The Space Between Us

Chapter 7 ~ Muffins

"Holly! Can you clean up the mess in the back?"

"Sure."

I shouldn't have been so quick to give help. When I got to the back of the kitchen, a large bin of sprinkles had been overturned. I sighed and got out the broom.

"You knocked over the sprinkles again?"

"You know what I'm like when I'm in a hurry!" came the reply from my boss.

My boss, Jess, was a single woman in her 30s who enjoyed sweets almost as much as she loved Star Wars. She was a lot at times, but her hardworking and no-nonsense attitude when it came to work was something I admired. Although her clumsy nature was another matter entirely.

She opened Jess's Sweet Café three years ago, and I got the job as her employee when I was a freshman right when she started. A few other employees had come and gone, but I was the only one to remain the entire time. Some didn't like Jess as a boss because she could be a bit blunt, but maybe that was my type, because Alice was the same way.

"Oh, can you frost that last batch of cupcakes too?" shouted Jess from the front of the small store. "And then the cookies, don't forget those. And refill the decaf."

"I got it," I responded as I swept up the sprinkles mess.

"And the delivery! There's a big order to deliver tonight, please," she called again.

"No worries!"

For six hours I worked at the bakery. I finished prep for the next day, cleaned, tended to customers, baked a lot of sweets and breads, delivered a couple of orders, and decorated a cake for a solid hour. At 9 p.m., my hands were sticky with sugar, my apron was coated in flour and sprinkles and frosting, and my hair was falling out of its ponytail... but I was happy.

Work made me happy. I was useful here. If I had a bad day, I could come to work and not think about anything except bread and cookies and coffee. And that wasn't so bad.

I watched the sun sink lower and lower out the windows during my shift, so stepping into the cool night didn't seem too shocking.

Then I remembered with a groan that I'd be dealing with River when I got back. Hopefully, he was in bed by... 9 p.m.?

"Holly! Don't forget your leftovers," Jess called. She had hurried outside of the shop and was handing me a bag.

"Thank you. See you Thursday!" I said, taking the bag of goodies and waving goodbye.

"Drive safely!"

Driving back to the apartment, my mind was filled with dread. Was I seriously about to do this? I kept thinking of scenarios that could resolve this roommate issue, but each one required money that neither of us had.

I got to the door. 301. Remember when I was so excited about this number? Now I wanted to burn the apartment building to the ground.

Although... maybe this wouldn't be so bad. Maybe River and I could simply ignore each other. That would be the best situation that I could hope for.

I stepped inside, staying quiet just in case River was sleeping or studying or something. My goal from now on was to be invisible to him; maybe that way, we could at least tolerate each other. Our interactions so far haven't been too great.

River was sitting at the kitchen table, typing on his laptop, looking comfortable in his gray sweatpants and blue Adidas shirt. Books were neatly stacked or opened with highlights inside, and papers were also neatly organized in small piles.

He didn't acknowledge my presence in the slightest when I entered, but that was okay. This was how it should be to keep the peace.

I started unloading my bakery haul in the kitchen: a loaf of bread, several muffins, and a croissant. Things that Jess would've thrown away if I hadn't taken them home.

I stole a glance at him. His hair was messier than usual as he hunched over his laptop, squinting slightly at the screen, his jaw clenched. Was he really doing homework this hard on the second day of school?

"Do you need something?"

I found myself staring into his eyes. They were dark and tired and burning.

Wait! He had noticed my staring. Panicking on the inside, I decided to play it cool.

"Do you want a muffin?"

"Excuse me?"

It sounded cooler in my head. "I work at a café, so I usually bring home leftovers-"

"I really don't care."

I frowned. "There's no need to be rude."

"Actually, there is," River said, standing suddenly. Who was he trying to intimidate? Because it wasn't working on me. "I was working in peace until you showed up and started talking about nonsense. I don't care about your job, or you, or what you bring back."

I could feel my insides heating up as though I was standing over a burner. How dare he? I knew he didn't care, but did he have to be so rude about it?

Unfortunately, my temper hadn't reached its peak yet, so I kept my mouth shut as he continued.

"I don't want anything to do with you. Don't talk to me and don't touch my stuff. I'm only living with you because we are both stuck, so don't bother me."

"Are you done?"

"Excuse me?" he said again, looking at me as though he wanted to smite me where I stood.

"You're being incredibly rude. I won't bother you if that's what you really want, but I was just asking if you wanted some muffins."

For a split second, I could've sworn his face softened. But then it set into a deep scowl. "Will you leave me alone now or not?"

I didn't say anything more. If I did, there would be consequences that neither of us could come back from. I clenched my fists and walked to my room, being extra careful not to slam the door and give him that pleasure of making me angry.

In reality, my eyes were brimming with tears. I hated crying over trivial things like this, but when I was frustrated, I usually cried. And saying that I was frustrated at this moment was an understatement.

Why was I stuck with such a jerk? I didn't care anymore about his status at school. He was just plain mean. And over some muffins, no less.

I didn't remember falling asleep, but I did remember drifting off with a sinking feeling, as though I was on a ship that was destined to be flooded.