One For The Road

Chapter Thirty

"Are you still looking for a job?"

I plopped down onto the couch with my phone pressed to my ear, letting Heidi's words process for a moment. I had asked her a while ago to help me look for job opportunities.

"Yeah, why?"

"I'm friends with the girl who owns that cafe that I go to all the time."

"Mars Cafe?" I asked vaguely, resisting the urge to wrinkle my nose. Don't get me wrong, Mars Cafe was a great place with an adorable and comfortable atmosphere, but since my father had tried to convince us to meet him there, I had a few bad feelings associated with it. I still couldn't get the what ifs out of my head— what if we had met up with him and given him the money he didn't need or deserve, what if we'd met up with him without the money and he tried to hurt us, what if he didn't leave us alone until he got what we promised him?— but other than that, Mars Cafe was a pleasant place.

"Yep. She's looking for employees. I told her a few days ago I knew someone who would be interested and she seemed really excited about it. Just is there now, studying. Want me to ask if he can pick up an application for you? I would get one myself, but I'm lazy and Just is already there." Understandable.

I felt my heart jump at the thought of a job opportunity. "If it's not inconvenient for him, then yeah. I'd really like one."

"Alright. I'll text him." She paused, and when she spoke again, I could practically hear her smirking. "Or you could just meet him there and then go on an actual date instead of being the awkward nerds you are and sitting on your couch watching Disney movies."

I feigned an offensive gasp, clapping a hand to my chest and trying to ignore the heat rising in my cheeks. "Don't you dare insult our Disney marathons. They're the best things to ever happen to me."

"Alright, alright," she chuckled. "I'll have him bring an application to you. Good luck."

"Thanks. Bye." She hung up shortly after I responded, and I flipped onto my back, heaving out a sigh. I'd been searching for jobs for a few weeks, and nothing was turning out. I was hoping this wouldn't be another failure to add to the ever-growing pile.

Just texted me after about ten minutes and told me he was on his way, so I decided I would at least get dressed before he arrived. After all, it was nearly noon and I was only wearing a pair of boxers and a Star Wars t-shirt.

I managed to pull on a pair of jeans before the doorbell rang. Just was inside with his backpack sling over one shoulder when I emerged from my room. Kaleb, who must have been the one to let him in, was heading back to the kitchen to continue working on whatever he had been doing.

Just smiled when he saw me, holding out a thin packet. "Application."

"Thank you." I smiled and took the packet, letting my fingers brush against his as he pulled his hand away. "Sorry to interrupt your studying."

He shook his head nonchalantly, his nose scrunching up a little in a cute way that kinda made me wanna kiss it. "It's fine. I'd been there for a while anyway. My brain is fried."

I smirked. "Well, what do you say we watch some good old Disney movies instead of studying? You need a break."

He made a face at me, but the indication of a smile still appeared as his lips twitched. "As much as I would love to, I think you need to study more than I do."

I poured. "C'mon, babe, I've been studying all morning, too."

I didn't even process my own use of a pet name until the look of shock registered on Just's face when he looked up at me, eyes wide. His face was going red, and I could feel my own cheeks heat up as I instantly attempted to backtrack because oh god I'd embarrassed him or made him uncomfortable or something.