GRAY
I EXPECTED THIS summer to be fantastic, astonishing even. Before school ended, I brainstormed a bucket list in my head, mapping and plotting ideas of where I would like to visit throughout UK.
That fantasy never came true - even though it's only been two weeks into summer I just know it won't happen. You can always dream, but you should also be realistic too, however. Dreaming is basically what all sixteen-year-old girls do in their spare time, or any time for that matter, I decided that for myself I should crush all the fantasies stormed up in my head before someone else does.
The furthest I've been since the end of school is to the café, Terry's, where my two grandparents work at. I'm not sure if that's a complaint or not, I love going there, even if it's just across the street. I also love my grandparents, but working there has been super time-consuming.
I'm not one to complain, so when they asked me to help them out on weekends I'm not studying for school, and on holidays, I couldn't refuse. It's not as bad as it seems, especially since I met Maxine.
He's also been working at the café since his university days, my grandparents treat him like their own son.
Max has been like a brother I never had, he'd joke around with me and we'd be like a team. When no one else is working at the shop, we have a routine to take turns behind the till and make sure everything is running smoothly.
Two weeks after I had met him, he introduced me to his girlfriend, Fiona. They've been dating ever since sixth-form and is the cutest couple yet. Last year, he asked me advice on how to propose to her, and I told him it's only romantic if he comes up with it. Conveniently for him, she said yes and they had a really cute wedding.
It's the only time I spent dressing up, Fiona's mother helped me with my dress and make up. She claimed that I was too young and beautiful to waste time.
Maxine and Fiona has basically been family since. Gina, my seven-year-old little sister, loves them with all her heart, the same goes for my mother and me.
It's been this way since we basically moved here, three years ago. I wouldn't change it for the world.
Although, studying for school has changed it up. Being in my first year of sixth-form has made things difficult, not just for me, but for everyone around me. I wanted to get the best grades of my ability, therefore I made sure that I had time to study hard.
My two bestfriends, Elliot and Maya, wanted the same too. They pretty much pushed their families away, in order for us to stick our heads into books. Wanting to study a lot, isn't normal, whatever you define normal as. People in our year have thrown parties pretty much every week, I don't think I've ever been to even one. I've read too many stories about them to know what will happen there.
I guess this is why I made the bucket list, even if it's just sitting at the top of my head. All that studying was extremely stressful, even though I don't know if it paid off or not, as we haven't got our results back yet, I wanted to celebrate.
Today is the day that I decide to introduce the bucket list to Maya and Elliot. We're sitting at a corner, window in Terry's, when I bring it up.
"No way," Maya groans, dropping her face in her hands. "I haven't even fixed my sleeping pattern since school ended, I have to live off coffee. Coffee. Do you know how much I loathe that drink?"
I sigh. "Oh come on, it'll be fun."
Elliot butts in from my other side, "I'm actually with Maya on this, there's no point." She yawns and adjusts one arm on the table so that her face is resting, relaxingly.
"Exactly. What would you put down anyway? Skinny-dipping with sharks?" Maya's dark brown ponytail swishes from side to side as she talks.
I hold up a finger, and lean down to reach for my black and white checkered backback, resting on one leg of my chair. Unzipping it, I pull out a curled A4 piece of paper, that's tied in a cylinder by one rubber band, holding it in place. Laying it on the table, I unclasp the band and let the white sheet spread open.
I grab the salt and black pepper and place each plastic pot on opposite ends of the paper to stop it from its back into it's previous shape. I find a ball-point pen at the bottom of my bag and pull that out too, carefully placing it at the middle of the page.
I grin at the two girls, wiggling my eyebrows. "Who's first?"
They both groan at the same time, mirroring each other.
Maya says, "I still think this is stupid." Elliot agrees with her and munches on a chocolate chip cookie.
"You guys are so boring," I sigh.
"Maybe next year when my brain doesn't feel like sliding tectonic plates waiting for an explosion." Maya takes a sip of the brand new coffee that came to our table seconds ago.
Elliot looks at her, amused. "That's very specific," she turns to me and say, "sorry Gray, besides, Noah wants to go on a couple of road trips throughout the holiday - there won't be time."
Noah is Elliot's boyfriend, and has been since last year. He moved to our sixth-form and the two lovers stared each other down for two weeks straight until he had the guts to talk to her.
I lean back in my chair. "Fair enough," running a hand in my brown locks, I say, "but that doesn't mean I'm not going to make this on my own."
"Good luck." Maya takes a huge gulp, spluttering when realising it's too hot.
The blonde next to her passes a piece of tissue, wordlessly. "Let's just hope you put 'find a summer fling' on the list too - you could really do with some male attention in your life."
Elliot stands up from her seat and continues, "Anyways, I gotta run. My grandmother expects me to write to her every week, so..." she trails off and slings her side bag across one shoulder.
Maya cleans the coffee drops off the table while saying, "One day you should get her a phone. Life would be so much easier for her that way."
Elliot stares at our friend, deadpanned. "You think I haven't thought of that? She told my mum I'm trying to 'change her ways with my modern ways' and my mum had to fake-scowl at me in front of her, even though I knew she didn't even care herself."
I laugh. "Have fun, Ellie," I raise my hand as Maya mutters a bye to her too.
The bell of Terry's jingles when she exits and Maya moves her chair so that she's opposite me. "Max can make really good coffee, even if I don't like the actual drink."
I tilt my head. "Does that even make sense?"
She mumbles while adjusting the cup in her hands. "I do not know."
"Why don't you just get some sleep now?" I ask her. She sighs. "If I sleep now-"
"Actually, I don't really care," I cut her off and stand up. "I'm gonna get a latte from Max and head out." I roll up the piece of paper and stuff it back in my backpack along with the ballpoint pen.
She holds her thumb out and drops her head on the table. "Goodbye." I grin at her and tap her head before grasping onto the top of my bag and moving toward the counter.
I find his tall figure cleaning the marble countertop with a cloth. The Tally's cap is covering his eyes when I stroll up to him. "Yo. The usual drink."
He looks up to me and grins. "On it." I take a seat on the tall stalls and cross one leg over the other. "When's Fiona coming back from London?"
"Today, actually," he turns his head over his shoulder. "but there's actually a twist." He turns back round to face me, the large white cup of a steaming drink is placed in front of me.
"Ooh, how so?"
"Well," he scratches the back of his head. "She's bringing her nephews here. To live."
I blow on the latte, cooling it down. "What's wrong with that?"
"Nothing." They've been through a lot - and have come here for a fresh start. They're around your age actually." He sends me a hesitant smile and his eyes bore, hopefully, into mine
I nod, understandingly while smiling. "Max, I'll do it, okay? You could've just asked me."
He looks relieved and raises both arms in the air in triumph. "Thank you, thank you, thank you. All you have to do is turn up to their new house with some gifts and welcome them."
I take a sip of my drink. "They're not staying with you and Fiona?"
"Our place isn't big enough, plus we need our own privacy..." he wiggles his eyebrows, suggestively. I scrunch up my nose in disgust in realisation of what he's saying. "I really didn't need to know that." I say while he bursts out laughing.
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