Chapter 8
She steps outside to her porch and quickly starts playing a song on her phone as the gentle sun welcomes her. She took a brief pause to consider whether she should get her drink first before going to the café.
She decided to drive to the grocery store since it would be a long walk and there would be a space where she could park the car at the café.
She quickly made her way to the grocery store and grabbed 12 pieces of 500 ml canned beer. She also bought some scotch in case she felt like it later.
It didn't take long for her to finish, and now she's back in the car but has been pondering whether she should visit the café or not. Evidently, there's nothing to think about because her subconscious can't wait to drive to the café.
She sighed, wondering if this was going to be a good idea, which she hoped it would. She patted herself on the back and assured herself that she was there as a customer and is not there for something or someone else.
Shortly after, she arrived at the café only to be disappointed because the girl was not inside. She sat for a minute to see if she was just at the back of the shop, but after some time, she was not in sight.
She proceeds to visit the counter instead and orders a drink to go. The guy, Oliver, got surprised when he saw Z, whom she didn't recognize at first but soon smiled brightly and talked to her casually like they were friends, much to her surprise.
"Hey there, I know you! You were here yesterday as well, right? You had lunch with Kaye last week, right? I saw you sit there for a while, but I didn't know that it was you because, you know, the cap." He pointed at the cap she is wearing right now and continued, "Are you perhaps waiting for someone?" The guy bombarded her with questions that he said in one breath. However, she lost track of the questions, and all she heard was Kaye.
"Y-yes I am." she stuttered.
"Yes, what? Waiting for someone, or did you want to see her?"
"Yes, uh, no, I—," for some reason my words are failing me. The girl with raven hair coughed and said, "I mean, yes, I was here yesterday and had lunch with, erm, with Kaye."
"Hmm, I see. What can I get you for today?" The guy behind the counter raised a brow and continued with a large grin, "I can get her if you want." He finished as he tapped on the POS.
He said something that made her brow furrow. She recalled the guy glaring at her from time to time, and this is getting her confused. She chose to dismiss it and ignore it.
"I-I'll get a— erm… an iced coffee. …venti," she quickly added, trying to stop herself from humoring the guy and ordering Kaye to go. She smiled slightly, trying to be polite. She was not sure if this dude was making fun of her or was just this rude to customers or whatever.
The guy raised his eyebrows and smirked like some cool kid and said, "Alright, let me fix you a venti iced coffee. Would that be all?"
"Yes, er, that would be all." She replied, hating herself for stammering so much. If this was about work, she wouldn't have any trouble talking, but she can be really awkward sometimes, and she herself doesn't get it.
The guy nodded and asked another question, "That will be $2.95. Will it be cash or card?"
She handed him her card, implying that she would be using it to pay for her order.
"You sure you're not waiting for someone, or, wait, let me rephrase that, you're not here to see someone?" He raised an eyebrow once again while Z's eye twitched in annoyance.
"I'd be glad if she were here, but I am not waiting for someone." Z mustered all the politeness she could muster and still answered the guy.
"Well, let me make your day. I'll get her for you." The guy behind the counter once again let out a knowing smile and winked. He must be pretty confident in his appearance to act like that, the tall girl reasoned.
Oliver knew her sister was crushing on Z, this girl has been the reason why his beloved youngest sister has been smiling a lot. Although he didn't like the idea, he decided to call her out.
The tall girl panicked and wasn't sure why the guy was being so pushy. "Hey, uh, you really don't have to. I was on my way home and just stopped by for a bit. I wouldn't want to trouble her."
But, despite Z's reluctance, he knew that this would also brighten her day, but he will never admit it. As much as it pains him to call her out, he wanted to make Kaye smile like she did a lot yesterday.
"You know, why don't we sit down while we wait?" Oliver said as he circled around the counter to reach her. The guy has been annoying her and now just enters her personal space by wrapping his arms around her and reaching for her shoulder. Despite the fact that nothing but his palm landed on her shoulder, she still felt awkward.
Oliver was about the same height as Z. He has light brown hair and good looks that could easily win over any girl. He looked so good in the barista outfit that it seemed natural for him to be making coffee behind the bar.
'This guy is either too friendly or just plain rude,' she thought to herself as she followed him to one of the tables. It looks like a slow day, and he might just be trying to entertain himself.
He brought out her phone and dialed a number. The other line answered after a couple of rings. Z heard an annoyed voice that hissed, "What do you want now?!"
He paused for a few seconds and said, "Hey, come down here. Someone is looking for you."
Z can no longer hear the other side but continues to stare at Oliver.
"I don't know, just come down here." The brown haired guy paused and said, "No, I'm not tripping."
He listened for a bit, then sighed. "Yadda, yadda, yadda. I need you here in 5 minutes or you'll regret it for the rest of your life." Finally, he said and hung up the phone.
Z just looked at him in wonder, "I mean, she's obviously busy, and I didn't actually come to see her." She said it, but she knows she's lying, and she can't wait to see the girl who has been living rent-free in her head.
He chuckled and said, "Nah, don't worry about it. She's just upstairs, and she'll be down in a bit. Just wait for her here." Z was left with nothing to say and just nodded her head slowly.
A couple of minutes passed, and she saw someone out of the corner of her eye who nastily opened the door to the kitchen. When she turned her gaze to it, she saw a goddess with a messy bun dressed in a faded loose shirt and casual shorts that revealed her bare, long, and thick legs, and Z almost fell out of her seat in surprise.
The raven-haired girl swallowed a lump in her throat and smiled inwardly at the irony that a goddess in simple clothing looked hot as hell. 'This girl is going to be the end of me,' she thought to herself.
The girl in question walked right up to Oliver and made a dangerously enraged face as she did so, and the woman sitting down at one of the tables followed her every step.
She saw how Oliver pointed his chin at her location, and she winced. She secretly cursed the hell out of Oliver, for she didn't want to get caught up in this situation and face an angry angel. She just raised a hand and waved hello to the girl, whose eyes brightened up and seemed to her like she had seen a ghost or a monster. As soon as their eyes met, the strawberry blonde girl immediately ran back to the kitchen.
Z was left alone, staring at the door and looking back to the counter, stupefied by what just happened.
As she came to her senses, she looked at Oliver and said, looking dejected, "Is the coffee ready? I-I think I better go now."
Oliver just chuckled and brushed her off, saying in return, "The drink is almost done, and she'll be back, that I assure you."
Z just sat in silence, waiting for her drink, not believing that she'd be back while thinking about her relationship with the goddess.
She wondered why she had to go like that. She has seen her smile at her all week, and what happened is quite something that makes her second guess all of her life decisions.