𝙶𝚘𝚕𝚍𝚎𝚗 𝚋𝚘𝚢 - 𝚛𝚊𝚏𝚎 𝚌𝚊𝚖𝚎𝚛𝚘𝚗

2

The sun shines brightly into my hair, turning it from light, mousey brown to golden for a split second. My black tennis skirt and white polo are covered with a black waitress apron, embroidered with the Country clubs logo across the front, a mandatory part of uniform. It's around 7p.m. and a glorious evening sun is setting alight the sky as I walk to the bar, not expecting anyone to be there as we're closing in about 10 minutes. I grab a cloth from the kitchen and start wiping down the bar as the chefs clean up, everything is getting put away but one person is still sitting there, almost empty drink in hand. Rafe Cameron. I make slight eye contact with him as I carry on to wipe the dark wooden surface, a comfortable silence settling between us.
"Urm, hey, Valerie, have you talked to Sarah recently? I know that she misses you" Rafe says after a couple minutes. I used to be very close with Sarah Cameron, his younger sister, but when Jj abandoned me I felt I couldn't talk to anyone in my whole ex-friendgroup, so we cut contact.
"No I haven't," I look at him with sorry eyes, "i meant to a while ago but my whole life is just a bit messy at the moment." I say with a half chuckle, earning a smile from him.

I come out of the kitchen again, my apron disposed of and walk out to the deck. My mums hair gleams in the sunlight as she stands on the high up deck, watching the sun just peeking below the horizon. The baby in her arms turns to me, cooing immediately as she recognises me. I jog lightly over to them, kissing mums cheek as I take the baby out of her arms and kissing her forehead too.
"Hey beautiful," mum says as she looks at me, "I saw you chatting to Rafe Cameron." She raises her eybrows twice this time, hinting it had been something more than 'just chatting'.
"No, mum it's nothing like that, we were just talking about Sarah." I look back at her smiling a cheeky grin. Okay maybe I have always had a little crush on Rafe, I mean he is gorgeous, but not anymore."
"Cmon rie, you've got to have some fun!" She says winking.
"Mum!" I smack her arm lightly wile laughing,
"Just saying, I wouldn't mind watching Mabel a bit longer some days, so you can go and do something people your age actually do. Besides she is my favourite granddaughter."
"Mum, you have one granddaughter, out of three kids you have one granddaughter."
"And your point is? She's still my fauvorite" she turns to look at Mabel, tickling her soft chubby cheeks as she giggles.
"She's my fauvorite too."

The black Range Rover heads out of sight as I walk back into the kitchen, Mabel tightly in my arms. I grab my phone which I left in my apron and lock the back door of the kitchen, as I head out I see Rafe, still sat there as I begin locking up, setting Mabel down in a high chair on the side.
"If you couldn't tell already, we're closing." I say with a chuckle, signaling to the five out of seven locked doors.
"Oh..... yeah, sorry." He says looking up at me.
"No it's fine, just chop chop Cameron." I laugh.
"Hey do you need a ride home? I mean I just don't want you walking home alone in the dark, especially with your kid." He offers, a kind smile on his face.
"I don't think you should be driving, you've sat there with a different drink every half hour, thanks for the offer. But you can walk with me? I mean I do get a bit worried alone, and I really don't want you driving."
"Yeah, okay, I'll walk then." He says just as I finish locking up. Great.

The soft crunching of gravel ripples under the moonlight as we walk side by side Mabel pitched in my arms, cooing softly.
"Her name is Mabel, by the way." I say, not sure if he knew.
"Yeah I know, it's a beautiful name," he replies smiling softly at me "I think she's the cutest baby in the whole of the Outer Banks"
Mabel looks at him with her shining eyes, chubby cheeks and honey coloured ponytail sticking up above her head.
"I think she agrees with you," we both laugh as she smiles brightly at him, clearly keen. I start to shiver lightly as the warm summer air turns cooler, and my arms get weak from carrying her for a good while. Rafe looks over to me, taking off his carhartt jacket and handing it in my direction.
"You look cold, take this," he says putting his arm out, "let me take her for a minute and you can put it on, I don't want you freezing to death." I look at him kindly as though to make sure and he nods softly. I let him take Mabel from my arms, which felt weirdly comfortable to do, but I'm not surprised since I've know him ever since we were kids. I pull the jacket on, immediately immersed in the warmth his body left as I cosy up to the fluff on its inside. His eyes shine in the moonlight and his hair ruffles sown messily, but he has the widest grin on as he pulls faces at Mabel and she laughs, so I let him carry her for a while longer.

I take the keys out of my skirt pocket and open my front door, taking the jacket off as I step inside. He comes in too, only because Mabel is asleep in his arms. I lead him to her cot near my bed and he puts her down gently, tiptoeing out so we don't wake her, I kiss her forehead lightly and come out just behind him, so greatful that my mum had changed her into her pyjamas before they left. Rafe looks at me when we're in the light of the hallway and I can see the tired bags under his eyes.
"You can sleep here, on the sofa if you want." I offer, "you look pretty tired, and your house is ages away I don't want to make you walk."
He looks at me for a second, but then walks down the hallway to the kitchen.
"I should probably get going, I don't want to bother you." He says as he gathers his things.
"Really, it's no bother, look there's blankets on the sofa already and it Saturday tomorrow so I'm not doing anything, anyway we're old friends, so there's no harm done right?"
"Okay fine, but are you sure, because you can just say and I'll leave."
"Yes it's fine," I say as I start walking down the hallway, "night!" I whisper yell.
"Good night" he says back.