CHAPTER 2

Days turned into weeks and weeks turned into months and my whole escapade with the stranger became a thing of the past.

“Hi hi hi,” Shayna says in a sing-song voice immediately I open the door and let her in. Shayna is one of the little friends I have made, we have known each other for so long she is now basically my sister.

She has helped me more than any family member of mine has and I’ll be forever grateful for that.

“What can I do for you?” I ask as I pad over to the kitchen area to finish making breakfast.

“our food.” She says clapping her hands like a seal making me laugh. “ We are going out.”

“to?” I ask.

“ I would like to say club but I know if I say that you’re going to have me out of your house before I take my next breath. We are just going to spend some time together.”

You are always working, are you working today?”

“yeah. I even have to leave in the next hour.”

“Urgh….Then I guess I’m going to be following you around like a puppy today.” She says as I place a plate of food In front of her and she starts eating.

The bell above the café rings as we walk in. The place wasn’t filled with customers yet. I walk to the backroom while Shayna chats up a storm with Mrs. Daisy.

I open the locker, dropping all my things as I change into the light pink work shirt and walk back to the front.

“Bailey, Daisy’s cat just gave birth to cute little kittens come see.”

“ I’m at work,” I say and she rolls her eyes playfully.

“She works too much. Shayna, tell your friend to relax once in a while.” Mrs Daisy, a forty-year-old lady and also the owner of the café says as she rolls her eyes Playfully at me.

“You know she never listens to me,” Shayna says trying to glare at me which makes me smile.

“ You hardly find kindhearted people like her these days.” Mrs. Daisy says, glancing at me.

“You guys are talking about me like I am not standing right in front of you,” I say and Shayna sticks her tongue at me as Mrs Daisy pulls her away and I chuckle to myself as I start my shift, greeting customers and taking their orders with a smile.

“Welcome to Daisy’s. What can I get you?.” I ask the teenager who walks up to the counter on her phone.

“ Uhm, I’ll take a caramel iced latte with a plate of waffles.”

“to go ?”

“no, I’ll be seated at the corner.”

“Alright, that will be five dollars. She gives me cash and she walks to the corner table. I get her order and walk you to her table and place it in front of her.

As I raise my head from the table, my eyes suddenly catch a glimpse of a man standing across the street, he was staring straight at me and something about the look made me shiver down to my bones.

“Weirdo”, I whisper.

I had always had a weird feeling that I was being watched. I would subconsciously glance over my shoulders for any guilty-looking person but wouldn’t find anyone.

I have also begun to notice that same man lurking around me at times. I had no idea who he was or what he wanted from me. It always gives me the chills and I am very sure I am not being paranoid.

In the hopes of forgetting about the strange man, I began changing my habits, taking different routes to work each day and rearranging my work shift schedule. But he was always there, hiding in the crowd no matter what action I took, maybe I’ll call the cops the next time I see him.

Shayna calls for my attention, bringing me out of my thoughts, as I excuse myself from the front of the customer and look up once more to where the man stood only to notice that he was no longer there. “Maybe I am a little bit paranoid,” I say to myself.

As the day went on, the café became busier and my mind became preoccupied with work. Thoughts of the mysterious man faded into the background as I focused on serving customers and attending to their needs. Shayna, being her usual lively self kept me company during my shift, her presence bringing a much-needed distraction.

We chatted and laughed. She follows me around the café, engaging in conversations with customers and making them laugh. Her vibrant personality is contagious, and soon the whole place is buzzing with laughter and chatter.

During my lunch break, Shayna and I took a stroll around the park and talked about the most random things. Once my break was over we walked back to the café.

“Bye, honey. I’ll miss you.” Shayna says dramatically as she touches her forehead with her neck bent backward and her eyes closed. I rolled my eyes playfully at her and proceeded to give her a big hug.

“For real though. I’m heading home now so I’ll speak to you later, Kay.

“Kay,” I say hugging her again.

After saying my goodbyes to Shayna, I headed back into the café to continue the rest of my shift.

“See you tomorrow,'' I say as I watch the last of the customers leave, I turn the open sign to close and begin cleaning up.

I decided to take the longer route home but somehow I met myself standing outside the grand entrance of Saint Joshua's memorial hospital and all the memories I have tried so hard to bury within myself started flooding into me like a broken river bank.

I had made a promise to myself to always come here to see her anytime I had the chance but I just couldn’t, it felt as though my feet were glued to the ground and my heart was pounding like it was being attacked by a thousand drums.

I couldn’t control the tears that were flowing freely out of my eyes and anxiety gnawed at my insides, leaving me undecided whether to take that final step into the hospital or to turn back and never look back.