Cupid's Contract

Chinese Burn

"But I don't want to move to China."

Both Veronica and Luke looked at her oddly.

They didn't know. They didn't realise that the text on her phone, the text that she was refusing to read, no doubt proclaimed a match between Luke and Ron and saddled Eve with applying for a Visa to Beijing. They probably thought she was being weird, standard Eve. They didn't know that she was contemplating tiny houses where your bedroom doubled as a refrigerator and wearing a surgical mask to protect people when she forgot to brush her teeth in the morning.

Ok. She didn't know much about China. She had seen some nice postcards and read some tabloid articles. She knew that they had pretty strict Facebook rules and a wall that was, ironically enough, very popular with tourists on Facebook.

Her thoughts rushing faster than a tornado, Eve unlocked her phone and opened Cupid's latest love missive.

'Luke and Veronica, sitting in a tree, K.I.S.S.I.N.G.'

She could hear his singing brogue echoing in her skull as she read the text. The insufferable god only added to the indignity of it all.

Scowling, she chucked her phone back into her purse where it landed loud enough to distract the new lovebirds from gazing at each other.

"Everything ok, Eve? Why would you be moving to China?" Veronica did her best to look interested in Eve's general vicinity, but while her body faced Eve, her eyes would slowly drift towards the peripheral where Luke remained, shell shocked.

Pupils would lock on Eve, and then drift... drift... drift... and then lock again. It was like watching the development of a lazy eye... Though in this case not even an eye patch could stop Luke from fixating on her friend.

"What? No. I'm not. Sorry. That's just a figure of speech. You know, like, 'raining cats and dogs'? 'Moving to China'? Haaaaaaave you met Luke?" She was using her fingers to make air quotes but she might as well have climbed into her purse along with her phone, for the amount of attention she received.

Luke was still blushing and staring and Veronica was fluttering her eyelashes and Barney Stinson's magic was absolutely unnecessary here.

Clearing her throat loudly, she tried again. "Luke, this is Ron, my friend I always buy coffee for?"

That got his attention, though she nearly wished it hadn't. Gone was the smooth charmer who flirted as he frothed her milk. No, in place was a bumbling, red faced, slightly sweaty idiot, who looked astounded and then blurted, "Café Americano! I thought you were a man!"

And Eve thought she was awkward.

Veronica seemed entranced. She ducked her head coquettishly and tucked some hair behind her ear, before glancing up at Luke with shy eyes. "No, I'm female," she replied just as smoothly, and then silence descended once again.

"Luke works at my favourite coffee shop. Well, he used to. He works here now. Today is his first day." At this point Eve was chatting inanely just to fill the silence. It was that or listen to the heavy breathing emanating from the pair in front of her.

"You're doing so well," breathed Veronica.

How the heck would she know? The numpty spent twenty minutes in the bathroom with urination nerves and then proceeded to drool. She hadn't even touched the cooling food on her plate.

Luke seemed to be recovering from his shock. "Er... thanks. It's my first day."

Never mind.

"You're doing so well."