~*~ Chapter 17 ~*~
NEW YORK CITY, NY - Dean & Deluca Coffee Shop
“Oh my God!” Kirstin
turned her head, hoping that, some way, Tom wouldn’t notice her sitting there.
“What? Kirstin, what?” Lexie had no idea what was wrong.
“His name is Tom, right?” Kirstin
faced her newest friend.
“Yeah, how do you know?” Lexie
frowned. Just when Kirstin was about to say something, she heard a familiar
voice.
“Hello Kirstin.”
Pretending she was not embarrassed by meeting him there, and putting
on a smile, she greeted:
“Hey Tom! How are you?”
“I’m ok. Doing better than a few months ago, I guess. How about you?”
“Good, good.” she glanced down. There was an awkward silence.
“Tom, why don’t you join us?” Lexie
broke the silence and immediately Kirstin shot her a deadly glare. Lexie mouthed
‘What?’. Kirstin faced Tom.
“So, what are you up to these days?” he asked.
“Well, I got promoted.”
“Really? That’s great!”
“Yes, it is.”
“Oh, Tom, this is Lexie Gold. Lexie, this is Tom…” she frowned when she
realized she didn’t even know Tom’s last name.
“Tom Walsh. Pleasure to meet you, Lexie.” he said, shaking her hand.
“Pleasure is all mine.” they held hands, Tom smiling and Lexie smiling
back. ‘Is he flirting with her? Tom’s not the flirting type of guy!’
The sound of her cell phone ring made Kirstin wake up from her thought.
“I’m sorry, I’ll get this over there. Excuse me.”
She went to a spot near the restrooms to answer her phone.
“Hello?”
“Hey K, it’s me, G.”
“Oh, I thought it was Ashley.”
“Sorry to disappoint you.”
“Actually, I’m glad it’s you. Listen, I’m at this coffee shop with this
girl I met at work today and Tom’s here!”
“What?”
“Tom is here! We came here because Lexie, the girl from work, wanted
to show me this hot guy that works here and turns out the hot guy is Tom!”
“What do you mean it’s Tom? Tom works at Inferno!”
“Apparently, not anymore!”
“And where is he now?”
“He’s sitting at our table!”
“What?”
“He’s sitting at our table! He came up to me to say hi and… stupid Lexie
invited him to join us and now he’s at our table talking to her!”
Kirstin was all agitated, not knowing what to do.
“K, listen. Calm down.”
“I’m trying, but what am I gonna do?”
“Is he treating you any different?”
“No… Actually he seems pretty cool about the whole thing.”
“Then do like he’s doing. Do not bring the subject up. If he wants to
talk, then you talk. Otherwise, just act cool.”
“Ok. Ok. Ok.” Kirstin was trying to stay calm “So, I’m gonna go.”
“Ok. Call me when you get home.”
“Why did you call me anyway?”
“I wanted to see how things were at work. But we’ll talk about that when
you get home, alright?”
“Yeah, ok. Thanx G.”
“Don’t mention. Good Luck!”
“Oh, I’ll sure need it! Bye!”
Kirstin took a deep breath, put the cell phone back in her purse and
headed back to the table.
“Sorry about that.” she said sitting down. Tom and Lexie seemed to be
getting along just fine.
“So, how do you two know each other?” that Lexie question made Kirstin
uncomfortable, she didn’t know how to answer it.
“Uh… Hm… Tom and I…”
“I work in a bar where Kirstin used to hang out every week.”
“You still work there, Tom?”
Kirstin was starting to loosen up.
“Yes. And here too. Until 6.”
“Wow, 2 jobs! That must be hard.” Lexie
interrupted Tom and Kirstin’s eye contact.
“Well, you get used to it, I guess. And I really like both jobs. Great
tips!”
“And Kirstin, you used to hang out there?”
“Yeah. Inferno. Great place.” she grinned gently at Tom, who did the
same.
“And why not anymore?” that was the second time Lexie made Kirstin uncomfortable.
“Yes, why not anymore?” and Tom had to make things worst.
“It’s… Hm…” Kirstin, once again, didn’t know what to say. Her cell phone
started ringing again, saving her once more
“I’m sorry…” she excused herself from the table and went to the same
spot as before.
“Hello.”
“Hey Princess!”
“Oh, Thank God, Ashley!”
“You’re this happy to hear from me? Wow, I’m flattered!”
“Yeah, I was in the middle of the most awkward moment and you just saved
me.”
“That’s what this Superman of yours is for.” he boasted. She grinned.
