by Kylie Rae
“Oh, okay. Your mom isn’t like that, right?”
Robin laughed. “Hell no. My mom knows I’m alive, that’s what social media is for. We call when it’s important. I got my wandering soul from her, so she gets it if I don’t answer a phone call for weeks at a time. No big deal.”
Marnie digested the wandering soul bit with a slim smile, but then took Robin’s hands in hers again. “Okay, well let’s get out of here, yeah? I’ve got brownies and ice cream back at my place, and I’ve got a sweet tooth.”
Robin dropped money on the table to pay their tab and stood up. She dragged Marnie up and wrapped an arm around her waist. “I’ll give you something sweet,” she said and nuzzled Marnie’s neck. They left the diner in a fit of giggles.
Chapter Four
Kevin took a deep breath when he walked through the door of the coffee shop. The smell of vanilla and cinnamon alone could get his brain firing on all cylinders. A few moments later, he sat at a corner table with his coffee and pulled a folder out of his laptop bag. He had some paperwork to read through for work, but he’d stopped at the coffee shop again. Maybe she’d come through.
This was crazy. What was he even going to say to this girl? If he were good with words, he’d say something clever about her beauty, and he’d sound smooth and casual. But with his luck he’d probably drop his coffee when he tried to hand gesture and that would be it. He shouldn’t have made that stupid bet with Ben. He hadn’t had any luck with women in the first place, but after his ex screwed with his head, there was no hope for him.
Kevin tried to focus on his work and not peer up eagerly every time the door opened, but he did it anyway. The little tinkle of the bell on the door frame would drag his eyes up from the page, and he’d see another random person enter the shop. He would glance away once his brain registered this, but a few people noticed his stare and he grew embarrassed by his impulse to stare at the door.
She never came in, and by the time his cup was empty, he felt a little creepy and ashamed of himself. He packed away the paperwork and left the shop staring at his shoes. Maybe he’d see her again, and maybe he wouldn’t. He was going to have to live with that.
THE SECOND KEVIN STEPPED off the elevator, his mood dropped even more. Here the phones rang off the hook and someone always wore too much perfume. He wished for the millionth time he was able to work from home instead of in this stuffy room filled with too many cubicles and not enough windows. But his boss still considered it necessary to drag him in to the office four days a week.
He slumped into his desk chair, brought up his spreadsheets, and started on his day’s work. But periodically he thought about the girl and smiled to himself. It had been so long since he’d felt even the shadow of attraction for someone. He’d finally found the courage to leave Cecilia two years ago, but it had torn him up and he was wrong in the head for most of that time as he tried to get over her. He’d spent five years with her and only the first had been any good. Then she became manipulative and mentally abusive, and he hadn’t even been able to look in another girl’s direction without her berating him with accusations. Not looking at people was a hard habit to break. Even Ben got aggravated with him when he wouldn’t make eye contact to this day.
But that was over now. He’d gotten over her and her craziness, and he was his own person again. And that meant he was allowed like someone new and think about how pretty she was when her cheeks flushed. Kevin leaned back in his chair and reflected on when their eyes met.
A stack of papers smacked against the side of his cubicle and Kevin snapped back to attention. His manager looked back over his should with a raised eyebrow and he went back to clacking the keyboard.
It didn’t matter. It was a chance encounter. But at least he knew he could feel things again. That was something, at least. Even though Ben would never let him live this down.
WHITNEY PEEKED AT HER phone as she delivered the last tray of empty cups to the kitchen. She’d received a text message from Robin. She glanced around to make sure no supervisors were nearby. The kitchen was a total organized mess and chefs and servers ran in every direction so she felt no one would notice her for the moment.
Robin- Ice cream date tonight?
Whitney- Yes, please!
She smiled. What a great way to finish her day. Though it had been less stressful than the day before, it hadn’t been what she would call easy.
