Taking a sip of coffee, Tonya thinks over what I said. “You’re right. Hopefully she forgets.” She takes another sip, “Besides, she will probably go somewhere else since your store didn’t have anything she liked. If there’s one thing I know about that woman it’s that she’s impatient.”
“So, Charleigh,” I change the subject. If I don’t Tonya is going to stew on it for days. “Did you read the book we’resupposedto be discussing?”
She shoots a panicked look toward Tonya. “Um,” she begins, but doesn’t get a chance to finish.
Bianca’s voice comes from behind me, “They never do. I’ve been reading them in hopes that one day they’ll actually talk about the books we pick out.” She shakes her head in disappointment, “They are missing out on some pretty amazing books.”
“I thought you had to work tonight,” Charleigh says.
“Eh,” Bianca shrugs. “We were slow so I cut out early. There’s no point in me being there if nobody is coming in. Weeknights are always slow, anyway.”
The only ones missing from the group are Cami and Darcy, They’ll be back soon enough. Once finals are done, they’ll be heading back home with their boyfriends in tow. We’re an odd group combination, and that only makes things more interesting. Especially when we try to explain to strangers how we’ve all become friends.
Tonya, Charleigh, and Bianca are talking about some cute thing Layla did. Tonya wants this time to be herself, but she can’t stop talking about the little light of her life. Not that I blame her. Layla is the cutest, and funniest, baby I’ve ever encountered. She already has an amazing personality, and I can’t wait to see what she does in life.
As much as I love my baby cousin, the conversation is kind of boring. My thoughts drift to Randall, and I wonder what he’s doing right now. He had to work, and he should be getting off soon. He’ll probably go hang out with Jake and Marshall since I’m not free tonight. The urge to bail on this “book club” is strong. The only thing holding me back is myself. In a good way, of course. When I dated Andrew, I was with him all the time. He wanted to be around me as much as I did him, or so I thought. And even though Ireallylike Randall, I don’t want to become so attached to him that I lose myself. Being so dependent on someone only to have them shatter me, was one of the worst things I’ve experienced, and I won’t go through that again. Space is definitely a good thing.
“Earth to Melly,” Tonya snaps her fingers in front of my face. “Girl, you zoned out for a hot minute. Are you okay?”
“Oh, um, yeah. I’m fine,” I mutter. Glancing at the clock I realize I’ve been going over my relationship with Randall for over ten minutes.
“I bet I can guess where your mind was,” Tonya smirks.
“I knew you two were going to get together,” Charleigh squeals. “I could see it in your mannerisms. Even without the almost kiss in Bianca’s work room.”
“In my what?” Bianca screeches.
“Nothing happened,” I roll my eyes. “We were waiting on Charleigh to draw up my tattoo, and were talking.” I motion toward Charleigh. “She walked in when I was about to kiss him. I was so freaking embarrassed.”
Bianca isn’t scowling anymore. Her hands are covering her mouth trying to hold her giggles in. “If you only knew what has happened in that room,” she winks.
“Gross,” the rest of us say in unison. “That was something I could have gone my whole life without hearing,” I laugh. “And I’ll never go in there again.”
“Whatever,” Bianca huffs. “I sanitize if every morning, night, and after each client. That’s probably one of the cleanest rooms in the whole shop.”
“Speaking of,” I take a bite of my muffin. “What’s going on with your receptionist? Randall mentioned something about a crush on one of the other artists.”
“Yeah, that’s Sophie,” Charleigh answers. “She’s had a crush on Adrian since she started working there. He’s going through a lot right now. They are both ridiculously hot for each other. Neither of them will do anything about it, though”
“It’s painful to watch,” Bianca says. “They definitely need to figure their shit out.” She pauses for a second and her eyes light up. I swear, if it was possible, there would be a bright light bulb above her head. “Maybe we should invite her to hang out with us. I don’t think she has very many friends. She’s nice and doesn’t cause drama. What do y’all think?”
“I’m okay with it.” It’s not like my input really matters since I’m just now joining the group, but it would be nice to have another newbie around. We’re really turning into a family of misfits. It reminds me of that old Christmas movie with the elf that wants to be a dentist.
Tonya and Charleigh nod in agreement. Sometimes I think my cousin thrives on including people. It’s like we’re all lost puppies and she’s trying to give us a home, one stray at a time. Between her and Randall, the decision to go back home once I’m on my feet is becoming more difficult. Here, I have friends, a boyfriend, and a job I really enjoy. All I have back at home are a job and my parents. Not that my parents are a bad thing. They’ve been nothing but supportive of me and my decisions. I just need, and want, something else. Something more. It might be time for me to plant my roots in a new location for a bit.
Tonya’s phone dings, and we all look at her. “It’s probably just Reaf. Let me check really quick just in case something’s wrong with Layla.” Seconds later she’s laughing so hard she almost knocks over her cup of coffee.
“What did he say?” I ask. Anything that creates that sort of laughter has to be funny.
“He’s cursing me for having to change a poopy diaper.” She has another fit of laughter. “As if I haven’t done it five million times.”
“Men,” Charleigh shakes her head.
There’s not really much to say after that. Though, I can only imagine how Reaf feels about it. Anytime I’m with Layla and she has a dirty diaper, I take her straight to her mama. It’s also the reason I never keep her when I’m by myself.
The employees of Brew’s Clues begin shutting off the coffee machines, our cue to get out. Time has flown hanging out with them, and I’m happy they invited me. Even if I didn’t want to come to begin with.
“I think we better get out of here before they officially kick us out,” Charleigh notices the shut down routine.