Kashmir [BxB]

Chapter 12 - He's just not into you

"No, ma'am, we don't have spaghetti and meatballs. I'm sorry, it's just not available.", I sigh, using my customer service voice as I smile against the middle-aged woman and her family.

"What do you mean not available? You had it just last month!", she exclaims, her screeching voice grating at my ears.

"Yes, that is the premise of the Freesia restaurant. New menu, new food culture, each month. This month is South Asian cuisine."

The woman huffs, displeased that she received the same answer from me as they did their previous server. Allison had to ask me to step in and talk to them since they refused to hear her out. The more I worked here, the more I became convinced that the customer was always wrong.

"Well can't you just boil some pasta for my babies? They don't eat Asian food."

I glance at her two kids, sat on opposite sides from each other, both with one of their parents blocking them from running off somewhere. The woman's husband appeared mute, but maybe that was just the state you eventually were forced into if you were in a relationship with someone like her.

"If you check the menu, we have a children's specials section with permanent items. I'm sure you can find something you like there.", I smile, biting back my annoyance.

The woman is about to launch into another monologue when her husband - bless his soul - puts his hand over hers, giving her a pointed stare, before reaching for a menu and pushing it into her grip.

Not all heroes wear capes. Some wore caps with quotes about fishing.

The night continues in a similar fashion, the never-ending customers flowing through the restaurant with their various concerns. Most were lovely, but the ones who weren't always took up ten times the amount of energy and time to handle.

The Friday-buzz, as we liked to call it, made for a less tiring work environment though - one with customers happy that the weekend had finally come around, and who were slightly buzzed from their drinks.

I clocked in at three, and it was now half-past nine. My feet were hurting from constantly running around, and the heat of the kitchen made my hair slightly damp, making for an extremely unpleasant sensation against my scalp. My manager, Priya, and I had a deal that I didn't need to stay for cleanup after closing hours because I helped set everything up earlier - something I'm grateful for now.

Rubbing my eyes, I stare blankly at my locker. I was so to-the-bone tired. All week had been a struggle, from the whole debacle with Kade to my schoolwork and now working at the restaurant. The compact sadness of rejection laid heavy on my heart, despite my best efforts to pretend it wasn't there.

I felt horrible knowing that Kade was out and about with some werewolf girl, but what could I do about it? He made his feelings perfectly clear, so I'd just have to accept that he didn't want me.

After I confronted him in the library yesterday, I'd tried to get him to agree to do friend stuff, just as friends, to at least get to spend some time around him. I might not be able to have him, but it wasn't my fault that my heart beat just a little bit faster just from thinking about him. It did somersaults whenever he texted me, and I knew I'd get over my crush, but it was so hard to resist the pull I felt towards him while it still lasted.

I knew my feelings would pass, and I found that sad in a way. I didn't want to fall for someone who didn't like me, but I had never felt that kind of immediate connection to someone before. Sure, it was physical attraction at first, but now just his words, his way of thinking... it really got me. It felt like something just clicked with us, and I didn't know when, or if, that would happen next.