Chris spent the morning popping into Whitney’s rooms to ask her if she knew how to turn in a maintenance report or if Julie informed her of the break policy. He was obviously trying to find a place that Julie had slipped up so he’d win some brownie points with Steve. But every time, Whitney answered his questions correctly, and he got more and more pissy as the day went on. She was losing her patience with him. The last time he’d barged in, she’d shoved a tray of trash into his hands and walked away before he’d said a word. Julie even pointed out she looked stressed, but Whitney grinned through it all.
She could do this, damnit. And she would do whatever she needed to prove it to everyone.
At long last, her shift was over, and she barely kept herself from running out to the parking lot to meet Robin.
THE SUN DIPPED BEHIND a building up ahead, and their shadows stretched out behind them on the sidewalk. A light breeze flitted around their faces and carried the smell of the corner bakery to their noses. Birds chirped in the trees above their heads and Whitney sighed, finally at peace with the day.
“Mmm, I needed this,” Whitney said. She spooned a large bite of Oreo ice cream into her mouth.
“Bad day?” Robin asked. She took a more modest bite of her dessert as they strolled away from the ice cream shop and towards the intersection that lead to their apartment. She watched her friend, hoping she wasn’t already having second thoughts about moving up here.
“Oh, no. Just long and tiring. Plus, I have an annoying coworker and he wasn’t making my day any easier.”
“Tell him to leave you alone.” Robin shrugged and selected another bite. She savored it as the ice cream melted in her mouth.
“Oh, sure. Because I’ve always been so good at standing up to people.” She rolled her eyes.
Robin snorted into her bowl. “You’re right, what was I thinking?” She snorted again and then laughed.
“What?”
“Remember that time in ninth grade when that guy picked on you for stuttering, so I called him a pizza face? And so he called us lesbians, so I kissed you on the lips?”
Whitney turned red at the memory but could laugh along. “I was mortified.”
“Yes, but he never bothered you again.”
“Thanks to you. I had nothing to do with it.”
“I know. I was just thinking of a time I had to be your backbone.”
They rounded the block, nibbling at their ice creams in a comfortable silence. They walked up the stairs and stopped at Whitney’s door.
“I work early tomorrow, but if you’re willing to be up and ready by seven, we can get coffee together,” Robin said.
“Sure!” Whitney tried to contain her eagerness and failed.
“Yeah, yeah, and maybe you can stalk your ‘cute’ boy as well.” Robin turned to go. “See you in the morning.”
Whitney unlocked her door and dumped her ice cream trash in the kitchen. Then she sat at the table to daydream about the cute boy. She wasn’t able to fantasize long before her phone rang. When she looked down, she felt both happy and irritated to see her mother’s name on the screen.
“Yes, mom?” She said when she answered.
“Hello to you too.” Rose sounded a little muffed. “How’s my baby doing tonight?”
“Mom... I’m not a baby.” Whitney scrunched up her face and lowered her voice, even though no one could overhear the conversation.
“Well, you’re my baby and you’ll always be my baby. How was your day?”
“It was fine.” Whitney fought the urge to lay her head down on the table. She loved her mother, really and truly. But
the ‘just checking in’ calls needed to stop.
“Good day at work?”
“It was fine,” she repeated.
“Anything exciting happen?”
“Mom...”
“Okay, okay. Sorry. I wanted to make sure you’re doing okay up there. Do you need anything?”
“No, mom. I don’t need anything. Everything is fine.”
“Okay. I’ll let you go. Call me if you need me. I love you, hun.”
“Love you too.” Whitney hung up and took a deep breath. The muscles in her shoulders were all tensed up and she itched to be active and work off her frustration.
She decided she should go for a run to blow off steam, and then she should be tired enough to go to bed. She had to wear herself out so the prospect of maybe running into the cute boy in the morning wouldn’t keep her up all night. That or the annoyance with her parents checking in once a day. She rolled her eyes and went to find her tennis shoes.
Whitney jogged down the stairs into the lobby and stopped to lunge a few times in each direction to warm up her muscles. She rolled her shoulders and stretched her neck around, then burst through the door to the sidewalk.
