flushed cheeks

(v.)

"Flushed Cheeks"

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°°°

(v.)

I spent a longer time than usual enjoying my lunch that day. I did not even think to reach to get Jill's fantasy novel from my backpack, simply ate my food and watched Lucas work. Several people came into the shop after I had gotten my food. The way he interacted with all of them with such ease was astonishing. He had an easy smile that never seemed to go away, and his eyes were practically glistening with glee. I found myself feeling both somewhat envious and in awe, especially the few times he turned that happy-go-lucky expression in my direction.

I was always bad in social situations, excruciatingly so. I had gotten better as time passed, but it was still such a struggle just talking to other people. It was even a struggle talking with my own mother sometimes, and she had been the only person close to me in my twenty-three years of life. Making friends was no easy feat. Maybe that was why this whole situation with Jillian and Lucas—if it was in fact a situation—threw me so much. That, and they are both so pretty. In different ways. They were the perfect contrast and compliment to each other. Her all soft light, him all dark...something. I did not know just what it was, yet.
Why did they want to talk to me in the first place? It did not make sense.

I shook my head, forcing myself to look away from Lucas as he busied himself with bussing the recently abandoned tables. I was beginning to feel weird. Awkward. I had been there too long with too many people around and just watching Lucas work. That was just creepy. It was about time I left. I had my Psychology class soon, so it was a good idea to start gathering myself and preparing to go. It was not much of a walk between campus and the coffee shop, maybe 10 minutes, but it never hurt to be early.

Taking the last sip of my coffee, I stood, pushed the chair in, and slipped my arms through the straps of my backpack. More people were coming into the shop as I made my way towards the door, and my shoulders hitched up to my ears. It was not loud, but it was noisy. A small group of people was ordering at the counter and some were entering, the bell going off a few times. That combined with the chatter of the few remaining customers, it was a bit much to handle. However, as I slipped through the door, I forced myself to look over my shoulder and wave a good-bye to Lucas. When he grinned back, I could not suppress the heat that suddenly filled my cheeks.

°°°

It turned out that Jillian was staying in the apartment above the coffee shop. I had finally forced myself to open her last message and put the address into GPS, only to find myself standing quite confusedly in front of the very café I had left just over two hours ago. I did not have to stand outside the building too long, however, because Jill was making her way through the doors moments after I had arrived. She seemed a little surprised to see me, but grinned, nonetheless.

"Hey," she greeted. "You're early."

I felt my face going red, and my fingers fell to the hem of my cardigan. "I-yes," I mumbled.

"I came down to wait for Ollie to get here. I can show you up after?"

I nodded.

"Great!" she exclaimed. "They should be here any—ah. There they are." Excitement seemed to radiate from her. She was practically beaming, her grin was so big, her eyes wide. She was glowing.

I glanced away from her to watch as a silver SUV pulled into the lot beside the café and two adults got out, moving to open the back-passenger door. Seconds later, out came Ollie, looking equal parts elated and exhausted. Poor kid. He looked like he had not slept well in a while.