Finding Her Song

7. "This Girl"

Racing down to the café, I went over the plan in my head: Ask Rosa if we could use her café for plugs and set up outside, and make sure Jason turns up. I had work every Wednesday and Thursday anyway, so it won't matter if I'm early for my shifts.

Opening the door, the scent of coffee and freshly cooked food hit me. I always loved that smell. It was one of the reasons I wanted to work there. Also, it was the most popular café/restaurants in town, so I knew the pay wouldn't be bad. Truthfully though, the main reasons were the food and the owner, Rosa Crombie.

I've worked here for two years now, becoming familiar with the customers and the do's and don'ts of waitressing. The café had a great view of the beach, situated on the promenade, one of the many reasons it was so popular. Well, that and the milkshakes.

I've known Rosa, the owner of Shell Bay café, for years, being a regular customer myself. You could count her as my friend, but she feels more like a grandmother to me. Even though she had a small frame and barely reached my shoulders, she could give one hell of a hug. It didn't matter if she was nearing seventy-five, she was a literal ball of energy. You could tell she was always out and about by her lightly sun kissed skin.

"Hey Rosa," I say, walking up to the counter.

"Jessica! What a pleasant surprise!" She says, coming around the counter and giving me a warm hug. "What are you doing here so early? Your shift doesn't start till seven."

"I actually have a favour to ask."

"Oh?" She says, raising an eyebrow. "And what would that be?"

"There's a band that I got asked to join called 'Boys R Us'. Don't worry, I'm coming up with a better name," I add quickly, seeing her questioning look. "Anyway, I wanted to ask if we could busk outside your café tomorrow evening before my shift?"

"Well, as long as you come up with a better name, it's fine by me," she says after a moment of thinking, a smile on her face.

"Don't worry, I will," I laugh. "Thank you so much!" I hug her in my happiness, very excited to try this.

"So, since you're here early, what did you plan on doing?"

"Well..." I start. "My first thought went to starting early, but then my mind wandered to your world class milkshakes," I say with an innocent grin on my face.

Rosa just laughed, not at all surprised with my answer.

"One strawberry milkshake coming right up!"

***

I had been waiting outside the café for what seemed like hours. It was 4:12. They should have been here by now!

I never saw Jason at school. I recognised a few other band members, but none made an effort to talk to me. I went back to being that invisible person again.

But that was hopefully about to change.

The beeping of a van reversing snapped me out of my thoughts. I could see the reflection of Jason driving the van through the wing mirror. When the van came to a stop, five guys leaped out, all wearing black jeans, white t-shirts and blue hoodies.

"Well you could have told me there was a dress code."

All five boys turn to look at me, four with wide eyes.

"This is the girl you were talking about?" One says, turning to Jason who is standing in the middle of the group.

"Dude, you never told us it was Jes-snake-a!"

I clear my throat, getting annoyed with being ignored. "I'm right here you know."

Once again, the boys turn their attention back to me, a few looking slightly agitated.

"First off, my name is Jessica, so you can stop with that stupid nickname Georgia gave me," I say, looking each boy in the eye, hands on my hips.

"Finally, "this girl" got you a gig busking in the most popular area in town. You're welcome," I finish, taking a bow.

The boys looked stunned.

One of them cleared their throat, walking towards me with their hand outstretched. He was around the same height as me, with almost black hair, brown eyes and pale skin. "Hi, I'm Blake. I'm the band's pianist. It's nice to finally meet you," he says, shaking my hand. "I hope you'll excuse my friends rudeness. It's not every day we get told a girl is joining a boy band."

"Well, at least some of you have manners," I say, smirking at the other three boys I've yet to meet.

I walk over to the remaining guys, stopping in front of them.

"You must be Kyle Henderson," I say to the boy on my left, holding out my hand for him to shake. He had dark skin and long-ish black hair which had been braided into lots of tiny cornrows. His eyes were a warm brown colour, shining with playfulness and humor, giving me the impression he was the comedian of the group. He looked surprised that I knew his name.

"That I am. And how would you know that sweetheart?" He asks whilst shaking my hand.

I just smirk at him, before saying, "We're in the same Maths, English and biology class, dumbass."

The boys around me erupted with "oohs" and "burns". Kyle just looked embarrassed.

I turn to the middle boy and stick out my hand. "You must be Matthew Callister. We also have Maths together."

Matthew was average height with dirty blonde hair and bright green eyes. He just smirked right back at me and said, "Yes, but unlike that asshole over there, I actually knew that "

I turn to the last person. "That means you must be Aidan Lee, the bassist."

Aiden was smaller than the other guys, but had black hair and stunning blue eyes that reminded me of the ocean, which I'm guessing was unusual for an Asian. He just smiled at me, shaking my outstretched hand.

I turn around, walking towards the café doors. "Alright boys," I say, clapping my hands, " Let's get set up and get the show started!"

***
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