IT IS OFFICIALLY the next day, meaning Briar was heading over to a local cafe for a coffee with George Henderson.
She didn't particularly know how to feel about George after what Everett told her.
In which way is George Henderson odd? Briar thought as she browsed through her wardrobe for an outfit.
Briar was a little nervous about going because she didn't know what to expect. Was it two people getting to know each other? Two friends hanging out? A date?
Briar decided to go with the first one, hoping that it wasn't a date. Briar's phone began ringing on her bed making her jump in shock. She skipped up to her bed in excitement at the thought of someone ringing her. She grinned as she saw the contact name and instantly picked up.
"Hi Bex, how are you?" Briar asked her best friend.
"I'm good babe, but let's talk about you going on your first date!" Bexley squealed through the phone.
"It's not a date, Bexley. He doesn't have any friends and he wanted to be my friend," Briar huffed slightly through the phone.
"Wait! Who the fuck are you talking about?" Bexley asked confusedly.
"George Henderson?" Briar mumbled back her answer although it sounded more like a question.
"The university's weirdo?" Bexley asked Briar in a higher octave.
"Well I...I don't exactly know him Bex. What if he's just misunderstood like we were before we found each other?" Briar mumbled to her.
She heard Bexley sigh on the other end before speaking again.
"I know Bri...just be careful okay? Something seems off about him," Bexley said with a hint of annoyance in her tone.
Briar thought for a couple of seconds about George Henderson. He was really sweet and polite when she met him, but now everyone is saying that he's not so sweet and polite after all.
I guess I will find out for myself, Briar thought.
"I will. I love you Bex, I'll talk to you later?" Briar told Bexley with a small smile.
"I love you too Bri," Bexley said and Briar could tell that she was grinning as they both hung up their phones.
Briar sighed as she stood back up and walked towards her wardrobe to pick an outfit out finally.
Briar decided on an outfit that's cute yet comfortable, not wanting to give him the wrong impression. She wore light washed skinny jeans and a light multi coloured jumper paired with white trainers. Briar decided to put her hair up in a messy ponytail with a couple lose curls framing her face.
Briar smiled briefly in the mirror before walking downstairs with her phone, purse, and keys in her small handbag.
Then, she was on her way to the café that she was meeting George at.
•••
Daydreamer Café is a local café in London and a favourite of Briar's. She absolutely loved their caramel latte and gets it every time she goes there.
Briar approached the café as she crosses the road, her palms slightly sweating from either nerves or the walk, but she simply did not know which one. She quickly spotted George waiting outside of the café for her. He was wearing light beige jeans with a simple white crew neck jumper. His ginger hair seemed to have been styled with a gel of sorts, and Briar instantly began comparing George and Everett's hair. She much preferred Everett's messy hair to George's sleek hair.
George's smile widened significantly at the sight of a shy Briar standing in front of him. Briar sent him a small smile back with a little wave of her hand. His one hand that was hidden behind his back came in view as he thrusted forward a bouquet of red roses. Briar's mouth grew agape as she saw the cliché flowers, even though she didn't particularly like roses she much preferred tulips. She looked up at George who was still grinning and staring into her widened eyes.
"I got the most beautiful flowers in the world for the most beautiful girl in the world," George told her proudly.
Briar couldn't help but flush a deep red at George's words since she hardly ever receives compliments unless it's from Bexley.
"Oh, thank you George. That is extremely sweet of you," Briar spluttered out as he shook it off and they both walked into the crowded café. Briar took a deep breath as she sat down opposite George.
The Daydream Café was a rustic and vintage café filled with people of all ages and personalities. They serve some meals that Briar has yet to try since she hardly ever gets the time to do so.
"Hello, my name is Rowan, and I will be your waitress today. What can I get you?" Briar looked up at the stunning girl before her and accidently let a surprised gasp slip her lips.
It's the girl from the picture, though Briar as Rowan stared at her in confusion.
"Are you okay?" Rowan asked Briar slowly.
"Oh yes I am, sorry. It's just...are you friends with Everett Kaine?" Briar couldn't help but ask Rowan as she grew even more curious than before about the boy that's been clouding her thoughts. Rowan raised her eyebrows in surprise at her question before she answered.
"Yes, we're actually foster siblings," Rowan told her with a straight face, her tone being very monotonous.
"Oh, well that's nice," Briar smiled at her ignoring her cold stare. Briar was actually really happy that they weren't in a romantic relationship, but she did not know why.
"How do you Everett, sweetie?" Rowan asked as she took a seat next to Briar in intrigue.
Briar didn't know how to exactly respond to Rowan about how she exactly knew Everett. Were they acquaintances? Strangers? Friends? Briar was ultimately confused.
"We've bumped into each other a couple of times," Briar mumbled quietly to Rowan. Her eyes widened after Briar spoke and instantly began jumping up and down in her seat.
"You like him!" Rowan shrieked in excitement.
"What? No no, that's not possible because I have only met him twice, well three times really, but the first time didn't exactly count..." Briar trailed off as Rowan rolled her beautiful brown eyes at her.
"Oh honey, that's what dating is for," Rowan giggled at Briar's flushed face. A disgruntled cough broke the two girls out of their trance as they both looked towards George who had his hands curled into fists.
"Oh George, I am so terribly sorry!" Briar gasped as she realised she had been ignoring him.
"George Henderson? What the fuck are you doing here?" Rowan chuckled as she looked distastefully at George who was scowling at her.
"We're actually on a date," George snarled at Rowan who had her mouth dropped open. George took Briar's hand in his and held on tightly.
