This chapter occurs before the death of Lauren Woods.
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Nicole quickly ran through the glass doors, letting out a deep breath as her co-workers stared at her with a look of disgust.
The hairs on the back of her neck stood up as she happened to hear the last voice she wanted to hear. "Woods?" her manager called out furiously.
"Yes?" she questioned.
"You're late. Don't let it happen again," her manager mumbled, going back into the employee's only room.
Nicole scoffed, for she knew that no matter how many times she was late, she wouldn't get fired. She worked at a low budget restaurant; they needed all the help they could get.
She threw on her black apron and secured her plastic name-tag before checking for any tables that needed tending to. Most of the tables had already been handled, so she just sat at the bar, waiting.
"So how's ya sis?" her co-worker, Andrew, asked. Andrew usually acted as her therapist; giving advice here and there. They didn't hang out outside of work, but she was someone he could count on. He was trustworthy.
"Um, I don't know. She was supposed to come by my place Saturday but she bailed on me. I've called her like a million times and she hasn't replied. I feel like something's up,"
Nicole admitted.
"Damn, that sucks. I'll be praying for y'all, aight? She's a good girl but bad things stay happening to her,"
"Yeah," she mumbled, getting interrupted by the chime of the bell at the entrance. "Looks like my first customer of the day... I'll catch up later bro," she chuckled.
"Aight sis," he spoke, continuing to wipe down the seating area.
Nicole made her way over to the man who'd just walked through the door. He sat in the booth, scrolling through the menu and licking his lips. Examining his features, Nicole had come to the conclusion that he was pretty close to her age. Maybe 17 or 18. She couldn't help but notice how freckles subtly cascaded across his nose, fading out towards his cheekbones. She had to admit, he was kinda cute. Nicole took a couple more seconds to look at him before clearing her throat.
"Um, hi. Welcome to The Bistro, what can I start you off with?"
"Uh, can I get a medium coffee and a stack of strawberry pancakes?"
"It would be my pleasure," she smiled, speaking truthfully. The boy returned her smile, for he found her quite good-looking as well. As she walked off to deliver his order, his eyes drifted down to her backside. He chuckled; pulling out his phone and continuing his search though Instagram.
Nicole took her notepad and ripped out the sheet on which she had written the order, handing it over co-worker Kayla.
"Thanks babe," Kayla spoke quickly, reading aloud from the ticket. "Aight so Imma need a medium coffee and a stack of strawberry pancakes," she spoke, walking into the kitchen and helping to prepare the food.
Nicole went back to the bar area as she waited for the food to be ready. Andrew was probably helping out back, so she had no one to socialize with. Nicole slumped her shoulders and pulled out my phone, attempting to text her twin sister Lauren one more time. She hated to admit it, but her concern grew greater with each passing moment, and she honestly couldn't take it anymore. Biting her lip, she quickly composed another message:
I just wanna know if you're okay.
Pressing the 'send' button, she locked her phone and rested her head in her hands.
"Um, Nicole... Are you okay?" Kayla asked, sliding the tray of food towards her. She looked up at her, putting a fake smile on her face, dimples and all.
