A man I was seeing invited me to the movies.
It was supposed to be one of those easy, lighthearted dates — popcorn, laughter, and maybe a shared smile in the dark.
When he went to get the tickets, I stopped by the concession stand to grab candy.
The person behind the counter, a young woman with tired eyes and a quiet urgency, handed me a tub of popcorn instead.
As I tried to explain that it wasn’t what I ordered, she leaned closer and whispered one word that made me freeze — “Careful.”
Confused but uneasy, I took the popcorn anyway and met him by the theater doors.
When we walked in, I noticed he seemed oddly nervous, glancing around too often, his smile stretched just a little too tight.
Halfway through the previews, I reached into the popcorn tub — and my hand brushed against something hard …
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