A Picture of What Now?

‘What if I got another job? A different occupation to the mundane task of shooting people all day everyday?’ Bonnie pouted her lips as she pondered the thought. It was a typical day in the office, the usual hive of activity buzzed around her, but Bonnie couldn’t be less interested in the work of ensuring true love.

‘That’s a lovely idea, Bonnie. I’m not sure it would work though. Correct me if I’m wrong, but didn’t you sign an agreement that committed you to this role till you depart this earth?’ Richard smiled at her sympathetically.

‘Well, yes, technically, but there are always loopholes and ways to exploit the system. The problem is that there is no point doing that without something to fall back on.’ She twisted a pen in her hands and toyed with the career possibilities. ‘I could write another book…’

‘You could. The first one was lovely. Cheryl really enjoyed it. The only thing was that, well, it didn’t really sell that well, did it? So I’m not sure that would work out, is all.’

‘Richard, reality does a good enough job of killing my dreams. You don’t have to jump on board as well.’

‘Sorry, Bonnie,’ he said sheepishly and turned back to his computer screen. ‘Maybe we could talk some more about it later? New orders. Just emailed them to you.’

Bonnie’s eyes scanned the screen. ‘Are you kidding me with this?’ she spat.

‘I know it’s not your usual.’ Richard had lowered his tone.

There he was. The back-up plan, the man who had rejected her because he’d met someone else. Bonnie had been certain that as he hadn’t landed on her desk yet, this affair of his would amount to nothing more than a fling. Instead, she stared at their picture, the stats scrolling the screen beside it, feeling very much like her own heart had been pierced with an arrow. Okay, maybe not her heart, but definitely something in her torso. Or wherever it might be that the ego was contained anyway.

‘Fucking Tinder. As if Ok Cupid wasn’t bad enough. Now we’ve got stupid apps on phones making my job harder.’

‘If it wasn’t a genuine match it wouldn’t come through, Bonnie. They do check these things.’

‘No, they don’t. The get kind of a vibe and then they send it through to me. I had to weed out over 3000 matches they sent through last year that would never have survived the year. The year! Screw it. I’m not shooting him.’ She folded her arms, very much caught in the throes of a tantrum induced by the dire state of her love life.

‘Bonnie…’

‘No, Richard. That jerk has kept me waiting on a commitment for two years now. He wants a girlfriend? He can fake his way through a relationship with her and just pray that his love is pure enough to get them through. Ugh! Three weeks ago he was sending me penis pictures and now he’s apparently in love? No. He can do it without me.’

‘Bonnie,’ sweat appeared on Richard’s top lip. ‘Are you really sure about this one? I mean, I know you are the best-‘

‘The best in the world, Richard. The very best,’ she said, a smug look settling on her face.

‘Yes, but surely part of that is knowing when to make the match and when not to. You never let your personal feelings interfere before. I know it must be upsetting having to shoot all the men you’ve had feelings for, but surely you are mature enough that you wouldn’t avoid making a match just because of a few untoward pictures? Come on, let’s rise above this.’

‘No, Richard. Just no.’ Bonnie’s bottom lip jutted out stubbornly. She was not going to be swayed.

‘But you know what can go wrong,’ he protested.

‘Yes, I do. And you know what? I’m not sure I care anymore.’ She felt a tingle in the exact spot on her ribcage where she’d been branded a cupid. To unknowing eyes it looked like a normal tattoo, but an x-ray of her ribs would reveal it had been etched deep into the bone. The skin burned where the arrow marked her flesh, but Bonnie ignored it.

Richard, mouth agape in horror at Bonnie’s defiance, watched as a sly smile slowly spread across her face.

Fine, she thought to herself. If they weren’t going to let her quit her job, she would be the first cupid in history to get sacked.

And so it was that Bonnie Martin refused to set up a match because of a few penis photos and put herself at risk of becoming the first Cupid in history to be stripped of her arrow.