Messages To Joe | J.S

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Monday September 14th 2018:

Working in Starbucks is exactly like everything you'd think stereotypically aside from the fact that it's not every common white girls dream because your slaving your arse off for minimum wage. Worse yet, you can't drink anything yourself and you have to poor away the excess which is like murdering someone.

Kim had come in earlier (as I predicted) and asked for a double shot coffee with extra chai which isn't even an official drink but of course, 'I have to make it because we're the best of friends'.

"Hi, I'll take a drink with no chai, extra caramel and no milk please," I turned around to face the strange customer but my face lit up in a smile instead of questioning them.

"You, idiot," I laughed at Joe who was leant over the counter, head resting on the palm of his hand. "Why did you come down here? It's not even that close to where you live."

"Because, I wanted to make sure it was a good day for you," he smiled a slanted smile. If anyone else had been in the queue, I would've told him to move but I just stayed there, laughing at the cuteness of his face. I was thinking about what Joe had said about why he hadn't kept in touch with me, I'd always regretted mentioning the 'drunk' text he sent but I was just never certain how to go about it without making it incredibly awkward. "And if it makes you feel better," he continued, standing up straight again, "I came here to meet someone else too so it's not just for you - but it was a big factor." He was meeting someone else? What was I thinking, it had been three years, he miss probably got a girlfriend in that time, I only hoped he would've told me the other day but I suppose I never gave the opportunity.

"Oh, whew, anyway, what do got actually want?" I asked, moving back like he had.

"A cool lime refresher, if you will," I proceeded to get the right flavourings, "oh - and a regular chai tea latte for Kayley," shit. It was a girl he was meeting.

"Sure," I smiled, although I was actually panicking inside. Surely if it was his girlfriend he wouldn't meet her somewhere so - public? But then again, it's a school day so no screaming girls are out and about.

"You could meet her if you wanted," I felt so terrible, purely the fact he didn't realise my desperate want to escape and thought I was happy. "We're planning the entire tour," what?

"Tour?" I asked over the dreadful song of the machine.

"Yeah, for Hit The Road, she's organising it with all the venues," breathing a mental sigh of relief, I handed him the two drinks.

"You know Joe," I laughed, "for a second I thought you had a girlfriend," and it made me feel so horrible but I can't quite understand why, "and I'm sorry, but I can't stick around and I've got to get home, I've applied for some universities and I need to write one more essay for the last one - which is Bath, coincidentally !"

"Okay," he smiled, something he seemed to be doing a lot of, "but text me later, okay?" He seemed so urgent about it, as if he may not get through the day if I didn't.

"Of course, Joseph, don't I always?"