And ran directly into her neighbor Vernon. He stumbled, and she grabbed his arms before he could fall.
“I am so sorry!” She exclaimed.
Vernon yanked his arms away from her grip and glared at her. He tugged on the dog’s leash and pulled the little animal into the building with him. He grumbled about young people and their fitness routines and how they should all give it up because they would all die one day, anyway.
Whitney was at a loss for words and tried to push off what she’d heard and blame it on him being a grumpy old man. She stretched again and took off down the street for the park to do a few laps and tried to put the encounter out of her mind.
BACK IN TEXAS, ROSE brought the tray of food to the dining room and settled it in the middle of the table. Dan and Shyanne followed behind with plates of side dishes and rolls. At the table, Daniel took a deep breath.
“I’ve missed your cooking, ma,” he said and loaded up his plate.
“You know where I live,” Rose said with a grin. “You can come over any time.”
Daniel rolled his eyes. “Yeah, but you don’t cook like this every day. Just you and dad here, no point in making a seven course meal.”
Rose exchanged a look with Dan and she dropped her watery gaze to the tablecloth.
“Now, Daniel...”
“Sorry, mom,” Daniel said at once. “I realize you wouldn’t mind us being under your roof every night for dinner. But we’re grown now. Even little Whitney.”
Rose sniffed loudly and wiped at the corner of her eyes with a napkin. “I know. It’s fine. Everyone dig in.”
“Speaking of Whitney,” Charissa said, “How’s she doing?”
“Great!” Rose said. “Talked to her a little while ago. Said she had a good day at work and everything is going great.”
“Great, huh?” Daniel laughed. “Is that the word she used?”
Dan kicked his son under the table.
“Ow! What? I’m just saying, that doesn’t really sound like Whit to call anything great.” Daniel rubbed his shin.
“She said fine, not great. You caught me,” Rose tried to laugh, but it sounded choked. “Anyway, she said she didn’t need anything and work was fine. I’ll check in again tomorrow.”
“Mom,” all of her children said together.
“What?” She gazed around innocently.
“Let the girl be,” Charissa said. “She can’t fly if you keep holding up her wings for her.”
“I’m sure it’s all going to work out,” Dan said and placed a hand over his wife’s. “Whitney is stronger than we give her credit for. She’s got her own two feet, let her stand.”
“Yeah.” Rose dabbed her eyes again. “Yeah, okay. I’ll try.”
Chapter Five
At 6:55am, Whitney checked her reflection for the tenth time. She’d put on a little makeup and wore her nicest pants. She didn’t want to be too over the top since she probably wouldn’t even see him, but still... She resisted the urge to mess with her hair again and went out to the hallway and locked the door behind her. She couldn’t risk getting mad at the flyaways and deciding to stay home instead.
“Well, look at the early bird,” Robin said, giggling from the top of the stairs. “Let’s go. I need coffee.” She skipped down to meet her on her landing.
“How many cups have you had already?” Whitney said with a raised eyebrow.
“Just one.” Robin ran her fingers through her hair and gathered it back into a large clip. “I decided snoozing was more important and now I’m regretting it.” She buttoned her blazer as they walked. “You know I require at least three cups to get my head on right.”
They moved too slowly for Whitney’s liking, but Robin wasn’t a morning person. She kept adjusting her clothes and trying to text and walk, and both slowed her down. What felt like an eternity later, they entered the coffee shop.
Robin drew in a deep breath of the coffee scented air and sighed with an enormous smile on her face. Whitney giggled, but then a clatter of glassware distracted her. The pair looked around. Robin smiled and Whitney flushed. The cute boy was across the room. He was struggling to hurry and mop up the coffee he’d spilled all over the table and himself.
Robin nudged Whitney. “Guess he saw you. I’ll order, you grab a table.” She didn’t respond at first, so Robin gave her a small shove. “Go on!”
