A Thousand Words

3.

Tyler's POV

I couldn't escape the thought of her. Everywhere I went was a reminder of her. Jenna had been to every nook and cranny of this city with me. Every street, every building that I had gone to, she had been there. I was beginning to think that I needed to get out of this place. 

In the search of something new, I would go out to bars and clubs after work. I was never a heavy drinker. Crowded places were never somewhere I'd venture off to. I didn't need the company of random strangers. Not when I had her by my side. 

This morning, I woke up with my head pounding. I didn't remember much, other than walking through the door of the bar that I had grown accustom to. I expected nothing less as this slowly became a routine of mine. Unlike the other days, I realized I was running late to work. I quickly slipped on the jeans that I wore last night, even though they wreaked of alcohol. I found a shirt that smelled relatively clean and made my way to the bathroom. I looked at the mirror and witnessed how awful I looked. There were dark bags under my bloodshot eyes and my hair was stained with grease. It was evident that I had not shaven recently as stubble spread throughout the lower portion of my face. Without hesitation, I put on my dreadful glasses that I rarely ever wore and rummaged around in my closet for a beanie. 

By the time that I reached the coffee shop, I had been thirty minutes late. I quickly punched in and threw on my apron.

"Sorry, George–"  I walked from the back room to the register, only to see the familiar blonde haired girl standing next to George. I was filled with confusion and disgust. Why was she here? She was another person I couldn't escape. 

"No worries, Ty," George patted my back. "El was here to help out." A weak smile imprinted on her lips before she turned back to a customer. 

Before George walked to the back room, I grabbed ahold of his arm.

"What is she doing here?" I hissed, obviously unhappy with her presence. 

"I hired Ella the other day," he smiled. "I've known her for a while now and it felt right to offer her a job."

No. There was no way that I'd be working with her. It felt like my world came to a crumble once again. I don't know why I despised this girl so much. I barely interacted with her. But something about her made my blood boil. 

"George, I can't do this. I can't work with her," my voice softened, hoping she wouldn't hear. 

"Why? Ella is a sweet girl." He looked at me with his brows furrowed. Truth be told, I didn't have a good reason to not work with her. George's face lightened as though he had an epiphany. 

"She reminds you of her, doesn't she?" George spoke softly. 

I stepped back. Annoyance resurfaced through my body. "What? No. I don't even know her." What made him think of this? There was no way Ella was like Jenna. 

"Well I know she reminds me of Jenna," he spoke softly. His eyes glanced at her and then back at me. He didn't add anything else to his statement. "I think you should get to work. The poor girl is struggling by herself," he said. I turned around and watched as she quickly wrote down the orders, darting around the small, confined area. 

I said nothing as I picked up the cups, reading the orders. 

"There you are," Ella spoke frantically. It looked as though she already knew her way around the machines. I didn't have to teach her anything, which I was thankful for. 

The morning rush eventually died down to a point where only two people sat on opposite sides of the room. I leaned against the counter as Ella wiped down the tables. I peered over to her direction.

I had to admit, Jenna and Ella looked a lot a like. Though they weren't sisters, they had the same colored sandy blonde hair. Ella's hair was wavy while Jenna's hair was pin straight. I noticed that Ella had tanner skin, but I had a feeling that it would return back to its pale self once she spent more time here. I remember overhearing that she had previously been in California. I also noticed her eyes. While Jenna had bright blue eyes, Ella's eyes were a subtle hazel. The girl tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and I noticed how the silhouette of her face was almost identical to Jenna's. I would know by the countless pictures I had taken.

The girl finished her last table and looked up at me. I was staring. I quickly turned around, pretending to wipe down the counter. 

"Hey," her voice rang behind me. My shoulders tensed at the sound of her voice. I kept my mouth shut. 

"Look, I know you don't like me. I don't know why, but I know you do," she said. Her voice wavered ever so slightly. She was nervous. "Can we please try to get along now that we work together?" she pleaded. 

I nodded my head. I knew that if I opened my mouth, nothing nice would come out. 

"Good." I heard Ella walk toward the register. My posture softened once she distanced herself. 

Any other person would have chewed me out for my spiteful rudeness. I know that for a fact. They would've avoided me. For some reason, Ella wouldn't stay away. Thankfully, she knew when to stop talking. She knew when I needed my space. This made her presence a little more bearable. 

"Rough night?" I turned around and realized that she was talking to me. 

"Just because I agreed to get along with you doesn't mean I want to talk to you," I scoffed. As soon as those words exited my mouth, I regretted it. 

Ella frowned at my remark. Without hesitation, she swiftly walked to the back room. I wanted to chase after her to apologize, but my feet were held frozen in place. It was too late.

"Excuse me." My eyes glanced back at the register. I didn't know how long the customer had been standing there. 

"Sorry. Yes, what can I get you?" 

For the rest of my shift, we worked in silence. Ella refused to look at me and I understood why. The anger that I had at the world and at Jenna was taken out on Ella. I realized this now. I didn't mean to, but I just had so much hatred built up that I imposed it on everyone.

Towards the end of my shift, I realized that I hadn't taken my break yet. I walked out the back and lit a cigarette. I was left in silence for only a few minutes before the door to the cafe opened up. Ella looked at me, trash bag in hand, and made her way to the dumpster. 

"I'm sorry," I called out. Ella stopped in her tracks, not bothering to turn around. 

I dropped the cigarette on the ground and put it out with the bottom of my shoe. Without waiting for a response, my hand grabbed onto the doorknob and I walked back inside.