He sure felt like a hero “But what’s going on?”
She didn’t really know if she should tell him the truth, but guessed
it was for the best. She didn’t want to start a relationship, or whatever it
was what they had, by lying to him.
“I bumped into Tom…”
“Tom? Tom from the bar, Tom?”
“Yes…”
“Where are you?”
“At a coffee shop that happens to be one of the 2 places he works at.”
“And where is he now? Did you say hi?”
“Not just hi, he’s sitting at my table talking to a friend from work
right now!” Kirstin
noticed Tom looking her way “Listen, Ash, I gotta go now. But I’ll call you
when I get home, ok?”
“Wait! Are you gonna go talk to him?”
“I have to!”
“No, you don’t!” Ashley was afraid of what could come out of their talk.
“Yes, I do. Or else, every time I see him, things are gonna be this awkward.
And I don’t want that. But I’ll call you. Promise! Bye!”
“Bye…”
Sitting back at their table, Lexie spoke up:
“Shit! I have a class now!”
“Oh, you study?” Kirstin
realized how little she knew about her new friend.
“Don’t you know each other?” Tom frowned.
“We met today and still didn’t have time for those basic questions. Yet!
And Kirstin, yes, I do study. I go to NYU.”
“No way! I go to NYU!”
“Really? What are you majoring in?”
“Journalism. You?”
“Marine Biology. Listen, I have this class now but we’ll talk about this
tomorrow. I can’t believe we go to the same college and I never saw you there.
Well, bye.” she got her coat and purse and was out of there.
Once more, there was an awkward silence and Kirstin was the one who broke
it.
“I’m gonna get some coffee. I came here for coffee and still haven’t
got one.”
Tom stopped her.
“Please, allow me. How do you like your coffee?”
“Oh, you don’t have to, I’ll just…”
“I insist.” he smirked
“Ok.” Kirstin
gave in to his charm. What was happening?
“Black. 2 sugars.”
“Be right back!”
Kirstin sat there, smiling. Tom was being nice. If she knew he’d be this
cool, she’d have talked to him already. And he was different, he was more… confident,
perhaps? She liked that.
~*~*~*~*~*~
ORLANDO, FL
- O-Town House
Ashley stared at the cordless phone he held on his right hand as he heard
Kirstin dismiss him once again over the phone.
“Ashley?”
Dan knocked on his door before getting into Ashley’s room. He saw his
friend sitting on his bed with the cordless phone in his hand. “Ash, I need
to use the phone. Are you done?”
Not paying too much attention, Ashley just handed the phone to Dan.
“Are you ok, Ashley? Wanna talk?”
“She did it again.” he answered with an absentminded look.
“Who did what?” Dan
sat at the foot of the bed.
“Kirstin. Hang up on me.”
“Oh, come on! I don’t believe you. What happened this time?”
“I was all happy because I got this message from her on my voicemail,
so I called her back on her cell phone and she was at a coffee shop sitting
on the same table as this guy Tom, you know? The guy from the bar?”
“Yes. Ok. But what did she say happened?”
“That she was there with a friend and found out that the guy works at
this damn coffee shop, too! The guy is everywhere!” Ashley
punched the mattress.
“Chill, Ash! The guy just happened to be there. They are just talking!”
“Yes, he’s there and I'm not! And she hang up on me so she could go talk
to him!”
“Ashley, they are in a coffee shop. There’s not a lot that can happen
in a coffee shop. I don’t know Kirstin, but I don’t think she’d do something.”
“You are right. You do not know Kirstin. The last time they were in a
public place together, they ended up at her place! How should I not be worried
about that?”
Dan didn’t know what to say to her friend to make him feel any better.
In fact, there wasn’t a lot for him to say that would change Ashley’s point
of view.
~*~*~*~*~*~
NEW YORK CITY, NY
- Dean &
Deluca
“Here.
Coffee. Black. Two sugars.”
“Thank you, you didn’t have to do that, though.”
“Nah, I wanted to. Force of habit, I guess.”
“Yes…” taking a sip of her coffee, she exclaimed
“Wow, it’s so good! Better than the one I’m used to. I think I’m gonna
change coffee shops.”
“Good to know you liked it, because I prepared it myself.”
“Wow! But you shouldn’t! Your
shift is over!”
“Hey, really, it was no big deal.”
“Thanks.” she innocently placed her hand on top of Tom’s. Tom, seeing
and feeling that, placed his other hand on top of Kirstin’s. She stared at his
beautiful bright green eyes, but soon came to her senses and took her hand off
of his. ‘What’s wrong with me? God!’
