Roommates

Chapter 38

As Aurora worked her shift, she struggled to keep up with the hustle and bustle of the store, too distracted by her exhaustion. Beyond that, she was also engrossed in her lovely imagination.

It seemed like the holiday traffic had slowed down yesterday, only to ramp up again today. All of the natives were coming in to do their weekly shopping that they missed because of the holiday crowds. The aisles buzzed with impatient chatter, shopping carts clashed, and the overhead announcements seemed louder than usual, creating a cacophony that felt overwhelming to Aurora.

On top of that, everyone was in a shitty mood. Everyone, except Aurora. How could she be? With thoughts of Evangeline swirling in her mind, each one a little bubble of happiness in the chaos.

"Get me a pack of cigarettes," a customer demanded, slamming his hand on the grocery belt to startle her. "Marlboro Red 100s."

Snapped back to reality, Aurora left her checkstand and headed for the service desk to grab his cigarettes. She saw Evangeline using the computer on the opposite side of the service desk. The fluorescent overhead lights cast a harsh glow on Evangeline's face, making the shadows under her eyes more pronounced, evidence of her lack of sleep. Even while working, Aurora's girlfriend was just so damn beautiful. Her very presence was soothing Aurora's nerves.

"Hey," Aurora said with a timid smile.

Evangeline kept her gaze on the screen, staring blankly at the page, tapping her nails on the counter rhythmically. Her usual confidence was lacking and she seemed oddly subdued, her movements mechanical. She didn't acknowledge Aurora, or the guest at the counter behind her.

"Eve?" Aurora called, gently grabbing her wrist. The touch was light, but it carried a world of concern.

Surprised, Evangeline turned her head and sighed in relief when she saw Aurora. She turned back to the computer, catching up on the work she was supposed to be doing. "Hi, honey."

"Are you okay?" Wearily, she let go of Evangeline and studied her face. She seemed troubled and had a distant look in her eyes, like she was seeing something far beyond the computer screen.

"I'm fine," she assured with a smile, but it didn't reach her eyes the way Aurora knew it could. In an instant, her demeanor changed as she looked over her shoulder at the customer, realizing her presence. Evangeline left Aurora's side, putting on a façade for the guest. "Hi, how can I help you?"

Aurora went back to her checkstand. She came around Trey to her position, gave the cigarettes to the guest, and told him his total. She looked at Trey, his tall frame slightly hunched as he scrolled through an order on the store phone. "Does Eve know that that was Chloe's dad? She seems very off."

"As far as I'm concerned, she never met Travis."

"How do you know Travis?" Aurora asked.

"Travis was a good friend of my father's; that is how I met Chloe when we were younger. My dad and her dad were gambling friends, back when I lived in California. Now that Travis got a job with my granddad's firm in Salt Lake, our dads are work partners." Trey shrugged it off as unimportant. "I just want to know why he was here."

Nodding, Aurora both accepted his information and agreed to his worries. "I never met her dad either. I never even went to her house. We always met up at a church or park."

She could still picture those meetups, Chloe's nervous energy always on-edge, like she was constantly looking over her shoulder. They were much too young to be acting the way that they were at the time, so of course, Aurora never thought much of it when she was young. Hindsight is always 20/20, though.