepish grin. “You really need to see the ending.”
Didn’t I know it? I just wanted to find someone to go with me.
The rattle of combat boots drew my attention to the front of the store. A young guy with facial piercings sauntered down the aisle like some punk cowboy. He was even wearing a brimmed hat. Well, a beanie. A green beanie. Vegetable-adjacent thoughts weren’t sexy, but he had the tall, dark, and handsome thing going. Especially with those nice cheekbones. But he didn’t have scythe bangs like the guy at the theater. Not that a hairstyle disqualified someone from date possibilities. I didn’t know—or like—that spider man.
I popped my hip against the counter and tracked the customer as he meandered around the perimeter of the store.
“Maybe you could ask him.” AJ shrugged, folding the band shirt.
“Let’s see what he’s into,” I whispered.
The punk glanced at the cartoon pony gear, cat ears, and animal onesies.
I arched my spine in anticipation. Please keep walking, I prayed.
He picked up a sparkly upside-down plushie from a pile and smiled at the big-eyed pony.
No thanks . I sighed. Just when I thought I’d found someone like me, he turned out to be a furry.
No shame to anyone in that lifestyle, but it was not for me. Too much hair. And fur. I had enough lint-rolling to last a lifetime with Jinx. Most of my wardrobe, and his fur, was black, so I didn’t have to deal with it too regularly.
The punk guy placed the plushie right side up in its bin, then sauntered on.
Oh. Was he just fixing up our display? If so, I was down to date. Or maybe bang. Hot, helpful guys were hard to find. But our chemistry was yet to be determined. I fixed up my bustier and strode over to where he’d paused by the jewelry display. The purple cuffs on my boots flapped like badass bat wings.
“Hey.” I slung my thumb in my skirt pocket so I didn’t seem too eager.
He touched his eyebrow piercing and glanced my way. “Hey.”
“Are you looking for another piece?” I gestured to my lip in reference to his hoop. It was a subtle suggestion. Lips, kissing, rebellion. Somehow, I’d transition to spider movie dates.
He rubbed his eyebrow and frowned. “I dunno. I’ve had these since I got them.”
“They’re nice. Just curious.” Smiling, I leaned against the display and played with my necklace. “I’m happy to help if you see anything you might like.”
“Uh, okay,” he said. He stared at the display, his brows knit in intense concentration.
Either I was coming on too strong or he was oblivious. I downshifted to small talk. “Did you come in for anything specific or are you browsing?”
He shrugged and twisted the crackling jewelry display. “Mostly browsing. I kinda wanted to see if you had face paint for Halloween.”
That could be interesting. “What were you thinking?”
“A skull. It'd be on half my face, at least.”
“Sick.” I grinned. It’d be the best of both worlds–half his real, hot face, and half macabre for the holiday. “We have a few kits that might work for that,” I said. Cosmetic stuff was not our strong suit, but we had decent sellers like black cherry lip balm and temporary hair dye. I showed him the skull makeup palette we carried as a limited-edition tribute to a beloved ghoul character.
He flipped over the label. “Sven?”
“Yeah, have you seen his stuff?”
“Not since I was a kid,” he said. He didn’t sound overly impressed.
“Well, he’s still really popular.” I played with the edge of my cross and shifted my weight. Maybe he didn’t like horror after all. Or maybe he didn’t like salespeople all up in his business.
AJ blatantly ogled us from across the room. The punk guy’s jaw flexed, his brown eyes flashing with the rebel glint of someone who was begrudgingly ready for trouble anywhere they went.
I raised my eyebrows in a silent attempt to call my coworker off. Either get some popcorn or get back to work . He was unnerving the customer—and my possible future date.
AJ pushed up his thick, black-rimmed glasses and hurried to a different customer by the anime display. At least he got the message.
The punk put the makeup palette back. “Thanks for the tip. I’ll look into a few more options before I commit.”
To a girl? Or a costume? I pushed my hair behind my ear, partially to show off my piercings and prove we shared at least aesthetic interests. “Yeah, lots of options. I’m having trouble deciding on which movies to see this weekend…although I’m leaning towards The Widow. Do you have a strong opinion?”
He shrugged, his pretty face passive. “It depends what you’re into, I guess.”
Unfortunately, I was not into this lack of conversation. Neither was he, obviously.
A girl from a passing group of teens spun around and grinned. “You have to see it. The ending is such a twist. When the spider comes out and—”
“No spoilers,” I insisted, almost shrill and shaking from adrenaline. I had to see this movie ASAP—with or without a date. Even if that meant sneaking out on my lunch break.