Seabrook, Hadley

You Need a Job

I was hot, uncomfortable, and I had sticky ice cream goo on my hands.

That is the summary of my first day of work at the ice cream parlor in town.

That was also the end of my career there.

I tried to walk into Sarah's house without dripping on her nice hardwood floors.

"Hadley, is that you?" I cursed under my breath. I looked like a piece of shit. I had random hairs defying the laws of gravity, the mascara I had put on was dripping down my face along with a butt load of sweat, and my clothes had melted ice cream on them from my sticky hands, which were unpleasantly covered in the gooey mess.

"Yeah," I called out hesitantly. Sarah stuck her head out from behind the wall in her kitchen and laughed at my appearance. She disappeared again but soon came out with a dish towel and a damp cloth.

"I take it your first day didn't go as planned," Sarah said. I rolled my eyes, remembering when I had stupidly said, 'an ice cream shop, even I couldn't mess that one up'. Sarah padded my face with the dish towel and I rubbed my hands with the moist cloth.

Someone knocked at the door and I cursed under my breath before bounding up the stairs to my bedroom, where I quickly changed out of my sweat-soaked clothes and into a flannel shirt and high waisted Jean shorts. I yanked a comb through my hair and hoped that this was good enough to go downstairs and present myself to whoever was at the door, but I was stopped short in my thoughts by a figure leaning against the doorframe.

"I can't believe you messed up a job at an ice cream parlor," he said with a dumb smirk. I rolled my eyes and sat down on my bed with a big huff. I had assumed he would have said something about me helping him at the party, since he evidently wasn't grounded seeing as he was standing before me instead of locked up in his bedroom, but no, he had to attack my lack of success at scooping ice cream.

I stuck him the finger, hoping he would take the hint to get out, but he just laughed and sat down on my bed, causing me to hop up and walk away.

"Are you going to keep being a child about this?" he asked. I nodded. I would rather be a child than use my energy to try and make amends. "You know that I was drunk, right? I didn't mean any of the stupid stuff I probably did or said."

"Exactly, you were drunk. You weren't supposed to be, but you were, and you made me lie to the person who has actually been here for me, unlike you, who likes to rub it in my face that I have no friends." He sighed, and I ran my hand through my hair.

"I'm sorry."

I just stared at him. the two words that I never thought I would hear Luke Herrington say had just been said, and they were in a completely serious tone.

"W-well though that is flattering, I am still mad?" It came out as a question, and I mentally cursed myself for being such a child. Luke just sighed and ran his hand through his hair.

"Let me make it up to you."

"By doing what?" I asked. I was caught off guard by the fact that he was sorry and that he wanted to make it up to me.

"You need a job."

"You need a life."

"Hadley," Luke warned. I sighed and muttered an apology before sinking into my desk chair. "Nobody knows who you are."

"That's not true, I met Bree, Waverley, and Elliot at the party on Wednesday," I said, my head held high. I had friends. I didn't need Luke, who, by the way, stiffened at the mention of Elliot's name.

"Right." Luke cleared his throat. "I was saying that you have a chance to start over. Nobody knows anything about you, only the ice cream parlor people know that you suck at ice cream."