Twisted Strings [MONSTER EDITING - Read at your own risk]

All the Strangers

''It's eight of us, which means there are twenty two others. And we don't know anyone, like anyone at all.'' The only ones that were prominent enough in my memory were Zombie stuff, the rude girl who had called me 'Princess'. She looked like a drummer, I could tell by the way she kept tapping her hands and foot, restless and ready to beat. The other one was Oliver Parker, and the only thing we knew about him was his name and where he came from. 

''If we are competing against strangers, it would have been nice to know their strengths.'' I added thoughtfully. Rhodes nodded in response, 

''I know, but lets not focus on winning, okay? Being part of the competition is just enough.'' He was right, but I didn't just want to participate. I wanted to win, I wanted to sing Chris Reed's song. It wasn't everyday that you got opportunities like this. Like Dad always told us, it was never wrong to set your goals higher. I knew it wouldn't be easy, specially with twenty eight people against us, but I wanted to aim for the first place. I wanted to give it everything. 

My thoughts were led to Oliver Parker and his voice. His voice... there was a deep quality to it, sexy and intriguing. It was raspy, like Bryan Adams. No, it was even better. Just how amazing would his singing voice be? 

''He had a nice voice, huskier than Lars. And Lars has an amazing voice.'' I voiced my thoughts without thinking. Beside me, Rhodes stiffened, he knew what I was talking about. 

''You are totally swooning over him Quinn, stop it. The whole time, you couldn't keep your eyes off him and  you don't even know him.'' He said, looking a little disintegrated. I didn't have to know someone to like their voice. Or their eyes. Or their hair. 

''I was just looking, because he's new.'' I replied, playing with the strap of my bag, 

''Like you knew the rest of the room so well.'' He said dryly. 

''Everyone was looking at him! And admit it, he's hot.'' I was trying to defend my self, even when I hadn't done anything wrong. But Rhodes was staring at me in a stern way, his narrowed gaze unnerved me. He knew me so well, it was hard to avoid his knowing eyes. 

''Don't lose your focus. We came here for a different purpose.'' He enforced and got off the bus, bushing past me. I huffed and followed him out. The cafe was a two minute walk away from the station, right in the middle of the main market. There was a clothing store on one side and a bookstore on the other, and right between them was 'Max Beans', bustling with life. Tall glass windows lined the shop, framed with plain white panes. Above the double glass doors was a dark green sign with the name of the cafe written in white script. Dad had placed a few plant pots on either side of the steps that led to the door. I had chosen the plants myself, and convinced Dad they looked pretty. 

We spotted Linda bent over the small board outside, writing today's menu with a chalk. She had drawn a cup of coffee beside the words, but it didn't look like  cup at all. She was struggling again. Linda was the barista, she was short and chubby, with round cheeks that the twins loved to play with and messy curls that framed her face. 

''Hey Linda!'' We greeted her and she sagged with relief when she saw Rhodes beside me, 

''Oh thank God, you guys are here. Violet, there's a mess inside. Please go and help your dad. Rhodes, can you get to this, I need to hurry back!'' Sweat covered her dark brown skin and I handed her a spare tissue paper from my bag. Rhodes smiled and took the chalks from her hand. 

''Don't worry, I'll get to it.'' Linda looked like she wanted to hug him, she smiled with relief and ran back inside, nearly slipping on her way. 

''Careful!'' I called, but she had already disappeared between the tables. Rhodes bent down and began to redraw the cup. He managed to make it in less than a minute, and added a small cupcake on the side. The end result looked satisfactory. Better than Linda's. 

I clapped his back, ''Whoa! You are better suited as an arts major. Might want to reconsider.'' 

He stepped back and gave me a serious look, ''Don't want to. You're not getting rid of me so soon.'' 

He sounded so serious that I chuckled, ''Lets go in-'' 

Rhodes grabbed my elbow holding me back, ''Wait!'' 

''What?'' I groaned. 

He went over my back and loosened my hair from the band I was wearing. I waited as he pulled back my hair into a tighter pony tail for me. His fingers brushed the back of my neck and I shivered from the warm contact. 

''There you go, all done.'' He muttered and stepped back. I rolled my eyes and pushed him towards the steps, 

''Lets go before Dad goes mad.'' 

Inside, the cafe was in frenzy. The tables were packed and there was a queue lining up at the counter, where Linda was desperately moving around, making coffee as fast as humanely possible. Loud chatter filled the room, with everyone talking at the same time. This was the worst part of the afternoons, the noise levels that rose beyond control. 

Elliot was taking an order from the newest arrivals, jotting down on his pad, his face red and frustration clear in his eyes. Rhodes and I made out way inside and grabbed spare aprons, there was no time to wear a uniform. We spent the next hour running between the kitchen and the hall, taking orders and delivering them. After instructing Rhodes to help Elliot, I joined Linda at the counter, to ease her load. Why was everyone in Lakesville addicted to Americano? They tasted like crap, dark and bitter. 

After two hours, the place shimmered down a little and we were finally able to take a breather. Linda made a coffee shake for us and I forced Dad to take a break from the kitchen. 

''I told you so many times, lets hire someone else as well. Linda's gonna run away some day.'' I complained, forcing him on a chair. He looked tired and red faced, probably from over working. 

He wiped sweat from his forehead and accepted the shake I placed on the table, ''It only happened today, and four people are enough for now.'' 

I rolled my eyes, knowing all too well that he was stubborn. ''Just hire one more person Dad, its too much work.'' 

''Forget about that, tell me how the Camp went.'' He sounded excited, there was a glint in his eyes, like he wasn't so tired anymore. This was as important to me as for Dad. Before working as a cook, he used to be a singer for a band called 'The Mile'. They weren't huge, but back then they had a solid fan base and Dad's life was made up of tours across the whole country and singing in clubs of all sorts. He had taught me how to sing better, it worked a lot in my favor since we didn't have enough money to get a vocal trainer. If Chris Reed inspired me to take this route, it was Dad who taught me everything. Singing, writing songs, guitar - I owed it all to him. By winning this competition, I wanted to do something for him. I wanted to make him happy and proud. 

''Okay, so went in there and...'' As I went on about the day, his eyes lightened up and I knew he was thinking the same thoughts at me. No matter what Rhodes said, I was going to win. I had to. 

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