Imagination || L.H.

Chapter 1

Gripping the handles of my bike tightly, I hop over the curb onto the sidewalk, coming to a stop right in front of The Scoop, the best ice cream place in town. I lead my bike over to the metal stand in front of the store. The bells tied to the handle of the door jingle as I open it, stepping into the place that's like a second home to me.

"Kat!" my friend Cassidy exclaims as I walk through the door. Her blonde hair flies in my face as she hugs me so tightly that it's hard to breathe. "I haven't seen you in forever!"

I smile, pulling away slightly to look her in the eye. "Cass, it's been like one week."

"It feels like forever," she says, her green eyes full of excitement. 

Cassie pulls back, brushing her hair out of her eyes. "I have so much to tell you, Kat. Like, crazy amounts. Drama, random information, you name it. So much has happened in the span of one week. I don't even know where to begin."

"Why don't you begin by doing your job?" Lynn says jokingly, coming up behind us.

Cassidy jumps, whirling to face the owner of The Scoop. 

"Lynn!" she says, eyes wide and panicked. "I, uh, was just about to go take another order. Yeah, that's what I was going to do." 

She hurries away quickly, sliding behind the counter to get back to the register.

Lynn turns back to me and, expecting a gentle scolding as well, I'm about to start after Cassie when she speaks. "It's been awhile since I've seen you, Kat, how have you been?" 

She shares a secret smile with me. 

Lynn's the best. She's this really cool woman in her late fifties, maybe early sixties. Her curly hair is a weird mix between orange and blonde that hangs down to her shoulders. She's super passionate about cleaning up the earth and protecting the animals, so there is absolutely no plastic in The Scoop. Lynn actually went as far as to put up a sign that says that plastic is not allowed inside the store last year.

I find myself smiling back. It's not a fake smile like I've been doing more and more, but a real one. I feel comfortable here in this store, with these people I've known for forever and spend hours every week of the summer talking to. I've really missed Lynn and the store. It's my favorite way to spend the days we get off from school. 

"Good. San Francisco was amazing." 

My grandparents live up there and right after school ended, my parents and I went up there to visit them for a week. As much as I love San Francisco, I've missed Los Angeles and my life here so much.

"How are your grandparents?" Lynn inquires, her curiosity genuine. 

She and my grandma get along insanely well. Lynn came over once when my grandparents were visiting to talk to me for a minute and somehow she and my grandma bonded over their geeky love for Tom Cruise. I swear, they've watched practically all of his movies together.

"They're great. My grandma has taken up painting and she really loves it. She told me to tell you she's working on a masterpiece of Old Tom."

Lynn's face splits into a wide grin. "I can't wait to see that!" 

The bells tied to the door jingle as another customer walks in. 

"As much as I love talking, it's time to get back to work." Lynn points behind the counter. "Can you manage the smoothies?"

"Yeah, of course," I say, nodding.

She gives me a smile, stepping behind the counter. "Great."

I remove an apron from the rack placed in the corner, twisting my hair up into a bun. 

Cassidy gives me a big thumbs up as I turn on the sink, washing my hands thoroughly. I roll my eyes playfully at her and she sticks her tongue out at me. 

I've known Cassie since middle school, when we had to sit next to each other all year in science. Ever since then she's been my best friend. Well, my best female friend.

April, a young woman in her early twenties with strawberry blonde hair, calls out a smoothie order to me and I get to work. 

Technically, The Scoop is an ice cream shop, but per Lynn's wishes at trying to be healthier, we serve smoothies as well. Actually, it's a more popular option than you may think. There's lots of people trying to be healthy in LA. 

I'm not really among them, although every now and then I'll go on some crazy diet and I'll do that for a few weeks before my best friends go along and ruin it for me. I'm close with Cassie, but distant enough that if I say I'm on a diet, she won't eat anything I can't eat in front of me.

But my close, tightly knit friend group? 

If I tell them I'm on a diet, they'll be like "Okay" and then they'll go and order a pizza and ask me if I want any. The answer is always yes because I can never say no to pizza. Pizza is my weakness.

When Cassie hands the customer standing in front of her his ice cream, she quickly walks over to me. In a low voice, she mutters, "I have something to tell you."

My eyes dart around the store, searching for Lynn. I'm not in the mood to get yelled at right now. "Can it wait?"

"No," she says in a impatient tone.

I look over at her, surprised. Cassidy is probably the most patient person I've ever met. If she needs to talk now, it's important. 

I start panicking a bit, wondering what her news could be. Please let it be something I can handle. "Okay, what is it?"

She takes a deep breath, in a hurry to get the words out. "I hooked up with Josh."

My eyes widen and I almost drop the smoothie in my hand. "Really? How did it go down?" 

Josh is a popular, kind of jerky in my opinion, football jock. He's cute, of course, but he's not my type. He and Cassie have been dating for three months now, if memory serves.

Cassidy takes the smoothie from my hands, passing it to April, who mutters something about the long wait. 

She nervously tucks a strand of hair behind her ear, staring down at her Vans. "You don't think I'm... you know... a slut? We've only been dating for like three months."

"No," I say, taking her hands in mine. "I don't think that. Listen, it's not my place to judge what you and when. I'm just curious because you're my friend and I care about you."

She gives me a blinding smile. "Thanks, Kat. You're the best."

"Anytime. Now, tell me all the juicy details."

"Well, we were-"

"Back to work, girls!" Lynn says, raising an eyebrow at us. "Now is not your chit chat time."

I bite my lip, feeling a little ashamed. I love my job, I really do, and I don't want Lynn to think I don't like it here, that I'm not happy to spend so much time here over the summer. 

Cassie starts sliding back to her register, promising under her breath, "I'll tell you later."

I nod and get back to my job. Normally I really enjoy it, but today I find myself watching the clock, desperately wishing it will speed forward so my shift can end.

I got back from San Francisco yesterday, leaving me no time to see my best friends.  After I get off of work, we're going to the beach. I can't wait. I feel like I haven't seen them in forever, when in reality it's probably only been a little over a week. 

I never knew a week could feel so long.

xx

Sorry it's a little slow, but I promise things will get more interesting! 

Hope you like it so far! <33

-A