CLAIRE.
I checked my phone as I took a bite of the pancake made by Terry in Charles' kitchen. I smiled after reading the message and began to type.'Thanks for checking up on me Dave,I hope you're fine too'The memory of the free conversation we had yesterday came flooding to my brain and I smiled widely."Dave?"I looked up and realized Charles and Terry has been watching me intently. I nodded at Charles."Yeah Dave. He got my number yesterday""Dave is a nice guy. He's really cool" Charles said."He is" I agreed."This is the first time I'm seeing you roll with cool guys" Terry threw a remark at Charles."Your a shithead" Charles said grinning along with Terry."They look matured and act older than they look" Terry comments."That's 'cause they're older. I'm the youngest among them" Charles said."Oh" I said softly."But I really like that Ryan dude" Terry stated.I kept mute, waiting for his next sentence."He's got nice vibes" He added.Charles took a sip of his coffee, eyeing him "I see you really got along with him yesterday""And that made me wonder why I'm just seeing him around you for the first time" Terry said.I wonder why too. I've been of service to Ryan at the restaurant for a while now and I had no idea he was friends with Charles, though he looked like the type of guy Charles would befriend,you know with that playboy vibes and all.Charles shrugged "He's just the busy type that's all,same with Dave""Oh. He's an expert in talking to girls" Terry said grinning like a Cheshire cat. "But he's still got a boss" He pointed at Charles forehead."Of course. That's me. I'm the boss baby!" Charles screamed with pride making me chuckle. My smiling face changed when Charles threw me a question "Do you know Ryan from somewhere before?""Of course they know each other, he's a good customer and Claire has attended to him a lot of times" Terry answered smartly for me."Then why does it look like Claire wanted to murder him yesterday?" Charles questioned with a tone of playfulness."That's 'cause she actually wanted to murder him" Terry answered and Charles bursted out laughing,soon, Terry joined him. I huffed and paid attention to my food."But I just don't get it Claire. You're used to grumpy customers but you couldn't stop complaining about Ryan's attitude towards you at the restaurant yesterday. The guy could be having a bad day like anyone else"I took my time to chew my pancake letting what Terry had said to sink in.He is right."Your crush turned into your enemy in just few hours" Terry said,amused."We both know you've always been my crush,no one else" I also joked."And here I am thinking you I've always been your crush" Charles chipped in.We all laughed. Then I received a text from Dave.'I'm fine too, thanks. I'd like to see your beautiful face another day'That got me blushing.*****Ryan had come to the restaurant to eat again and I tried my best to avoid him. In the past,I'd be willing to be at his service but now I'm so reluctant to have a five seconds conversation with him.Because of him,I had divided attention at work. My eyes were on other customers but my mind wasn't with them,it was somewhere else. I had thoughts about him on my mind. Thoughts like, 'Is he in a bad mood today also?' 'What is the cause of his bad mood' 'How long is he gonna be like that?'I got lucky,my colleague was the one who got to attend to him today. She was smiling when she walked fashionably towards him to provide her services to him,but she was frowning after providing the services.She mumbled about how he's got good looks but bad personality. I hundred percent agree with her at that moment,but when I thought about what Terry had said days ago about how he could be having his bad day,the percentage of agreement I had with her reduced to fifty percent. That means I don't completely disagree with her because I know how sad she must be feeling.I raised my head to give him a last glance,but I found myself staring at him. He had a blank expression on his face, and he looked like he had been expecting my eyes on him.We never said a word to each other. His expression remained blank.I can't believe I almost had a crush on someone like him. I mean look at him,just take a good look at him right now,he's like a very hard, cold, stone.I'm sympathizing with his girlfriend already.If he's in a good mood,he's viewed as the best guy on earth,but when 'he's having a bad day', he's like the devil's kid brother. I feel like he should learn to accept other people and their behaviors,even on his bad days. No one is responsible for his misfortunes.I didn't realize we were still staring at each other until his phone lighted up. He focused on his phone and began typing immediately with a deep frown on his face. He also looked worried and exhausted that I almost felt sympathetic towards him.