A Distinctive Affair

A Distinctive Affair

Copyright, All Rights Reserved.

Chapter 1.

On a Monday afternoon, Ruby was found as per usual, in the café Le Bistro strumming her perfectly manicured nails on the smooth granite table. It wasn't a busy day, she knew that. Le Bistro was scarcely visited on Mondays, especially since the day was known as a Bluey- well that was what her best friend Sheila often referred to it as.

The doorbell rang, signaling the entrance of a customer. Summoning up her false enthusiasm, Ruby worked up a smile and welcomed her customer warmly. A young man approached the cash register and while he decided on what to order, Ruby focused on not faltering her perfect smile. She often felt like she looked constipated, but nevertheless, it didn't falter. Looking as if he decided on his order, he cast his brown eyes on her and smiled back.

"Good afternoon sir, what can I get you?" she asked; of course in the most bubbly and cheery voice she could muster. His reply was almost eager-

"The classic Le Bistro black coffee with extra whip cream, and to-go please." His clipped voice reminded her of her cousin Ely. With her cousin, it was annoying, with this young man, it was- dare she think it- sexy. The deepness of it, made it sound like his voice vibrated. He paid, and stood to the side.

Immediately, she disregarded her thoughts, and focused on making his black coffee. It was the café's classic since the recipe was slightly more enhanced than the usual black coffees made. Mixing in the special ingredient, Ruby poured the coffee into the Le Bistro to-go mug.

"Would you like a Le Bistro comment on your mug?" Ruby questioned. It was a tradition to the café to write comments on the mug. It was something the owner thought would become motivational towards the customer, and however lame she found it, she wouldn't dare upset her boss.

The man looked confused, but nodded anyways. Hesitantly, she thought of a good comment. He was cute, and she was one to impress. Feeling his gaze on her backside, she wrote the first comment that popped into mind. It's rude to stare. Handing him his coffee, she heard him chuckle as he walked away. She smirked at herself, slightly proud of what she had done, but secretly hoping her boss doesn't find out- he probably wouldn't be as amused.

The rest of the day was slightly boring. Sheila eventually showed up at the café, and ordered two cakes for Ruby and herself to share. Ruby was, although she wouldn't admit it, relieved to know Sheila came to the rescue.

"So, did any juiciness happen at boring ol' work?" Sheila asked. She was actually curious, since Ruby's eyes kept looking past her shoulder. Ruby shook her head and narrated the previous events. Sheila high fived her friend; "I think I'm rubbing off on you!" the two went into a fit of laughter, up until her boss showed up.

"Ruby, get your ass back to work." His naturally loud voice boomed. Scurrying off of the chair and almost tripping on her face, Ruby ran to her position behind the register. Satisfied, Mr. Ronald let out a warning grunt and went back into the Staff only section.

Sheila made a face, and pouted at her friend. When Ruby sent her a questioning glance, Sheila pointed at Ruby's untouched cake. Letting out a laugh, Ruby took the cake and kept in on the side for later. The girls hugged, and soon Ruby was back to drumming her nails on the table. She was so bored.

As soon as the clock hit seven, and her replacement entered the café Ruby bid her boss goodbye. She placed her apron in locker 19, and stuffed her keys into her pocket. Finding her car outback wasn't hard, for on Mondays she was always lucky with the parking spaces.

The drive home was spent with her singing her lungs off to the many songs she admired. Eventually, she made it home. Grabbing her backpack which was in the trunk, Ruby unlocked her front door and slammed it- notifying her parents that she was home.

"Is that you dear?" her father called out. They knew it was her, but her parents always liked to make sure. Letting out a short and muffled 'yeah', she scurried up the stairs for a warm shower. As soon as she was clean and in pajamas, Ruby went down for dinner.

"So, how was your first day of school?" her mother asked. She filled her in on what happened throughout the day, and how she was almost late to work. Her parents rolled their eyes at her antics. She was just like her mother- always running late. Conversation picked up from there, and soon dinner was over. Ruby hurried on up to finish any due homework, before calling it a night.

Of course, morning came too fast for Ruby's liking. Stretching her short arms, she hurried out of bed as to avoid running late. Brushing her teeth and combing her hair at the same time was difficult, but she pulled through. After applying deodorant and some perfume, she tied her long hair into a high pony tail. She then threw on her jean shorts and carefully chose a top.

She had this rule that involved not wearing the same shirt twice a week. Usually, she would wait at least two weeks until she wore the same shirt again. It kept people thinking she had various amount of clothing- and it worked for her too. Pulling on a sapphire top with a bit of frills, she adjusted her bra straps so that they were covered under the thin bands of the shirt. Satisfied, she finally slipped her neatly-kept matching converse on. Ruby quickly stuffed her work clothes into her backpack, and with one last glance at the mirror, she ran for the stairs.

Kissing both her parents goodbye, she scurried out the door and into her car. She was almost late. Luckily Sheila had mentioned the previous night that she was riding with her boyfriend, and wouldn't need a ride. With five minutes to spare, Ruby found herself in the school parking lot.

Letting out a long sigh, she patted herself on the back in pride. Take that mom! She thought. For the first time in a while, Ruby Miller wasn't late! She made her way slowly into the building, and took her attendance. She had English first, and only needed her To Kill a Mocking Bird story that was on the requirement list. Skidding past her locker, Ruby went into English and took her usual seat next to Sheila.

Even Sheila was shocked to see her in class before the bell. Sharing sheepish smiles, the two focused their attention on the new teacher that entered.