Sirens Tail

Chapter 1

Lydia sat behind the counter of the cafe counting tips as her best friend, Lauren Reynolds, ranted about some guy she had seen at the library. $1...$2... she thought as she counted.

"Seriously, you should've seen him, Lyd. He had the most gorgeous eyes..." Lauren continued. Lydia nodded, not really paying attention.

"Mhmmm..." she replied blankly. Lauren continued talking about Library Guy as she counted. 

Lauren was crazy about guys. She was beautiful, with long brown hair and tan skin, pretty blue eyes that seemed to illuminate the room Lauren would walk into, and everyone was crazy about her. She was a modern Barbie girl, unlike Lydia with her shoulder-length black hair and pale skin, freckles sitting underneath her boring, dull-brown eyes. She'd only ever dated two guys, both of which broke her heart. Lydia scooted coins and dollars across the counter to take upstairs later. Lauren messed with her long ponytail as she continued to rant about another guy. The bell on the door chimed announcing someone's presence.

"Oh, sorry, the cafe is cl-" Lydia stopped as she saw who it was, and her smile grew wide.

"Lydia!" A soft voice exclaimed. Lydia ran over to her and wrapped her is a tight hug.

"Chloe! It's so good to see you!" She said, ceasing the hug.

Chloe was Lydia's younger sister, and for the last four years she'd been in London to attend college. Lauren had stopped her guy talk and scrambled over to them. Her and Chloe were great friends, too.

"Omygosh, Chloe, you have to tell me all about London. How was college? What classes did you take? Who were your professors? Oh, did you meet any cute guys?!?" Lauren bombarded her with questions. Lydia giggled.

"I'll tell you, but at least let me unpack first." She said. Lydia grabbed one of the bags and hauled it upstairs to Chloe's room. Chloe soon followed her with two more bags. Lauren followed them softly up the stairs and sat on the bed. Chloe sat beside her and recounted her favorite moments in London.

"And then, on my way back here, I met some guy named...Sean? Yeah, Sean, and he told me he knew my sister, and that they were together. It was weird, I've never seen him before. He must've thought I was someone else," Chloe said, finishing her stories. It had been about an hour since she started. Lydia looked up at her with wide eyes. Lauren's mouth went into an o-shape when she heard the name. Chloe raised her eyebrow, "what? Am I supposed to know this guy?" She asked. Lydia nodded slowly.

"Uh, yeah, Sean and I were together, but he left me for some chick named Amber. We had a huge fight before he left." Lydia said.

"And he's a huge jerk." Lauren added. Chloe nodded.

"Ohhh...why didn't you tell me? You could've called me, Lyddie." Chloe said. Lydia hadn't been called Lyddie in almost four years. It was comforting to hear.

"I know, and I really don't know why I didn't tell you. I guess I thought it wasn't important." Lydia shrugged.

When her and Sean had first broken up, Lydia had been a mess, but she had gotten over it since then. They'd been split up a few weeks ago when Lydia found out Sean was cheating on her. He decided to leave her and go with the girl, who he called Amber. Lydia said she never wanted to see him again, and so far he'd obliged. She hadn't heard a word from him since then.

After a long pause, Lauren got up and brushed off her shorts, even though nothing was really on them.

"I should go. It's getting late. It was great to see you Chloe," Lauren said, wrapping them in a tight hug, "I'll see you tomorrow."

"Bye" Lydia and Chloe said in sync. Chloe fell back onto the bed and rubbed her eyes.

"I'm tired. I'll see you in the morning. Night, Lyddie." She said,  Burying her face in a pillow. Lydia smiled and turned off the light. She closed the door behind her and walked downstairs. She shut off the lights down there and closed the curtains. She grabbed the money off the counter and padded back up the stairs, to her room. She laid the money on her bedside table and untied her Apron. A soft breeze blew through the cracked window on the other side of the room. Laying the apron on her bed, she walked over and shut the window quietly.

Lydia sighed and looked around at her bland room. Grey paint, white bedcovers and curtains, with one single picture on the wall of her and Chloe. Maybe I should decorate a bit more. She thought. She slipped out of her T-shirt and jeans, and put on some comfy pajamas. Lydia climbed into bed and stared up at the ceiling. It was great to have Chloe back, but Lydia hoped she wouldn't ask about Sean. Her phone buzzed on the table beside her. She picked it up and unlocked it. It was text from her other best friend, Aubree.

Heard Chloe was back. Tell her hi for me! It read. Lauren must've called her. Lydia replied with an, "I will" And shut her phone off. She closed her eyes and drifted into a soft sleep, and buried her head in her pillow.