*****I was done with my work for the day and was so tired. I quickly packed up my things to start heading to Terry's place. He called in sick at work, and Terry being Terry, would never go to a hospital. I don't know what exactly is wrong with him or how serious his illness is as I haven't even checked up on him.The sky looked like it was pregnant. For a sec, I was reluctant to go home. What if the rain poured down on my way home?As I started to stroll down to Terry's place the rain started but it wasn't too heavy. After some minutes,it started to get serious. My clothes got soaked,same as my sneakers and my hair. I quickened my pace, breathing in and out sharply. I can't stop walking now,what if the rain stops late at night when it's all dangerous, especially for girls like me.Cars passed by me,and deep down I wished one of them would stop to give me a ride home. At last,one did. The car window was rolled down. When I bent my head to see the kind helper clearly,I remembered the popular saying; 'Be careful what you wish for'.I gotta be really careful next time about my wish,you know why?Ryan was the good Samaritan.RYAN.Why on earth is she walking in the rain? I'd sighted her seconds ago as I already recognized the shape of her legs and the way she takes each walking steps. I saw an expression of relief cross her face when I stopped to help her, but when she saw my face cearly,her facial appearance changed instantly. "Come on,get in. It's raining heavily" I urged. "I can see that" she said slowly. I exhaled tiredly and ordered "Claire,Just get in"Her hard expression softened a bit for a few seconds before she rolled her eyes. "Can't you be nice to me for once this week?"Am I not being nice already?"Do you want me to pluck out my eyes for you before I get viewed as a nice person?" I asked mockingly. "Can you do that?" She mocked back, turning the table around. I drummed my fingers on the steering wheel. "Do you enjoy staying in the rain?" I asked,confused. She wiped off drops of rain on her forehead,and some other drops appeared seconds later. "What's stopping you from getting in th
CLAIRE. It seems Ryan really enjoys getting me pissed off because that's what he has been doing ever since he offered to help me. He doesn't care about hurting anyone's feelings,and it takes just seconds for him to rile me up.I want him to go back to being the expressionless customer that doesn't say more than five words to me. We were so cool until I unintentionally hit my head on his chest, right at that moment, everything changed. "I know you're not a gentleman" I said sharply with the furiousness I felt in me. He smirked "Hm. You just realized that now?"That made me silent for a while. I held the shirt in my hand, glaring daggers at him. I stretched the shirt towards him. "I'd better not change then" He looked taken aback like he'd expected me to do something more dramatic, but he soon recovered. "Your gonna ruin my car with those drops of water from your wet clothes" "Then I'd better get out from this car" I said turning myself to open the car door not caring about the co
RYAN.Dave folded his arms across his broad chest confidently. Maybe that's why my sister is falling for him. She always tries to deny her attraction towards Dave but I know she wants to end up on the same bed with him one Saturday morning. "I like Claire. I like her vibes,...""But?" I inputed for him."But she's not exactly my type. She's hot and beautiful,but I prefer....""Red haired girls with green eyes?" I finished for him, my voice and facial appearance as hard as steel. "Uhm. I wasn't trying to describe your sister?""You don't sound sure" I pointed out. I've always been suspicious of their relationship since the time I met him in her bedroom, sitting on her bed. Cassie had looked surprised and nervous but quickly covered that up with a wide smile and told me Dave was in her bedroom to drop off something. I didn't question anyone, I'd simply nodded and waited for him to leave her room."Your sister was a brunette,a natural brunette before she dyed her hair to red" He's go
