Finally, Tandy was back at work. Billie was so happy to be working alongside her sister again; she couldn't stomach another day of training the new girl all by herself. Also, Billie just plain missed her. Sure, they lived together. But ever since they were kids, whenever Tandy or Billie got sick, they'd locked themselves in their room in isolation, in fear of spreading their illness. Tandy stuck to this tradition out of childhood habit, and of course, it caused Billie to miss her company.
But now that Tandy was back, Billie couldn't wait to reconnect with her.
On their lunch break, the two sat down together, sipping on raspberry teas and nibbling on whole wheat sandwiches. As Billie played with her kale, she couldn't help but notice the subtle sting of Tandy's green-eyed gaze. This sensation was all too familiar, and Billie could read her sister's mind-- she knew she couldn't keep it all under wraps.
"So," Tandy said, fiddling with her straw as her eyes stayed on Billie. "What's new?"
Billie couldn't mimic the heavy amount of sarcasm in that question even if she tried. Immediately, she broke into a smile, leaning her cheek on her hand.
"Stop thattt," Billie whined, grinning ear to ear. "I know Kristen told you."
"Doesn't mean I believe her," Tandy giggled. "Come on, tell me."
"What all did she say?"
Tandy pushed her long brown hair over her shoulder, beaming her identical smile at Billie. "All I heard was that last night, you and some guy that apparently looked strikingly similar to Nate's brother James, went out to Besame last night and had a candlelit dinner up in the private pent." As Billie's cheeks began to redden, Tandy raised an eyebrow.
"Is that all you heard?" Billie managed to choke out, bashfully. Tandy smiled at her little sister.
"I can't believe you finally said yes to him, Blue."
"I couldn't help myself!" Billie blurted, surprising Tandy. "He has this weird control over me now . . . it's really confusing." As Billie went to briefly place her hand to her forehead, Tandy's eyes caught the redness and blistering on her knuckles.
"The hell happened to your hand?" She reached out, grabbing Billie's palm and pulling it near for a closer look. Then, she turned her eyes back up. "Did he try something-,"
"No! God no, Tandy," Billie pulled her hand away. She then squeezed her eyes shut, trying to dismiss her sister's completely wrong accusation as she pieced together words. "Look, before we got to Besame, we were at this bar."
"A bar," Tandy challenged, the same way Billie had the night before.
"Not really a bar-- look that's not important. Anyway, this girl threw a drink at me and," Billie looked down at her hand, stretching out her knuckles again. "I had to defend myself."
Tandy's eyes widened. "You hit her?"
"Right in the nose. And I felt like shit afterward."
"Blue," Tandy said, her tone firm. "You could have gotten arrested, that girl could sue-,"
"I know! I know, it was stupid. But, Tandy, come on, the bitch threw a drink in my face. It was practically a knee-jerk reaction." Billie took a sip of her drink. "And besides, James dragged me out of there before any cops could be called."
Tandy nearly choked on her drink. "James SAW you do that?"
"James was the reason I did that," Billie recalled, briefly rolling her eyes. "Apparently . . . I have a jealousy complex."
Suddenly, Tandy's entire motherly demeanor changed. She sat back in her seat, crossing her arms over her chest. "Oh my God, Blue," she smiled. "You like him."
Billie remained silent, too embarrassed to confirm or deny anything. Instead, she held Tandy's stare, assuming that she'd figure out everything on her own.
Like she always had.
"Oh!" Tandy exclaimed, becoming visibly more and more excited. She gasped, eyes wide. "He kissed you!!"
"Dammit, Tandy!" Billie said, smacking her hand down on the table. "How the hell do you do that?!"
Tandy laughed, shaking her head. "You're just too easy," she teased. "It was practically written on your forehead."
"Shut up," Billie rolled her eyes. Then her sister leaned forward.
"So, how was it?"
"No," Billie shook her head. "This conversation is over."
"Blue!" Tandy whined, throwing her hands up. "Come on!"
Before anything else could be said, Tandy's cell phone, which had been lying on the table beside her plate, began to vibrate. As she glanced down at the screen, her playful smile began to fall.
And Billie knew exactly what that meant.
In an instant, the room felt darker; sadder. The two sisters stared at that phone screen as it buzzed, both paralyzed as immediately, they'd sunken into a dark place.
"I thought you changed your number-,"
"I did," Tandy replied.
