please notice [h.s.]

chapter two

Quick note! Sadia's name is pronounced Sah-dee-uh. One of her nicknames is Sad, pronounced Sahd.

Hazel

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I was not a morning person.

In fact, if I had the option, I'd sleep til noon every day. I just never saw the point in getting up so early. Yet here I was, sitting in The Grind Palace at six fifty in the morning.

Sadia practically had to drag me off of her couch to get dressed. Of course she was a morning person. As if she couldn't be any more perfect.

"Come on," she had pleaded, gently shaking my shoulders. "I'll braid your hair the way you like!" she offered, and I sat up groggily. "Really?" I yawned. I sounded like a little kid. I loved it when people played with my hair, especially braiding it. She grinned and stood back up, turning towards her bathroom. "Yeah. You get dressed real quick and I'll grab a hair tie."

I smiled softly as she closed her bathroom door, presumably to give me some privacy to change. She really was the best friend I could ask for, and I knew I didn't deserve her. But that only made me cherish her more.

"You want anything? Might wake you up a little bit." Sadia offered, motioning to the menu on the wall. I shook my head, "Too jittery already. If I get any caffeine in me, I think I'll explode."

Sadia nodded, her eyes traveling to someone behind the counter. An employee, I guessed. He had dark hair, matching Sadia's own. But that's where their physical similarities stopped. Where her skin was a smooth caramel, his was as pale as mine.

After a moment of ogling, the mystery man picked up a tray and walked over to us.

Damn. That bone structure could cut glass.

"Hey Sadia." he grinned brightly. Of course he knew her. She made a point of making friends with everyone she met. "Sam! You got a haircut." she noticed. He nodded, taking her empty cup and setting it on his tray. "Ivy was making fun of it earlier, please be nice."

He pulled over a chair from another table and set it by ours, sitting with us.

"So Sadia," he started, his eyes turning to me. "You gonna introduce me to Gingy over here or must I win her over with my charm?" he asked.

I groaned at the nickname, rolling my eyes playfully. "Well, if that's what you call charm, I wouldn't count on you 'winning me over'." I chuckled. I was used to the nicknames. After twenty-two years, I had to be. Cherry, Hothead, Freckleface. I'd heard them all. It didn't really bother me, but I didn't exactly like it either. It's why I tended to wear my hair up or in hats. People didn't always notice the color that way.

Sadia laughed. "Sam, this is my best friend, Hazel Williams." she gestured to me and I did a little bow. "Hazel," she gestured to the man I now knew as Sam, "This is Sam Garner. Also known as my least favorite barista." she joked. Sam gasped dramatically, putting his hand over his heart. "You wound me, Sad." he sighed, shaking his head. "I should've spat in your coffee this morning."

"I seriously need to fire you." I heard a voice say from behind me. I turned around and saw Ivy coming down the stairs which I guess led to her apartment.

"You would never. You love me too much." Sam giggled, standing up and offering his chair to her. "You can't fire your best friend. Everyone knows that."

Ivy smirked, sitting down. "Then quit tempting me, fuckface." She snapped her fingers at him jokingly. "Now get back to work!" she laughed. He slumped his shoulders and walked back behind the counter, grumbling something about pissing in the espresso machine.

"Sorry about him. It's so hard to find good help these days." she said dryly, but I could see the humor in her blue eyes. She stuck her hand out for me to shake, "We haven't ever really been introduced." she smiled at me and I took her hand, shaking it. I already liked her. "I'm Ivy, you're Hazel, bla bla bla." she joked. "Sorry, I just hate introductions."

I shook my head. "Me too, don't worry." I smiled softly. It wasn't like we'd never met before, I had just never been very talkative.

She took a deep breath before speaking, "So Sadia told me about what happened. I'm really sorry about Tri- that douchebag." she quickly corrected herself. I figured she knew him; The Palace was pretty popular around here. "I know that's gotta be hard."

I shrugged, pursing my lips. "It's whatever. Honestly I'm just trying not to think about it." I replied. It's true. I was making an effort to shut down every thought I had about Him. Was that the healthiest coping mechanism? Probably not. Did I care all that much? Certainly not.

Ivy nodded, understanding. She tucked a strand of her curly brown hair behind her ear. "Well, as Sadia told you, I've been looking for a roommate. My old roommate Willow moved to Hartford a month ago, and I'm having some trouble keeping up with the bills." she looked down, almost ashamed. Sadia reached over to her, rubbing her arm in an attempt to comfort her. Ivy cleared her throat and looked back up at me, brushing off her sadness. "Anyway, it seems like we can help each other out." she smiled. It was weird; she seemingly changed her emotions at the drop of a hat. "I'm just gonna spit it out. Would you like to move in with me?"

I looked at Sadia, feeling apprehensive. Everything in my life was moving so fast and I didn't like it. But Sad's comforting smile helped me a lot. I turned my eyes back to Ivy, grinning.

"Yeah. I'd like to." I said, surprising myself.

Ivy clapped her hands and Sadia breathed a sigh of relief. "Oh thank God." Sadia laughed. "I thought this would take way more convincing. I had a speech planned and everything." She turned to Ivy, a serious look on her face. "How soon can she move in?"

I swatted her shoulder, acting offended. "You just can't wait to get rid of me. It's only been one night!" She shrugged, raising her eyebrows. "I like my space."

Ivy chuckled, standing up. "You can move in today if you want. I can give you a tour of the apartment right now!" I stood up along with her. We were about the same height, though she was an inch or two taller. When Sadia stood up, she groaned. "I'm surrounded by midgets."

I was five foot two, whereas Sadia was about five foot six. She was of average height, but she always told me she felt like a giant around me.

Ivy only laughed and grabbed mine and Sadia's hands. "Come on, I'll give you the grand tour."

I didn't say anything, letting Ivy drag me up the stairs.

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Hey besties

Ik it's kind of boring right now but it gets reaaal interesting soon!

And don't worry, you'll be meeting Harry soon ;)