A Fractured Echo

Chapter 13

Work the next day was a complete write-off. Unable to fall back to sleep, I'd scribbled away in the journal until the sun crept high enough to illuminate the world outside my window. Walking into the café for my shift, Ruby took one look at me and decided I'd be working the kitchen rather than serving. She joked about her customers not needing to see a zombie standing at the counter, but I knew she was worried about me. My face ashen, eyes sunken, with huge dark circles underneath them. No amount of carefully applied makeup could save me, so I'd not even attempted any kind of repair.

I genuinely looked like the walking dead.

For the first time since starting work for Ruby, I was mentally counting down the minutes until my shift finished. I'd have given anything just to be able to switch my brain off, to not think, but it was impossible. By three o'clock I'd morphed into the human equivalent of a caged tiger, prowling back and forth in the kitchen, digging my phone out of my pocket every five minutes like a fool. In truth, what I should have done was called in sick that morning, but Ruby had been so kind to me after the mess at Christmas, I didn't want to seem like a total flake.

My mind was also somewhere else completely. Between overthinking the dream from last night, and the lack of response to my text, I was slowly driving myself insane, to the point that two cups and a tea plate had already become casualties of my absentmindedness. Ruby had brushed off my desperate apologies, simply quipping that she'd have to start docking my wages if any more crockery met a similar fate.

For me, it was just another reminder of how much things were still impacting, despite working so hard to push past it all. Even though I was determined to not let things define me, it wasn't particularly easy when another significant recollection came out of nowhere and slapped you as hard, as the one the night before had.

When would it all end?

As I absentmindedly, wiped down the counters in the small kitchen, Ruby's head popped around the door. "There's someone here to see you."

Glancing up from the surface I'd been staring at intently, her expression was impassive, giving no hint of who it might be. My guess was that Jodie had decided to call in on her way home from college, or Constance had decided to finally see where I worked.

"OK, I'll be right out." I murmured to my boss who simply nodded and went back to where she'd come from.

Pausing to wash the disinfectant from my hands in the little basin in the corner of the kitchen, I quickly dried them before wandering into the main part of the café. Stopping short in the doorway, a recognisable figure I wasn't expecting to see was leaning casually against the counter chatting to Ruby.

"What are you doing here?" I blurted out, causing him to turn.

He looked shocked at my appearance. "I figured I'd come here and check on you."

Still a little confused as to why he was here, I answered weakly, "You didn't have to do that. Shouldn't you be at work or something?"

Shaking his head, he frowned, causing wrinkles to form on his brow. "I wanted to make sure you were alright. My diary was pretty free today anyway."

"Oh." Was all I could manage in response.

"Why don't you knock off Holly?" Ruby suggested as if she could tell that I didn't know what else to say. "I'm thinking I might close early anyway."

"Are you sure?" I squeaked, glancing at my watch.

"Yes, now get your coat and go catch up with your friend, seeing as he's been so thoughtful." She beamed, clearly taken with him.