"I have never heard him say more than 'Hello', 'medium Americano' and 'thank you'."
Eva was circling her as quietly and unsuspiciously as she could, like a hunter would with their prey. Quite daring of her, Reina thought, considering that she was her tutor, the person who held the authority to either validate her trial period or sack her. Suppressing the urge to roll her eyes at her, Reina forced a smile. She would try to be cordial.
For now, at least.
"Have you checked the fridge for more oat milk?"
"No, I-"
"Then now will be the perfect time to get some before we're rushed, don't you think?"
"I was going to wait until Damien arrived. Will you be okay by your own on the floor?"
"Yes."
The sharp edge in Reina's tone forced Eva to hurry and it was with satisfaction that the brunette watched her trainee's head disappear as she descended to their storage room. It was rat-free, unlike many 'caves' in Paris, but the humidity and smell were bothersome, and Eva hated going down there.
Eva was a messy worker. Dirty pitchers left and right, Reina cleaned the bar, putting cartons of different milk back into the small fridge below the counter and took the cleaned cups and saucers from the dishwasher to place them on a rack. The piping hot porcelain burned her skin, causing her to hiss quietly in pain.
That was when one of the lightbulbs underlining the coffeeshop's sign burst. A customer who was seated by the entrance screamed in surprise, jumping away to avoid the shower of glass shards. A familiar face waved at Reina from the terrace, looking at her through the window, a large grin on their face.
"I hate it when she does that..."
First thing first, she apologised to the customer – a beautiful woman with raven hair that brushed past her bottom — and cleaned the mess, making sure she got every shard to avoid unnecessary accidents. While her beauty was one of a kind, her personality was far from pleasant. Only when she was given a complementary beverage did she accept her apology and stopped writing the one-star review she was about to publish on the Internet.
As soon as Eva returned, Reina left her to look over the register for a quick minute and went outside with a drink in her hand and a blue rag in another.
Élodie sat at the table for two, her chin resting on top of her folded hands, watching the cars speed down the street. Standing right behind her, Reina cleared her throat, making her presence known.
"Old friend! It's always a pleasure to see you."
"I thought I told you not to come back."
In spite of her harsh words, Reina put down a steaming mug of peppermint tea. The sun shone brightly that morning and it showed how colourless Élodie had become.
"Ouch." Élodie smiled playfully. "I know that you're secretly happy to see me."
"I would be the happiest if you left." Because I don't want to watch you destroy yourself over a silly promise, she said inwardly, not having the courage to say it out loud. "Have you seen yourself? Oh, that's right, spirits can't look into the mirror, can they?"
Silence veiled over the pair, only the sound of busy life and traffic could be heard. Each heartbeat, Reina grew nauseous. Hurting Élodie was something she had always hated because she always hid her true emotions behind a thick mask even though she wore her heart at her sleeve.
Just as expected, Élodie smile never faltered, the corner of her lips stretching further. "I know you like the back of my hand, Ina. No matter how badly you treat me, I won't leave." She glanced at the cup of tea. "Thanks for the tea. I don't know when I'll be back but I'll come see you when I can."
And like a whisper of wind, Élodie left. At that precise moment, Reina crumpled down on a nearby chair, face buried in her hands. Things would've been easier if her dead friend cursed her for being heartless or begged for help. But that was not why she remained here still. She had so many loved ones that she wanted to protect that she was unable to move on and find peace.
Reina hated that she was one of them.
No matter how frustrated she felt, she couldn't cry. She was on the clock and she already had enough on her plate with the whole the-mysterious-regular-has-taken-a-liking-to-Reina thing.
A shadow cast over her and Reina dropped her hands to her lap, seeing a pair of black sneakers.
"You lead an interesting life, my dear."
It was Ciel once more and his timing could not have been worse.
"Do you know that you look like a mad person putting a drink on an empty table and speaking into the void? Your colleague has been filming you for a while now, I believe." Throwing a careless glance behind his shoulders, said barista blushed furiously before putting away her phone. "She is annoyingly nosy."
"Tch. She could get fired for using her phone on the floor. Not that I would mind." Reina grumbled mostly to herself but Ciel laughed nonetheless, finding her distaste for the blonde quite amusing. "What are you doing out here? Aren't you supposed to be sitting on your throne in the back of our coffeeshop?"
"My throne?"
"Well, you claimed it, even went as far as pay a monthly fee to keep it reserved all year-round."
"You're quite comical when you're not pouting." Reina was appalled. Her, pouting? "I'm away from my 'throne' to keep you company."
"I don't need your company, thank you very much."
Reina shot up sharply, smoothing the creases of her black apron, fixing her name tag. Before she escaped, Ciel caught her by the wrist and studied her features. He found her eyes mesmerising, one green and the other black, reminding him of a cat.
"What happened to young woman who spent her days staring at me?"
"I was NOT staring at you. You," Blushing, Reina sputtered, trying to come up with a passable excuse. While it was indeed the truth that she had been staring at him, it was not of romantic interest. She merely wanted to know about his identity. "You just happened to be in the line of my vision."
"Whatever the lady says." He smirked and it irked her to no end. "Back to the point, I'm keeping you company so that your colleague doesn't report to your supervisors that you're mentally unstable."
"I was not alone," she blurted out, annoyed to be seen as crazy. But she realised her mistake and regretted not thinking before speaking. "I mean-"
"Yes, I know you had company. She was quite lovely for a spirit who has been dead for five years. Has she started to go insane yet?"
"How do you-"
"How do I know all of this? Well, let's say I'm acquainted with the the 'other world'. A bit more than you, I dare say."
Somewhere between reassurance (that she was not the only who had this particular sixth sense) and dread, Reina felt significantly calmer and her curiosity peaked.
"Were you the one who made that little girl disappear last night?"
"Of course, it is. Did you really believe that a vengeful spirit gave up so easily a chance at revenge?"
"What are you, Ciel?"
He let got of her wrist and stared into her eyes, unblinking. His eyes were pitch black and the way he looked at her was unnerving. Chills ran down her spine and she shivered involuntarily, frozen on spot.
The tension snapped when he flicked her forehead and laughed loudly.
"Why don't you find out for yourself? I can guarantee that you're in for a good surprise."