Chapter 5

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Slow Life | Grizzly Bear feat. Victoria Legrand

Brick by Boring Brick | Paramore

It was a Monday afternoon. It was dull and dreadful outside, rain falling in thick and heavy droplets from the clouded, gray skies like it normally did. Black boots covered my feet as they lazily sloshed through the ugly, puddle-filled sidewalks. I hated the rain with a burning passion. It could be a little depressing at times―a total buzz kill.

I didn't want to do anything today. In fact, I'd rather much be in the warmth of my own bed, wearing dry clothes and watching a good movie or something. Anything but walking through the rain. But I wasn't at home, I had to work, so there was absolutely no point in complaining.

I held my umbrella tightly, trying to quicken my pace so I wouldn't have to endure this hideous weather London was experiencing today. Rain made me so grumpy. What good comes out of it? It always seemed to ruin all the fun things in life and that was one of the many reasons I loathed the stupid rain.

Today I had to work―a job at a somewhat boring, sometimes fun bookstore. It wasn't that I hated working here, it was just that it wasn't where I wanted to be. Sure, the people here were nice and it was a decent paying job, but I just wasn't fully satisfied. All I could do was hope that I'd soon enough get to be where I really wanted, and that was with a local magazine that I'd been dreaming of forever. If I made it there then I could leave this dump. I mean, I guess it wasn't necessarily a dump but still.

I finally made it to work. The faster I clocked in and started my shift, the faster I'd be out of here. I made sure to shake off the excess water from my walk that sat on top of my umbrella before I entered the store. I did own a car, but the bookstore was so close to my place that it was pointless to drive. Even if it was pouring rain out.

"Afternoon Jan," Tina smiled as I passed by her to start my long day.

Tina was my coworker and a really great friend of mine here. She was one of the few people that made work fun. I appreciated her so much for that.

"Hey," I replied. She just laughed, knowing I wasn't in the best of moods, and continued on her way.

***

Work seemed to drag on and on. There weren't as many customers today as there normally was, probably because of the atrocious weather. This whole day seemed so slow, unlike how I hoped it'd be. I wasn't even half way through my lunch break. I guess that was a good thing, but I just wanted to get out of here faster.

I sat alone in the break room, snacking on some pretzels and lemonade as I scrolled through my phone. I wasn't usually this bored during my breaks, but Tina's break wasn't until later and I didn't really feel like talking to anyone else. So here I sat, bored out of my mind for another twenty-five minutes.

"Mind if I sit here?" a voice asked politely. I looked up to see a sandy haired, lanky figure standing before me, also known as Dave.

"Sure, David," I sighed quietly, gesturing for him to sit. I noticed how he would always cringe when I called him David. He hated when people called him that.

David was... well, David was something else. He was a nice, regular guy who only had this weird and kind of obsessive crush on me. I mean, it would be cute if he was a freshman in high school. He was sort of obnoxious but I didn't think he meant to be. He was that type of person I tried to steer clear from any chance I got.

"You look lovely today." he complimented me just like he always did, his cheeks turning rosy with embarrassment.

"Thanks," I uttered around a small smile. I was only wearing my Brook's Bookstore uniform with my hair tied up into a messy ponytail.

The air around us was silent for a good five minutes before Dave decided to speak up once again. I wasn't exactly bothered that he was an awkward guy, he was just so awkward to the point that I didn't know what to do.

"Um," he started, his voice shaky with nerves. "I was, um, I was just wondering, Jan, if you'd, um, like to, um...you know...hang out this weekend? With...me...?"

Four times, I counted. Four times too many that he used 'um' in one sentence.

I mentally groaned. I was kind of shocked that he actually had the guts to ask me that, to be honest. But at the same time I wish he hadn't. I didn't want to disappoint him by turning him down but I didn't think I could last a couple of hours taken out of my weekend with just him and I. I was sweating bullets just thinking about it.

"I'd love to Dave, but I, uh, I actually have a date this weekend." I lied, suddenly feeling like a pile of shit when I saw his face drop to the floor.

"A date?" he repeated. His complexion paled when I nodded my head.

"Yeah," I muttered, "I'm really sorry."

"It's okay. I hope you have a great time." he may have smiled, but deep down I knew he was hurt and for that I felt bad.

"Thank you. That's really nice of you."

Dave didn't say another word. He just gave me another small smile and went on with his life as he walked away. Well, if I wasn't going to hell before, I sure was now.

***

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