The Devil Made Me Do It

16

^^(Kiki)

I groaned as I wiped the counter. I made sure no one was looking when I grabbed an ice pack. Mama gave me a harsh beating last night, so I'm in so much pain. I used some gauze to wrap the ice pack under my clothes. Hopefully, it won't leak and no one will notice. I saw Miss Brown coming, so I quickly lowered my shirt.

"Isn't this amazing, Addy?" She rested her arms against the counter. "I love when this place is packed."

"Hard for it not to be with your amazing food." I complimented.

"You're too nice." She laughed. "Hey, why aren't those eggs cheesy enough?!" She yelled and went to reprimand the chef.

"Hello, gorgeous." I turned to see Kiki at the counter. "How are you to-"

"I-I can't." I tried to leave, but she gently grabbed my arm. "Please." I looked away from her.

"What's wrong?" She tilted her head. "Why are you-"

"Not only did you ignore my texts, but then you showed up with..." I sniffled and looked at the ceiling.

"I understand." She looked down. "I didn't have good reception. My phone was confiscated." I quirked a brow at her. "I was disappointed to not see the cake." My eyes widened since I was shocked she remembered.

"Your parents confiscated your phone? Why?"

"My friend and I were getting too distracted from my responsibilities." She blushed. "I've been sneaking out to come and visit-"

"From where?" I questioned.

"That's... complicated." She awkwardly chuckled. "When do you get off? Maybe we can go-"

"Nope! You ghost me for weeks at a time and then show up and want to do stuff. No thank you." I turned to walk away, but I ran into Miss Brown. "Sorry."

"No problem." She smiled at me before glancing at Kiki. "I don't believe I've ever seen you here before. I know all my regulars. What's your name?"

"Kiki... are you her boss?" Kiki gestured to me, causing Miss Brown to nod. "What do you desire for Addy?" I scrunched my brows in confusion while Miss Brown appeared to be in a trance.

"I want her to have a happy life." Miss Brown said in a robotic voice.

"I see... let's make a deal." Kiki stood up. "I'll pay for every item on this menu as well as take Addy out for some fun. That way you recieve your desire for her to be happy along with some money. Deal?" Kiki smirked and shook Miss Brown's hand.

"Wait! What-"

"Out you go." Miss Brown began pushing me out the door while Kiki handed her credit card to another cashier.

Miss Brown started to untie my apron and went back inside. Kiki smirked and waltzed to my side. I rolled my eyes and walked away from her. She matched my stride and casually walked next to me. We walked in complete silence. I was just aimlessly walking, but Kiki seemed to be deep in thought. She took my hand in hers and yanked me in a different direction. I was about to protest, but we entered my favorite pizza parlor. Kiki ordered a cheese pizza for me. I asked her if she wanted something, but she claimed she was full.

I then smiled and accepted the pizza. I thanked her and ate it as I walked. Kiki jogged to a flower vendor and came back with a purple and pink bouquet. She shyly handed it to me, so I smiled and thanked her.

"I'm sorry, gorgeous." I looked at her mid bite. "There's just a lot of stuff going on, so I'm constantly being called back. I'm actually sneaking out between breaks to see you... which is getting me in trouble." She chuckled. "I don't mean to go on long hiatuses from you. It's an unfortunate byproduct of my work location." She sighed.