Retrospective ~TW~

Chapter 1

The smell of the freshly baked croissant made my mouth water as I entered the cafe only a short walk from my house. I walked towards the counter, the large 'Order Here' sign swaying above me. Stood opposite me was Faye, my close friend since high school. We made eye contact and she immediately started entering my order into the till.

"Morning girl! One cappuccino and one cheese croissant?" I nodded in her direction while she clicked on the screen a couple times. She gestured towards the eftpos machine that I was now able to pay with. "How are things?"

"Pretty good, just been working around the apartment for a bit. Painting the walls. How about you?" I had recently bought an apartment and decided it was time to renovate it slowly. While that was a good plan in theory, 1 month has passed and I'm about to lose my mind.

"I'm alright. Working all weekend but uni is kicking my ass." She exasperated as she looked at all the patrons in the cafe. Faye was studying law and it was turning out to be a lot more difficult than she intended. As I go to reply, my phone rings and my name is called for my order. I gesture that I'll be one moment to the guy holding my order and pull out my phone.

'Susie W'

I slide to answer.

"Hey Sue! How are you?" My phone was pressed against my ear, the coolness chilling the side of my face. I covered my other ear to ensure I could hear her clearly. Susie Wolff and I had met only 3 years before, but she was a really important figure in my life. I had recently moved to Monaco after I lost my partner at the time. I had met Susie at an event and she immediately took me under her wing.

"Hey Meels, I just wanted to see if you wanted to come around. We are home and we're thinking of going on a bike ride." I could hear clattering in her background, assuming it was the breakfast she would be consuming with her family. I was fortunate enough to get to spend a lot of time with not only Sue, but her family. It was nice.

"Yeah I would love to. Do you want me to bring a pre-ride coffee? I am just at Piamo now." I could hear the phone shifting from her face followed by some background chatter. The newspaper that normally adorned Toto's hands at breakfast was being shuffled around.

"That would be great. Toto is nodding aggressively. We will see you when you get here and we will head off." We said our goodbyes and I walked back up towards Faye, who, overhearing my conversation, had already began to put through the order for Susie and Toto, even adding a small hot chocolate for Jack. 

I grabbed my coffee and croissant from the table a short step away from me and began to eat the now lukewarm pastry. Before long, I had finished the croissant and the other coffees were ready. I quickly grabbed them and jumped into my car, making my way to the Wolff residence. It was a short drive on the winding roads of Monaco, but the view of the bustling city always made me feel content.

Pulling out the front of their house, the freshly trimmed trees lining the sidewalk, I made my way towards the large house. It was minimalistic and beautiful internally, but the size of it was definitely excessive. I see Jack running out, always excited to see me and show me what he has been up to recently. He was at that stage at 3 years old where he wants to know what everything is and why things work that way.

"Hello my little Jacky boy!" His shrill voice pierced through the streets, his smile beamed towards me. It was contagious and before long I was smiling back at him. Jack looked like the perfect mix between Susie and Toto. He was tall for his age, something that Toto tells was similar to him when growing up.

"Mimi, I misses you!" His imperfect english only makes me smile harder as his petite arms wrap around my leg. I tousle his hair and put the coffees in my hand onto the roof of my car, to ensure I didn't spill it on him. I bend down to his level and wrap my arms around him in a tight embrace, rocking us side to side. 

"I missed you to buddy! Why don't you come help me with these coffees for your mama and papa." I pick him up and he grabs the tray from me and we begin walking towards the house, carefully watching to ensure he didn't spill it. I see Sue and Toto appear in the doorway, grabbing the beverages off of Jack.

Hey Sue." I hug her quickly, squishing Jack between us. He plays with the white gold chain around my neck. "Hello Toto." We embrace and then make our way inside. I strip off my warm winter jacket and place it on the rack. Walking further into the house, we take a seat at the table where they finish their coffees while we all make small talk. 

"Bike time! Bike time!" Jack's excitement causes us all to smile, his jumping around being incredibly cute. "Can I go on Mi's bike?" Susie looks at Toto who shrugs his shoulders and looks at me. I nod quickly and Jack immediately gets excited seeing my approval.

"Don't fall off little one." Toto winks at me as we make our way outside, moving Jacks seat onto my bike. Susie was slightly taller than me, but Toto took it as an opportunity to always mock me. I elbow his side, Sue beginning to giggle. I shoot her a glare and she laughs harder. Jack, oblivious to his surroundings runs with his helmet towards us. 

Once buckled in and we all had our helmets on, we set off down the road. There was no doubt that Jack was getting a lot bigger, and a lot heavier, and today I could definitely feel it. Not wanting to give in and give Toto something else to mock me about, I kept up and put on a brave face, even as he taunted and pushed my buttons.

The lap we did around the block was revitalising, the fresh winters air was whipping through my hair. Jack pointed at the birds that would land in the street in front of us, and would give them names and backstories as to their life. He talked pretty much the whole way, not letting anyone else get a word in. We stopped at a cafe and had some lunch, bantering the whole time with one another. We then decided to head back after a couple hours.

Once we landed on the front door steps, we got Jack down and led our bikes back inside. I always left my bike at Susie's, often only riding it when I went out with them. They also lived close enough that if I did need it, I could easily retrieve it. I indicated that I should probably head home soon.

"See you later Susie. Thanks for the good day."

"No worries." She pulled me in to a very tight embrace. Something that she frequently did, but something felt a little different about this one. "I love you. Be safe." Words she often spoke but the emotion laced in them shocked me a little. Not sure what was happening, and not wanting to press in front of her family, I gave her a small smile.

"Goodbye Amelia." I turned my smile to him, looking at the tall man as we walked towards my car. I unlocked it quickly, Toto reaching for the door. He opened it, Jack swinging on his hips as he moved swiftly around. Jack was thrusted towards me, giving me one of his signature bear hugs before I handed him back and slid into my soft leather seat, starting my car.

"Bye Torger." The warmth of the aircon spewing from the vents immediately heated me up. I watched as the two boys retreated towards the door, I looked at them as Susie held the door open and pulled the boys back into the warmth. I smiled at the three of them before pulling off the side and heading home.

The drive was short with the setting sun as my background. I couldn't help but admire the red tinge of the sky as I drove down the winding streets of Monaco. It really had been the perfect day. Before long, I parked my car in my designated spot and made my way towards my apartment building. 

Once inside my apartment, I made a beeline towards the bathroom, looking forward to relishing in the warm water. The shower steamed around me and fogged up the room. I dried myself with my soft towel and exited my bathroom to make my way towards my bed, changing into my pyjamas I had lying out. I crawled in and grabbed my book splayed out on the pillow beside me, beginning to read.

After a while, my phone rang beside me, my attention being demanded from the book that was in my hand. I slid my bookmark towards the spine and closed the soft pages of the novel, resting it on the table beside me. I picked up my mobile and saw it was Sue calling me again. I quickly answered.

"Amelia, it's Toto. She's gone. Susie's gone."