Sugar

14

chapter fourteen
florence thompson
song: count on me – bruno mars

After dishing out all the details to Rico while he oh so sweetly cooked us pancakes on my barely functioning stove, he was more shocked than I was when I saw Vincent liked me back on the Sugar app. His jaw was pretty much glued to the kitchen floor, no words leaving his mouth for a few solid moments.

After he finally recovered his motor skills, we had a long and uncomfortable chat about what I wanted from this situation which I told him I was still trying to figure out for myself.

I wish I could put my finger on exactly what I wanted from Vincent De Bellis, but it was beginning to turn into something I was coming to terms of not knowing. I had vague ideas but I couldn't pin point it down to one certain thing.

His mismatched gaze and breathtaking features are the most alluring thing I've ever seen in my life, and the fact that he is interested in me still doesn't fail to blow my mind. In any other world I feel like we would never collide.

We're seemingly nothing like the other, in fact we would make a perfect textbook example of opposites.

Vincent De Bellis has a rich background, and probably goes on holidays in exotic places where people can only dream to visit in their lifetime's while I pull ridiculous shifts at Glenn's Midnight Diner during the holidays just for the tips in hopes that maybe I can buy my mom a few gifts.

The more I thought about our differences the more I recognized how odd our pairing was but then again I guess that's how most sugar dynamics work. One wealthy person and one not so wealthy person.

A perfect recipe for my dignity being a thing of the past.

"Do you have an outfit to wear tonight?" Rico asked, pulling my attention back to the present and further away from the self pity party I was throwing in my mind.

I captured the skin of my lip between my teeth, gnawing on it in thought. "I have a few casual options." I shrugged, pushing my empty plate further away from me at the counter we were both seated at.

"We should go shopping. Get you a nice outfit," he grinned, looking much more excited than I felt.

If there is one place I hate more than anywhere else it's the goddamn mall. I mean seriously, there's just so many people and the sales are confusing as hell.

What do you mean it's $40, the sign said $20!

"I think I'd rather go in sweatpants," I grinned, flashing my teeth.

Rico rolled his eyes, stacking my empty plate on top of his and placing them into the sink.

"Well, I can tell you that definitely is not going to happen," he chuckled as he turned on his heel to face me. "Ooh, we can call Ben and Aria and make it a whole thing." He proposed, the glint in his eye told me he was way more excited about this whole shopping trip.

It has been awhile since the four of us hung out.

I released a long sigh, my shoulders deflating along with my desperate hopes of weaseling my way out of this whole shopping thing. Shopping in general makes me want to rip my hair out of my head, out of pure frustration.

The thought of being with Ben, Aria, and Rico altogether though made the thought a little more bearable, though. The four of us haven't been together since four months ago when we decided to go bowling when we'd all miraculously scored the same day off from work.

"I'll call them." Rico grinned.

• • •

Aria, of course, had the day off and Ben was working the night shift so by 12:30 the four of us were all finally together at the mall. Rico and I had ridden together while Aria and Ben showed up separately.