Then another pause.
"You . . . ," Billie blinked, swallowing. "You don't have to answer that, you know."
Tandy fluttered her eyelashes up at her sister, and Billie could already see her tears beginning to form. "But . . . that's our mom," Tandy sighed. "What if she needs us?"
"She does not need us," Billie said firmly. "She will never need us."
"Blue-,"
"Let's go," Billie demanded, standing angrily. "I've lost my appetite." She then chucked her completely full plate in a nearby trashcan, and stormed out of the local cafe, leaving Tandy still at the table, staring at her phone.
--
Saturday evenings were always their busiest. That was when every college student was curing a hangover, looking for a place other than the dorms to hang out. So, they came to the closest coffee shop, mainly to steal the wifi and get drinks at a discounted rate.
Billie was doing what she usually was: bussing tables and listening to metal in one ear. Tandy was in the back, tending to dishes, and the new girl was at the register. And though it was busy, everything was flowing so smoothly. Billie had finally learned the new girl's name -- MaeLynn, but Billie decided to call her Mae. The girl was barely seventeen, making the coffee shop her first job. But now that Tandy had returned, she was getting much more sufficient training than Billie could ever provide.
Of course, Billie was always sweet to the girl; hell, she was sweet to most everyone. It was why she'd had so many returning customers, so many people that came just to see the blue-haired sweetheart. Billie was very careful with that reputation, as it was the only thing that kept she and Tandy's rent paid. Anything that could shatter that would ultimately compromise their home, so Billie stayed in everyone's good graces, making sure to socialize as she moved about the busy shop.
As the bell over the door rang, Mae's voice rang out to the customer.
"Hey, welcome to-,"
"I've got it," Billie interrupted, giving Mae a smile. "He's not here for coffee." Then she turned her eyes to James, placing her hands on her hips.
"You don't know what I'm here for," James remarked, his voice loud enough that it caught the attention of others. Billie rolled her eyes, and she was sure that everyone else in the shop did as well.
"What do you want?" She asked, pursing her lips to hide the ever-present smile that forced itself upon her whenever James arrived. Someone at a table decided to chime in.
"We all know what he wants!"
This was followed by a multitude of whistles, cheers, and indistinct comments.
All of which made one-half of James's mouth turn upward, and all of Billie's face turn red.
Naturally, Billie forgot that everyone on campus had been shipping she and James since freshman year. And she forgot that practically everyone on campus had been through that coffee shop before. AND she forgot that plenty of those kids were sitting in the shop, right then and there.
"I wanna talk to you," James said, his eyes staring lovingly at her. Billie bit her lip as she took out her earbud.
"Okay."
The two moved out to the back of the shop; a few people muttering and laughing as they did so. Eventually, they were standing outside of the rear, beside the cardboard boxes that would have normally hidden Billie's skateboard. But, upon the sight of those boxes, Billie realized that she'd left it in his Jeep the night before.
"You have my board," Billie began, leaning her back against the concrete wall. "Are you here to return it?"
"Partially," James responded, his white smile growing wide. Billie raised an eyebrow.
"So what's the other part?"
James tucked his hands into his front pockets, lifting his chin as he squinted down at her. "You ever gonna call me?"
Billie laughed. "Doesn't the guy call the girl?"
"What, I have to do all the work?" He responded sarcastically. Then, as Billie smiled, he took a step toward her. "I've been thinking about you all day."
"That can't have been productive," she retorted, causing him to chuckle. "Surely, you had something better to do with your time."
"Why do you think I'm here?"
For a moment, they held each other's gaze. And in those gazes, they said so much. James moved nearer to her, this time not afraid of her usual boundaries. He came in close, placing his hand on the wall beside her head, his forehead nearly touching hers.
"Nate and I are barbecuing tonight. At eight." He grasped her hand unexpectedly. "Bring Tandy. It'll be fun."
Billie really wanted to.
She really, really did.
But she didn't want to give in easily all over again.
"One: it's supposed to be pouring rain tonight. Barbecuing is a horrible idea," she turned up her chin at him, grinning slyly. "And two: Tandy is a vegetarian."
"So we'll make a salad," James responded, a part of him humored at her typical resistance. "And we'll grill under the lanai. Completely covered."
Billie could feel her heart thudding at how close his lips were to hers, and for a second, she thought about letting him kiss her again. But instead, she let go of his hand.
