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practically standing on top of the door. I guess she
really has to go, too. Chewing on my lip, I walk slowly over to the
counter. It’s the same cutie from yesterday. His hair looks a
little different; maybe shorter. I can see his eyes today. They’re
a warm, welcoming brown. “Hey, Brad.”
    A smile turns up his mouth, forcing
out that adorable dimple. “Hey, Gabby. What can I get
you?”
    Well, here goes nothing. My cheeks are
burning and my foot taps nervously on the floor. “I’m not sure how
to tell you this, but there’s a problem in the bathroom, and I
swear I had nothing to do with it. I did go, because I just
couldn’t wait, but I didn’t leave the crap in there. I hold up two
fingers. Scouts Honor.”
    Brad raises his eyebrows and cocks his
head to the side. “Did you just say Scouts Honor?”
    I nod my head because, at this point,
I shouldn’t be speaking at all.
    The left corner of his mouth curls up.
“Is the toilet clogged?”
    I bite my lip so hard I think I taste
blood. “Kind of.”
    He makes his way over to the bathroom
and disappears for what seems like an eternity. While he’s gone, I
order the biggest sticky doughnut they have and scarf it down. Then
I order another one. By the time I’m finished eating, I’ve added a
serious sugar high to my hangover. I start humming Eliza
DeAngeles’s song “Clumsy Girl” to myself…my theme song. Brad
finally emerges and his eyes meet mine. I wonder what he’s
thinking. Does he believe me, or is he thinking that was my crap in
the toilet? Ugh.
    Shaking his head and smirking, he
walks straight over to me. “All taken care of.”
    I hope that by now the pink has left
my cheeks and taken the embarrassment with it.
    “ I like your note, by the
way. The arrow was a nice touch.”
    I can’t help but smile. “Thanks. I’m
kind of creative that way.”
    “ So, do you want a
coffee?”
    “ Well, I’m not sure my
stomach can handle coffee after that. Plus, I just ate two sticky
doughnuts. Do you have any Tums?”
    Laughter coats his eyes. “Come on,
I’ll make you another Salted Caramel Mocha on the house. I mean,
you don’t want that shit on your mind when you leave here…no pun
intended.”
    “ Yeah, real funny. Okay,
I’ll take one, but I’m paying you for it, and I won’t take no for
an answer this time.”
    “ You got it.”
    While he’s making my drink, I check
out more of the sweets in the display case. I’m wondering if I
should grab something else for work when I glance down at my watch
and notice it’s 9:15. Shit, I’m late! Robby hates
tardiness!
    Thankfully Brad hands me my coffee and
I manage not to spill it all over. “Thanks, Brad. I gotta run, I’m
seriously late.” I start heading for the exit when I feel a hand at
my shoulder. Flipping around, I see Brad.
    He bends down and grabs something from
the floor, then pushes back up to his feet. A smile tugs at his
lips. “You had a piece of soggy toilet paper stuck to your
shoe.”
    “ Thanks.” The hits just
keep coming.
    I hurry down the street, weaving
through the maze of body odor crowding the sidewalks. Everyone is a
blur today, literally, and I just realized I left my sunglasses at
The Brew House. Unbelievable. Robby’s going to kill me. I rush back
in the other direction and as soon as I walk in, Brad waves my
glasses at me.
    “ I figured you’d be back
for these,” he says with a small smile.
    “ Thanks. See
ya.”
    “ See you around,
Gabby.”
    I grab my sunglasses and my now
lukewarm mocha and head for the door, again. I’m almost free and
clear when I hear the door jingle and instinctively look up. My
blue eyes are met by a forest of green sparkles, and that’s all I
see. I don’t need to see anything else, recognizing those eyes
immediately and knowing who they belong to. My heart pounds in my
chest. I move forward and clumsily trip over one of the chair legs,
dropping the contents of my purse on the floor and my drink along
with it. “Shit,” I