She then let out a sigh.
"Yeah. I don't know what I was thinking." The girl chuckled dryly.
"I'm only trying to look out for you. For both of you, actually. Someone like Jude isn't what you need." Lucas shuffled over to her and placed his hand on hers, an attempt at comfort.
Aleyah hummed. "Thank you. Genuinely." She squeezed his hand before letting go. "Now, let's finish these boxes before I leave. Are you still able to watch August today?"
Lucas' eyes widened. "Shit, I forgot to tell you. I have this -"
"It's fine. You've already been a big help so far. I can take him." Aleyah was quick to cut him off. She didn't like putting her responsibilities on other people. In fact, the only reason Lucas watched August as much as he did was that he practically begged her to put less stress on herself after he witnessed her almost pass out from exhaustion.
"Really? I can cancel if you want. It's not that important."
"Yeah, Lucas, I'll be fine. He is my brother, after all. And we'll take the bus to and from the restaurant as well. So I won't collapse on the road or anything." She joked.
"Alright." The boy gave in. "Let's get these sorted." He then gestured to the items sprawled around them.
Hours later, Aleyah walked into the Royal Crest for her night shift (which was only on Saturdays), hand in hand with August, who was preoccupied with the small ball in his other hand. The boy had been over the moon when he'd found it with the recent donations. Aleyah had wanted to hide it and save it for his next birthday, but the boy had woken up before she could do so.
As the two headed for the back rooms, Aleyah did a quick scan of the restaurant, relaxing when she couldn't see any sign of the Birmingham boy.
It was a bit complicated to explain to her supervisors why she had brought August with her but once she assured them that he'd be no trouble, they let her off.She then situated her brother at one of the tables in a dimly lit corner, one which was almost always empty as it was in the back of the restaurant. The highly profiled people who ate there would have instead sat on the floor of the center than where the lighting wasn't good enough for their Instagram feed.
As it was a Saturday night, the restaurant was packed. And Aleyah was so busy taking orders and food back and forth, trying not to mix up the tables and keeping her patience with spoiled, entitled adults who behaved even worse than her six-year-old brother. The girl had completely forgotten that she had brought the mentioned boy with her to the eatery and had promised to bring him food over an hour prior.
However, once she got a break and her memory was refreshed, she was quick to rush over to his table with anything she could get her hands on, guilt knawing on her insides. But as she approached the table, she froze. August was sitting at the table, with tears streaming down his cheeks and his eyes wildly moving to and fro, most likely looking for his sister who had left him alone for a long time. And beside him, the boy Aleyah couldn't stop thinking about was sitting and talking to him, probably trying to encourage the small boy to eat what seemed to be fries on the table.
Aleyah quickly overcame her initial surprise once her eyes landed on her brother again. The girl got to the table in a second. And just as soon as she arrived, August launched himself onto her, his small fists clenching the skirt of her uniform as he cried. She then reached down to pick him up, calming him down with whispers.
It took a few minutes for August to fully stop crying and express his hunger to his sister. She set him down on his previous seat and handed him the food she brought. August began eating quietly. Aleyah then turned to the footballer who was watching her with an unreadable expression. "Uh, thanks for trying to help him. I appreciate it."
Jude nodded, "It was no problem, really. Though it seems to have become a pattern."
"Sorry?" Aleyah scrunched her face in confusion.
"Me helping you, I mean."
"Oh. Yeah." She forced out a chuckle before pursing her lips. The girl was trying her absolute best not to look at his face. She knew she'd fold pathetically if she did.
"I was honestly quite disappointed when I beat hypothermia and wasn't able to invite you to the celebratory party."
"You had a party for your inability to catch a deadly illness?" She perched up an eyebrow, glancing at his amused face before quickly looking away.
" I did. With all the hottest celebrities and everything."
"The hottest celebrities?"
"Of course. Me, my brother."
"You mean the brother who tried ordering a margarita using your ID on Wednesday?"
" The one and only." They both laughed. "But in his defense, he does look like me. That's why we're the hottest." He flipped imaginary hair behind his shoulder.
"Aye, I'm tired. I wanna go home." August then broke into the conversation.
"Okay, Auggie. Let's go pack this up, and we can go home." Aleyah spoke after she checked her wristwatch.
She picked up the plates and led August into the back rooms. As she walked away, she expected Jude to stop her. He didn't.
But, as they were leaving the restaurant, he came up to stop them. "Aleyah!" She was confused for a bit before realizing that he probably got her name from the tag she wore during her working hours. "Do you guys need a ride home?" Jude asked.
Aleyah's eyes widened, "No, we're good."
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah, definitely." She nodded and made an attempt to turn away before he interrupted.
"Wait, would you like to hang out sometime? Like a date?"
Aleyah tensed before replying. "I'm not really looking for anything right now." She avoided his gaze.
"Oh," Jude stared at her for a bit longer, most likely hoping she'd change her mind. " I should probably go." He then spoke when he realized she wasn't going to change her mind.
He turned to walk away and all Aleyah could do was watch him leave, her insides were screaming for her to call out to him, to stop him and say that she had changed her mind, but instead, she turned the other way and walked the dark path home, thinking about how idiotic she was.
A/N
Here's the update! It's much longer than the other chapters, but at least the plotline is moving. And thanks for the votes 🫶🏾
See You Soon!
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C H A P T E R : T H R E E
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