Pocketful of Starlight

Tall, Dark and Ignorant

          "Nova, that's Kade Anderson, stop it!" Cas whispers from beside me, his teeth grinding together with each word. My hand stops mid-air, finger extended ready to poke the large bear-like nuisance who just cut the entire line and didn't look back once.

          "What's a Kade Anderson," I whisper back before tapping the man-giant on the shoulder.

       Castor's eyes open wide, his lips parting in shock as he attempts to reach for my arm to pull it down but he's too late. The damage has already been done. Giving up on stopping me, he quickly takes a step back, almost crushing the pair behind us: throwing his hands in the air making it clear he had no part in disturbing the beast.

       Cassie let's out a tiny squeak from the other side of him. One of her head phones has dropped out of her ear and she rips the other one out before shoving her phone deep into her purse. Her scowl and cocked eyebrow don't really preach approval of my actions. Cas joins in with his twin sister, repping the same twisted lip and raised brow.

         The two of them are more alike than I can stand at time. The whole twin telepathy thing has always creeped me out. I know they can't directly talk to one another through their minds but no one can convince me that they don't have something weird and unusual going on that the rest of us in the family lack. Especially when it comes to their ability to simultaneously throw glares.

      Too bad for both Cas and Cassie, I've spent the past 19 years receiving the side eyes and evil glares: none of it which works on me anymore. And out of spite, I reach to tap Mr. Planet-Fitness-Lunk once again and am met with no response other than a giggle from the barista. The same giggle I've heard every single time a boy steps up to the counter. No wonder why her tip jar is looking extra nice this early in the morning.

      "Hey, excuse me," I tap a few more times, speeding the jabs up a bit. Hoping to dig deep enough into his shoulder to receive a response other than another giggle. After at least 10 more jabs I am met with a 'one- second' finger as he continues to flirt with the barista. The caffeine-deprived-college-senior in me starts sharpening her pitchfork and lighting her torch while the older-sister-who-is-treating-her-younger-siblings-to-coffee takes a deep breath.

        The caffeine-deprived me wins.

       Cas steps up beside me shaking his head no, before giving up and stepping even farther back, Cassie's eyes go wide knowing what's coming. Both quickly scoot backwards into the people behind us leaving me three feet ahead of them all alone, with a face full of Buffy the Bench Press Slayer to fuel my fire. The whispers of apologies coming from behind me are white noise compared to the ringing in my ears after hearing the same giggle for the past 15 minutes.

    "Hello, excuse me," I repeat as I manage to side step Captain America 2.0 and get in-between him and the counter. The look on his face as I pop up in front of him makes the tight squeeze worth it. The look on Giggles face makes the $5 coffee I'm about to order worth it as well.

       Neither his well defined abdomen that is pressed against the side of me or the muscular arm he has leaning on the counter beside me can stop me from reaching up and shoving his chest a little to give me some breathing room.

      "Listen here Mr. Tall-Dark-and-Ignorant, get to the back of the line and wait just like the rest of the folks here. Or I'll take whatever prissy drink that Giggles here is going to make you, and I'll pour it into the garbage where it belongs." A few random claps come from the line of people waiting, while the rest of the café has seemed to go silent. The usual for a Starbucks, on a college campus, at 8:45, on a Monday morning.

           "Um, excuse you but you need to back away from him and get back in line," Giggles says from behind the counter. Her fresh manicure holding a cup with "Kade" on it and what I'm going to assume is her cellphone number. "Or I'll be forced to call security."