"I'm Lily... From Bristol."
"Lily," he repeated the letter L rolling off the top of his tongue. "You don't sound like you're from Bristol."
The small girl rolled onto her tummy resting her head in her hands. The angles had changed. She was looking down at him now.
"Yeah." She smirked the singular word forming an unspoken rhetoric question. His eyes were as blue as they come.
"How old are you Lily from Bristol?" The way he repeatedly said her simplistic name held so much more meaning to her. As if his deep voice was finally recognizing her existence.
"How old do you need me to be?" She whispered.
The older man did not answer he just focused in on the David Bowie record silently playing in the background. The irony of the situation bringing a small smile to his lips.
God knows I'm good
God knows I'm good
God may look the other way today
"You really like this song don't you?" She questioned and he nodded.
"And you really like me too?" Again he nodded bringing her in for a passionate kiss. Their two contrasting scents being permanently intertwined.
***
Bring Bring
Mel's alarm woke her up from a deep and unexpected slumber. It was time for her to go to work at the record store. Sighing she turned on her side, the romance novel she was previously reading before she fell asleep falling to the floor and making a loud thump noise. Mel jumped a little at the sound before reaching over to turn her alarm clock off.
Throwing her legs over the edge of her small bed she stuffed her feet inside of the pink slippers that her mom gave her for her birthday. Her mom was never good at giving gifts. Picking herself out of the twin sized bed she got at a second hand furniture store off of the highway, she walked over to her mediocre closet and threw on a pair of grey trousers and a white jumper. It was cold this morning so she made a mental note to put on her big mustard yellow corduroy jacket before she left the house. Once Mel finished getting dressed, feeding her fish Daisy, and watering her potted plants she headed out of her small flat and started her short walk to work.
She walked at a steady pace enjoying the scenery around her even though she'd seen it more times than she could count. She liked to walk in the road, dangerously close to the middle of the street, and let her mind wander. She'd daydream about anything but mostly about falling in love.
21 and never been kissed. 21 and never had a boyfriend. Sometimes it felt like her dreams of love were the only real love she'd ever have. And even though her mother thought that her daughters obsession with romance novels was holding her back from ever finding true love, Mel could never let them go. She ate, slept, and breathed romance novels, and the more heart wrenching the better.
Working at the record store was not the ideal plan Mel had for her life. Her plan had always been to finish A levels and get into a good university so that she could study English, but her plans fell through after her dad got sick during his unplanned visit to South Africa for the loss of his father, Mel's Grandfather, whom she had never met. Almost simultaneously, the equally bad news about her own fathers condition was expressed to Mel and her Mother a day before her father was scheduled to return.
When Mel's father ultimately decided not to make the trip back to England but instead stay with his family in Gauteng, Mel decided she needed extra help paying his medical bills so that he could seek the best private care. Especially since her mother refused to speak with him at all after his choice to not return to Birmingham. Ever since then Mel had been working full time at the small little record shop along side her best friend Thomas, and sending whatever money she could to her father. The way Mel looked at it though was in a positive light. Although she ultimately lost her dad in the end, she gained a best friend through the process.
"You're late." Thomas smirked as Mel entered the shop.
"Am I? Or are you just early?" She smiled back at him, taking off her coat in the process. That had been their saying since she first started working there and accidentally over slept causing her to arrive 30 minutes late to work on her first day. Thomas, would have fired her then but he didn't. He couldn't. The way she looked at him that day, as if she knew all the secrets in the world, made him fall for her right from the start.
"I suspect it's going to be a very busy day today." Mel yawned sarcastically. It was never a busy day at the shop. Mel actually got most of her reading done here.
"Actually I wanted to talk to you about that." Thomas stated, the playful air in the room suddenly turning serious.
Mel got a strange feeling in her stomach. What if she was being fired? Or worse, what if he found out about her secret crush on him and he didn't like her back?
"What's the problem?" She mumbled avoiding his gaze. His deep brown eyes always seemed to pierce right through her very soul. Or at least that's what she described it as. She could picture Thomas in any romance novel as the leading man. He was perfect. Tall, had a deep caramel complexion, curly brass hair, the sweetest dimple on his left cheek, and always dressed with style, but that wasn't even what made him so special. The real reason she had developed such a licking for Thomas was easily because he was the only person who was really there for her after her dad died.
"I think I have to close the shop." Thomas whispered.
"What?! Why?" Mel gasped.
"I just can't afford it anymore. Let's face it, the kids these days don't play records they buy shit off of their phones or listen to YouTube. You and I both hardly make enough money to live and keeping this place open is getting harder and harder everyday."
"Can't you take out another loan? What if we sold coffee or something?" Mel panicked walking over to Thomas who was cooly leaning on the counter, as if none of this affected him.
"Loan? I'm already in debt. I don't think anyone would allow me to take out another loan Mel."
"Ok." Mel sighed. "But we can't just quit. Not now.. What am I suppose to do for a job. Thomas you know I need this job."
"No Mel you needed this job. But you don't have to take care of your dad anymore." Thomas could see that Mel was getting upset so he softened his tone placing his hands on her small shoulders.
"Look, I'm not saying I'm closing the shop today, you know it might not even be this week or the next. All I'm saying is that you should think about your options." Mel's bottom lip trembled and she pulled it between her teeth.
Don't cry.
"What options Thomas? Go work at Maccas? Or start delivering pizzas? What options do I have!"
Thomas pulled her in for a hug, the rosy scent of her thick curly hair engulfing him and making him dizzy with every intake of breath. He hated seeing her like this but he knew that if he didn't tell her now she'd never leave the shop and get a proper job.
The sound of the door opening made the two awkwardly pull apart flushed.
