all too well

Chapter 1

Wednesdays are always so tough for me because I hate waking up early. I have two classes today and the first one starts at 9am. I hear meowing so I get up and feed my cats, Elliot & Derek. They are named after my favorite show boyfriends. Derek is named after Derek Shepard and Elliot is named after Elliot Stabler. After I'm done I start to get ready, luckily I did laundry so I can wear my favorite Mumford & Sons shirt. I quickly throw my blonde hair into a bun, brush my teeth, & throw some mascara on. I make it out of my apartment that I share with my best friend, Zaya, just in time. The travel from the apartment to school isn't too bad so I'm there on time. Most days the parking is the worst, so it must be a good day. I make it to class and immediately text Z to see if we are still up for coffee at this new place, The Roasted Bean. She immediately replies and says, "yeah, I'll be running late. My boss is being an asshole and making me work longer." She always complains about how he makes her stay over and let's everyone else go home. He seems like a creep. I go ahead and start taking notes hoping that time flys by.

My first class ends, so I head a cross campus to get to math. I was never good at math so I never look forward to this class. As soon as I sit down, Trevor comes and sits down beside me. He always makes it a point to come flirt with me. He is really cute with his bright blue eyes and blonde hair pushed back. We look like we'd be a perfect match. I just don't need a relationship right now, I need to focus on school.
Trevor looks at me to say, "Tati, you look gorgeous as ever." I blush and hide my face. "Well, thanks Trev. Do you know what we are working on today?"
"I think last week, Professor H said that we'd be moving onto the next lesson. Whatever that may be." Ugh, I know I'm going to have a shitty time today. Hopefully, this day is over with soon.
As class is wrapping up Trevor asks if i want to go out for coffee. I tell him I have plans but maybe another time. I can tell he looks defeated. I just bag up my laptop and books and get the hell out of there fast. I'm ready for a coffee date with my best friend.
As I'm driving to The Roasted Bean, my sister calls me. "Hey, what's up sis?" Iz says. "Just left school, now I'm heading to the cafe by the apartment to meet Zaya for coffee. She's having a rough time at work right now. What are you doing?" I say tiredly.
"Going out with Cole. Have you found a little cutie at school yet? Mom keeps asking if you have a boyfriend." That's all my mom talks about. She should be happy I'm focusing on school and not boys. "No, I dont. I'm focusing on my studies. I don't haves the time to worry about dating." I say with a huff.
"Alright, fine. I'll let you go, but come visit us soon." Not likely that'll be happening, I can't stand Cole. We say our goodbyes and I turn on James Taylor.

As I enter the coffee shop, I go ahead and get in line to order. I'm not sure how long Z will be, so I only order my drink. As I'm waiting for my drink to be made I feel as if someone is looking at me. I turn around and meet these blue eyes. I immediately feel shy and turn back around. Why is he looking at me? He looks much older than me, but I don't want to assume. My name is called so i grab my iced coffee and quickly sit down at a table in the corner. I pull my AirPods out and start playing some music and sip my coffee while waiting for Zaya.
As I'm sitting there, I see him begin to walk towards me. I'm getting nervous.
"That's a pretty cool shirt. I love Mumford and Sons." I look down at my shirt. "Thanks, my sister found it at a thrift store." I say happily.
"Do you have a favorite album?" He smiles the most gorgeous smile I've ever seen.
"Yeah, 'Babel' is my favorite. You seem like a 'Sigh No More' kinda girl." I start giggling. "You would be correct, you are welcome to sit down if you'd like my friend is running late." I dont know why I just did that. I'm not trying to date and he seems a bit older than me. He takes the seat and we begin to chat about indie records and such. After about 20 minutes, Z walks in and is immediately shocked that I'm sitting with a guy. While she gets in line, I try to wrap this up before Zaya starts asking him 21 questions. "I know this might seem weird but do you care to exchange numbers?" He smiles and hands me his phone to add my number so I hand him mine as well. We exchange phones back  and as he gets up, he offers his hand for me to shake. "By the way, my name is Jackson, you can call me Jack." I blush and shake his hand. "I'm Tatiana but you can call me Tati." He dips his head and kisses my hand, "its been a pleasure Tati." Omg, Is this real life. I'm hoping Z wont be able to tell that I like him. As he's walking out, i know he's going to be someone I'm really going to like.