The Art of being Strangers

xv.

Marigold buzzed around the table by the window, laughing. Esther was laughing with her too. I smiled at them.

I had agreed to join Marigold and Esther at a coffee break. They insisted we should just ditch P.E because it was boring anyway. I didn't like P.E at all, so I was glad Mari came up with that idea. However, I wasn't used to ditching classes so I hoped the teacher wouldn't be too mad. Marigold, on the other side, rarely joined me in P.E. I never really saw her attend the class, and if she did, the teacher wouldn't say anything about it. So, in conclusion, I don't think the teacher cared if you attended his class or not.

Ansel couldn't join us because he was in a different class and had a Chemistry test. We met up before the bell rang and I wished him good luck. Ansel was pretty good at Chemistry, so I was positive he would get a good grade.

Marigold took us to a new coffee shop that opened last week. It was a colorful, petite shop at the end of the street. At the table, sitting beside me was Basil – which I barely convinced to join us – and in front of me, on the other chairs, were sitting Marigold and Esther. Of course, Basil gave me a whole lecture about how I shouldn't be skipping school even if it was P.E and even threatened me that he would stop hanging out with us outside of school, but I couldn't care less. I knew he didn't actually mean what he said so I wasn't that scared.

I told him that the time I spent with Marigold and Esther equaled finding new stuff and possible clues. He rolled his eyes at me and told me to do whatever I wanted. I would've done so anyway.

"Such a pity Ansel can't join us today. I really wanted to show him the shop," sighed Marigold, letting her head fall on her arm.

"Don't worry about it, we can come here again when he's free too," smiled Esther, patting Mari's shoulder.

I took a sip of the coffee I had ordered. It wasn't necessarily the greatest coffee I had drunk – like Marigold insisted it would be – but it wasn't that terrible either.

Esther picked her cup up and drank, a satisfied expression showing on her face.

"How's the coffee, Creek?" she asks.

"It's alright, I guess," I shrug. It was horrible.

"How dare you call it alright," intervened Marigold, grabbing her cup to drink.

"It tastes like sludge," I reply.

"Yes, but it's caffeinated sludge," shrugged Mari.

I roll my eyes at her. I wasn't a big fan of caffeine.

"It's like the best kind of sludge you can get," she continued.

"It tastes utterly horrible," I remarked once again.

"Not my fault you don't have good taste in choosing your coffee."

"But we ordered the same type of coffee, you smartass!"

"Then I don't know, mine's better I guess," she smiled cockily.

Esther tried to hold her laughter when Marigold finally got the taste of the coffee and almost spat in disgust.

"Told you," I smirk. "I don't understand how it took you so long to taste it."

"Must've been the paprika chips I ate earlier," she muttered.

"You drank coffee after eating paprika-flavored chips?" Esther squealed.