Artifice (H.S)

S I X T E E N

Four Days Earlier 

"Have a great rest of your day." I told the customer in front of me as I handed them the books. The customer gave me a nod before walking out of the bookstore.

"Finally.."I yawned as I placed my head in my hands. For some reason, everyone decided to buy books on the one day I hadn't gotten enough sleep.

I spent the previous day in the studio practicing. Tomorrow would be the day that I would be performing, and I was nervous. It was something I was trying to shake off, I was usually never nervous when it came to performing. I was feeling the pressure. I knew I couldn't mess this up or I wouldn't be able to forgive myself.

"Oh, Hazza!" I murmured as I pressed my head on the counter. It was Maeve. 

God, what did she want now?

I never was one to be mean. Nonetheless, Maeve was testing my patience. She would sometimes show up on her days off.  Always asking me about my relationship with Cece and always greeted me with that ridiculous nickname, that I did not ask for.

"It's Harry for Christ's sake!" I complained under my breath. I picked up my head from the counter and saw her making her way over to me. A huge smile was spread across her face. 

"Just wanted to see my favorite person." Maeve giggled as she laid her hands on the counter moving forward. It was something I was not comfortable with.

"Oh...great..." I chuckled nervously as I took a few steps back.

"Has it been this slow?" Maeve asked looking at the now deserted bookstore.

"You just arrived when it died down. It was a constant flow of customers all day." I told her. Not amused with where this conversation was going. Maybe if I showed I wasn't interested, she would leave.

"I'm shocked. This little bookstore hardly gets any business." I was startled a bit when she laughed.

I took a glance at my phone to see if Cece had texted me back. She had not. Which at this point wasn't surprising.

Maeve cleared her throat. Presumably annoyed that I was paying no attention to her. "Oh, you're little girlfriend, Carmen hasn't texted you back?" My head shot up when I heard her standing right next time. I was a bit worried because I hadn't heard her walking over to her.

"Cece..." I emphasized her name. I told Maeve multiple times the name of my girlfriend. At this point, I knew she was calling her the wrong intentionally. "Hasn't but she's a very busy person." Maeve just nodded her head.

"Ah...That's what she tells you?"Maeve chuckled as she touched me on the shoulder. I quickly moved past her, not feeling comfortable.

I walked through the new edition aisle and stopped when I saw one of Cece's favorite novel. She had always talked nonstop about how much she enjoyed the book and the author. I knew she didn't have a physical copy. I took a photo and sent her a text letting her know I had gotten it for her. "What do you want, Maeve?" I questioned as I still looked at my phone. Not even bothering to turn back to look at her.