A date?
"George, please don't take this the wrong way but I only want to be friends," Briar mumbled quietly to George as she untangled their hands and placed hers back in her lap.
"Rowan Sutton!" a loud Irish voice shrieked from the kitchens as Rowan huffed in despair. "What have I told you about muddling in people's business and not doing you job?" an old petite woman stomped over to our table with a wooden spoon present in her hand as she pointed it at Rowan who stood up to her full height.
"Mrs Daly this is my friend Briar, and we were just talking," Rowan huffed out at the woman.
How does she know my name? Briar thought as she looked between the two.
"And what about the young lad?" Mrs Daly asked Rowan, pointing her spoon at poor George who visibly gulped.
"Oh, I don't really know why the fuck he is here, feel free to chuck him out Mrs D," Rowan chuckled at George's stone cold glare that he was sending her.
Briar sent a small smile to George as Rowan took their orders and left to go and make them.
"How did you know I was going to order a caramel latte?" Briar asked George with a slight tilt to the head.
"Oh uh, you just look like the type of girl to order a caramel latte," George chuckled nervously as Briar nodded slowly in response.
•••
"Thank you for walking me home George," Briar smiled up at George's 5"11 height. He smiled back down at her as they reached the front door of Briar's house.
"It's okay Briar. Would you perhaps like to go on a date with me to the cinema?" George asked her quickly before she could open her door.
Briar once again was stumped on what to say to George. She thought back to their conversations at the café and he seemed to be an overall nice boy. Yes, he was a little bit weird, but Briar thought that it was just the nerves getting to him since he doesn't have any friends.
"Oh of course. When would you like to go?" Briar accepted quietly whilst tucking a lose strand of her behind her ear.
George grinned at her as his eyes widened before speaking. "How about on Saturday? I know that you like to spend your Saturdays at Pink & Pointe teaching the little kids, so how about in the evening?" George asked her so quickly that she almost the key bit of information.
"How to do you know that I work there every Saturday?" Briar mumbled to him.
"I am so sorry Briar! I sound like such a stalker," George chuckled to himself as Briar gave a short nervous laugh. "I go to the university library every Saturday to do some work and I just so happen to see you teach through the window where I sit," he grinned at Briar as her mouth fell agape at this surprising information.
Briar didn't want to make poor George feel as if she's scared of him, so she laughed slightly as she agreed to meet him at the cinema. Briar began walking through the door of her house, but before she could fully close the door, she heard George say something that for some reason freaked her out entirely.
"Goodnight princess."
•••
Briar had somehow managed to be looking at the beautiful Instagram profile of Everett Kaine once again. She decided to follow Rowan's account which she found on Everett's picture where he tagged her in. Rowan accepted in the next five minutes and the two girls instantly began chatting. But there was a nagging in Briar's brain to click that little button that signifies that she has requested to follow Everett Kaine.
Should I click it? Will he think I'm being weird? Briar's thoughts were on a never ending loop as she began to overthink the situation entirely.
Finally, her thoughts won her over as she clicked the follow button. She held her breath for about thirty seconds as she waited for anything to happen. A notification banner popping down from the top of her screen made her squeal with delight.
He accepted my request. And now he wants to follow me. Briar thought dreamily as she lay down sprawled on her bed.
The next notification that popped up on her screen made her smile grow so big her mouth was beginning to hurt.
'Stalking me again, princess?'
Briar was quite literally speechless as she stared down at her phone thinking it would blow up any second and wake up from a dream.
Briar knew that she was overly excited about such a simple thing happening to her, and she doesn't even know this boy! But for some reason, Everett Kaine makes Briar feel warm and fuzzy inside and she's had a brief conversation with him twice. But it's something about the way he carries himself entirely. The way he shows confidence without showing a single emotion on his face. The way he looks at Briar as if she were something mesmerising. The way she feels around him.
Is it silly? To be thinking about someone you don't even know like this? Briar thought as she clicked on the message from Everett. Whatever this feeling was, Briar never wanted it to stop.
'I met your sister today. I requested to follow her because I thought that we could become good friends, I just happened to follow you too.'
Briar bit her lip in anxiousness as she waited for Everett to respond.
'She said that she really likes you. You should take that as a complement since she doesn't like anyone.'
'I appreciate it very much. She seems really cool.'
'I guess she's alright. How did your date go?'
Briar was surprised at the sudden change of topic, but nevertheless typed out her response.
'First of all, it wasn't a date. Second of all, it was fun I guess, he seemed like a sweet boy. And third of all, we're actually going out on a date on Saturday evening to the cinema.'
Briar didn't know why she had to specify when and what her and George were going to be doing on their date, but she did.
'An actual date, huh?'
'Yes.'
'Okay.'
'Okay.'
'Goodnight princess.'
'Goodnight Everett.'
Briar grinned at her nickname, but she couldn't help but feel a slight pang in her chest as their conversation died.
'Goodnight princess.'
Briar was surprised at first as she thought Everett had messaged her again, but that quickly evolved into slight fear as she looked at the account that had messaged her.
George Henderson.
So, it might not be exactly weird that he followed her and messaged her since he does know her name, but why is he calling her princess? Briar couldn't help but overthink again as she began worrying about how George knows that she already has the nickname princess.
Is it weird that when Everett calls me princess I feel giddy with happiness, but when George calls me princess I feel creeped out? Briar thought to herself as she tucked herself into her blankets and lulled herself to sleep with calming thoughts of Everett Kaine.
Status: unedited