Bunches

by Jill Valley

  “It’s good for you,” she calls again. I laugh.

  “Anyway, I hope you have many more hot interactions with Loverboy. Now, what can I get you?” he asks. “Delicious pastry? Hot coffee?”

  “Both,” I say without thinking. I had only planned to get coffee, but I really like Noah. Maybe because he said JJ recognized me, and a part of me, a deep down part, desperately wants to be seen.

  “I’m surprised the electrical current running between the two of you doesn’t have my hair standing on end,” he says, fluffing his very messy red mop.

  “Now come on, tell me all about it while you eat,” says Noah. “What’s your name, by the way?”

  Once he’s introduced himself he gets me my order. There are a couple of chairs pushed up against the counter and I pull one out, appreciating how silently it glides along the floor.

  “My name’s Nora,” I say, sticking out my hand. It’s brave of me. Normally I would wonder if he wanted to shake my hand. Normally I wouldn’t be talking to a guy who just called JJ Loverboy. But Noah takes my hand and gives it a firm shake, smiling.

  “Nothing,” I inform him. “I can’t just tell my story to a stranger.”

  Noah rolls his eyes. “Are you kidding? I’m the perfect person and I’m, like, SO bored here. None of my friends came back for the summer. I knew I should have stayed in New York.” He sighs sadly.

  “You’re in school?”

  Noah nods. “I’m going to be a junior. Come now. I’ll tell you all about myself, although you already know my name, my occupation, and my relationship with my grandmother, so I think we’ve already gotten pretty personal.”

  I smile. I’m just about to tell him to continue when my phone dings. It’s Lizzy. She’s finally awake and she wants to know if we can get coffee.

  I tell Lizzy where I am. She texts back that she’s on her way and she’s very mad that I’m getting coffee without her. I look up to see Noah giving me a quizzical expression.

  “My friend is coming,” I explain, making myself comfortable as he puts the chocolate chip muffin I asked for down in front of me.

  “Awesome,” he says, “more friends.” With no one else coming into the shop, Noah is free to come and stand in front of me. He braces his chin on his palms and starts to talk.

  “My life is pretty boring,” he says, “as you can see. I’ll just give you the highlights.”

  I nod, a little shocked that this is happening. This sort of thing never happens in the big city.

  “I’m the youngest of seven. My parents coddled me all my life, which is why they’ve turned me over to Gram for the summer. She doesn’t coddle anyone. She doesn’t even know what coddle means.”

  I smile at his joke and take another bite of my muffin. It’s delicious.

  “I’m a studio arts major, and I love it. I’m trying to think of ways to make myself even more unemployable when I graduate, but I’m failing. I have a wonderful group of friends, most of whom were lucky enough to find ways to spend this summer in Europe. I like chocolate, romantic movies, drawing, and late nights. Basically, I’m a girl. Oh, and I’m also very observant.”

  He grins at me again. For the second time since I moved to Portland I’m feeling almost completely at ease in a stranger’s presence.

  The doorbell tinkles and I spin around. A tiny part of me is hoping that JJ forgot something and has come back to retrieve it.

  “Oh, Gosh, I’m so sorry,” Lizzy starts in. She’s wearing gray sweats, a white t-shirt, and sunglasses. Her mass of blond hair is pulled into a messy ponytail. She still looks gorgeous, and I try not to be jealous.

  “This place is cute,” she says, eyeing Noah in silent question.

  “This is Noah,” I say, effecting introductions. “This is my friend Lizzy.”

  Once the two have met, Noah takes Lizzy’s order. Unlike me, she consumes coffee like she’s afraid she won’t be able to get any tomorrow, and if she could have it run through her veins by an IV line I feel certain she would do it. Mostly because she said she would.

  There’s something light and airy about this coffee shop. Maybe it’s all the fresh flowers that Noah’s grandmother, I assume, has placed everywhere. I take a sip of my coffee. It’s hot and refreshing, even though I normally prefer tea, especially in the morning. While Lizzy’s scone is heating, Noah comes back over to us. Lizzy has flopped dramatically into a chair and removed her sunglasses. She looks as tired as I feel.

