Chapter 10
Z drove all the way to Ethan's house with a grin plastered on her beautiful face.
The Scott couple meets her inside, and Amelia gives her a warm hug, showing how much she has missed the girl. J got his height from his father because the woman hugging her is not tall at all. A Hispanic lady that's almost two heads lower than her, so she had to bend down to receive the hug.
They treated her as if she were their own daughter, even before her parents left the earth. Their husbands were co-workers since they were young, and she was a good friend to Z's mother, Alicia.
The thought of marrying both their kids came up at one point, but the idea was rejected by both due to the fact that they are more like siblings than friends. Not to mention, one of them is gay.
Although she treats her as her long-lost daughter, the couple doesn't have any problem with her sexual orientation and accepts her for who she is. Amelia has even set her up on blind dates with girls at times.
They all had a fun dinner, and she went back home, leaving J behind, as he'd like to spend the rest of the weekend with his parents.
While driving, she glanced at the set of food containers resting on the passenger's seat that had all kinds of side dishes for her to eat at home.
She could never be more thankful to the two. Her mind wanders back to the day she lost her parents.
Both J and Z, together with another friend, were at home playing some game on their console when the Scotts came in to relay the devastating news that none of them were prepared for.
Amelia gave her a hug while she was too stunned to react and just cried hysterically after absorbing what they had just told her. She couldn't believe it the first time, but because of Amelia's crying eyes and Ethan's dark expression, she came to believe that it was the truth.
Her parents were in a car accident. They were out together with her brother and met their unfortunate fate. Her brother was driving their parents to the airport to celebrate their anniversary in the Maldives, but it never happened. The same day that everyone was supposed to be happy about took three people out of her life.
She tried to hold back a tear that was threatening to fall, resulting in her driving slower and with caution.
They had a great and loving family. She loved her parents more than anything in the world. She had a tough time recovering from her loss, and she wouldn't have made it if it wasn't for her friends, relatives, and J's parents. Not to mention that she has to stay strong for her beloved sister.
Before they started college, J raised the idea of living with her and taking one room of her house for himself, which she rejected at first, but since his parents agreed and backed him up on the idea, she agreed. They have known each other forever, and having them stay at one house is not going to be a problem because she trusts him and his parents know that.
J is a fun kid to be around, and he has helped in more ways than she can count. If she was not into girls, then she might have married J. If romantic feelings were going to be a problem, then she definitely wouldn't have agreed.
It has been long established that what they have is pure friendship, if not brotherhood. They have many things in common, as well as many things in opposition. They may have the same hobbies and interests, but they have different personalities.
J has always been the type to go around and hang out with people. J used to socialize by running around the classroom, even when they went to college. On the other hand, Z just keeps to herself most of the time and only talks to people when she deems it necessary.
She arrived at home after almost an hour of driving, changed clothes, and went straight to bed.
She pushed the worries away and looked at the ceiling, thinking about what was going to happen tomorrow. She slowly drifted off to sleep, thinking about the strawberry-haired woman's green eyes.
* Xx * x * x * x * x * x * x * x * xX*
Z woke up at the sound of her alarm. She never sets her alarm on Sundays, but today is different. It showed up at 6 a.m. She had to wake up early to make sure that her camera and art supplies were ready to avoid any trouble.
She went straight to the bathroom and later decided what she should wear. Looking at her closet, she picked another pair of black trousers, then she pulled out a black V-shaped shirt and quickly put it on, showing a bit of her collarbone. She layered it with a denim polo and finished it with her black Vans Vault. She checks out the time and sees that it was already 7:30. She gave herself one last quick look in the mirror, grabbed her keys, and headed out the door.
If Z didn't have any problems picking out what to wear, Kaye, on the other hand, has been murdering her closet trying to find the clothes she'd like to wear. Clothes and dresses are everywhere. The bed, her study table, her chair, and her disheveled dresser were nowhere near their usual states.
She ultimately chose a simple white dress that falls just below the knee. She puts on a bit of make-up, trying to go for a natural look, and simply fixes her strawberry blonde hair in a ponytail with a bit of hair falling to the sides. She quickly put on her denim jacket—which took her forever to decide which one—and went to slip on her white shoes.
It's 07:50 a.m., and as Kaye opened the door out of the kitchen, she immediately saw Z speaking with her big sister, taking something from her hands, putting it in her wallet, and stowing it in her back pocket.
She flushed after seeing that their clothes almost matched. Z noticed her and looked up and down her outfit, which made her conscious of how she looked in the eyes of this gorgeous giant in front of her.
"Here she is." Kaye's sister said "I need a break from this kid, so you can bring her back anytime."
"Understood. It was nice meeting you, Cassie. And uh, thank you for the trust!" Z replied, holding the back of her neck.
Kaye's gaze trailed down from her eyes to her neck, which was showing a bit of her collarbone. She had to swig the lump forming on her throat caused by the steamy display early in the morning.
"Likewise." Cassie smiled at her and gave Kaye a knowing look, then walked back to the kitchen.
Kaye simply laughed at her sister and asked, "Ready?"
"Pleasant morning to you too. Have you had your breakfast? —because I haven't yet."
"Not yet. Let's just grab something and eat it on the way." She guides Z to the counter.
"Sounds like a plan." Z flashes a grin and looks up the menu.
"I would love to have some clubhouse sandwich and a fresh orange juice, you?" Kaye asks her.
'I'd love to have you for breakfast' Z looked at her with hunger and dismissed the weird thought by biting her tongue, thinking about what was wrong with her for thinking that way so early.
The girl is just so alluring that she can't help these unwanted desires from haunting her.
"I'd like some grilled cheese sandwiches and a cup of orange juice." She answered.
"You heard that, Lory?" She asked the new part-time employee behind the register, who did not appear to take her gaze away from Z.
"This time, it's on me." She threw the girl a strange look and then proceeded to pay with her credit card.
"I beg to differ. I got it." Z protests, but Kaye just insists. The argument went back and forth for a while, and Oliver, who was standing beside the girl behind the counter, just looked at them with his eyes twitching at the scene.
Having had enough, he grabbed her sister's card. "She's paying since you're driving. Done. Now get out of the way; there are people behind you, lovebirds."
They were about to speak up when Oliver interrupted them with a hand motion and panned to the side, saying, "Eop! Tch, tch, tch. To the sides, please, dear customers." He said this as he was smiling without his eyes.
Kaye held the cuff of Z's polo and pulled her to the side. "Don't mind him; he just likes to joke around a lot."
Z just bends down near her ear and replies in almost a whisper, "Thanks for letting me know; I thought he was serious." then took a seat on one of the chairs.
Kaye's face flushed a crimson color. She shut her eyes in a tight manner as she felt a current run up her spine all the way to her neck, causing the hairs on her nape to stand up.
She tried hard to poise herself and sat down beside Z, wondering how she would survive the day.