Myth #01: Trashy

"That works. I should be free again Saturday."

She browses through reviews on her phone. "There's nothing good out right now, though."

"This summer's been weak," you agree.

She hands it to you it to look over. At the top of the box office is a threequel of a reboot of a spinoff of a franchise, boasting "the most cars ever destroyed on film." You can't help but laugh.

"I know I'm one to talk," she says, "but how do people like this trash?"

"They eat it up... I was reading about it the other day - movies like that try to cover their plot holes by going faster, louder, further over the top, because the more breaks you have to think, the more you notice them. So they pile on action and explosions and barely let you breathe. But it's ironic, that gets even more boring. You need peaks and valleys. You can't start at eleven and stay there-"

"Or it loses all meaning, right?" She takes a sip.

Your eyes meet in a silent in-joke. You pass the phone back. She scrolls down to a shallow will-they-or-won't-they romcom. "I've heard this one's a good hate-watch." There's little she loves more than making fun of things.

"Whatever. At least it'll take my mind off the job," you sigh.

"Hm?"

Thinking about it triggers a sudden surge of anger. "My boss's pissed about my performance report, and he's making me debug the whole app myself as a form of punishment. I already pull a ton of unpaid overtime, here comes more. And he has the balls to complain about my attitude. It's like he wants to own my whole fucking life!"

She snickers into her hand. "You people work so hard! Have fun with that!" Then she pays for herself and leaves.

You envy her.