"Thanks for coming by!"
"Chime."
Once the last customer stepped out of the cafe, Luke immediately flipped the sign on the door. He sat down, peeling off his apron with a long "huff," and unbuttoned the top two buttons of his shirt to catch a breeze.
"Thanks for the help, Lorna, Alex, Devon," Luke said, glancing at his three friends.
"No sweat, bro. Actually, maybe I should just work here. What do you think, Ava?" Devon asked.
"Sure, as long as you don't expect a paycheck," Ava replied, taking a seat next to Luke.
"Ouch... well, looking at you is payment enough," Devon flirted.
"Fine then. You can take over my shifts for free," Ava shot back icily.
"Alright, alright, I give up," Devon groaned.
"Hahaha, you never learn, do you? You're pathetic, dude," Alex mocked.
"Watch it, Devon. Don't you dare try anything with Ava," Luke added, his voice dropping into a heavy, protective tone.
"I'm just kidding!" Devon promised.
"Your face looked pretty serious, man," Alex chimed in.
"Shut up, you're annoying. I'm talking to my future brother-in-law here," Devon retorted.
"Hahaha, this dude is unbelievable," Alex laughed.
"Psh, no way I'm having an in-law like you," Luke muttered.
Thump. Suddenly, Lorna hopped right onto Luke's lap. Luke, who had been relaxing, nearly jumped out of his skin.
"What the hell, Lorna?!" Luke shouted.
"Let me sit in your lap. My legs are killing me, and that's the only paycheck I'm getting," Lorna answered while rubbing her own calves.
"Good grief, you're acting like a toddler. Get off," Luke said, trying to nudge her away.
"Don't be stingy. Just look at that," Lorna said, shifting slightly and pointing across the room.
Luke looked over. He saw Vanessa sitting intimately on Noel's lap while Noel massaged her feet, the two of them chatting away with Amanda. They looked like a perfect match, genuinely close. It was the first time Luke had ever seen his brother act like that.
"Holy crap," Luke muttered.
"See? That's why I'm jealous, Luke," Lorna sighed.
"Wait, why would you be jealous, Lorna?" Alex asked.
"Yeah, are you even a girl?" Devon teased.
"Screw all of you! I'm a girl, a real one. Do I need to prove it, huh?" Lorna snapped, reaching for her shirt buttons.
"Go ahead, prove it!" Alex and Devon chirped, seizing the opportunity and widening their eyes on purpose.
"No way. I'd be the loser in that deal, right babe?" Lorna said, jumping back onto Luke's lap and wrapping her arms around him from the front, her face inches from his.
"You should just end up with Lorna, Luke. You have my vote," Alex said, giving a thumbs up and a grin.
"Seriously. They're basically kissing already," Devon added.
"Hmm, if it's Lorna, I guess I'm okay with it. I wouldn't even need to interview her," Ava added, nodding in agreement with her arms crossed.
"See? I've already got the family's blessing," Lorna smiled.
"Okay, okay, joke's over. I know you're all just trying to cheer me up, and I appreciate it. Now, move," Luke said, casually lifting Lorna and moving her to the side chair Ava had ready.
"Ugh... this is why you're always miserable. You're hopeless," Lorna grumbled, a bit annoyed.
"Wait, were you actually being serious?" Luke asked.
"Of course not! Like you don't know me by now," Lorna joked.
"See? That's why my heart didn't even skip a beat, even with you sitting right here," Luke said, patting his own thigh.
"Hehe, well, you looked like a zombie the moment you saw that couple get together—stiff face, barely smiling, acting all busy. I just wanted to cheer you up," Lorna said, poking Luke's cheek with her finger.
"Be quiet," Luke muttered.
Alex, Devon, and Ava burst into laughter at Luke, who sat there fanning his neck with his hand. Suddenly, Noel, Vanessa, and Amanda stood up in front of them.
"Luke, Vanessa and Amanda are heading out," Noel said.
"We're heading home now, see you later!" Vanessa added.
"Oh." Luke stood up immediately. Amanda seemed a bit dazed seeing Luke's muscular build now that his shirt was unbuttoned and his apron was off—plus he was slightly glistening with sweat.
"I'm leaving. Don't forget to keep in touch. Call me, or hit me up on social media. (She turned to Lorna) Okay, Lorna. I'm heading back."
"Oh, so you do remember me?" Lorna asked.
"Haha, obviously. Who else on campus has hair like a guy besides you?" Amanda teased.
"Hehe, fair point. Just remember: don't try anything funny, you 'influencer wannabe,'" Lorna shot back.
"Hehe, right back at you, 'crazy tomboy,'" Amanda replied.
Though they were both smiling, their eyes met like knives ready to strike. Alex and Devon noticed and shared a look.
"What's up with them?" Devon asked.
"Probably just a popularity rivalry. Lorna is actually pretty popular on campus too, she's just a tomboy and doesn't care about it," Alex explained.
"Really? I guess I'm just so used to seeing her that it doesn't register," Devon replied.
Suddenly, a hand sliced through the air between Lorna and Amanda's staring contest, making them both look at Vanessa, who was standing between them.
"Enough, Amanda. Let's go," Vanessa scolded.
"Ugh, fine. Bye, Luke!" Amanda said, smiling and waving.
"Yeah, bye," Luke replied, raising his hand stiffly.
"Get going already. Don't want you getting locked out and crying about it," Lorna added.
"Don't worry. Just take care of Luke for me. Make sure he doesn't get 'broken,'" Amanda said with a cynical smile toward Lorna.
"Relax, he's safe. Now shoo... shoo," Lorna said, waving her hand.
"Chime."
The door opened, and Noel walked Vanessa and Amanda to their car. As the door closed, Ava popped her head between Alex and Devon.
"It's like Alex and Devon aren't even people. They didn't even get a 'hello,' and they definitely didn't get a 'goodbye.' So sad," Ava teased with a wide grin.
"Whatever," Devon and Alex muttered.
"Hahaha, they really are pathetic," Luke teased.
"You're the pathetic one!" Alex and Devon shouted in unison.
They all went back to laughing and chatting casually until Noel came back inside after walking Amanda and Vanessa to their car. Shortly after, Alex, Devon, and Lorna said their goodbyes and headed back to their respective dorms. The three siblings then tidied up the place. Once they were finished, Noel and Ava went upstairs carrying the cash box to count the day's physical earnings, while Luke went outside to bring the sidewalk advertisement board into the cafe.
After closing and locking the door, Luke walked over to one of the tables, pulled a chair back down, and sat. He looked at his smartphone again, feeling like something was still bothering him. Suddenly, "ding," a notification popped up. He saw a message from Amanda.
"Hey... want to have dinner with me tomorrow? I know a restaurant that's really good and has a great vibe," Amanda asked, adding a few heart emojis and a smiley face emoji asking for a call back.
"Good grief... she just left, didn't she? Is she texting while driving? This girl seems kind of terrifying; maybe what Alex said was true. Total red flag. I just hope Vanessa isn't anything like her sister," Luke wondered in his heart while staring at the message on his smartphone, feeling a bit worried for Noel.
Luke didn't reply. Instead, he reopened his bank account and looked at his balance, which now stood at $201,500. He felt a wave of genuine relief, but he was also worried about something else. If Amanda was really the type Alex described, and if she had seen the amount of money in his account when Lorna snatched his phone, there was no telling what would have happened to his brother's relationship with Vanessa.