by Lizzie James
I didn’t see how it would.
4
Thomas
As I watched Christopher and Lauren talk, I waited for her to turn him down like she usually did. She didn’t do dates. She was always so busy with her job and her own interests.
“I think he’s asking her out again,” I muttered quietly to Luke.
“I think she’s accepting, dude.” He gave me a pointed look before he bent down and grabbed a crate of empty bottles. “Looks like little Lauren is looking for something she isn’t getting anywhere else.” He walked past me, disappearing into the storeroom.
I didn’t like the way that he said that. I didn’t like how he made it sound like she was looking for sex or something dirty. She was better than that. She was better than all of us.
I walked past them, trying my fucking hardest not to eavesdrop, but as I passed them, I heard him ask her out for coffee. I paused long enough, just waiting for her to turn him down. She shocked the hell out of me, though, when she quickly accepted his offer for a coffee date before making plans with him for tonight. I stood at the end of the bar, unpacking a crate of coke when she turned away, saying goodbye to us and walking to the door, leaving me and Christopher both staring after her.
Did I fall into some fucking twilight zone?
“You finally got her to say yes.” Luke laughed from where he was now standing opposite a goofy-looking Christopher.
“No, man. The pretty lady asked me,” he said as Luke walked over to us
“Bullshit!” I interrupted. “She doesn’t usually ask guys out.” I frowned at them, wondering what had changed. “I mean, she’s never… She’s never seemed interested in being with a guy.”
Christopher shrugged his shoulders. “Maybe she’s ready for more, man.” He nodded his head at us both before he slipped off his stool and disappeared to the storeroom to get ready for his shift.
“You okay?” Luke asked me. “You seem a bit highly strung about Lauren going out with Christopher.” He uncapped a couple of bottles of coke and handed one to me. “I mean, she’s not a child, bro. She was going to start dating eventually.”
“I know.” I took a gulp from the bottle. “I just… I just didn’t see her picking Christopher to go out on a date with.”
“It’s not a problem, is it?” Christopher asked from behind us.
“Ah, fuck,” I muttered. I turned around to face him, hating how pissed off he looked. “I didn’t mean anything by it, man. I just… You guys don’t really have a lot in common.”
Christopher glared at me before he slowly moved his gaze between me and Luke. “You sound a little fucking jealous there, Thomas.” He shook his head at me and turned away from us, walking to the kitchen, letting the door swing closed behind him.
“Jealous?” I wasn’t fucking jealous. “I’m not jealous!” I looked at Luke, waiting for him to agree with me, but he just stared at me with a look of surprise on his face. “What?” I snapped.
“You do sound a little bit jealous, man.” He reached up and rubbed the back of his neck, and I knew that whatever was going to come out of his mouth, I wasn’t going to like. “What I’m about to say, I’m not saying as your friend but as Lauren’s. Okay?” He stared at me, waiting for my agreement.
“Okay.” I placed my hands on the bar, leaning my weight against it, waiting for him to start talking.
“You need to step back, man. As long as I’ve known you two, it’s always been you and her. You, her and whatever piece on the side you have going on at the time.” He sounded cold.
“What are you trying to say?” I asked bluntly.
“I’m saying that you’ve had her for long enough. I’ve known you both for three years, and I know you don’t want me to say this but…” He sighed. “I think Lauren has been afraid to date—afraid to find someone.”
“Why would she be afraid?” I asked. “What does she have to be afraid of?” He was confusing the hell out of me.
“You guys are best friends.” He rolled his eyes at me. “Maybe to her, you’ve been her number one guy for so long that she hasn’t wanted to share that spot with anyone else.” He clapped me on my shoulder before he turned away. “Give Christopher a chance. They could be good for each other.”
I nodded my head, thinking over what he had said to me. Had I missed something? Had she been missing out because she was afraid it would ruin our friendship? If that were the case, did it mean she was afraid to be honest with me?
It was nearly six pm. My shift had ended at five-thirty, and I was still hanging around here, waiting for Lauren to arrive.
“Why are you still here?” Luke asked, giving me a pointed glance. He knew why I was waiting, so I didn’t know why he was asking.
“Fuck off.” I turned when I heard movement behind me. The door opened and Lauren entered with a huge smile on her face. I hated the way it dropped when she looked at me before she quickly perked her expression back up.
“Hi.” She stared past me, giving a small wave to Luke behind me. “Is Christopher here?”
Before any of us could say anything, Christopher came out from the storeroom.
“Hi.” He moved past me, stopping in front of her. “You look really pretty.”
“Oh, thanks.” She ducked her head, and I could see the blush from where I was standing.
I couldn’t stop my eyes from moving down over her body. She was dressed in blue jeans, a pair of her brown leather boots, a cream woollen jumper with little bits of sparkle on it and her beige winter coat. She didn’t look simply pretty. As I stared at her, the only word that I could think of to describe her was beautiful. She’d never been beautiful to me in the past. She had always been… Fuck, she had never been anything other than Lauren. Just my friend Lauren. She was always just Lauren.
“Are you ready?” Christopher asked her.
