Upon A Star

Chapter 15

Breaking the news to Luke was going to be hard, but she had to do it sooner or later.

As she opened the door to his apartment, she found his tired body sprawled on the couch. His arms stretched while one of his legs dropped off the couch and almost touched the floor.

The sound of the door creaking open alarmed Luke. And so, he was awake with yawning meanwhile further extending his tense arms.

Celeste stood in front of him for a moment, inspecting her friend's weariness, and deep down she knew that her announcement of moving out and staying at Nick's would be lifting a weight off Luke's shoulders. He could finally have his bed back, his apartment back, but most importantly, his life back.

"You're late," he whispered in a raspy voice. And paused, the air filled with silence as he adjusted his seating manner. His spine was back against the couch and he was upright.

"Sorry. I have something to tell you." And guilt itched at her, but she had to tell him the truth. After all, it would be a weight off his shoulders. She was practically doing him a favour.

"What is it?"

She scratched at her brow and sighed. "Tomorrow morning I'm going to pack my things and stay with Nick for a while, until I get sorted about my whereabouts. I'll get money from modelling and hopefully have enough soon to pay rent. And next time, it can be you staying at my place."

She could see it in his eyes, disappointment. He was smiling innocently before she bombed the news at him, but now he was almost frowning.

He let out a breath and rubbed his chin. "Are you sure?" he inquired, and Celeste hoped that it wouldn't come to this.

She didn't want to make it seem like she was ungrateful. Because she was not ungrateful, in fact, she was very grateful. And she made a promise to herself that when she was back on her own two feet, she would repay him.

"I'm sorry. I should rest now." The conversation between them ended and the ice that was solidifying in the air was nowhere near melting. If a third person, completely ignorant of what occurred, had stepped foot in the apartment, they would surely recognize the tension clinging in the air.

-

Nick preheated the oven, and grabbed the ingredients from the fridge and then stretched his arms to dig in cupboards for the far-reached elements. He was going to prepare for Celeste's arrival, and it had to be special.

First off, he would fix breakfast. Pancakes drenched in maple syrup, as well as English breakfast tea. Not only was the breakfast expected to be tasteful, but also Nick wanted it to be appealing.

He made sure the pancakes were frothy and arranged them in the centre of a white porcelain plate. He also checked that there were no remaining crumbs on the plate, and if there were any, he ripped a piece of kitchen paper and polished the plate. For the finishing touches of the pancakes, he dribbled the maple syrup over the stacks, allowing the golden syrup to flow from one layer to the next. And to top it off, a small cube of butter that melted on top of the maple syrup's starting point.

For tea, he chose his cutest teapot that practically did not belong to him but to Jessica. It was pastel blue with the word TEA inscribed on it in black. And he also established two white teacups on the table to match the colour theme.

But most importantly, he had to urgently get rid of the alcohol smell. The same smell that overpowered Celeste's previous home with Cora. So he took it upon himself to spray as much of his cologne in the air as possible, while wishing upon the stars that the sizzling of the pancakes, and the maple syrup, and the butter, as well as the tea, would optimistically replace the filthy memory of his alcoholic nights.