  Noah raises his eyebrows at me. “Good?” he asks.

  “Yup,” I say. “So, why didn’t you go somewhere fun this summer?”

  Noah grimaces. “My older brother had some issues. He’s fine now, but I thought I should come home. Give the family some stability.”

  I grin at him. “Very stable.”

  “Now, tell me all about your boy!”

  “Oh, she has boy drama, with a capital boy and a capital drama,” says Lizzy reverently. “Luckily, he’s adorable.”

  “I know,” says Noah, bracing his chin on his hand. “I just saw him.”

  Lizzy nearly chokes on her coffee. She looks at me wide-eyed.

  “No WAY,” she says. “How could you let me sit here for three whole minutes and not tell me that!”

  “I have no idea,” I say dryly. I might be tongue-tied with guys, but never with Lizzy.

  “She was making new friends,” Noah offers helpfully.

  I wrinkle my nose and laugh. “Exactly.”

  “You know what it means, though?” Lizzy is so excited she can barely contain herself. Even her scone, her favorite breakfast in the world, is forgotten on the plate.

  “Nope,” I say resolutely, even though I have a pretty good idea what she’s getting at. Noah, still across from us, is starting to smile.

  “It means he LIVES around here,” Lizzy squeals. “Isn’t it wonderful? He could have lived anywhere, but NO, he lives here.” He really couldn’t have lived anywhere. He surely has to live close to his bar. It’s surprising he doesn’t live above it or something.

  “Either he lives around here or his girlfriend does,” I say, determined to break the mood.

  “Now, tell me about-”

  But Noah doesn’t get to finish, because the bell tinkles again.

  This time three pairs of eyes turn to stare at the door. Even before I totally turn around I know JJ has come back. He steps through the door quickly and sees the three of us looking at him. If I feel tired, he must feel worse. We left the bar at a decent hour, but he was probably there past closing.

  He catches sight of us and I see a faint blush on his cheeks.

  “Can I help you with something else?” Noah asks, stepping casually back into barista mode as if we hadn’t just been talking about the customer he’s serving.

  “Yeah, I um, wanted to get a few muffins,” says JJ. Glancing my way, he gives me a smile again. “I forgot them before.”

  Neither Lizzy nor I moves. I’m still not convinced he remembers us; maybe the look on his face just means he feels awkward having so many people stare at him,. Lizzy gives me a searing look, her eyes ordering me to say something. But I can’t. I’m frozen.

  JJ walks past us and up to the counter. He’s still holding a coffee cup in his right hand, and his hair is tousled in that perfectly messy sort of way guys manage to pull off so effortlessly.

  “Any particular kind of muffins?” Noah asks, his hands on the counter in front of him.

  “What do you have?” JJ asks, turning toward Lizzy and me. The coffee shop is silent. Then from the back room, a voice yells, “Honey, he’s talking to you.” Noah’s grandmother has struck again. I start in horror, realizing the “honey” she’s referring to is me.

  “I have chocolate chip,” I manage to say. JJ nods and smiles. I have no idea why I do this, but I take a big bite of muffin and start chewing. Lizzy looks like she wants to do a face palm.

  Once Noah has gotten JJ an assortment of muffins, he leaves again.

  “Wow,” says Lizzy, slapping h
er hand dramatically on the counter. “He totally has a thing for you. Did you see how much he was smiling? He couldn’t take his eyes off you.”

  “That and he’s hot,” Noah adds.

  I wish I could melt into my chair, while Lizzy turns to him and grins. “I think I’m going to like you,” she says, batting her eyelashes at him. “I think I’m going to like you a lot.”

  “High five to that,” Noah says.

  The three of us spend a very pleasant morning getting to know each other. Only a handful of customers come in before Lizzy and I leave at nearly noon, so Noah is able to spend a lot of time talking to us. One of his other siblings also shows up to help out, which gives him even more time for chatting. We find out that he lives upstairs with his grandmother and the brother, but that he’s really from further out in the country.

  When Lizzy and I explain that JJ works at the Remember, Noah looks a little sad. He’s still only twenty, and he won’t be able to go out with us. He has a fake ID, but his grandmother has threatened terrible things if he gets in trouble on her watch this summer, and he doesn’t want to risk it.

