Once Upon A Twisted Fate

Four. - Misfit

“What do I do now?” I asked Kayla, who was smiling at me for what I’ve pulled. Her curved lips didn’t last long though. It turned upside down as I was tearing the paper off the notepad. I thought I had done something wrong, but she wasn’t looking at me. She was looking at the person behind me.

                I turned around and saw Dillan staring me down. His anger was unmistakable, as if I was the one in the wrong. “What do you think you’re doing?” he asked.

                “Taking orders,” I answered him, deliberately looking indifferent. He didn’t deserve to know how I felt. “So, Kayla…” I turned to her, resuming our previous conversation.

                “Oh,” Kayla said, looking at Dillan for a second, then walked behind the counter, leading the way. “Mocha, is it? I’ll show you.”

                I lifted my feet and followed her, completely ignoring Dillan. But he didn’t let the subject drop so easily. He grabbed me by my arm, stopping me from walking any farther. “You don’t mess with me,” he said in a stern voice.

                “I’m just doing my job,” I said, avoiding his gaze. Truth was, I was a little scared by Dillan’s rage. I just decided not to show it. If I did, it would mean he had the upper hand. I was not going to back down for this guy. He needed someone to show him up and I was in for the job. I never thought for a second making him do his job included babysitting him or being his mom by telling him what to do. I was not going to do that now, either. I jerked my arm free and resumed learning how to brew mocha from Kayla, who was smiling again. She seemed to be enjoying the scene, just like Mr. Gardner did previously. I sighed.

                I stood by Kayla and watched her work her hands into brewing the café’s signature mocha. The mixture or recipe, she explained, was passed down by Mr. Gardner’s grandparents. So the café was sort of his family’s business. The original café was located in New York, but it was closed down due to the stiff competition there, and relocated here. Kayla said she would demonstrate the preparation this time, when another order of mocha came in, I could do that myself. I nodded in agreement.

                When Kayla was finished, I held the cup of mocha in my hands and let the aroma sank in. It smelled so good. As I was walking back to the customer, I noticed Dillan was sitting on the counter, staring at me. I ignored him.

                For the rest of my night shift, I was guided by Kayla in learning to brew different types of drinks, as well as learning the names of different foods. She let me do all the orders while she focused on being my mentor. I was really grateful for that. Dillan, on the other hand, had stopped flirting with the customers. Instead, he actually helped Alex and Grace serve their orders. He pretty much stayed quiet after our little “misunderstanding”. Could it be he had turned a new leaf? It seemed too good to be true. Perhaps it was. I wouldn’t put my bet on it.

                By nine, the open sign hung on the glass door was turned around, replaced by the word closed. Every one of us were busying ourselves tidying up the place. Mr. Gardner thought I did a good job and asked me to officially start work tomorrow. My shift would start at 3.30 p.m. and end at 9 p.m., every weekday. I would say tonight was definitely an accomplishment. One I never thought I’d achieve. The fear and doubt I had before was almost vanished. I felt silly for worrying so much. Everyone was so nice, I could work a whole year if I wanted to. And by everyone, I meant excluding Dillan.

                “See you guys tomorrow,” Kayla, Alex and Grace all said in unison, waving at Dillan and I. I laughed at how cute they looked. All three of them walked home together every night, as the direction of their house were all due west. They walked together as a group at first, then when the distance widened, they slowly split up, leaving Alex to walk alone, as his house was the farthest from the café. Guess you could say Alex was somewhat like the girls’ bodyguard. Dillan had a driver pick him up at 10. According to Kayla, his driver had to pick up Mr. Wetherill—Dillan’s father—after work before coming to pick Dillan up. Not that any one of them had seen his father before, not with the tinted window of the car. I couldn’t understand why rich people couldn’t drive. As for me, Ashton was running a little late and I didn’t know why. I forgot to bring my cell to work. I could walk home by myself, but I didn’t want to freak Mom out.