To Love And Be Loved

Chapter 23

It was a cool Saturday morning and the sky was blue and clear. Cass hadn't been able to keep the smile from her face. She still couldn't believe that the kiss with Victor had been real. She found herself holding on to the memory, playing it over and over again. It was her first kiss and it held all the magic a first kiss ought to have.

She could still remember how Victor tasted like and the incredible tenderness of his touch and his faint smell of strawberries and...

"Is there something I should know?" said Gabriel, pulling her out of her thoughts. He pulled over in front of Sammy's Snacks.

Cass noticed a pile of empty cups on the tables outside. It was to be expected. Saturdays were the busiest in Sammy's Snacks. It was filled with students from the university who liked to relax after the rigours of a school week with a cup of coffee and a book; her kind of crowd.

"No," said Cass, sharply, as she got out of the car and closed the door behind her. She walked over to the empty tables to clear the mess away while Gabriel adjusted his parking.

"You better not scratch that car or mum's going to be mad." She called at him.

"Says the girl who doesn't know where the brake is," Gabriel replied.

Cass had a stack of eight cups on a tray on her hand when she got to the door. It opened from the inside and she nodded a 'thank you' to the lady who opened it.

"Finally," someone said as she entered. A tall girl in a Sammy's Snacks shirt and black jeans came rushing up to her.

"Rita," Cass said, smiling brightly.

Rita also worked the same shifts as Cass. She was a bundle of energy and was always talking about something.

"God," said Rita. "Has it ever been this busy?" she said, collecting the tray from Cass. "Its like they have just rediscovered coffee or something."

Cass nodded and looked around. It was truly busy. There had to be about thirty people there and it wasn't midday yet.

"Its a Saturday," said Cass. She walked to a white door behind the counter and opened it. Inside was a small office with a table, a chair, a computer and a printer. A tall brown shelf stood just next to the window while a ceiling fan whirred slowly.

A man was stooped over the printer, he raised his head up as Cass entered. "Cass, how are you doing?" he said.

"I'm fine, Mr.Sammy." Mr.Sammy was a middle aged man with greying hair and kind eyes and the sole proprietor of Sammy's Snacks.

"Is something wrong with your printer?" said Cass as she took her shirt from the bottom shelf.

Mr. Sammy sighed. "Yes," he said. "I've been trying to print out some receipts but its not working." He put his hands on his waist. "I think I'll have to go to an internet cafe."

"My brother is here and he knows about all this stuff. I'm sure he can fix it."

"Oh, thank you. Do call him in."

Cass closed the door behind her as she wore the staff shirt over her clothe. Gabriel was just walking in, she caught his eye and beckoned to him.

"My boss needs help with his printer, could you help?"

"Sure," he said.

Cass reached the counter just as a customer was placing an order. "Burger and French fries coming up," she said to him.

"Get the ketchup," she said to Rita whose face was glued to the television.

"Can you believe the rate at which those ice caps are melting? It so sad."