1 Chapter 1: HAZEL
Looking back, it's funny to me how we make plans for our future at all because life always has a way of showing us who is really in charge.
Going to college at 24, when all of my friends had long since graduated and started their careers, was never the way I imagined my life ending up, but here I am.
I left high school with a scholarship, a boyfriend and lofty hopes of starting college while working with my father at his local veterinary clinic. That was three weeks before we found out life decided to go in a different direction, for all of us.
The news of my father's cancer hit us hard. He was given a year, and he beat the odds and fought for three more years before we lost him, but not before he lost almost everything else. Up until his diagnosis, his veterinary clinic was doing really well. He kept his costs low and never charged his customers more than what was necessary.
Eventually, his illness caught up with him and he couldn't keep his doors open. He made just enough to live comfortably and no other vets wanted to come on at such a low salary.
I tried my hardest to fill in for him but my lack of further education meant there were more things I couldn't do than I could.
One by one we lost our long-time customers because I just couldn't help them beyond annual shots and clipping nails. In the end, I failed him. Many of our clients were loyal but eventually we were muscled out by a series of lies, gossip and a price war around the only services left I could perform.
In the end, my dad ended up taking an extreme lowball offer from one of his competitors and chose to live out his final days with us.
I had long ago said goodbye to my scholarship. Instead, I took on a job in a restaurant to keep up with our bills. With only a high school education, I was lucky to be hired anywhere. My parents ended up selling their house, but the bills kept coming. My father's medical bills drained most of their savings and after he passed away, my mother and I came up with a plan for ourselves.
I worked full time for one year while she took a business administration course and got everything she needed to get back into the workforce as an administrative assistant. She had the skills from working in my father's office, she just needed the certification to make her more competitive. She found a good job but it was a couple of hours away so we moved her into an apartment near her work.
After that, it was my turn. I picked up where I left off. I applied to the college I was supposed to go to and was accepted into their veterinary sciences program. The school is a little too far to commute to everyday from my mom's place so I moved onto campus. I needed the space to study and I picked up extra jobs to cover my expenses.
Now, I'm 26 and I'm at the end of my second year. I've settled into a familiar chaos of sorts. Between my early shifts at the coffee house and my lunch time working at the school library, I rarely have time to study for my finals. Then there are my weekend shifts at The Echo Club, a local bar for the college crowd.
'If I can make it through these exams, then I have a quiet summer ahead of me,' the thought makes me smile as the bell on the door jingles, catching my attention. The last of our customers have left and the coffee shop is empty.
"Hazel, I haven't taken my last fifteen yet. I need to call my boyfriend. I'll be back before your shift is over." Estelle doesn't wait for my answer as she heads into the back room.
Out of habit, my phone is in my hand before I realize I'm checking my messages.
- - - - -
NINA: HEY.
NINA: A FEW OF US ARE GOING OUT TONIGHT. WANNA COME?
NINA: BEFORE YOU SAY NO, JUST THINK ABOUT IT.
NINA: YOU'VE BEEN WORKING AND STUDYING NON-STOP.
HAZEL: CAN'T. WORKING.
HAZEL: WHERE ARE YOU GOING?
NINA: UGH. OF COURSE YOU'RE WORKING. YOU NEVER STOP.
HAZEL: I'M NOT THE ONE WITH THE TRUST FUND, REMEMBER ;)
NINA: FINE...
NINA: PEASANT.
NINA: BWAHAHA, JOKING.
NINA: BUT NOT REALLY.
NINA: I'M YOUR ROOMMATE AND I HARDLY SEE YOU.
NINA: THAT'S NOT GOOD, HAZY.
HAZEL: I KNOW BUT IT'S ONLY FOR A COUPLE OF WEEKS.
NINA: I KNOW.
NINA: WE'RE GOING TO THE ECHO CLUB.
NINA: ARE YOU AT LEAST WORKING THERE TONIGHT?
HAZEL: I AM. MY SHIFT ENDS AT 11.
HAZEL: I'LL HANG OUT FOR A BIT AFTER IF YOU ARE STILL THERE.
NINA: YAY, I'LL MAKE SURE WE'RE THERE.
NINA: FYI, PAUL HAS BEEN ASKING ABOUT YOU ;)
HAZEL: SRSLY?
NINA: I'M NOT THE ONLY ONE WHO MISSES YOU.
HAZEL: BRB. CUSTOMERS.
- - - - -
Eight men and women file into the shop and make their way to the counter as I plaster a smile on my face and wait for someone to make eye contact. Awkward seconds tick by as eight sets of eyes scan the menu until, one at a time, they place their order and take a seat.
"That'll be $74.86." I say to the last guy and he almost looks surprised.
"Oh, I'm sorry. I thought someone said something. The guy who is buying will be here in a moment." He speaks without looking at me and joins his group around our largest table.
I know it shouldn't bother me, but I hate feeling invisible to these types. The suits here don't see anyone they can't buy or sell. The rest of us are white noise. It doesn't help that I can hear them laughing under their breaths and placing bets to see how many of their drinks I'm going to get wrong.
I know I got every one of them right, and I work quickly at the counter so they don't get a chance to complain about the slow service. Placing each one perfectly on a tray, I hurry around to the front of the counter and lift the heavy tray, turning to deliver the whole order.
As if watching my worst nightmare from outside of my body, my brain registers the person standing directly in front of me before the rest of me does and I hit him head on, spilling everything all around us.
The mugs land with a sharp crash that grates into my ears as coffee spills all around and I watch frozen in place. Shock and smug horror graces each one of the eight faces I was just about to serve.
This couldn't have happened at a worse time. I shouldn't have taken this shift for my coworker today. I only have two hours to study in between this job and my next and now I'm going to miss my bus to the library.
Chuckles from the group at the table hit me the wrong way and I feel my arms begin to vibrate with anger as I set my sights on the man standing before me.
The most devastatingly sexy man I've ever seen in my life.