“Right.” Whitney picked the same corner table and tried not to be too obvious about checking out the cute boy. His back was to her as he continued to clean up his mess. She glanced out of the corner of her eye and enjoyed the view of his behind as he bent over to wipe up the puddle of coffee on the ground. Robin stepped into her line of sight a moment later, and she straightened up.
“He’ll find his way over here soon, don’t worry,” Robin said and passed Whitney her cup. She sipped the coffee and her face twisted into a sour expression. Robin laughed and switched her. “Oops, that one’s mine. I got a double shot of espresso.”
“Ugh, why?”
“I just told you I need three cups. This gets me there faster.”
Whitney started to argue her logic, but then noticed the cute boy walking in their direction.
“Oh no,” she whispered and sunk in her seat as though she was going to hide.
“What?” Robin looked over her shoulder and laughed. “Oh, Nervous Nelly has returned.”
Whitney’s cheeks were bright pink when he reached the table.
“Um, hi,” he said, blushing a little himself. “I’m Kevin.”
“Hi,” Whitney squeaked and brought her cup up to her mouth. She took an overlarge gulp and coughed.
“This is Whitney,” Robin said once it was clear Whitney had clammed up. “I’m Robin, nice to meet you.”
“Yeah, you too. Um...” Kevin rubbed the back of his neck and shifted his feet. “I was wondering if I could... take you out sometime? Or... get your number?”
Whitney turned redder in response and Robin giggled.
“Uh...” was all Whitney said.
Kevin misread the situation and backed away. He bumped into another table and stumbled. “Right. Sorry to have bothered-”
“She’d love to,” Robin said before he could escape. She smiled and shoved Whitney’s arm. “Right?”
“Yes!” It came out louder than she intended, and a hand flew up to cover her mouth.
Robin enjoyed watching the two of them squirm, but she also had to go to work. She dug a receipt and pen out of her purse and scribbled down Whitney’s phone number before passing it to Kevin.
“Here. Call her. She’s off work at seven tonight. She’s free Saturday night for a date.”
Kevin was stunned as he stared at the number. “Thanks.”
“Yup. Come on, Whitney, we have to get to work.” Robin grabbed her hand and pulled her towards the d
oor.
“Bye!” Whitney said over her shoulder and Kevin waved. As she came out of her daze, she knew that her day at work was going to be a breeze, even though Robin would never let her live that interaction down for as long as she lived.
THAT NIGHT WHITNEY did a much better job at talking while on the phone. She had less nervous ticks when the other person wasn’t staring at her. Kevin called at 7:30 and they talked for nearly an hour. They went through some general questions to get to know each other and then solidified their plans for Saturday.
She was still smiling like an idiot when her phone rang again. Her heart jumped, thinking it was Kevin calling back to talk some more. But it was her sister’s name lighting up the screen.
“Hey, Rissa,” she said.
“Hey, you busy?” Charissa said.
“Nope. What’s up?” She sprawled out on her couch and tried to quell the nagging voice that had pricked up in her brain. Would she ever be able to accept a call from a family member without suspecting an ulterior motive?
“Just wanted to call and see how you liked your new place and your new job?”
“So, mom told you to call me?”
“No!” Charissa stopped. “Okay, maybe. But I also care and wanted to see how you’re doing.”
“Mhm.. Well, everything is going fine so far. I like my apartment and Robin is in the same building, so it’s not like I’m really living alone. And work is okay. It’s different from working in a grocery store, but I’m adjusting.”
“Good, good.”
Silence hung in the air for a moment, and Whitney rolled her eyes. Charissa had gotten all the answers she needed to report back to their mother, but didn’t know how to transition to saying goodbye without being completely obvious.
“What about you?” Whitney prompted. “Get your promotion yet?”
“No.” Charissa made a grumbling sound. “The boss is still ‘debating’ he says. But the twiggy bitch in the corner office has been pulling out all the stops. I swear she cut another inch off her skirt this week.”