"Hello and welcome to the shop." Mel somberly greeted the customer, paying them no actual attention.
"I'll be back." Thomas stated before slipping into the back room of the store were they kept their personal things and ate lunch.
Sighing, Mel made her way behind the counter and sat on her stool pulling out her emergency romance novel that she had hidden behind a stack of 90s classics. Before she could get deep into the next chapter the costumer spoke up.
"Excuse me miss, but I was wondering if you could help me?"
Looking up Mel almost choked at the sight of the man before her.
"Woah, you look just like how I imagined."
"What?" The man questioned confused. Mel internally blushed at her big mouth.
"No. What I meant was I umm.. I meant I'm reading this book and you look like how I imagined the book character to look in real life, if that makes any sense?" She ranted closing her book. The tall man just chuckled his dark brown hair not moving an inch.
He looked like a cross between an actor and a god of the sea, like Poseidon. His bone structure was so prominent it was as if he was hand crafted by God himself. He looked bad, in the best possible way. His deep black shirt clung to his torso and his gray trousers must have been tailored specially for his long legs. He had a small scar on his left cheekbone which made him only more attractive.
"Well I hope you pictured the guy in your book to be dashingly handsome and not a slob or something." He joked eying her for her reaction. He was amused when he saw her dark brown cheeks turn a shade of red.
"Umm.. yeah umm anyways. What can I help you with umm-"
"Corey."
"Yeah uh what can I help you with Corey?"
"I was looking for the David Bowie record with the song 'God Knows I'm Good' on it."
"Shit." Mel whispered. That was the exact song the guy in her book also liked.
"What?"
"Nothing um the record is over there in the 'oldie but goodies' section under B."
"Okay thanks."
There was silence in the shop as he rummaged through the records trying to find the right one. Mel couldn't help but stare at him from time to time. The way he clenched his jaw in focus made her knees tremble so she concentrated on her novel wondering what Thomas could be doing for this long. She hated when he would "disappear" and later she'd find him asleep in the back leaving her to watch the shop all by herself. She didn't get paid enough for this, she thought.
"So what's this book you're reading about?" Corey cooly asked looking up at the beautiful girl behind the counter. She wasn't like the girls he'd usually go for, he could tell she was different. He laughed when she looked up at him confused.
"Oh umm it's well it's stupid really."
"Oh?" He smirked raising his right brow. "Okay sorry for asking." He continued, pretending to search for the record even though he had found it a few minutes ago.
"Well it's this romance novel called Pacifier about this girl from Bristol who falls in love with this really attractive older guy, but he doesn't know that she's only fourteen. I mean I guess when I say it like that it sounds gross, but it's actually really interesting... To me at least." She ranted getting lost in the world of books and hot older men. She half expected Corey to laugh at her and make some dumb joke about her being too old for books like that but he didn't, he just smiled.
"Oh I think I've heard of that book actually." Corey admitted finally pulling out the record. Mel was in shock.
"Really?!"
"Yeah my sisters really into books like that. It's all she ever talks about." He admitted walking over to the counter and giving Mel the record to ring up.
"Well your sister has great taste." Mel stated placing his Bowie record in a thin paper bag. She had convinced Thomas to go green a few months back, so now they only used paper bags in the shop instead of plastic. "That'll be 7 quid."
Reaching into his back pocket Mel waited as Corey pulled out his slender black wallet.
"Here you go." He stated, handing her the money. He gave her 20 quid instead of 7. "You can keep the change."
"Oh. Thanks!" Mel smiled putting the rest of the money into her pocket. "Have a nice day."
Corey didn't say anything before he left, he only nodded. He didn't even know what to say. Technically he had a girlfriend yes, but Corey never really belonged to anyone. He did as he pleased and every girl he had been with could tell you that. But he still couldn't find the courage to ask for the beautiful shop girls number, and he made a mental note as he left to come back some time to see her again before he left Birmingham.
Just as Corey left a yawning Thomas entered holding a small poorly wrapped box. "Surprise!"
Mel ignored him as she watched Corey's back until he disappeared from her view. Thomas coughed, awkwardly repeating him self until Mel noticed.
"Oh! You remembered!" Mel smiled seeing the present.
"Of course I remembered my best friends birthday!" Thomas smiled, "how does it feel to be 21 Mis.Knight?"
Mel shrugged, "it feels pretty similar to being 20 I guess. But I wanna see what you got me." She laughed jumping up.
"Oh this gift is not for you. It's just decoration." Thomas joked holding it over his head. Mel was quite short so she couldn't reach it.
"Sure it is, let me see!" She pleaded.
"Fine fine here you go." Thomas was nervous handing her the small box. Today was the day he was going to tell her.
Unwrapping the small pink box Mel's heart raced with excitement. Thomas always gave her the best gifts. Last year he gave her 20 romance novels, one for each year she had been alive. And the year before that he gave her a huge stuffed teddy bear. Thomas was like the boyfriend Mel never had. In fact she wouldn't mind if he was her boyfriend, but she knew he didn't like her in that way.
Opening the box Mel didn't know what to say.
"A key?"
Thomas's heart rate increased.
"I don't understand." Mel admitted looking up at Thomas.
"I-I just thought maybe you could move in with me."
"What?"
"I mean my place is bigger than yours and you're my best friend and you're always complaining about rent and so I just thought... You can say no-"
"Yes."
"What?"
"Okay Thomas I'll move in with you!" Mel smiled hugging her best friend. Thomas smelled like clean clothes and soft cologne. His arms were tight around her as he breathed in the scent of her hair once again.
"Happy birthday Mel."
I love you is what he wanted to say, but the words just wouldn't come out.
"Yes. Thank you, yes."