The Earbuds

Short Story Day 163 of 365

“Excuse me,” the long, straight-haired brunette co-ed said. “But did you see my earbud? I was just using it and it seemed to have flung somewhere and I have no idea where it is.”

Caz looked up from his book.

“No, I can’t say that I have. When did you have it last?”

“That’s the strangest thing. I was just wearing it 10 seconds ago. I thought it might’ve come your way when I pulled it from my ear.”

He got up and looked in the booth on the other side of the table, on the floor, and lifted up his paperwork and napkins.

“I’m not finding anything,” Caz said.

Then he bent over and looked under her table and his own, and then under both booths.

“You looked in your purse and on top of your laptop?”

“Twice. Strangest thing.”

Caz pulled the booth away from the wall and looked down.

“Nothing here.”

She brushed out her hair with her fingers and patted herself down from her shoulders to her shoes.

Nothing.

“Strange thing,” she said again.

“Yeah, it is strange.”

Her phone chirped. She reached up and tapped an earbud, and was on the phone for three minutes.

After the call, she turned to Caz and said, “I found it. It’s embarrassing where it was, but I found it. Thanks for your help.”

Caz stared at the back of her head.

“Excuse me, Miss?”

She turned around and held up a finger to wait because she was on the phone again, this time speaking in another language.

The second turned into five minutes and finally Caz picked up everything tossed out the trash, and walking away.

As he reached the door, Caz turned back to face the lady. If he left now, he would never know where she found the earbud.

Life would just have to go on without him knowing that little detail.

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