  “No worries,” says Lizzy. “We will totally fill you in on all the details.”

  Noah grins. “Awesome. And I can totally come hang out at your apartments before you go out. I give great fashion advice.”

  Lizzy giggles. “Then by all means take our girl here shopping.”

  She nudges me in the ribs and I glare at her. Okay, so I’m a fan of t-shirts with brand names and skinny jeans with flats, big deal. I wear what makes me feel comfortable, not what everyone else tells me I should wear.

  “Don’t you want me to find someone who likes me for me?” I ask.

  Lizzy pauses and taps her bottom lip thoughtfully with her index finger. Finally she says, “No, at this point I just want you to find someone, period. And get laid. I think you’d relax a bit if you did the deed. So, two things.”

  I’m so shocked she’s said that in front of Noah that my mouth goes dry, but he takes it all as a joke and cracks up.

  Lizzy glances at me, and she can see by the look on my face that she has crossed a line.

  My good mood gone, I simply say quietly, “It’s one thing to go on a date, but it’s totally different to talk about sex with someone else.”

  Noah, instantly understanding that I have a past, stops laughing. He looks questioningly between me and my friend, but he can tell from how I’m hanging my head and fiddling with the handle on my mug that I’m not ready to talk about it. He’s not just perceptive, though, he’s gentle and forbearing.

  Warmly, he places his hand over mine. He waits until I meet his eyes to speak. Looking into their depth I see nothing but kindness. “It’s hard to talk to strangers, but pretty soon I won’t be. Whatever you need and whenever you’re ready to tell me.” He pats my hand comfortingly, then lets go.

  Chapter Ten - JJ

  The last thing I expect is to see her this morning. I’m so surprised at the heat coursing through me that I do . . . nothing. Smooth, JJ. You run a bar and are more than capable of talking to women, but then when you see her you become a silent idiot. First, I’m tired and I have a long day ahead of me, and to make it worse I haven’t gotten enough sleep. Second, I had no idea she lived near me. That should be interesting.

  I feel better once I leave the coffee shop.

  I’m now more sure than ever that she’s the same girl.

  She clearly has no idea who I am, and neither does her friend. I’m a couple of years older than they are, and I moved back here at the end of high school, so it’s not that surprising. I was here a lot with my grandfather in the old days, helping out at the bar in any way an underage kid could.

  My phones buzzes. It’s a text from Ben, my bouncer. He and Sylvan are getting breakfast and they want me to join them. I decide I probably have time before I meet Jessie for a run. Anything to get my mind off Nora.

  I head for our favorite breakfast dive. I like days with the guys. Jessie usually lets me have them after I’ve worked late. It’s her way of showing she understands the demands of my job.

  I enter the small diner. There are red linoleum chairs and big windows and it smells like bacon. Sylvan and Ben are sitting in their usual spots and I slide in next to them.

  “Morning,” says Sylvan, taking a big swig of coffee.

  “Morning,” I greet them.

  “How was last night?” Ben asks. He had the night off.

  “Good,” I say. “Lots of people. Busy. No major issues.”

  “Jessie stopped in,” says Sylvan, his eyes gleaming. I glare at him. It’s the guy’s version of tattling.

  “No,” Ben groans. “She should know better by now. It’s ridiculous that she checks up on you like that, man. I know she’s a nice girl, but you own a bar, and two years in she still hasn’t gotten over it. If Katie freaked out every time I went to work there’s no way we’d still be together.”

  “She’s going to care until they break up,” says Sylvan, putting so much sugar in his coffee I’m surprised there’s any left for the table.

  “She doesn’t freak out and let’s talk about anything else,” I mutter.

  Once I order, bacon, eggs, whole wheat toast, and home fries, we shift topics. The guys can see I don’t want to talk about Jessie. She’s my girlfriend and I care about her. I love Jessie as much as I can love anyone, and I’m relieved to have found her.

