The Lost Queen

Chapter 19. Here we go again

Kayla

I stood there dumbfounded and gaped at Josephine with a taunting look on my face. Out of all these days, why did she choose this one? Near my classmate stood a beautiful blonde girl. She looked older than me, or Josephine in that matter, but her blue eyes sparkled in the January sun, but even then they looked cold and calculating while surveying me.

“Hi Josephine,” finally I managed to stutter and genuinely smiled. My gaze shifted to the silent girl next to her and I skimmed over designers’ clothes and sparkly jewellery. Her face was carved from marble but also cold the same. The bright pink lipstick was too intense with the rest of her makeup, but I turned away and looked one more time at the showcase of the beauty store.

“You look beautiful today,” Josephine’s voice was oddly honest, and I turned to her with a surprised look.

“It’s nice that I finally could finally take off my school uniform.”

The girl nodded eagerly and for a moment I thought about where all her bitchiness went because she acted differently than in school.

“By the way, this is Celeste. She came back from a long trip, and we wanted to grab some coffee. Maybe you want to join us?” Celeste turned to Josephine with a stern expression but remained quiet. My eyebrows shot up, but I managed to control my emotions and shook my head.

“I’m sure you want to catch up and I don’t want to bother you. Plus, I have some things to do, so I’m kind of busy myself,” I reassured her before smiling politely.

My gaze slipped to Josephine’s short grey skirt and white coat. She looked like a doll with her big eyes and perfectly still hair even if the wind was harsh and wild. Finally, with some agonizing looks from Celeste, the girl gave up and nodded.

“I’ll see you at school then.” Josephine waved before turning away and leaving with her friend. I didn’t bother to answer and while I watched her moving away, the only thought was swirling in my head: why the f**k was she so friendly with me?

When I gathered my splashed thoughts from the sidewalk, I went into the store which I was eyeing, and the short girl greeted me with a broad smile.

“I hope you are ready to shine like the sun today!” she chirped, and I grinned like a small child, “Do you know what you are looking for or do you need a minute to look around?”

“I need something for sensitive skin because I used some custom-made cosmetics before, but it doesn’t work for me anymore,” my voice was nonchalant, but the girl nodded understandingly and left her spot behind the counter. I gazed down at her long black dress with sun and moon symbols on it and felt a strange tempting pull at her. It felt like I could trust her even if I didn’t know her name.

“Do you like some particular scent, or should I choose it for you?” Her sweet voice pulled me out of my thoughts, and I turned to the shelves with a different bottle on it. Small shop walls were painted with a soft yellow colour and fairy lights were hanging from the ceilings. In every corner stood wooden shelves with colourful products from shampoos, bath bombs and make-up kits.

“I like sweet but also fruity scents. Like cherry or caramel.”

“Cherry! I know what I can offer to you!” the shop assistant smirked with a joyful expression on her face.

After the shopping spree, I stood outside Artemis café and wasn’t sure if I wanted to go in. Even from where I was, I could see the spot where I was sitting yesterday. All the memories painfully flashed before my eyes and somehow I felt shitty. I needed an answer to my message from Ace, but I didn’t get one and even if I tried to forget it by buying some stupid things, I couldn’t.

A sigh left my lips, and I went into the café trying to shake my misery off. I smiled gently at Delilah, who stood in the same place behind the counter as always. Her bloody red hair was in a high ponytail and her makeup was fierce.

“I like your eyeliner,” I complimented, coming near to her.

“Hi Kayla! Thank you. I tried extra hard today.” She winked to me and looked at my bags in my hands.

“I had shopping therapy.”

“I can see that. I hope you find everything that you wanted?”

Delilah laughed when I eagerly nodded and shyly smiled, but my mood faltered when I remembered an unanswered message on my phone. Redhead cleared her throat and pressed something on the screen that was in front of her.

“Do you want the same as the last time?”

“Do you remember?” I was surprised and touched by Delilah’s words.

She raised her eyebrows at me, and I tried to act nonchalantly, but my mask was slipping off.

“Yes. I will have the same drink as the last time and add a banana muffin to it.”

