the art of falling for you (bxb)

five - phone numbers

the art of phone numbers

- - -

"Dearly detested, I am writing to you today to inform you of my request for leave. The request for leave begins every Wednesday morning until noon. Reason given: So I don't get arrested due to being in the presence of a stuck up bitch whose negative energy kills my vibe."

"Hendrix, if you requested leave every time someone tried to 'kill your vibe', you'd never leave the house."

She hummed, contemplating my words before nodding. "That's true but if I see Karen ever again I'm pulling her extensions out."

Sighing, I placed the piping bag down as I levelled Hendrix with a stare. The cupcakes I was icing needed to be finished within the hour so we could put them out in time for lunch. "What'd she say this time?"

"Told me my hair looked like a cartoon character had repeatedly vomited on me and asked if I crushed the avocado on my head myself or had assistance." She relayed without hesitation, luckily sounding the least bit offended. It wasn't the worst she'd ever said to her, so it was tolerable, but I could still picture Hendrix's facial expression perfectly.

"I mean, is she wrong?" I joked. Hendrix sent me a mock scowl before I continued, "I'll see if Isaiah or Bodhi can work the morning shift from now on, but it'll depend."

Bodhi and Isaiah are Sacha's best friends. They're both in a band with him; Isaiah plays drums and Bodhi plays rhythm guitar and sings. Fallen Temple had been a thing since pretty much the moment they met.

They'd both been working here over the past few months, trying to earn some extra money for the band stuff and for their families. They were practically part of the group at this point.

"Sacha said they're playing at some indie café this weekend if you're up for it." I offered, "He's really excited."

"Tell him I expect all the songs to be dedicated to me." She said completely seriously, "If he doesn't dedicate a love song to me, I'm disowning him."

"Last time he did that, you threw your drink on him."

"Because he dedicated a cover of Rock Me by One Direction to me! Do I want a song about having sex dedicated to me? No." She exclaimed, barging over to the door so she could go back into the front of the bakery. "Cute love songs only, please."

"I'll get him to do You Belong With Me next then?"

"Dude, I know you're joking but I would marry Taylor so I'd love that." Hendrix called out, now out of sight as I started icing again.

Jem had bought us tickets to see Taylor Swift a few years ago and it was the best night of my life, without a doubt. The vocals, the songs, the vibes.

What a Queen.

My mind flicked back to the next concert we'd be going to, which would be Taylor Swift again if Hendrix and I had our way.

This time we'd most likely be joined by Sacha and Aaliyah, maybe Isaiah and Bodhi too. I considered whether Kareem would ever be interested in going to a concert with us, with me, before immediately shutting my thought process down.

Given the discussion with Jem a few days ago, I'd been trying to think of Kareem less. I'd seen him once or twice since, though he had come in at quite busy times so we didn't get the chance to chat much. I was a bit more hesitant in engaging in discussions with him now, following Jem's warning and my own anxieties. Jem was right when they mentioned the risk - was I really going to risk going through all of that pain again? Especially for some dumb infatuation?