Ups & Downs

Ups & Downs- 4

By the time I've cleaned the tables and helped out in the kitchen, my arms feel like they are going to drop off right out of the sockets. That's how tired I am.

Dave I've found out is a fun person but he is still very cautious around me. I can definitely see how much he adores and loves Mag. Whenever Mag comes around he would smile and his eyes would twinkle with love.

We all sit around at the corner boot after clearing up. We are all silent as we just sit there with our own preference of coffees and gazing out the window.

"Carina, is it?" Dave's voice snaps me out of my thoughts.

"Yes," I reply with a nod.

"How do you like it here?" he inquires.

"Despite feeling very tired currently, I am feeling good. It is quite fun to work here actually." I reply.

"That's good to hear," Trevor adds in with a grin.

"Your face is very familiar," Dave says as he looks at me with squinted eyes.

"She's our regular customer, that might be it," Trevor says.

We sit there for a while longer. The standing replica of a grandpa clock in the café ticks past around us.

"I'm curious," I start to say. My eyes starting at the murals.

"About what?" Mag asks taking a sip at her coffee.

"Those," I motion towards the wall art. "Who drew it?"

There is a silence. Nobody answers.

I realise then that this is a touchy subject and should never be uttered out loud. And yet, here I am, asking it directly.

"I'm sorry," I quickly apologise. "I didn't mean to pry."

Trevor laughs at my reaction. Startled, I look up only to see him looking at me with eyes twinkling with humour. He turns his gaze to the murals. The twinkle fading away.

The other two look at him with anxious looks. I may have struck some important memories with the question I asked.

"My ex-girlfriend," Trevor softly says. His voice barely a whisper.

I did strike something.

"I'm sorry for being so straightforward." I say. "It was not my place to ask."

"You don't need to apologise," Mag tells me while taking my hand into her smaller ones.

"It's good to let it out sometimes," Trevor says. "People keep evading the topic like a plague but it's not. It doesn't affect me as much as it did before."

We sit there drinking coffee until Dave's phone rings and he gets up to leave. Mag sees him off while I help Trevor with washing the cups.

"So Rina, tell me about yourself," he says. "Wait, can I call you Rina? You won't mind do you?"

I shake my head.

"What do you want to know?" I ask him.

"Anything. Who are you? Why do you always come to Challenges alone?"

"I'm Carina," I tell him with a cheeky smile. He just gives me an eye roll.

"I don't have any close friends here and Challenges just provides me with the kind of warmth that no other person or place has given me. And a trivial information, I'm a literature student," I tell him.

"I thought you are more of a scientist," Trevor says with a wide smile.

"God no. I can't stand studying science. It's not like I hate it but I really didn't do well in the practical exams," I exclaim while wiping the cups with a cloth.

Trevor wipes his hands on a towel and leans back on the sink counter, folding his arms. I try not to stare at his strong biceps and emphasise on doing my job.

"So tell me, Miss Literature major, do you like working here?" Trevor asks.

I nod, "It's better than having nothing to do and wandering around on free days. This is more cost efficient."

"So do you want to continue working here?"

I look up, surprised. "Are you seriously offering me a job?"

He nods with a smile plastered on his handsome face.

"Yes! It'd be awesome!" I exclaim.

"Trevor you are not asking Rina to marry you are you?" Mag's playful voice rings through the kitchen.

"What if I am?" Trevor asks with a smug smile.

Mag narrows her eyes. "I'll kill you."

"He was just offering me a job here." I tell her with a laugh. "But are you sure?"

"Why not? It'd be great to have an extra helping hand," Mag says with a wide smile.

"You are the best," I tell her while wrapping her in a tight hug. "Thank you."

Tears from in my eyes and slowly drip down. I don't like crying in front of people but I just can't keep my emotions in check. Their generosity opens up my old wounds and makes my heart feels like it has been ripped apart. Ever since I moved here, nobody has been this kind to me before.

I draw apart from the hug.

"Hey, don't cry," Trev says patting my back.

This is the second time I've broken down in front of them.

"I'm just so happy," I sob out.

Trevor laughs from where he is standing.

"It's so weird. Happiness makes you cry."

After I calm down, we all go upstairs. Mag says she'll clean the guest room out so that I can also live at Challenges despite my efforts in telling her that my apartment is perfectly good and that I can still do my job here even when I stay there.

But Mag doesn't take a no for an answer. She asks me to sleep in her room for today but she promises me to hand over the guest-room tomorrow.

Even though I lost that battle, I do win the part of making Mag and Trevor take a monthly rent for allowing me to stay. They put up a strong 'NO' but in the end, they had to give up.

I retire back to Mag's room after discussing the rental fees with the siblings. I plop myself onto Mag's bed and open my laptop to get some work done.

A/N: It'd be awesome to vote for this story if you liked it. It'll keep me motivated.

Tell me which subjects you are taking. (Don't be reluctant to comment!)

xxVic