“Yes.” She turned her gaze to mine, giving us a small smile before she turned and walked with him to the door. “I’ll see you later, Thomas. Bye, Luke.”
I watched her go out the door with Christopher, hating the way I felt—hating the way it put me on edge. As I turned in my seat, I knew that what I was feeling was new and very fucking unwanted. “Ah, fuck.” I leaned my elbows on the bar and put my forehead down.
“Here you go.” Luke put a pint of cider down on the bar in front of me as he uncapped a bottle of Budweiser. “You seem a bit…”
“Stressed? Fucked off? In need of a night out?” I asked jokingly, interrupting him.
He pressed his lips together, flattening them a little before he took a swig of his drink. “Not what I was going to say.” He chuckled. “I was still going to go with jealous.” He raised his eyebrows, watching me and waiting for my reaction.
I stared at him, not liking the way that he was reading me.
“I told you,” he said, shaking his head at me. “I told you there may have been something there.” He had a cocky tone and it made me want to punch him in the face.
“There is nothing there!” I snapped at him. “But she… and I… She’s never wanted to date, man.”
He was staring at me like I was stupid. He wasn’t buying any of my bullshit because that’s what it was. It was bullshit.
“We’ve always been friends, Luke. There’s never been anything there between us. It’s always been friendship. We’re more like brother and sister than friends.” I shook my head, hating that we were having to have this conversation. “But now it feels…” I paused for a moment, trying to find the right word.
“Now it feels what?” he asked. He frowned down at me with a concerned expression.
“Now it feels like… I don’t know.” I tapped my fingers on the bar, struggling with my thoughts. “I don’t know, man. When I saw her walk in here just now, she looked different. She seemed…” I sighed. “She didn’t look like my friend, man. She was a woman.”
He smirked at me, and I knew that I was completely screwed. Luke had been hinting at me for a while that there may be someth
ing there other than friendship. Now, I had basically given him the green fucking light to ride my ass even more about it.
“I told you there was something going on,” he teased.
“Whatever.” I rolled my eyes and slid off the stool. “I’m going to go home. I’ll see you tomorrow.” I lifted my hand and gave him a wave over my shoulder before fastening up my jacket and leaving. I stopped off at the local Pandora shop and picked up a Disney Minnie Mouse charm. Lauren was a massive Disney fan, and I usually bought her a charm every year for Christmas. I smiled at the clerk, taking the gift bag and my credit card from her and left the shop.
I tried paying as little attention to the people I passed as I could, but everywhere I looked, I saw cheesy, loved-up couples walking through the snow-covered streets. As I approached the apartment building, I chuckled when I saw our neighbours sitting on the bench outside. They were both in their eighties and whenever I saw them, they were always holding hands. It was cute in a sickly sort of way. It was also something I’d never envisioned having for myself, but as I watched them, for the first time in my life, I imagined it was me and Lauren. They were so comfortable with each other, and as I watched them, I knew it was a feeling that I had only ever had with one other person and right now, she was out on a date with someone else.
Unlocking the door, I dropped the gift bag off in my room, hiding it in my wardrobe so Lauren wouldn’t find it. She didn’t usually go in my room. She was a messy person but she occasionally put the hoover around in my bedroom. I knew if she saw a gift bag, she’d be nosey and take a peek.
Slipping my jacket off, I tossed it on my bed and went back out to the living area. I slumped on the sofa, groaning when my phone began ringing and sighed when I saw Cindy’s name on the screen.
“Hello,” I answered.
“Hi, baby. Fancy meeting up tonight?” She had a sexy tone to her voice, and I knew what she was expecting me to say.
“Not really.” I blew out a breath. “I, uh… Look, it was fun while it lasted but I think—”
“Because of her?” she asked in a demanding tone, cutting me off. “I knew she’d try and come between us.”
Fucking kill me now.
“There’s no us, Cindy. We met, we had a good time but that’s it.”
She laughed mockingly at me and I hated how mean and cold it sounded. “Sweetie,” she said, full of bitchy attitude. “You screwed me in your bed when she was in the next room! Do you really think she’s going to want you after that? She’s never going to want you.” She chuckled down the line before she hung up on me.
I shook my head, feeling like the world’s biggest fucking idiot, but as I placed my phone down next to me, I knew that no matter how cold and bitchy her words were, she was right. I had fuck all to offer Lauren, and if Luke was right about there being something between me and Lauren, I had no fucking chance with her.
5
Lauren
Taking a seat at the window of one of the local Coffee Bean branded coffee shops, I slipped my coat off, hanging it on the back of my chair.
“What would you like?” he asked.
“Uh…” I looked past him at the menu, hanging above the counter. “Can I have a gingerbread latte, please?”
He grinned at me. “You have a sweet tooth. I can tell.”
You didn’t get to work at a coffee shop for two years without developing a sweet tooth.
I pulled my phone out of my pocket, half expecting to have a text message from Thomas, but as my screen lit up, I was surprised when I only had an email from Amazon about the upcoming book release of Nothing But The Sheets from Stacy McWilliams. As I flicked through a few of the links, I added a few books to my ever-growing book wish list. There were already way too many on there, but I couldn’t help myself. I was a book nerd at heart.
