Monday's were the slowest day of the week, after the coffee rush ended mid-morning Velvet took to staring out the window as her brain failed to think straight.
It felt like her thoughts were being violently compressed, that comprehension was just beyond her grasp as she attempted to process the flurry of activity over the weekend.
Her life was usually straight forward: wake, open the deli, go to the gym, watch Netflix, sleep.
She didn't have friends to pass time with, and usually spent weekends staring up at the sky, practicing her powerlifting over and over in her mind.
Sure, she could do deli's books; she could work harder to promote it online; she could volunteer at a shelter… but she lacked motivation.
The only time her heart used to race would be when a customer asked for help, like Mama Thai on Friday afternoon.
In part, her heart beat out of her chest from anxiety, the fear of stepping out of her comfort zone and being in a new situation. But there was a small part, over to the left, that got excited for the chase.
Usually, it wasn't anything serious, helping stage photos for Instagram, moving furniture, painting, online shopping, fixing a printer… but something strange was happening around town. The homeless moved differently, they were nervous; Rat-Man was dropping in on businesses unannounced; and Volta had a secret he didn't want Velvet to know.
Velvet pictured her life like a Netflix Original, with loud music and jump-cuts, longing stares across rooms and awkward pauses.
Just like in an Original, there was no such thing as a coincidence in Nambour.
Everything was connected; just like pink twine that ran from pictures to names on Velvet's cork-board in her apartment. Up until now, her life had lacked excitement, she had lacked a muse.
Now she had one, triceps and all: Volta.
Each time she saw him she would have a near-death experience. At first glance, her heart would stop, a chill down her spine from the shock of seeing him. Then, without warning, her heart would beat so fast she would nearly faint.
When she was by herself she was cool, calm and collected. When she saw Volta her thoughts crashed into one another and she became clumsy, red-faced and shaking.
She now walked like Volta was watching her at all times, when she spoke she tried not to frown and held her lips differently. She sucked her tummy in, threw her shoulders back and summoned her ego with every breath.
It was exhausting, but she looked fabulous.
Velvet jumped as someone bounded through the back door unannounced.
"Ah!" she yelped.
Jasper stood in the middle of the deli kitchen, smiling apologetically.
"Sorry!" she placed her bag on the countertop.
"What's up?" Velvet leaned back, trying to compose herself.
"I was trying to do some study at the library but it was too busy," Jasper pulled a chair out from the storeroom and set up a work station in the corner of the kitchen, "looks like there's a protest happening at the council forecourt."
"Oh yeah? Anyone we know?"
Jasper shrugged, already lost in reading something on her laptop screen.
Velvet went back to staring out the deli window.
They sat in silence, Jasper tapping away at her keyboard as she wrote about herbs and tinctures. She was a second-year naturopathy student, and at 21 she was full of life.
Jasper stood an inch taller than Velvet, with long strawberry blonde hair and vivid blue eyes. She lived off-grid in the bush, greeting the morning sun with yoga and hand ground coffee. Velvet was equal parts in love and jealous, wanting to be as innocent and carefree with perfect teeth and low body fat.
Jasper was the closest thing Velvet had to a friend, floating in through the deli door a year earlier on a cloud of rainbows and puppy dogs. They now saw less and less of one another with Jasper's study taking her into the city most days, and her search for love keeping her nights jam-packed.
"How do you feel about your post going viral?" Jasper looked up from her screen at a daydreaming Velvet.
Velvet swung around, leaning over the pass.
"What post?" she frowned.
Jasper held her laptop up to Velvet.
"The one you made about the development of Petrie, it's been shared thousands of times..." she pointed at the screen, "with comments from people all over the world."
Velvet's eyes glazed over as she looked at the screen.
"Huh..." she said.
Jasper stared at Velvet, eyes narrowing.
"Velvet this is a big deal, people are wanting you to do something about it."
"What do you mean?"
"Lordy, you're a bit slow today Vel. They want you to be the spokesperson for the countermovement."
Velvet scratched her head, unable to get a single thought to fester.
Jasper sighed, closing her laptop as she shook her head.
"Listen, I don't know what's going on with you. To be honest, you look like... you look really bad," she grimaced, "I know that you'll tell me if you want to, but just so you know, I'm here for you."
"Aw," Velvet smiled sweetly, "cheers dear."
"Ah-ha!" Jasper waved her hands around excitedly.
"I saw him! I just remembered!" she jumped up from her chair.
Velvet looked around.
"Saw who?"
"The guy! You know... the guy that's always staring at you from across the road..." she grinned broadly.
"Oh," Velvet's stomach flipped, "you mean... Volta?"
Jasper's mouth fell open.
"You know his name?!" she squealed, clapping her hands together, "Omigod! Did you--"
Velvet held up her hands to calm Jasper down.
"We haven't met properly... but I have seen him four days in a row." she smiled meekly, tugging at the tie strings of her dress.
"Oh. My. God. Velvetine is in love!" Jasper jumped up and down on the spot.
Velvet's face flushed with embarrassment, but she didn't object.
"Go to him!" Jasper pointed out the door.
"What?" Velvet froze.
"He's at the forecourt between the library and council chambers, I saw him just as I was coming here. It's a sign! Go to him! Get his number!"
Before Velvet could think twice she was being herded out the door and onto the desolate street.
Jasper slid the deli door closed and gave Velvet a thumbs up from inside.
"You look great!" she shouted.
Velvet rolled her eyes and looked up Howard Street, trying to get her feet to move in the direction of the library.
"Okay Velvet," she said, "time to go get this guy to like you."
She took a deep breath and powered towards Currie Street, despite her mind being in chaos she was painfully sure that this was the only way forward. If he wouldn't come to her to profess his undying love, she would have to go to him and make something happen.
As always, she was going to make the first move. And it was going to be a doozy.