Revealed

16. Solane

There's a thunderstorm happening outside right now. So the shop is quieter than usual. I feel bad for whoever was having their baby shower today in this horrible weather.

For about one and a half hours, I sit at the register staring out through the glass windows, watching the sad raindrops pound loudly onto the empty roads. Only about six people had come in to buy something. Then, Melissa calls the business line.

"Hey, Melissa."

"Hey. I knew you were working today cuz Dee told me. The weather is depressing and I didn't want it to spread to you, so here I am, over the phone, talking to you."

Melissa is so sweet.

"Aw, thanks. When I tell you it's so quiet over here, I mean it. All I can hear are the rats running around and the thunder scaring them."

I hear a loud snort on the other side of the phone.

"Your friends will be fine."

I roll my eyes at her immature joke and go to the kitchen to grab myself a bottle of water.

"Yeah, well I only have one more hour until closing. I have a lot of homework to do too. I guess I could technically be doing it now but..."

Then the front door opens, but no one's there. I look around suspiciously.

"But what..?", Melissa asks over the phone noticing the pause in my sentence.

Still inspecting the dining room, I reply to her by saying, "Sorry, I could have sworn I heard the front door open. But I was saying... omg, I lost my train of thought."

"Normal people just say they forgot what they were saying." Melissa giggles.

"When have you ever known me to be normal? Hmm? In fact, you never stop reminding me that I'm a complete idiot and that I'm wasting my life on pointless things like reading and college prep classes." I put the phone on speaker and place it on one of the front tables while I check the rest of them a third time for cleanliness.

"Solie! I can hear myself again! And your voice is getting pretty distant! I'm on speaker aren't I?"

"Yeah. but no one's here so it doesn't matter. No one can hear you. Just continue what you were saying."

"If I'm on speaker, then it means your cleaning tables. I'm not even there and I can tell you right now that they're definitely already clean. Can you relax a little?"

"Melissa. Sweetie, I can't help it if I'm perfect and you're jealous." I'm pretty sure Melissa could feel my smirk through the phone.

"Ok, Solie. I'm just gonna ignore that old joke you so clearly stole from me," She laughs while she says that. Then she screams excitedly, practically breaking my eardrums, "Did I tell you how my date with Jayden went? Oh my gosh, he's a complete package! He took me to the beach and we just sat at the edge of the water talking about... everything. It was amazing. He wants to take me out again soon."

My heart becomes warm. "That's adorable. I don't know what my idea of a dream date would be, but I know I want it to be with someone who really cares and is committed to me."

"Oh jeez, here comes Sappy Solie."

"Hey, I have dreams too!"

We both laugh. Then, I hear the phone hang up. I walk back over to the table where I had placed it to see that the phone was missing. "That's so weird. It was literally right here...," I think to myself.

I search for the phone with no success. Shouldn't Melissa have called back by now? Maybe she hung up, that's why. But that doesn't explain the missing phone.

Before I have time to think, someone grabs me from behind and covers my mouth and nose with a napkin. That's the last thing I remember before passing out.