Imperial Coffee

One More Time: Part Four

Cinder couldn't breathe. She'd been wrapped up in Kai's words and smiles; simply him being there made her calm, more like herself, even when she relived parts of her past that normally made her anxious. It wasn't meant to last.

Everything came back. Kai was no longer in her mind; all she knew was that Carswell Thorne stood in front of her. She knew that his hair was rumpled, that he had scruff on his chin, that his lips were dry and chapped. He was angry.

She tried to open her mouth, to say something, but there were no words to say.

Then she felt a hand on her arm. Kai was looking at Thorne with confusion, his stance protective as he took a step forward.

"Thorne," Kai said, nodding. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm just visiting my best friend." Thorne spit the last words as if daring Kai to question them. "What I'm wondering is what you're doing here."

Something finally clicked in Cinder's brain. She gasped and forced herself to steady. She removed Kai's hand from her arm and stepped around him so she could make eye contact with Thorne.

"He's here as a friend. He works at Imperial Coffee with me. I'm surprised you didn't know, since you're roommates, after all." Part of Cinder wanted to reign back, shrink into the floor, melt away until there was nothing left of her. The greater part of her wanted fire. "Then again, you never seemed to pay that much attention to other people."

She wanted Thorne to see the truth, for him to understand...She could never see him that way. They were friends, always had.

If they couldn't be friends, she wanted Thorne to move on. If he hated her, she could lick her wounds forever but at least he could escape. At least he could lose hurt behind anger.

"I know I messed up last night. Cinder, you have to listen to me." Thorne reached an arm out but dropped it before it could reach her. "I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry. If I knew...I wouldn't have..."

"You wouldn't have what? I've known you for six years. I've known the way you flirt, the way you say words that didn't mean anything. That never bothered me too much, because I was different. Thorne..." Cinder turned her head away, closing her eyes. "Last night I realized I was no different from them."

"That's not how it is." Thorne reached out again, but this time he didn't stop himself. He traced her cheek with his hand, trying to force her to look at him. She kept her eyes closed.

"I can't do this," Cinder said, firmly. "I can't do this. I'm thankful you were my friend, but now it's over. You know it is. So why are you still trying?"

"One more time," Thorne said, dropping his voice. "Because I want to hear you laugh at my jokes one more time. I want to hear you say my name. I want to hold you in a hug and comfort you, one more time. Stars, Cinder, I just want to see you happy, and I want to know I'm the reason."

Cinder pulled back from Thorne's hand. Her eyes opened, and she shook her head.

"I'm sorry, Thorne. I know you'll find someone else. I'm not hard to replace. Just let things go. You know it's right."

"No, I don't know. I don't understand. And I can't replace you."

Cinder held her hand out. "Give me back the key, you won't be needing it anymore."

Thorne shrunk back, slipping the key into his pocket. Cinder tried not to cry.

"Give her her key back."

Cinder looked back at Kai. His voice was even, commanding. She'd never seen this side of him. His voice...how could someone refuse when he spoke like that?