  We talk about sports and about crazy nights at the bar. We talk about what Ben’s going to do once the summer finishes and there isn’t as much work for him at the bar. We talk about Sylvan’s older brother, who was in a car accident a couple of years ago and never fully recovered, then we return to talking about sports. We’ve been here for almost two hours when I get a text. I glance down and see that it’s from Jessie. She’s bailing on our run because she has work to do, and she wants to know if she should stop in at the bar later on.

  “See?” says Ben, shaking his head. “She doesn’t get that you can’t have your girl coming around all the time.”

  “I’ll just tell her I think it’ll be a busy night,” I say. A quick flash of wonder shoots through me and I pause. I wonder whether I’m telling her that because I don’t want her at the bar, or because a small part of me hopes that Nora will come in tonight and I don’t want to kiss Jessie in front of her. That’s crazy, isn’t it? I shake my head and type out the text. It’s what I want to do, and overthinking it is only going to drive me crazy.

  “Or you could just dump her,” Sylvan offers.

  “Via text?” Ben says, shocked. Ben has very high standards for behavior. Maybe you wouldn’t expect it of a bouncer and maybe you would, but he steadfastly believes everyone deserves respect . . . until they are staggering around starting fights at his bar, then he just throws them out on their ass.

  “I thought you liked Jessie,” I say. Jessie’s nice enough, and she gets along decently with most of my friends.

  Jessie doesn’t answer right away, which tells me she’s a little pissed. She always has her phone on her.

  “Love gives you wings, man,” says Sylvan, laughing. He’s the biggest confirmed bachelor I’ve ever met.

  “Sylvan, are you lecturing me on love?” I laugh, tossing my napkin onto my cleaned plate.

  “Don’t look now, but I think you have some fans.” Ben elbows me and nods to a table a few down the row, where a group of girls sit giggling, periodically glancing over at us.

  When I look over they wave. I smile and nod back, being polite, then turn back to my friends. Both Sylvan and Ben are chuckling at me.

  “Are they from the bar?” Sylvan asks.

  I shrug. “No idea.” We all see so many faces at the bar it’s hard to keep track.

  That’s another thing that pisses Jessie off: when any other girl pays attention to me. I’m pretty sure that’s why she comes into the bar, because she doesn’t like it.

  “They’re cute. We could ask them to lunch,” says Sylvan thoughtfully.<
br />
  “Still hungry?” Ben asks dryly. “Because I don’t think I’m going to eat again until dinner. Besides, my lady would never forgive me.” Ben is very taken with his girlfriend Katie. They’re about to move in together.

  “You’re going to eat again in a hour,” I say, laughing and ignoring the girls. “Sylvan, what were you attempting to say about love?”

  “I’m just saying, man, a lot of our friends are married now. I’ve seen what love looks like, and you might think you love Jessie, but you don’t, not really. She isn’t your only.”

  “Yeah, okay Cupid,” says Ben. “Anyway, let’s get out of here.”

  “Yeah,” I say, “I gotta go feed Anabella.” My cat Anabella is part of my story. She’s five, and she was my mother’s. Moving here from Boston was hard for her, but she’s adjusted pretty well. She hates having to stay inside all the time, and every once in a while she gets out. When that happens my roommate calls me and I have to leave work to go find her. I’m usually frantic and she’s usually very amused when I eventually show up.

  I sigh and leave the diner. I should be thinking about Jessie, wishing I could see her tonight. We had plans for before I go to work, after all. But I’m not thinking about her. Truth to tell it’s been a while since I’ve thought about her much. Instead, I’m thinking about a girl and wishing I could be the kind of guy who would always make her smile.

  Chapter Eleven - Nora

  It’s Saturday, and I was having a lazy day in bed, reading and watching bad TV shows, until Lizzy came up with an idea.

  “Do we have to go?” I ask, for what must be the eighth time. Lizzy stopped answering me for a while, but now she relents.

  “It’s nice we can go. Noah can come. I love new friends,” she grins. We’re in my apartment. Nancy is who knows where, and we’re discussing when we’re going to leave for the block party.

  “I like that they have block parties here,” she says, spinning her gorgeous hair up into a messy yet attractive bun. “We can get to know our neighbors.”