Jaded

5AM. Alex and Jade’s phones beeped. Their daughter, Jazz was heading out for tennis. “Reached Tennis court” her best friend Cloe received a message when Jazz parked her car.

6.30 AM Alex, Jade and Cloe knew Jazz had burnt 800 calories. Jade giggled at the steady stream of gossip she was receiving about the Tennis match and her daughter’s opponents.

6.45 AM Jazz stopped by the florist to pick up a bouquet for her breakfast date with Sanders.

7AM Jazz showered and slipped into a yellow flowered top and matched it with an electric blue skirt from Zara. Today was just a lip gloss kind of day. Simple Lapiz Lazuli jewellery and sleek off-white slippers from Clarks completed the look. She grabbed her sustainable handbag from Amazon and dabbed some YSL on her wrist. A little too bright? Cloe winced.

Jazz had found Sanders via Tinder, surprised by how his name matched with the new admin of the tennis club.

8 AM Jazz met Sanders at the restaurant downtown. They chose a table overlooking the road. The buffet was scrumptious. Why did he look so uncomfortable?

8.40 AM The date ended faster than she had expected it to. Sanders left in a hurry. Cloe sighed, a little too loudly.

8.45 AM A gentle tap on her shoulder as she was unlocking her car. Jazz turned to face Nina, one of the girls from her undergrad days she could never get along with. She reluctantly hugged her before leaving with a lame excuse. Jade got a truck full of gossip.

9.30 AM Jazz signed into work

10.00 AM The first meeting of the day. What were the odds that Jazz would get to lead the ad project? Zero. The odds were always zero. Victor bagged it this time, just in time.

11.00 AM Her colleague Apsara stopped by. She had bought the same notebook Jazz had purchased at the flea market! They stepped out for tea.

11.30 AM Jazz quickly checked when her car was due for maintenance. The service station called her right then to remind her.

12 noon Another dead end meeting. An opportunity gone to the competitor.

4 PM Jazz’s phone buzzed. She had booked an appointment for a manicure and hair wash at 6PM. “Sorry ma’m the stylist had an emergency. Can you make it tomorrow?” She sighed at another cancelled plan.

5.00 PM “Another date gone wrong? Maybe you should dress better.” It was Cloe.

5.30 PM Jazz logged out of work and went to grab something from Starbucks. The stout customer who stood next to her was a little too close for comfort. He almost spilt her coffee before walking away hurriedly. Wait, what was Nina doing here?

6.00 PM Jazz drove to the local library. A copy of the brand new Grandmother’s Tales was lying on the first shelf. She had read reviews of it last night. She borrowed the book.

6.45 PM Jade set the table for dinner. Her daughter would be there in 5 minutes, she was just at the turnabout. She had a lot to tell her husband tonight.

8 PM Jazz sat down to journal, musing at life that resembled a broken pot that could not hold water … Draining, a lot like an antonym to her name.