MELODY (Book 1) ✓

Chapter 25 (SMS)

"Relax, Melo. He's not gone forever!"

"I'm fine."

"No, you're not!"

"Yes, I am!"

"No, you are not!"

"I'm an adult, Ash. I'm fine... OW!"

The angry steam wand breathed fire on my fingers , while I tried hard to focus on my work without much success. Asha's chattering and Akram's absence were distracting me, like two opposite forces stretching out my brain in two different directions.

"Tut-tut! See? I told you." Asha shook her head and took the mug from my hands, careful not to spill the strongly aromatic coffee I worked hard to prepare. She placed the order on the bar. " Hey, show me your hand. How are you gonna text him with burned fingers?"

"I'm alright. You just distracted me, " I mumbled as Asha examined my hands in her small ones.

"Right! Like this is the first time I talk while you work," she said , her tone sarcastic.

" Your thumbs are alive! Groovy!" She trilled in excitement that didn't match the situation, bouncing like a beach ball. Her long hair fanned the air and blew a sweet coconutty smell to my nose.

I need to remind her not to do that near the drinks. The patrons won't be happy to find hair that long in their coffee. I mean, it's beautiful on her head, not in someone's coffee mug. Ew!

Asha bent over to open the small fridge underneath the counter - the end of her ponytail grazing the floor- and scooped some crushed ice in a plastic cup. "Here, put some ice on your booboo." I rolled my eyes when she grabbed my hand and stuck my fingers on top of the cup. She made me feel like I was a little kid and she was my fussy mother.

Smiling sheepishly, I picked up a piece of ice with my good hand and stuffed it into my mouth. The shocking wintery taste in my mouth was something I secretly loved since I was little, besides, it had zero calories and it cooled down my anxiety.

"You like eating ice? What diet are you on? Akram and water?" Asha chuckled.

I pouted when she reminded me. I wasn't being careful about my calorie​ intake recently. Sneaking in a pint of ice-cream or a jumbo bag of potato chips into my dorm room at weekends - spending Saturdays sleeping, reading and stress-eating like a hog - wasn't something that I was proud of. Especially that It all ended up hurled down the toilet.

"You're not funny today!" I grumbled.

"I'm not funny? It's been two months and you're getting worse. You should definitely call him. You suck at texting any way, " Asha said, twisting the side of her face in disapproval.

"No! And I don't suck at texting, I have sweaty hands! " I said, still pouting.

Akram asked me to text once and I wasn't going to push my limits. I missed him like hell but I wasn't going to risk pushing him away with creepy phone calls at night, especially that he'd never called for the past two months. He did text me every day, but only in reply to my single lousy messages at night.

"Don't get me started. I taught you how to keep the chat going, but you just don't listen. You send something lame like; 'I'm home' Or 'Good night' ... seriously who starts texting with 'good night'? It's basically the same as telling him 'Go to hell!' " She pursed her lips, pulling the ice away from my hand and tossing it in the sink. She turned to face me, hands on her hips, " you don't get the symbols right, you let auto correct fool you , and you never ask the guy any questions! You're taking 'less is more' to a whole new level! Why get a cell phone if you're not gonna use it decently?"