AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Is everything alright?”
Rachel stops, her wide eyes turning to me. She looks like a deer caught in headlights, about to be run over flat. The look in her eyes display danger, her shoulders tense. “W-what?” she stutters.
“Is anything going on?” I ask, hating the twisting inside me. I know I have nothing to be guilty about. I’ve done nothing wrong. However, that’s just the point. I’ve done absolutely nothing. I haven’t checked in with her to see how things are going with her parents, whereas, she’s always been there for me, holding my hand while I mourn the loss of my mom.
“N-no, why?” Her gaze drifts away from me and I watch her squat down and slide into the passenger seat. I grab her thermos. She must have forgotten she rested it on the roof for when I plop my body into the driver’s seat, she seems absolutely shocked when I hand it to her.
“Thanks,” she murmurs, taking it from my grasp so I can start the car.
“Are you sure? There’s nothing go on with your family? You haven’t been stressed about your parents?”
She’s quiet as I pull out of the driveway and onto the road, which makes me worry all the more. Maybe she doesn’t want to say anything now for fear of hurting my feelings, or maybe it’s something else completely? I’m about to ask when she leans forward, shouting, “Hey, look! It’s Alex and Seth!”
I slow the car and move to the side as I see Alex and Seth in the distance, racing each other, as usual. It’s good to see they are still running even after not making it in the Olympics. Alex seems to be taking it well, and Seth, well he’s being his usual self. I’m sure it will take some time for him to adjust and figure things out. I definitely understand where he’s coming from. Sometimes life has different plans for us.
I wave a hand at the bros, watching Alex give me a smile as he passes. Seth ignores me and speeds ahead, taking the opportunity to beat Seth in whatever race they have between them. As soon as we pass them, I say, “So, is everything okay, Rachel?”
Rachel sighs. “Why do you ask?”
She’s looking out the window, her whole body faced away from me, giving me the impression everything is not okay. And I have no clue how to answer her question. How do I say, ‘well, I’ve noticed you’ve put on a little weight?’ No woman wants to hear that, and she will most likely assume it’s an issue—that I no longer find her attractive anymore, which is not the case at all. I open and close my mouth, like a fish out of water, gasping and flailing for breath, desperate to find the right words to convey my worry without making her feel self-conscious.
“Have you given Lucas’s offer any thought?”
I’m shocked at her words, and how aggressively she’s changing the subject. She gives me a smile, which doesn’t quite meet her eyes. We can talk about this later. I don’t want to upset her on the first day of classes. I’m sure she has plenty to think about with this being her senior year and all.
“No,” I say while chuckling.
Lucas has been pushing for me to work at the cafe with him and Rachel. He’s recently been made manager, finally. Lucas has been telling me about all the cafe drama, and how Jason, his old manager, is frustrated he can no longer tell Lucas what to do. It’s kind of amazing. About a year and a half ago, Lucas could barely clean a toilet, and now he’s running a cafe. He totally deserves the promotion after all the opening and closing shifts he’s been made to do. And because Lucas is the manager, he has the owner’s ear. They have been needing more staff for a while and the owner finally decided to give in to Lucas and Rachel’s demands for help. As much as I love Lucas and Rachel, I need my own life away from them, and I would rather pursue a job that caters to my interests, such as education or fitness. Preferably both.
“Oh, come on,” Rachel whines. “I need someone to talk to, especially now that Jason is giving Lucas the cold shoulder.”
“Working at that cafe doesn’t sound like fun at all.”
Rachel groans. “It’s like a silent war between those two. I need someone to help break the tension.”
“So, you thought of me?”
Rachel shrugs. “You need a job. There’s an opening. What’s more to think about?”
“Perhaps, I want something that actually pertains to my career?”
Rachel turns to me, raising an eyebrow as she asks, “And how is that going?”
I stifle a groan. “Terribly.”
Rachel smirks. She knows she’s hit her mark. I’ve been looking high and low for an internship after leaving Fitness Express, a choice that was not easily made. Millie made it impossible to stay there. Somehow, she discovered my schedule after a couple weeks, meaning I would have to change everything around again. After the fourth time, my manager scolded me, demanding I keep to a specific time, because it wasn’t fair to the other employees. He refused to listen to me explain my dynamic with Millie, thinking it was a problem that had nothing to do with him. I tried to solve it the best I could by simply ignoring her, but every time I walked away, Millie would follow me. One would think she had better things to do than stalk me at work such as studying, or working out. I don’t know why she’s so obsessed with me. Seth and Lucas were also fucking her, yet she leaves them well enough alone.
Anyway, I couldn’t take it anymore and I didn’t want Millie to create another scene in front of the employees and customers, which would likely earn me a terrible reputation, so I put in my two weeks’ notice. It was fine, given it’s summer and I could lifeguard. I don’t know why Millie left me alone during the summer. Maybe she returned home? Wherever the hell that is…. Perhaps Satan’s lair?
Now that the semester has started, and it’s getting too cold for swimming, I feel the clock ticking. I need a job to pay the bills. Gas isn’t cheap and with us no longer living within walking distance to campus, the price to commute to school will only go up. I would ask Rachel for gas money, but she’s already paying for the groceries. Lucas handles everyone with the house. Seth and Alex could possibly help out if they get a job on campus, but that may be a no-go. I can totally see the both of them running to campus, getting their workout in early.
“So, you should work with us,” Rachel says sweetly. “I promise to make it fun.”
I sigh and shake my head. Even though I need a job desperately, I refuse to work at a cafe with Lucas and Rachel. “I’m still figuring out if I can get an internship this semester.”
“What’s to work out?” Rachel asks, her brows pinching together in confusion. “You’re getting an education degree. Isn’t that enough? They can see that you have experience in fitness and that you are passing your classes with flying colors.”
“It’s not that easy.” My hands tighten on the steering wheel as I feel my frustration and stress beginning to boil over. “I need to have experience with children before I can get more experience.”
