Page 59 of Knight
“I’m going, Mr. Bossy-pants.” I laughed as I darted across the apartment and into my bathroom.
I showered, a smile plastered on my face the entire time. Ready to face the day, I headed to the front door, where I was unsurprisingly met with a waiting Knight, my travel coffee cup in his hand and perfectly made.
“See you tonight,” he said as he gave me a quick kiss on the lips.
“Yes, you will,” I replied as I brought my free hand up to stroke the short, soft side of his hair.
By the time I made it through class and to work, the day had proved to me that it was going to fight me every step of the way. Time did not tick by, it didn’t even creep by. It seemed to be at a friggin’ standstill.
To make matters worse, the coffee shop was not busy. That would have normally been fine, but I had come to realize the busier it was, the faster time went by. And it didn’t help that I was working with the shy girl. She was never one for conversation. Matter of fact, she was barely able to squeak out a ‘hello’ or ‘goodbye’ every time we crossed paths. How she managed to get through taking customers’ orders, I wasn’t sure. Maybe that was why I was there. While she had trouble even stringing just a few words together without looking like a frightened, shaking rabbit, she was quick with getting orders out. It actually worked out well when we were paired together, for business that was, but not for my sanity right now.
“Oh, is it that time already,” I said sarcastically, more to the universe than to Dale as he tied on his apron and clocked in.
“That bad?” he asked with a hefty laugh.
“Just a long day. I’m gonna sit and try to get some studying done now,” I said with a smile and a little shrug.
“Well, at least you won’t have to do it alone,” he said and I tilted my head in confusion. “I saw Tara parking as I was coming in.”
“Oh, cool,” I replied as I clocked out and grabbed my books that were stashed under the counter.
It wasn’t that big of a shocker because she often met me after my shifts. But I wasn’t sure if I wanted to be around anyone with the heavy anxious state I was in. I knew I wouldn’t be able to hide it and I really,really, didn’t want to talk about it.
Tara came in and sat down next to me right as I had gotten settled. We gave our greetings then dove into our books and notes. A little while later, Dale brought over a fresh coffee for me. He knew me so well and I shot him a grateful smile but didn’t say anything. He gave me a long look, sensing something was off, but I shook my head to let him know I wasn’t in the mood. I let out a little sigh of relief when he didn’t say anything and turned to walk off.
“So thereissomething going on with you today?” Tara asked, a little something I couldn’t decipher in her tone. I had hoped she missed the whole exchange between myself and Dale but that didn’t seem to be the case.
“I’m just not really in a studying mood, I guess,” I said trying to brush the whole thing off. I flipped my book closed. All I was doing at that point was killing time. “I think I’m going to call it a day.”
I’d dropped my car back off at the apartment after class and chose to walk to work instead. It was a nice day and I had hoped that the fresh air would help my mood. It didn’t work then, but maybe the walk back would prove differently. And at that thought, I wanted to roll my eyes at myself.
“Okay,” Tara said as she started to pack up her things.
“I’m gonna hit the restroom before I head out,” I said feeling the sudden need to go and I knew I wouldn’t be able to hold it until I got back home.
I came back out, downed the last of my coffee like I always did, wondering if it was really a great idea to drink the nearly full cup all at once. I needed to get home and eat before I became too jittery from consuming too much caffeine on an empty stomach.
“Ready?” Tara asked and I gave her a nod as I picked up my phone from the table and shoved it into my pocket.
We headed out, both of us tossing a wave to Dale on the way, and right as we stepped into the hot midday air, she asked if I wanted a ride. The thought of walking suddenly sounded like too much work. Maybe I would go home and take a little nap. I could feel the stress of the day wearing heavy on me all of a sudden.
I agreed and looked around for Tripp because I knew he was on watch duty. I was going to let him know I was heading back to the apartment and insist, again, that he didn’t need to keep guard. Of course, I knew it wouldn’t do any good. I needed to come up with some plan to get my dad and the guys to drop this whole detail thing. Depending on how things went tonight, I might bring it up. But as I scanned the area, I didn’t see him or any other prospect. No, there was not a vested brother in sight.
“Something wrong?” Tara asked as she opened her door and tossed her bag into the backseat.
“No. I just…” My voice trailed off. It wasn’t like them to up and leave. The job of watching me may have been a shit job but prospects knew what it meant and that fucking up would mess up their chances of getting a patch. “Did you see Tripp when you got here?”
“Yeah,” she said and shrugged. “I think he took off while you were in the bathroom.”
“Oh, okay.” I shook it off and dropped down into the passenger’s side of the car. “I should have eaten today,” I mumbled as we started to drive off.
Suddenly, I was hit with a strange feeling as my vision went a little blurry.Too much coffee.I told myself as I tried to blink my eyes back into focus.
The car turned in the opposite direction of my apartment and that was when it hit me that something was definitely wrong.
“Tara?” I said and my voice sounded far away and weak.
When she started humming instead of answering me, I had a feeling that this day was going to end worse than I had imagined it could have. Suddenly all that worrying about how my dad would take the news felt like child’s play.