“Sorry Tom, I…” she started, but was interrupted.
“Kirstin, don’t worry. I’m not a naive guy anymore. That guy you knew
3 months ago is gone. I’m different now. I’m tougher. I can handle things now.
And it’s all because of you.”
“Me? How come?”
“Well, I don’t wanna bring out the obvious and make you feel bad, but
you played me that night and it hurt. So I got sick of the old me and decided
to change drastically. Inside and out.”
It was true. ‘Old Tom’ would never wear those tight shirt and jeans the
‘New Tom’ was wearing now.
“I’m sorry, I was going through such a… how should I put it? Messed up
phase. My life was turned upside down. I know I shouldn’t have used you the
way I did, and for that, I’m sorry.”
“Hey, it’s ok. I like the new me. I forgive you.” he grinned.
Kirstin and Tom stayed there, talking for hours. Kirstin had no idea
Tom could be such a cool guy to be around. She was having a terrific time!
“Oh my! It’s 8:30 already! Don’t you have to go to work?”
“My shift is 9:30 tonight.”
“I see… Well, Tom, I really have to go.”
“Oh, right.”
“Hm… do you want a ride? I mean, Inferno is on the way to my loft, I
can drop you there.”
“Yeah, that would be great!”
“So… let’s go!”
They headed to Kirstin’s car that was on a parking lot near by. On the
way to Inferno, Kirstin’s cell phone started ringing. Kirstin, that was driving,
asked:
“Oh, shit! Tom, could you get that? It’s in my purse.”
“Yes, ok.” Tom
got Kirstin’s purse, that was lying on the back seat, and went through it until
he found her cell phone “Hello?”
“Hello. Who’s this?” he voice on the other end asked, not so kindly.
“Ahn, who do you wanna talk to?” Tom
answered and Kirstin turned her head to face him.
“I wanna talk to Kirstin, but who is this?”
“Oh, I’m Tom and Kirstin’s driving right now, she can’t answer your call.
Would you like to leave a message?”
“Tell her to call Ashley as soon as she gets home.”
“Ok, will do.” and then Tom heard Ashley hung up the phone “Wow!”
“What? Who was that?”
“Ashley. He sounded pissed off for some reason. Didn’t even say goodbye.
Anyway, he asked you to call him as soon as you get home.”
Kirstin bit her bottom lip. ‘Why did Ashley have to call?’
“Wait a minute. Isn’t Ashley that guy from the bar?”
Kirstin now bit her upper lip.
“Yes…”
“Oh, I see…” Tom sounded a little disappointed “So,
what’s the deal with this Ashley guy? Were you together when… you know?”
“No, no! Of course not! Remember? He had a girlfriend! And after our
night together, I never saw him again. Until yesterday.”
“And… what happened?”
“Well, we were at this meeting…”
“Meeting?”
“Yeah, about my new job. I work on Making the Band. Ever heard of the
show?”
“Yeah, I guess so.”
“Well, he’s in it. And I had this meeting, so I had to meet him…”
“Oh, I thought he looked familiar. He is in that boyband, isn’t he?”
“Yes… O-Town.”
“And how do you know each other?”
“We went through the same high school.”
“Oh, I see… So, what happened yesterday?”
“We met and got together. But he’s not my boyfriend.”
“He’s not?”
“No, we decided we are just gonna get together every time we are in the
same town. It’s not that serious.”
“Ok…”
For the rest of the ride, neither of them talked. When Kirstin parked
in front of the bar, she asked:
“I liked hanging out with you. We should do this more often.”
“I liked it, too. Very much. And we should definitely do this again.”
“Well, why don’t you… oh no, forget it.”
“What?”
“Nothing. Just forget it.”
“Ok, Well… bye, then.” he stared at her eyes for a while before opening
the door.
“Wait, Tom!” she grabbed his wrist and somehow, knew she shouldn’t have
done it “Why
don’t you call me sometime? Maybe we could hang, like today. I could always
use a new friend.” she smiled.
“Yes, I’d love that!” he replied to Kirstin, that was now writing down
her numbers on a piece of paper. After handing it to Tom, she said:
“So, I’ll expect your call.”
“Ok. I’ll call you for sure. Don’t worry.”
“Good. Bye, then, Tom.”
“Bye, K!”
* Thanx Dani from http://www.otownuntitled.net for correcting the grammar on this chapter
Feedback: [email protected]