Superhero

Chapter 26

Addison stormed into the convenience store and heavily sat down on the chair, a scowl contorting her face. Jeff sighed and lowered his laptop screen slightly.
"What happened?" Jeff asked, seeing her in that state. "Woke up on the wrong side of the bed?"
Addison glared at him.
Jeff raised his hands in defence, taken aback by her reaction. "What, I'm just asking!"
"The guy I carpool with abandoned me without a word," Addison said sulkily. "He doesn't even feel sorry for it!"
For some reason, Jeff started laughing.
"It's not funny!" Addison spat, getting up.
"I know," Jeff stopped laughing. "But what makes it funny is you're actually sulking for that jerk!"
Addison frowned, making her way to the freezer. "Well, yeah! Only I know how much I suffered for transport. Luckily I managed to get a PickYou."
"Well, at least you managed to get to college in time," Jeff shrugged. "Why did he actually ditch you?"
"He had a date," Addison grimaced, putting a container of carbonara spaghetti in the microwave. "I'm surprised he actually managed to get one."
"Why, is he ugly?" Jeff asked eagerly, leaning over the counter.
Addison snorted. "Nah. He's just... well, I'm gonna eat, so I rather not say."
Jeff's smirk grew wider. "He's a slob, huh?"
"Yes..." Addison sighed. "Very sloppy..."
She got herself a bottle of root beer and came to the counter. Addison took out her purse and paid for whatever she took before going back to the table.
"I swear, if you see that hoodie of his..." Addison shuddered. "I'm just glad it isn't white."
Jeff burst into laughter. Addison just rolled her eyes and continued eating, reading the new webcomic that Fiolina insisted on. Jeff just snorted and continued typing his assignment on the laptop, even playing music on another tab to lighten the mood.
The two were instantly alerted when the welcome tune suddenly blared. Both Addison and Jeff looked up from their devices to see who the new customer was.
Addison nearly dropped her phone into her pasta when she realised that it was Jordan who walked in, with his blonde girlfriend.
Jeff smiled and nodded an acknowledgment at him, pausing his music before pushing his laptop to the side. Jordan nodded back and went towards the aisles. Jeff went back to his laptop and quickly saved his document. He looked up for a second and saw Addison practically boiling, glowering at the couple who just walked in. He turned back to the couple and tried to think why Addison would glare at them. His eyes widened when he realised why.
"Addie, is that guy your ginger housemate?" Jeff asked in a low voice, leaning over the counter.
Addison glared at him in return, making him smirk. "So he is, then."
"You want anything else, Sierra?" They both heard Jordan ask.
"Can I have this chocolate?" Sierra asked, pointing at a rather expensive bar of chocolate.
"By all means, just take it," Jordan smiled, handing her the chocolate.
Sierra smiled and took it before going towards the counter with him. Jeff scanned the things, miserably failing to hide a smirk.
"Have a nice day, sir, ma'am," Jeff smiled, handing them their receipt together with the change. "You don't want to buy coffee?"
"Nah, it's fine," Jordan said, stuffing the receipt into his pocket and putting the change away in his wallet. "We work in a coffee shop, anyway."
Jeff chuckled. "Haha, that's nice." He waved at them as they walked towards the exit. It had started raining slightly, so Jordan took his hoodie off and put it around Sierra's shoulders as they left the shop. "Don't forget to wash that hoodie!" Jeff grinned just before the door closed behind them.
Jordan looked at him in surprise but just led Sierra back to his car, rather hurriedly. Jeff was laughing so hard at them.
"Oh my gosh, Addie!" Jeff guffawed. "Did you see the look on his face?" 
Addison couldn't help but smile. "That was funny."
Jeff smiled and pulled his laptop closer, opening his document before typing something on the keyboard. "You better eat quickly, Addie. You only have ten minutes till your shift."
Addison nodded and quickly ate before throwing the containers away into the dustbin under the counter. Jeff turned his laptop off and waited for Addison to change before exchanging shifts with her.
"So, how's your assignment holding up?" Addison asked, watching Jeff pack his things at the table. "Need any help?"
"Not yet," Jeff said, rolling up his polo shirt before stuffing it inside his backpack. "After I'm done with this essay, then maybe you can check."
"Okay," Addison nodded, taking a sip of her cold root beer.
Jeff frowned slightly and looked up at her. "You sure you don't mind?"
Addison quickly shook her head. "No, not at all. Why are you asking?"
"No reason," Jeff shrugged. "I thought maybe I was pestering you too much."
Addison gasped. "No, no, you're not! Like I said, I owe you one. Especially because you gave me free food. Twice!"
Jeff smiled. "I wasn't really expecting anything in return when I did all of that." His smile turned smug. "But now that you mention it..."
"Just accept the help, idiot," Addison rolled her eyes, setting the plastic bottle aside. "If not, look for someone else to edit for you instead."
Jeff immediately raised his hands in surrender. "Okay, okay, I didn't say anything!"
Addison chuckled. Jeff smiled back and slung his backpack over his shoulder. She waited for him to turn his back on her and go towards the food warmer before reaching over the counter to grab a bar of hazelnut chocolate from the shelf behind the screen. She scanned the barcode, paid for it, then waited for Jeff to come and pay for his things.
He finally did, after what seemed like hours, and put his things on the counter to pay. Addison casually scanned everything, took his money, put them in the cash register, and finally handed him his change, together with the chocolate.
"Wait, I didn't buy that," Jeff said, looking over at the screen where the items and prices were displayed. "It's not on the list, is it?"
"Nope," Addison smirked. "I bought it. For you."
Jeff's eyes widened in surprise. He just stared at her, then at the chocolate.
Addison grinned and pushed the chocolate and money into his hand. "Just take it!"
He did, with a smile that showed his asymmetrical dimple. "Thanks... this means a lot."
Addison snorted. "Oh come on, you bought me free food, and even asked me to keep a big change."
Jeff just nodded, still grinning, and left the shop. "See you tomorrow, Addie."
"Bye, SlurpSlurp," Addison smirked.
Jeff chuckled and waved before going towards his bike. Addison just sighed and sat down on the turn-stool, taking out her books to do some homework.

"Hey, what does this Jordan fella look like?" Fiolina demanded as soon as she stepped in. Addison just stared at her before letting out a snort. "Come on, spill it! Send me his picture!"
"I don't have a picture of him, unfortunately..." Addison shrugged. She actually did, even having a video of him that she took during the time Mr. Galante welcomed him like a guest of honour. "Nope, don't have any pictures of him."
She lied because she knew Fiolina was the type to confront him, maybe even plucking a lock of strawberry blond hair straight off his head.
"You sure about that, Addie?" Fiolina raised an eyebrow.
Addison gulped. "Of course, you dummy! Why would I lie to you? If there was anyone I would want to send to that Jordan, it would be you."
That was true too. She still liked the image of Jordan being beaten up by Fiolina.
Fiolina nodded, her eyes squinted. "You're not protecting him, are you?"
"No, why would I?" Addison quickly said. She decided to change the subject. "Hey, any news on the Superhero?"
Fiolina's face instantly softened into a concerned look. "Not sure. Let me check."
Addison smirked and waited. She knew the answer would be no since she already checked herself.
Fiolina shook her head, just as expected. "Nope."
"Maybe the guy's just taking a well-deserved rest," Addison shrugged. "I mean... he's human too... I think..."
"You may be right," Fiolina agreed, making a beeline for the junk food section. "Anyway..."
And then she started rambling about some celebrity. Addison didn't even listen, not liking the trendy gossip one bit.