Unexpected

Chapter 5

"Are you good to meet after school today?" Julie interrupted as she caught up to Luke and his friend Reggie in the hallway Monday morning.

"No can do, Jules." Luke replied, turning back to Reggie to show him something on his phone. The two laughed as they walked on.

"Why not? I didn't think you were done paying off your debt." Julie asked pressing closer to him to get his attention back. "And stop calling me Jules. I told you, only my friends can call me that." She snapped.

"Whoa, what crawled up your butt?" Luke asked as he and Reggie exchanged a knowing look.

"If I remember correctly, you kinda ditched me on Friday right when we were in the middle of something. I think I'm allowed to be a little annoyed." Julie supplied, feeling her shoulders tense.

"Yeah, sorry. That was my fault." Reggie offered apologetically. "I'm Reggie, by the way." He said, perking up to introduce himself.

"Hey." Julie said forcing a half-hearted smile in return. She wasn't in the mood to deal with these two. "Anyway, why can't you help today?" She asked turning back to Luke.

"I gotta work."

"Great, I'll stop in around 4." She said as she walked away without waiting for a reply.

Luke stood speechless at her tenacity.

"She's feisty. I like her." Reggie announced casually to no one in particular.

"She's something." Luke replied as the two headed for class.

---

"Welcome to Sal's. How many?"

The hostess greeted Julie, barely looking up from her phone when she spoke as Julie walked into the pizza parlor later that afternoon.

The girl that stood behind the hostess stand looked familiar with her fiery red hair and blue eyes. Julie couldn't remember her name, but she was pretty sure they had physics together.

"I'm not here to eat. I need to talk to Luke, please."

This caught the girl's attention. She looked Julie up and down appraisingly, "He's in the back." She said rolling her eyes, motioning over her shoulder with her thumb, then promptly returned to her phone screen.

"Thanks!" Julie offered half heartedly.

She headed toward the back of the restaurant where she knew the kitchen was. She was on a mission, fully prepared to do or say whatever it took to make sure Luke did his part whether he liked it or not.

As she rounded the corner she found him working behind a tall counter that separated the dining room from the kitchen. Luke stood alongside an older man she guessed was the restaurant's namesake, Sal. At least she assumed it was Sal since he looked just like the cartoon featured on the restaurant's menus and advertisements with his signature bushy mustache. The two were engrossed in conversation while they effortlessly tossed and caught pizza dough. It was hypnotic for Julie to watch.

"Luke, what did I tell you about your fan club showing up here?" The older man said as he caught sight of Julie watching nearby.

"Oh, I'm not. He's not-" Julie found herself sputtering a startled defense.

Luke smiled, "Don't worry, Sal. That's Julie. She's president of the we-hate-Luke-club."

"I thought I liked the looks of her." Sal said nudging Luke. "What do you need with this goon, sweetheart?" Sal asked Julie over the noise of the kitchen.