Natasha thought she simply didn't have the ability to feel. Being 18 years old, she was surrounded by people squealing about their love interests, relationships yada yada yada. While all she could do was roll her eyes having no idea what they were on about. You see, she had never even had a crush. Until, one day in the coffee aisle.
_______
" Coffee Aisle "
_______
"JUST LEAVE me alone." I rolled my eyes and listened to my best friend Opal babble on and on about her recent boyfriend. And apparently her 'very hot boyfriend' had a 'very hot best friend'. I resisted to gag. I just didn't want to be in a relationship. Was it that hard to understand?
Not for her.
"I am sending you his Insta ID right now." She gushed, resistant to my groan and quite evident display of disinterest.
"I swear you should work for those tinder, bumble sites, you got some persistent nerve." I mumbled as I found my curious fingers checking the text that she had sent.
"Well, it works on you, that's all I want." She shrugged via the small thumbnail of her on my screen while I searched the ID she had sent.
"You are checking it, aren't you?" She grinned, excitement dripping through her words.
"Would you shut u-" I gulped as I saw the Instagram page of the guy. "Woah." I whispered.
"Aah! why are you on mute? I can't even see you! Oh and he lives around your house, I swear you guys would look so cute together." She squealed.
I opened the call window and ended the call.
This was stupid.
The guy was hot alright. But I don't judge books by their covers. Except this was probably the most attractive cover I had ever seen. I shook my head and threw my phone on my bed and got up to get out of the house. I put on the mask that the pandemic had kindly bestowed upon us and changed into my day clothes.
I needed to go to the place that distracted me from all things in the best way possible.
My dear coffee aisle.
I sighed just at the thought of it. It was the aisle in the departmental store near my house. I don't think I had ever seen an aisle this much dedicated to coffee and its related snacks and all things good. All types of coffee, green, roasted, slow-roasted. All flavours and toppings. You. Name. It.
Just being there and staring at those sweet little things calmed me. I picked up the keys of the house and locked the house, everyone was out visiting some people I wasn't interested in meeting. I pocketed the keys and got down the stairs. The store was on a sweet walking distance. Within minutes I was inside the glass door and into the air-conditioned doors of the store. The guy at the checkout counter smiled at me, he knew me. His name was Jack. He would let me know if something new came in the aisle. He liked coffee too and understood my crazy fascination with the aisle.
"Nothing new." He shrugged as he beeped the stuff of some old lady.
"It's cool. I just need some coffee." I nodded and pocketed my hands.
"You got some a few days ago." Jack spoke with humour dancing in his eyes.
I stopped looking at the keychain with my name's first letter on it and looked at Jack who thanked the lady and handed her the bill along with the stuff she bought.
"I need something stronger." I pressed.
He laughed and I showed him the tongue and went ahead past the mini café the store had. I swear I needed to thank the owner of the store someday, they generated heaven for me.
While I was approaching the aisle, mum called. I received the call.
"Yes, darling." I spoke loud enough to irk away a man who was near my beloved aisle. I smiled as he mumbled to himself and left the row altogether. I mentally laughed. Sometimes it was so easy to annoy people it was downright hilarious.
Mum laughed and told me she'll be home in fifteen so if I was wandering somewhere else I needed to be back at the house.
"You know me too well, I am at the store, will be back at home soon."
We ended the call after some more banter and I sighed when I found someone standing in front of the coffee aisle.
Could I get any alone time around here?
I rolled my eyes and took three steps forward towards the aisle. The guy in the black hoodie was too busy examining the label of my favourite coffee sprinkles that I got sidetracked into looking at it too.
"Looking for something?" Dude. What?
Of course, he was looking for something! I swear you belong in your room under the safety net of your covers cause anywhere else you're a riot!
I resisted the urge to squeeze my eyes shut in humiliation and stood there with a blank face while the guy turned to look at me with a lost look.
I gulped.
This wasn't a guy.
This was Apollo playing tricks on me. Anything that looked this heavenly just couldn't be human. I blinked and tried to remember to breathe.
Frick, just take the bloody air in already.
I stood taller and raised my eyebrows when he moved his lips to speak. Oh, he moves. He was not the sculpture that Ozymandias would envy. Surprise!
I pursed my lips at my thoughts and waited for him to speak.
He looked at the label and then back at me.
I mean, of course, he wasn't used to conversing with random people about the fact that he was here to buy something. Obviously.
Okay, auto brain shut down in one, two, three...
"Umm, yeah actually I am trying to up my coffee game. A plain latte just doesn't work for me anymore."
If I were a doctor then he was describing a case of a mild but serious, stroke. And if I didn't provide him with the appropriate coffee apparel then he might lose interest in coffee and gasp! I can't even think about letting that happen in front of me.
Did I mention I rocked my school Drama club? Quite vital information.
I took the box of coffee sprinkles from him and stared at him with a serious look. While he just blinked with a questioning glint in his eyes.
"We need to get you all sorted," I spoke in a grave tone.
While the hot hoodie guy laughed.
I pushed him away and glanced at the aisle myself. I started putting stuff in his shopping basket while muttering lousy explanations for him to understand. He just stood there and observed a borderline maniac of a stranger stuffing random stuff in his shopping basket.
"And we are done." I beamed at him and he smiled back.
"Well, thanks for, all this." He looked at my usual essential coffee supplies. I even added a jar mug and metal straw for a good measure.
"Samuel Reed." He put his hand out for me to shake.
I took mine out to shake his.
"Celine Duane." I felt the soft but rough skin of his calluses and ugh, it took all of me to remove my hand from his.
"It was nice to meet you. I can't believe we never saw each other before." He wondered and I rolled my eyes.
"It's a pretty big society. You need to know where and who or you might get lost." I pursed my lips and remembered my cousins getting lost every time we branch out to get different things.
"Well, I won't be here anymore in a few weeks anyway." A thing like that will catch your attention. Even though I needed to get out of here before mum comes back home.
"Huh?" What a joy of an Intellect I possess.
"I am going to study abroad." He seemed a bit guilty about it. Why the hell was he guilty.
I blinked and raised my eyebrows.
"That's, umm, great." What was I doing?
"What about you?" He wanted to keep the conversation going.
Huh.
I gulped and resisted the urge to run and forget all about this.
"I am gonna stay right here." In my pathetic attempt at a smile, I let him continue about his interest in studying outside of the country since the beginning and I observed the iPhone mini in his hand. I chuckled. That was my favourite phone. It seemed like only Apple cared about people with small hands.
I took a deep breath and got into conversation with him, knowing I might never see him again.
The guy who was by far the hottest guy I had ever seen in real life.
I wanted to ask for his social media or his number. But I didn't want to force conversation when we really wouldn't meet in person. I sighed and said my goodbyes finally. I turned away from him and picked a tub of ice cream instead.
I was going to need it today.
Guess who just had a case of the first crush?
This gal.
***
A/N: Aye! This was just a sweet little story about a girl's first crush. I would love to know your thoughts about this!
Also, this book started as a short story entry, but now it will be a collection of many other short stories! I can't say when but this book will get updated now. Add this book to your library to get a notification whenever it gets updated!
Thanks for reading!
~Ria
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