RYAN. In the car, Claire had stretched foward a familiar small bag which I guessed contained the black T-shirt she wore on the rainy day. "Don't worry about it. You can keep it" I said casually. "I made sure it's dry cleaned" she mentioned. "Good for you" I replied. She rolled her eyes. "Rich kids like you don't value things like this anyways""Last I checked I'm not a kid. I should be the one calling you a kid instead"I have to keep my tongue in check, this is not the time to piss her off,but then it's still hard not to give replies to her sharp words. "What do you mean 'rich kids like me' anyways?" I asked slowly. "Never mind"I frowned at her curt response. I kept my eyes on the windshield without uttering a word. The car was as silent as a graveyard. Deep down I was nervous on how to start the conversation. This is Claire we're talking about here,not an ordinary girl I want for satisfaction of my sexual desires or something. This is the fierce Claire that could cut off my
CLAIRE.When Ryan had asked me to be his date like I don't have a choice than to accept him, I got really enraged. I mean come on,he's the one who needs my help here,not the other way round. I'd calmed down a bit when he stopped me from leaving. I've not even completely taken in his request to make me his date when he brought up his need to make me his girlfriend. I was shocked. I wish he would tell me it was a joke,but if there's one thing I'm sure I know about Ryan,it's the fact that he doesn't joke around, especially not with sensitive things like this. He mentioned the benefits that came with becoming his girlfriend which includes being responsible for my Uncle's meds fee whenever his sickness comes up again, and then I agreed. We talked about the rules and regulations. "Are we gonna have sex?" I asked bluntly. "We don't need to have sex if you don't want to, but touching, kissing,PDA are all involved" He answered with his usual casual tone,then he added with a more serious
RYAN. I rapped at the door afront me like a gentleman,but deep down I was getting impatient at the lack of response. I heard voices within and muffled sounds of footsteps. She better get this door open now. As if my thoughts were heard,the door opened. I was expecting a surprised looking Claire,but I got nothing like that. Instead,I saw an attractive teenage boy with a pleasant smile. He gave me a once over and a look of disapprobation crossed his face. He was definitely expecting someone else,so was I. "I need to see Claire" I said firmly. He furrowed his brows "Why?"I looked fixedly at him."You know what? Never mind" He said and turned his head backwards. "Claire, someone's here, said he needs to see you!" He shouted at the top of his lungs. I almost rolled my eyes. Is that necessary?He turned his head towards me, staring at me in a studying manner while I pocketed my hands to wait for Claire. His eyes dropped to the action and then went up to meet my eyes. He narrowed his e
CLAIRE.The date was taking place in a very beautiful and expensive restaurant. I love the quiet environment,the decorations,the services of the waiters and waitresses,the menu,I love everything about this place,it's ten times better than where I work or worked now since I already got fired.Yeah, my boss ended up firing me when I took an excuse off work today. That woman is crazy,but Ryan is crazier. I wonder why he prefers to eat at other restaurants less expensive than this one. He's been grumbling about how this place doesn't have the homey aura he wanted. I wonder what exactly isn't homey about this place?The restaurant I worked in is also an expensive restaurant,at least to middle class people like me, not to someone like Ryan,but this restaurant is far more expensive.The food served is also delicious that I wished I had more. Everything here is perfect. "I like you,Claire right?" Ryan's sister said. A naughty red haired with sharp remarks just like her brother,but her rem
RYAN. "Fuck,fuck,fuck" I cursed under my breath as I watched Claire walk away angrily. "Claire...." I called quietly, but she was already out of earshot but not out of the restaurant yet. I ran my fingers through my hair, regretting the words I said to her. The only solution to my problems is walking away right now. I fucked this up. I always fuck things up and I've done it again. "Well?..." I heard Cassie's high pitched voice."Well what?!" I snapped at her "Hey easy...." Roy's voice was soft and calming "A normal guy would go after her" Cassie chuckled "Did you forget Ryan is an abnormal guy?"Is that how even my close family members view me? My expression showed nonchalance to her hurtful words,but I knew within me that those words affected me. "I'm not abnormal" I blurted out, strongly disagreeing with her.I was conscious of the gawks I got as the words came out. "Geez, people,stop gaping at me" I rolled my eyes to feign indifference "I'm really normal. Why is that so ha