Lavender

Chapter 2; •Mauve•

I'm not a believer of fate, nor have I thought of each of us, as individuals, having a destiny. The thought of a cosmic power bigger than all of us deemed rather comical, pointless even. It came down to moments, placed at the right time or unexpected encounters that just so happened due to mere coincidence.

So it came as a bit of a shock to me when I pushed through the doors of Helen's and my eyes landed on the familiar twofold shade of hair neatly tied in a high pony tail. For the past two days I had not stopped thinking about the teal eyes and they had drove me to the brink of insanity as I realised I wanted to see more of them. Was it possible to want and feel the need for someone's very presence even though you had know idea who they were?

"You alright there?" A soft voice broke me from my trance and I stared up at the very eyes I yearned to see.

"Lavender" I breathed out.

"That is my name". She chuckled. "Would you like something? I'm afraid you can't be sat here unless you order off the menu". She said, handing me the menu. I already knew what I wanted so I returned the laminated piece of paper and looked up at her.

"Coffee would do just fine".

"One coffee it is". She beamed, an indentation forming on her left cheek. I wasn't a fan of dimples and yet I wanted to touch her cheek to see what it felt like.

Snap out of it Dom.

She walked back to the counter and I noted that even in her jeans and flimsy apron she looked cute. I realised I looked like a psychopath taking mental notes on his next victim so I slapped both my cheeks at the same time to rid myself of the silly giddiness I felt whenever I was near her. This was insane.

The only other few times I had seen Lavender was in Art's class. I had just come in to drop a negligible amount of water containers for the students; sent by the janitor and had seen her intently gazing at the canvas ahead of her. Her hair was tied on top of her head and was knotted and tangled with bits and pieces of hair sticking out. A pencil was stuck in it, going through one end of her bun to the other, another was stationed right above her left ear. She had seemed to be flustered and annoyed by the piece in front of her as her eyebrows were mildly furrowed and her lips were in a scowl. She looked adorable to say the least.

How I found her negative display of emotions attractive is beyond me.

I placed my elbows on the table top and pressed my knuckles together bringing my mouth to them, causing my nose to squish in the position I was in. It was how I thought and although I looked like a complete and utter moron, there was no other way I could think. I should ask her out is what I should do. But then again, I had no idea as to what type of person she was. I knew because of her good grades that she was intelligent when it came to academics, she was creative -notes due to the brilliance of her paintings- and she was soft spoken and sweet. Her appearance in no way matched her personality and it made me realise that people were not who they displayed themselves for the world. I knew that positively because I was one of those people.

I dressed as if the world didn't effect me and that I was some sort of riot that the school had to keep because he had rich parents who were worried about his well being. Or so that's the type of reputation I had gained over the years due to my excessive smoking and getting into brawls over the simplest of matters. People talked and made impressions based on your actions. The way you walked, talked, dressed, ate etc all led to people forming theories about who you actually were never the whole knowing that it was happening to them as well. And that's how it turned into a vicious cycle of never ending conspiracies and rumours amongst people who could not help but be judgemental.

And yet, Lavender had not been.

I wasn't one for narcissism but I knew the whole school was informed of my renown ways of breaking rules and getting totally smashed at Friday nights. They knew who I was and what I was known for. It led them to be afraid of my demeanour and although some had the courage to come talk to me, it was only out of sheer curiosity and admiration for being a 'notorious bad boy' that led them to believe I had a heart of gold or something.

What a load of shit.

I wasn't some troubled, misunderstood lad that had been hurt in the past and shielded himself and his heart from the world only to find his one true love and eternally fall in love with her. Who are we kidding? There is no forever. I fancied Lavender like any boy fancied a girl. She was a fitty and that was all there was to it.

And yet she made my heart hammer against my chest and beads of sweat run down my forehead whenever she was nearby.

I put my hands on my face and rubbed my eyes. This was downright frivolous. I had no idea why I felt this way. When she came back with my coffee in her hands, she placed it in front of me and smiled.

"Here you are. Anything else you'd like?" She said, all the while not knowing the turmoil she was causing inside of me.

"No, thanks." I smiled and looked down at my cup.

"Holler if you need me." She said and walked back, a skip in her step.

If that were the case, Id be yelling all day.

My phone vibrated in my pocket and I quickly took it out and answered it without checking the I.D.

"Mate, don't forget to bring the good stuff, yeah?" He spoke from the other end of the line.

"I didn't forget you chav." I laughed in the phone.

"Alright, alright. See you there". He laughed heartily.

"Bye." I shut the phone and placed it beside my coffee cup, an idea popping into my head. I finished the cup of coffee immediately, burning my tongue and throat in the process and called for her.

"Done already? Either you prefer boiling hot drinks or your coffee cooled down faster than my boss's anger." She said picking up my saucer.

"The coffee was good. Anyway I had to ask you something." I said wringing my hands from underneath the table. Why was I so nervous? It's just a question.

"Shoot." She said and fixed her gaze on me.

"Are you free Friday?"