Marissa was lying back on her couch in her comfy sweatpants, her laptop humming. Her fingers clicked along the keyboard, her mouse searching until she found a thumbnail that looked intriguing.
Ricky the Mukbanger was seated before a giant mountain of cheeseburgers.
She tapped the video open and Ricky’s theme music played.
That man has been on for years, and he makes tons of cash. Millions!
“Today was a tough one. Me and Vince, well, we tried to go shopping but of course, there’s always The Discrimination. They wouldn’t let me use the scooter. They said I broke it last time. So we had to have a big battle and I complained about my Human Rights.” Ricky was already launching into a story as he shoved the first cheeseburger into his mouth. He spoke as food fell from his lips, ketchup and mustard splashing his cheeks.
“The nerve, you know. All these able-bodied people judging me. JUDGING ME. As if I can help how big I am…you know I can’t.” Ricky pushed another cheeseburger into his mouth, barely chewing as half of it fell out of his mouth as he swallowed the rest. “Plus, I’m on a diet. I’m going to be on Dr. Now’s show…maybe… if I can get big enough! Dr. Now?! Ya watching?”
Marissa’s laptop and phone chimed. The bank account sound! She clicked pause on Ricky’s theatrics.
Marissa checked her bank account. She refreshed the page twice. A deposit for today. Five hundred dollars. She couldn’t believe it. She blinked and refreshed the page yet again, punching in her password once more. There was a loud thump behind her.
It startled her enough that she hit the mouse and closed the page.
“What the…” she stood up to follow the sound. The room was small. The bookcase looked intact. No furniture was overturned. There was no one there. She walked around the room, stepping slowly, watching for anything, feeling anything.
“Sheesh.” The goosebumps had given way to embarrassment at herself. Since when did she startle over nothing?
Marissa was settling back into the couch when she noticed something on the floor over by the far wall. She sat up. She looked again and frowned.
“Oh, how did I miss that? Of course.” Marissa got up and went over to scoop up the picture that was lying on the floor. She checked the back. It was sturdy. The hook was still intact. She rehung it on the wall.
Wonder what that was about? Earthquake? Creaky building settling?
She settled back into the couch and picked up her laptop. She typed in her password again and stared in wonderment at her bank account balance.
“Five hundred dollars, and all I had to do was eat bacon and eggs until I puked. Wild,” Marissa grinned. “There’s the money. It wasn’t a scam.”
Her phone beeped.
It was Bonita.
“Are you available tomorrow?”
“Tomorrow?” Marissa pretended to flip through her daytimer. “What time?”
“If you could get to set for ten am we can have you finished by around seven pm?”
“I’m free.”
“It will be the same flat rate for tomorrow. Is that acceptable?”
“Yes. Do I do the same thing?”
“It will be a different location and different set-up. I’ll email you the info later.”
Marissa hung up the phone and stared at the computer screen that still showed her bank account.
Another five hundred! A thousand bucks in two days! It WAS like winning the slot machines!
Watch out, Ricky! There’s a new Mukbanger in town!