Mistakes We Make

chapter two

Even though I don't have to be up for another half hour, I force myself out of bed. All I'm doing is tossing and turning, so I might as well get a head start on my day.

Today's going to be my first day working at Bingo's, which is a café/ice cream parlor that's right up the street from where I live. My dad knows the manager, so even though there was a lot of competition and only a few people got hired for the summer, I was one of the lucky ones.

I throw on the uniform T-shirt I picked up a few days ago and put on my favorite pair of shorts that fit just right, then head to the bathroom to finish getting ready. And by getting ready I just mean brush my teeth, throw my curly hair up into a messy ponytail, and swipe on two coats of mascara. By the time I'm back in my room, I still have a little while before I have to leave for my 11:00 shift.

I don't usually eat breakfast, but since I have some time to waste I decide a little fuel before my seven-hour shift couldn't hurt. When I reach the kitchen, I'm not surprised to only see Mom. Erin usually sleeps in until 12, and Dad always leaves for work by 6.

"Good morning, sweetie," she greets me, moving away from the stove to kiss me on the cheek. She's making eggs. "Want some?" She offers.

"Yes, please," I smile, grabbing a cup out of the cabinet before taking a seat at the breakfast table. I pour myself some water then check my phone.

The soccer groupchat is blowing up; all the underclassmen talking about how practice was today and who was picked to be captain and co-captain for the (not-so) upcoming school year. A part of me feels sad, because I'm gonna miss having off-season summer practices with the team, but another part of me is relieved to not have to wake up at 7 in the morning every weekday to make it to the field by 7:30 even though practice never started until 8.

I put my phone away as soon as Mom places the eggs in front of me, along with a piece of buttered toast. My mouth is watering as I take a bite from both, and hope that the goodness of this meal will transfer throughout my whole day.

_

The second I step into Bingo's my knees go weak, and I almost drop my car keys. Kiernan Bishop is standing at the coffee station a few feet away from me. I'd say I'm shocked to see him here, but that'd be an understatement.

"Kesley, great!" My manager, Diane, waddles up to me. She's about ready to pop, her hand lightly stroking her belly. "You're here."

"Yea, hi," I say, quickly glancing away from Kiernan as he looks up at me.

"Follow me," she sing-songs. I walk with her to the back where she says I can keep my phone and car keys, then follow her back to the front, where the coffee station is. "So, Kiernan here told me this morning that he knows you from school? I figured I'd have him show you the ropes since he's been working here for a couple weeks now. You'll be added to the same shifts for your first few days here until you get the hang of it."

I blink twice and nod, trying to gain composure. I can see from the corner of my eyes that Kiernan's focus is on me. He's staring at me so hard I can practically feel it. What are the odds? I'm going to kill Hannah, Mariah, and Thea - they totally jinxed me. I was fine when we saw him yesterday at the field, so why do I feel all jittery now?

"Sounds good," I croak, feeling my face grow hot. Oh, God. I have to stop myself from rolling my eyes.

"We only opened about half an hour ago, so we're not too busy at the moment. Kiernan will show you how to work the coffee machine as well as how we do the ice cream," Diane assures me, pointing to the ice cream bar that's to the left of us. "Sometimes you guys will also be taking orders for the café to fill out, but don't worry too much about those, as Ricky -" she stops mid-sentence to point at a tall middle-aged looking man behind us, "will take care of it."