THE AFTERMATH

ch. 7

Olivia's visit yesterday certainly seemed to be taking a toll on me, since I felt oddly more enthusiastic and active today. I actually woke up early for once, waking up at 7 in the morning. I jumped out of bed and did my daily routine of washing myself and taking care of my sanitary needs. I did it all with a smile on my face, which was very rare. After that, I raced to the kitchen and ate some bread, washing it down with a steaming cup of coffee.

I hummed to myself as I made my way towards my room, instantly going over to my drawer. I picked out a simple blue sweatshirt and some slacks, of course putting on a jacket over the sweatshirt. I put on my boots and started to make my way out of the house.

The walk to work was even quicker this time, since I decided to jog over there. When I reached the front door of the shop, I opened it and stepped inside. John was oddly not here, which made me quite suspicious. I walked around the whole store, calling out John's name. No response. I went over to the storage room. No signs of John there. I shrugged and went over to the counter. When I sat down near the counter, I saw a note attached to the chair. My eyebrows scrunched in confusion as I took it off the seat, reading it slowly.

Tommy,

I was feeling sick this morning when I opened the shop, so I decided to head home. Please take care of the shop and don't create a mess. I'll be back tomorrow, if I can. I'm sorry that I'm telling you this on such short notice.

From, John

I shrugged and put down the note. Well, it looks like I'll be tending to customers the rest of the day.

Well, I was certainly wrong. The first hour, no customers came. The second hour, no customers came. The third hour, no customers came. It was almost as if this shop was a ghost town.

Damn it, why is business so slow today? Did everybody decide to leave England and fly over to another country? Did everybody die outside and it was just me stranded here?

As if my thoughts were overruled, the shop door opened and somebody stepped inside. I looked up from the counter and looked at the new customer. My mood instantly changed when I realized the customer was Peter.

He narrowed his eyes at me and made his way over to me. I jumped up from my seat and got up, ready to attend to whatever the hell he needed.

"Hey there, Tom." Peter sneered, looking at me distastefully.

"It's Tommy, not Tom," I corrected.

"Alright, Tommy. I just came to apologize to you since my girl Olivia practically forced me to. " Peter sighed, picking his nails.

His girl? Alright, whatever makes him sleep at night. Also, why was he here? Olivia already apologized on his behalf.

"That's really kind of you Peter, but why do you have to say your apology in such a rude manner? After all, we were on the same civilian boat going towards England." I said, feeling a bit more confident.

"Aw, did you forget Tommy? I saved your life when you were in the water, grasping on to my hand oh so desperately so I can lift you onto the boat." Peter snorted, getting a bit closer to me.

"Yes, I still remember that you saved my life, but why do you have to be so rude to me?" I questioned, stepping a foot back.

Well, when we were on the boat, you disobeyed my command to stay below deck. You apparently wanted to see the view outside the boat." Peter stated, rolling his eyes.

"Is that really the only reason you don't like me? I mean come on, that was in the past." I said.

"Yeah, and Dunkirk was in the past but I see that you're not over it." Peter shot back, crossing his arms.

I raised my eyebrows in shock for a second, digesting what he just said. Ouch, can he be a bit more considerate?

"And by the way, I'm not your biggest fan because you've been trying to woo Olivia." Peter admitted.

"Why would I woo Olivia? She doesn't seem to like me in a romantic manner, you're being a bit delusional." I said, waiting for a reaction from him.

"Trust me, I'm not being delusional. I saw the way you looked at her after you had a hallucination, eyeing her as if she was the love of your life." Peter snickered, shaking his head.

"Peter, I was only looking at her because she seemed concerned about me." I confessed.

"Yeah that's how Olivia is, always concerned about everyone." Peter sighed, walking slowly around the shop.

"Well, I'm going to take off now. Don't you dare try to woo Olivia or even think that she likes you." Peter sneered, walking back to the counter.

"Alright, just try to relax. I'm not going to steal her away from you or anything." I promised, putting my hands up in surrender.

"Yeah, you better make sure you don't. Enjoy your day Tommy, and make sure I don't catch you chatting with her." Peter warned, walking slowly to the door.

"Yes, I understand." I said, watching him open the door and walk out.

I sighed and went back to my chair. I slumped my back against the chair and exhaled slowly. Peter certainly needed a break from his life, not even kidding. What gave him the right to control what I can do? He's not even Olivia's boyfriend, or so I've heard from her.

The rest of the day, no other customers came by. Technically, Peter was the only customer who came by today. To pass the time, I broomed the floor and organized the shoes. As the clock neared 5 o' clock, I began to make my way out of the store. Today was certainly an interesting and weird day.

I began to walk back to my house, feeling less confident and a bit sad from the words John spewed out of his mouth today.