After paying for my order, I sat back at the same table I sat yesterday and looked at the chair in front of me. Somehow I couldn’t stop thinking about his golden eyes, which reminded me of honey. He was so f*****g handsome and kind… I just can’t forget how it felt when I touched his arm. It wasn’t a gentle touch, his palm was rough, but I could feel power in his arm and in all his body. It was intoxicating and I was losing my mind.

“Here’s your drink,” Delilah chirped, placing a yellow mug in front of me. The cupcake was in her other hand, and she placed it down too. I smiled politely and thanked her quietly, but words were too heavy on my tongue, and something changed in Delilah’s eyes when I didn’t look directly at her.

She looked around the café and sat down in front of me in the same seat where Ace sat yesterday.

“Is something wrong?”

I forced a smile and shook my head lightly. Delilah stared at me for a moment in silence but then she gently touched my arm, and I had some unwanted flashbacks.

“Everything is okay. Don’t worry yourself,” my voice shook at the end of the sentence, but I turned my face to the large window and looked at the empty street. Even if today was Saturday, there were only a few people in the street, and everything around looked deserted.

My attention snapped at the barefoot man and my eyes widened. It was the same guy who I saw at school. He only wore black jeans and a plain white t-shirt. Today was cold. Why did he look like that? To my surprise, he went straight into the café and the bell rang loudly, making me jump out of my seat. Delilah turned around and stood up.

“Ares, what’s happening? Why the hell are you barefoot?” So that’s the guy’s name. His blonde hair was dishevelled like he had just got out from bed. His greyish eyes were shooting at every café corner, but when he caught my glance, the guy looked at me for a moment longer before concentrating back on Delilah.

“I didn’t have f*****g time to take care of my appearance, Delilah-“

“Ares, what are you doing here? Is everything okay at home?” Josephine came from the back of the café and touched his arm so casually. Was she here all the time? How didn’t I see her?

“Josie, is Celeste with you? You need to go back. We have a missing child, and everyone is looking for her.”

I tried to act nonchalantly but hearing about the missing child made me inhale deeply and three pairs of eyes shot at me. I lowered my head and looked at my phone. What was happening? Maybe that’s why Ace didn’t answer me? If Josephine knows this guy, it means that Ace knows too.

“I can’t leave the café, Ares.” Delilah’s voice was full of concern.

“We need everyone, just close it.”

I inhaled deeply and stood at my feet. Straightened my dress and stepped one step forward.

“If you need help, I can stay and help with the café,” my voice was quiet, “From what I heard, it’s serious.” Delilah looked at me like my head exploded and after raising one eyebrow, she smiled gently.

“It’s okay, Kayla. Don’t worry yourself-“

“We need to go!” Ares dramatically interrupted our conversation.

“I don’t mind. I worked in a café last summer, so I know how everything operates here.” I shrugged, looking around.

“Are you sure?” Delilah’s eyebrows furrowed and she looked at her watch, “today we work till five, so it will be only a few hours.”

“Okay. Just show me the basics and you can go to take care of urgent things.”

“Hurry up, Delilah. We will be in the woods,” the blonde guy looked at Josephine and Celeste, who watched me like a hawk and, after a few pleasantries, they hurried off after Ares. I stared at their backs for a long and quiet moment, just before Delilah grabbed my hand and took me into a hug. I flinched, feeling intimate contact and Redhead immediately stepped back.

“I’m so sorry!” she exclaimed with a wide-eyed expression on her face, “I am very grateful for your help. I… I didn’t think before acting.”

“It’s fine. I’m just not used to being touched like this.” My smile faltered but I turned my head in time and Delilah didn’t see it.

When the awkward moment ended, Redhead showed me how to use coffee makers and where the keys were so I could lock the cafe up, after. When I asked her what to do later, she smiled and touched my arm gently. What’s with all the touching?

“I have a spare one, so when you have time, just bring it here.”

After a few moments, Delilah finally left, and I stared at everything with a dumb expression. Why the hell did I volunteer to look after a café? Even if I had some experience, I couldn’t just march in and act like I own the place.

Shit. Why do I always get involved in these kinds of situations, where I want to be a hero in someone’s fairy tale?