“Here we go,” Christopher said, disturbing my browsing as he placed our drinks down.
“Wow. That looks delicious.” My gingerbread latte had a healthy blob of whipped cream with chocolate sprinkles on top, a biscuit wafer sticking out of the mug and two marshmallows sitting on the saucer. “There is a lot going on in that mug.”
“Well, I figured you may as well have the full works.” He chuckled and took a seat opposite me. “I was boring and went with a normal latte.” He frowned down at his mug. “No marshmallows for me.”
“Share mine.” I grinned as I picked one up and popped it on his saucer. “The biscuit wafer is mine though.” I picked it up and took a bite off the end, licking the whipped cream from my finger as I did. He stared at me for a moment and I began getting nervous. I was unsure how to react. Christopher and I had always been friendly with each other but being on a date with him was different. Dates were new to me.
“So, uh…” He lifted his hand and scratched the back of his neck. “Can I be honest?” He looked a little troubled and it worried me.
“Sure.” I fidgeted a little before placing my arms on the table and grasped the mug, warming my hands. “This doesn’t sound good.” I chuckled, hoping it would lighten the mood of whatever he was about to say.
“I’m a little surprised you asked me out.” He grinned at me. “I think Thomas was surprised as well.”
“Surprised how?” I asked.
“Well”—he lifted his mug, taking a sip of his coffee—“he sounded a little jealous, to be honest.”
I shook my head, disagreeing with him.
“We are just friends.” I hadn’t expected us to be having such serious discussions today. “There’s nothing between us.” I shook my head. “Anyway, it’s got nothing to do with him.”
“That’s good.” He smiled at me before giving me a cheeky wink. “So, are you going to help me after this? I have been told you’re a fan of Christmas.”
“I’m guessing Luke told you that. I do love this time of year.”
“Why?” He folded his arms on the table, giving me his full attention. “Explain it to me. What is it about this time of year that makes you love it so much?” He looked interested, but I couldn’t tell if he was teasing me or not.
“You’re winding me up.”
“No.” He laughed at me and nodded his head towards the window. “Tell me about it. I hate this time of year because everyone always seems so fake. In December, people love you and then come January, they go back to twisting the knife.”
“Wow. I didn’t realise how cynical you were.” I couldn’t help but tease him, but he sounded so much like Thomas. “I can’t sum it up in one reason. I’d sound silly if I tried to explain it.”
“Hit me with it.” He waved his hand gesturing for me to continue. “Tell me all the things you love about the Christmas season.” He smiled, waiting for me.
“Okay.” I grinned at him before I began. “It’s the little things. I love Christmas movies. There’s always a happy ending, never mind how ridiculously cheesy it is. I also love Christmas music. Not all of them but there are some classy Christmas songs out there. I love putting the Christmas lights up and decorating the tree.”
“Angel or star?” he asked, grinning.
“Both! Always both. Thomas and I always swap them around each year. If the star is on top, I always make sure to have an angel decoration somewhere. I also love that no matter how fake the season may be—as you say—I love how nice people can be just because it’s Christmas time.” I shrugged my shoulders. “But do you know what my most favourite part of Christmas is?”
“What? The presents?” he joked.
“No.” I fiddled with the mug, turning it slightly and looked back up at him. “I love how families come together for Christmas dinner and spend time together. They can go all year long without seeing each other, but for that dinner and for that day, they can be a family.” I chuckled, feeling a little embarrassed. “I told you it sounded silly.”
“It doesn’t.” He stared at me for a few moments before he continued. “Do you have a big family, Lauren?”
“No.” I shook my head. “My parent
s died when I was sixteen.”
“I’m sorry,” he apologised. He looked so sincere.
“Thank you.” I gave him a small smile. “So, tell me about your mother. Tell me what she likes. I mean, you do still want me to help to find the perfect gift, right?”
“She loves flowers. Daisies, roses, tulips, carnations… If it has petals, she loves it.”
“Flowers, hey?” I moved my mug aside and looked across the street, spotting the jewellery shop. Late night shopping was another thing I loved about the festive season. “Let’s go. I spy a jewellers across the road we can check out.” I stood, doing the buttons up on my coat and grabbed his hand and pulled him up. Leading him to the door, I smiled when I felt him tighten his grip on my hands as he followed me out.
Going across the street holding his hand, I felt at ease. I felt like for the first time that this was right where I was supposed to be. I hadn’t let myself see anything but Thomas for so long, and now that I was here with Christopher, things were starting to feel right.
“Well, I’m impressed.” He grinned down at me as we walked up the street an hour later.
“Did you doubt my skills?” I couldn’t stop myself from teasing him.
“I did, a little.” He gave me a wink. “It only took us five different jewellery stores to find the perfect present.”
“Hey!” I mocked. I tapped his arm, acting insulted. “I promise you she will love those daisy earrings.”
“I’m sure she will. Kind of surprised you were able to find a necklace and bracelet to match.”
“You’ll get a ‘Best Son’ award for that.” I smiled at him, loving the thrill that went through me when he held his hand out for mine. I took it, giving it a small squeeze. It made me feel like he was happy to be here with me, like I was starting to feel with him.