Nathan

chapter 1

~•¤ Chapter 1 ¤•~

It was just another usual day of winter. Rain droplets raced down the big glass windows and lots of black clouds filled the sky. It was only five p.m, but it seemed like the middle of the night. Soft music was filling the silence, but it failed to hide the sound of heavy rain pouring on the hard concrete sidewalks and windows.

The place was kind of empty; only two tables were occupied. The first one had a couple who seemed to be in their late twenties, and the other had a woman who looked like a lawyer with her black case on the side and her old fashioned beige suit. I looked out the window and saw the same cars parked in the same places. Nothing was different. Everything was familiar to me. But something made everyday of my life exciting- someone actually.

"Hello, Natalie. Are you there?" my colleague, Sarah, snapped her fingers in front of me. I blinked a few times and looked at her.

"Sorry, I dozed off again," I apologized and leaned on the counter.

"It's him again, isn't it?" She sighed with a small smile on her face. I nodded my head and looked down, hiding my flamed cheeks. Sarah knew me better than anyone else. I heard her chuckle and felt her patting my shoulder. "Girl, you need to boost your self-esteem a bit. You can't stay that way. You need to step your level up and talk to him!" Sarah lectured and I understood every word she said.

She was right; I was a coward chicken who didn't dare to talk to her crush. But you can't really blame me. He wasn't helping at all!

"I know," I simply answered and turned around as I heard the bell, which was hanging on top of the door, ring, signaling for a new customer. "Welcome to Starbucks. May I take your order?" I said, wearing my biggest smile. I had to welcome the customers 'warmly' as my boss liked to say. It's some sort of a code for all employees.

"I'll have a chocolate chip cookie, and uh..." She hesitates for a second, her eyes scanning the menu board above my head, "chocolate and cream frappuccino. To go please." She gave me a smile at the end.

I nodded and wrote the order, gaving it to Sarah. "That'll be five dollars and thirty cents," I told the girl, and she immediately gave me ten bucks.

"Keep the change," she said and took her order. I smiled at her kindness and watched her leave the store. Not many people left tips, especially in this town. Most people here lacked kindness and only a few people actually cared about others. That's why living here was a bit hard.

I was only seventeen, but I had to work everyday after school to pay for my expenses since my parents died eleven years ago. I lived with my aunt and her husband. They were really kind to me, treating me like the daughter they never had. But let's just say that they didn't have enough money to pay for my expenses- though they did help as much as they could.

I was deep in thought that I didn't catch myself staring at the door. But the appearance of a familiar face caught my attention and brought me back to reality. I immediately stood up straight and made sure I looked good from my reflection on the clean counter.

He was there. Well he was, everyday. But every time he entered felt like the first time I saw him.

He walked up to me wearing a different hoodie from the other day, though I'm pretty sure he had worn it before. His eyes were green as a tropical forest. And his eyelashes were long and made his eyes look even better. His nose fitted his face perfectly and his lips were drawn in a perfect curve. His bottom lip was pierced with a small silver ring, and it quite suited his look. He wasn't all punk though. To say that he was beautiful is the least.

His eyes met my ocean blue ones and I saw the emotion his eyes tried to hide everyday; sadness.

I always wondered what the reason behind the deep sorrow in his eyes was. It's like he had so much to tell, but at the same time was too afraid to do so. Everytime I stared into his eyes, I felt like grabbing him and telling him how everything would be alright.

But we were strangers. That only happened in my dreams.

"The usual?" I asked, even if I already knew what he wanted. He nodded and looked down at his feet. He already put the needed amount of money in front of me on the counter, so I put them in the cash register. I took the white hot chocolate from Sarah and gave it to him. He nodded in appreciation and, without a word, went to 'his' seat.

The small table beside the window was where he always sat. And it was a perfect spot for me to watch him from afar. I couldn't help but notice how his eyes shut close and his Adam's apple moved as he gulped his warm drink. I could tell how he enjoyed the beverage and the atmosphere around him, but disliked being in a company of no one. But he did look like the quiet kind of person; no wonder he was alone all the time.

It was weird how I fancied him since he was a mystery to me. Literally. I only knew his name because we wrote it on his order: Nathan. But I did learn a few things about him for the past month and a half while staring at him whenever I got the chance to. I learned how he put his hood on whenever he felt uncomfortable; how he wiped his mouth from the left side to the right after he was finished with his drink; how he scrunched his nose when he sipped on his drink too fast while it was still steaming. And most importantly, how he hid the deep sadness in him and managed to stay calm. You might think I was a stalker, but I wasn't. I just wanted to find out more about the person I liked.

"You're just going to stay like this for the rest of your life?" Sarah scolded and looked at me with a sad look.

I heaved a deep sigh and said, "I can't do it. I might some day, but definitely not now!"

She shook her head and motioned for me to look back at Nathan. When I turned my head backwards at him, I saw him putting his drink in the trashcan, then he headed out of the place.

Had I been looking at him so long that he was already leaving? How could time fly so fast?

"Come on now, your shift is over," Sarah said and went back to her place. I looked at my wristwatch, only to realize that it was 6 o'clock I took my apron off and hung it on the small hanger on the wall, then took my handbag from the cabinet beneath the counter.

"Bye Sarah," I called, turning around the counter. The tables were all now empty, meaning that in a shortwhile, it would be filled with students. I heard her shout a "Goodbye honey" as I wore my red coat and put on my beanie. Then, I left.

I had to cross my arms and hug myself tightly inan attempt to warm my body a bit, since the weather was freezing like we were in the North Pole. I'm not joking.

While I was walking down the street, my eyes caught someone sitting on the sidewalk, hugging their knees. I squinted my eyes and walked closer, only to realize that it was Nathan.

What in the world was he doing there?