"She had tricked him. She had made him leave his old self behind and come into her world, and then before he was really at home in it but too late to go back, she had left him stranded there - like an astronaut wandering about the moon. Alone."
~ Bridge to Terabinthia
***
Finally they were playing some good music at work. And when I mean "they" I mean Mitch because his taste in music just really sucks.
"Before you ask which way to go,
Remember where you've been..."
I almost knock down the espresso machine when the beat drops, but I couldn't care less.
"Stay awake, get a grip and get out,
Your safe from the weight of the world,
Just take a second to set things straight."
People look at me like I'm utterly insane as I mop up the floor and dance around to the song. Usually, I don't like being myself like this - aka. Running around the Hub with a mop, rocking out to one of my favorite bands and being very excited that Mitch's taste in music has finally improved after so many years of having to deal with me.
"I'll be fine even though I'm not always right,
I can count on the sun to shine,
Dedication takes a lifetime,
But dreams only last for a night..."
I finish cleaning and shove the mop into the tall cabinet by the counter where customers come to pick up their drinks.
"Woah there Cole," Mitch says. He sprays some whipped cream into a caramel frappuccino. "You know this could be a karaoke bar if you really wanted it to." He finishes and he winks at me. I glare.
"Don't expect me to do that again." I say. I begin to clean the espresso machine and check the time. 6:15.
To be completely honest with you, I'm scared out of my mind. As soon as I said yes to Mac, I regretted it. Sure I've seen him around most my whole life, he is in my grade at school, some of my classes throughout the years, but how do I know he's not a killer or something? Plus, I learned the last time that I got too close to a guy what the consequences are. I don't want to become friends with Mac especially not go out for a "drink" with him the day after I meet him in person. Yes, yes I know that he was a good listener Cole, but you forget how it ended.
I just don't want to get my hopes up too quick. I don't want to have to put myself into a relationship with this James Maclean Thompson just to hurt myself again. I don't want to be able to trust him and make the mistake of telling him certain things that I wish I hadn't told him. I don't want to be his cigarette. You know, somebody you light up when you want to feel something and then drop on the ground to crush when you're done. I just don't want to be that girl again.
I drive home later tonight and luckily, the traffic isn't that awful so I get home in a matter of minutes.
"Colby is that you?" My mom calls as I come in through the garage door.
"Yeah it's me!" I say and I chuck my keys onto the laundry counter next to the sink.
"You're on your own for dinner!" My mom says. I enter the kitchen and see her schoolwork all over the table. She enrolled at a Christian college about a year ago and she's always falling behind due to the amount of pastoral and family emergencies. I walk to the pantry and grab two boxes of Mac&Cheese - oh ha ha - and I set up the pot and the stove.
"Can you holler when it's boiling, Mom?" I ask and my mom nods. I walk upstairs to my bedroom and I shut the door. I've got about forty five minutes before I have to meet with Mac. I groan. Why the hell did I even agree to this anyway? The worst about it is that I can't help but remember the last time this happened.
