In a Split Second || BTS

Chapter 1

Translations:

"mon amour" is "my love"

"non, merci" is "no, thank you"

"merci" is "thank you"

"bonjour" is "hello"

"excusez-moi" is "excuse me"

"mon chére" is "my dear"

"mon Dieu" is "my God"

~ ~ ~

Nothing is the way it used to be. My entire universe shifted in one split second – how am I expected to survive? My life before the accident feels like an unreal paradise compared to the torture I now face every day. I was assured that my parents would be with me forever, but they broke their promise after a single accident. They said they loved me, but they did not love me enough to stay. Everything is different now that they are gone. Daily life feels like a sharp jerk back into reality.

I tuck a loose strand of dark brown hair behind my ear and bite down on my lip. Is it possible to go from a pirouette straight into a flying pas de chat? I am tempted to stand up in the middle of the bustling coffee shop and try it for myself, but I would probably knock a table over. Gosh, I can barely pay for a cup of coffee, much less a table.

"Excuse me, mademoiselle, would you like another coffee?" a waiter asks politely, glancing down at my notepad filled with French words and scribbles. I know his name is Danny – that is what another waitress called him when she was delivering a latte macchiato to a man sitting alone at a corner table – but he does not know my name. I prefer keeping to myself.

"Non, merci," I say quietly before looking back down at my notes and crossing out "pirouette --> flying pas de chat". If I find the combination difficult, young dancers will render it impossible.

The waiter seems to be struggling with an internal conflict before he turns around and heads back to the kitchen. When he returns, he is holding a fresh cup of espresso coffee with an intricate design of cream drawn across the top.

"It is on the house," he says with a kind smile.

For some reason, it never surprises me when people are kind. You would assume I feel differently after all the people who have looked at me with disappointment in their eyes, but it does not. Humans are meant to be kind; they only have to find it within themselves.

"Merci," I say with a small smile, accepting the cup. "I appreciate it."

"It is not a problem. I just felt like it was the right thing to do." Someone might misconceive his kindness and assume his motives stem from pity. That may be a piece of it, but I can tell from the sparkle in his eye that he enjoys spreading kindness.

"How sweet of you to take care of my client while I am away," a red-haired woman coos, sitting down opposite me as if she owns the table. Technically, she could own the whole shop – she is certainly rich enough to.

Danny is at a loss for words as he stares at her. I have noticed she tends to have that effect on people – she has an air of superiority about her, but she has not sacrificed any of her attractiveness or femininity. Her white pantsuit exudes power, but in a place like this, it is waiting to be spilled on.

"What, enjoying the view?" she scowls at Danny, removing her sunglasses dramatically. "Take a picture – it will last longer."

"My apologies, mademoiselle," Danny says so quickly that his words slur together. His face flushes bright red, and he runs back to the kitchen as quickly as his short legs will allow.