Chasing | Ongoing

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟓

"She wasn't sad anymore, she was numb and she knew somehow numb was worse"

There are just some people that you are able to automatically click with, and it turned out Haven was one of those kids.

Nike had immediately bonded with the kid over their favorite type of coffee, I have no clue what it's called, but I hadn't seen Nike smile that in years. I zoned out as the two started to talk about different K-Pop groups and Asain Drama and their favorites and how some of the couples had such amazing chemistry.

I was glad to see Nike so happy again.

The two girls led the way toward a local coffee shop that I had been to many times with Nike before. It was a mostly open floor plan with square or rectangular tables out of earshot from each other, but most of the coffee shop was covered in a rich, dark-colored wood that climbed up the front of the counter where the cash register was, and on the stairs to the balcony that looked over the baristas below. But the first third of the walls—ending in an almost perfect line with the top of the tables—was a faded brick. Above the brick, the walls were a creamy white that climbed to the ceiling where a large green-glass chandelier hung from the ceiling. A large mirror covered in drawing from the staff towered from the counter to the ceiling next to the stairs making the space look twice as big as it really was.

Desperate college students finishing term papers and homework were typing away on their laptops, with their headphones in. A soft lofi song sang from the speakers of the store almost easing my worries away as I walked in.

Nike waved at the barista—who she had joked about proposing to almost too many times—before Haven pointed upstairs.

"I told my cousin I would meet him up there, is that okay?" she asked, and Nike nodded while I smiled.

"Of course! You don't need to ask us that!" Nike said, taking the girl's hand and dragging her up the stairs as Haven stumbled over her feet. I laughed a little when I saw that Haven's neck was entirely red as she tried to recover her balance.

"Are you good, kid?" I asked and she sent me a timid smile that reminded me of Nike when we first met. I snapped back to the present and followed the two girls up.

Haven lead past the tables that had half-walls separating them from each other as she walked determinedly towards the table in the corner. Nike and Haven both sat on the far side of the table facing the stairs. I took the chair closest to the wall as Nike shot up.

"Hold on, I'll go grab some coffees for us," she said, setting down the shopping bags before glancing at Haven who was already typing her order in her phone.

"Just choose some pastry for me, I've been trying to go off coffee," I say and Nike sighed, dramatically throwing her head back.

"We're at the best coffee shop in probably the state and you don't want any coffee?" she asked and I smiled, propping my head up on my hand.

"Yes sir."

Haven chuckled before texting her order to Nike and the girl departed.

"I hope my step-sisters aren't too hard for you to deal with," I say, leaning back against my chair.

Haven turned to me shrugging, "Victoria's alright, it's only Katherine who is the royal pain," she says turning to look out the frosted glass window. "I've had to do group projects with both of them before," she states, and I frowned.

"I hope they weren't too much of a pain to deal with."

"Nah, it's just when Katherine is around, she thinks that the most important thing is everyone's opinion of her."