Never Again

Chapter 2: Confrontation

It had been several days since graduation and life quickly had gotten back to normal, except from going to university of course. It felt rather strange for Keira to not go there anymore and she picked up extra shifts at work to fill the empty days. David had enrolled in some extra courses, to keep himself on track for next year, so he wasn't home very often. Life between them had been difficult though, he was normal during the day, but in the evening when he started drinking he made sure to make her feel guilty. He then accused her of being a distraction or even deliberately sabotaging his revising so she would look good compared to him. Keira knew that none of that was true of course, she had tried to help him as much as she could during the last couple of months, but he always snapped at her when she had tried to explain something. So she had made sure to keep quiet and had found herself visiting Abby or Tom more often during the evenings.

She had helped them prepare for their new jobs and prepare for their new lives, because both would be moving within two weeks. She still couldn't believe that this was it, that they would never again sit together to work or revise. Although she was very happy for them, they landed their dream jobs quite early, she also envied their success. Maybe dream job wasn't the right word, but they would be able to grow within the company and move on to the position they would really like. She was more enthusiastic about Abby's job, naturally, because aviation was also her field of expertise. Sometimes she felt jealous, because they had been able to find a job so quickly and she had not. She herself had sent out a couple of resumes, but she knew that something was holding her back. Not quite sure of herself yet and she didn't really know if she was ready for the big, scary world.

Keira found herself staring at the information screen, not really taking in when exactly her bus would arrive. It didn't really matter, because all the busses would take her to the right place. It was nice to take up a couple of more hours at work, as it kept her busy, but she also really liked her job and therefore her colleagues. It wasn't a high demanding job, but the environment was really enjoyable and she had grown fond of the regular customers. Also getting up to date with all the college gossip was always something that amused her. Charlotte was the manager, but she didn't really look or act like it and she was the one closest to Keira while having the natural ability to get stories out of people. Sometimes the gossip was too good to be true and they would spent hours laughing and discussing the people involved. A couple of customers would even chip in during these conversations, they would remember the good old days when they had been in college or were just interested in what people got up to these days. All in all, she really liked her job.

'Hey Keira, right on time!' Keira swung open the door of the cafe and saw Charlotte waving at her.

'Yes, as always,' she said. That was true, she always was on time, because she hated being late.

'You'll keep up your 100% record of being on time then,' Charlotte turned to Michael, 'that's something you would never achieve,' she said dangerously.

'But you still love me,' he smirked.

Keira chuckled, she knew that was also true. She spotted Michael smiling innocently at Charlotte and she gasped while throwing her arms in the air.

'You'll get me bankrupt one day!' with that Charlotte disappeared behind the counter and left Keira and Michael behind.

Keira took off her coat and put it away, Michael threw her an apron and she quickly put it on. It was still early and there weren't many customers yet. She knew that in the next thirty minutes the regulars and commuters would come in and it would get busy. That part she always liked, the busy hours where people would crave for a good cup of coffee and were on their way to work. It kept her occupied and her head empty, also time went by rather quickly.