The Heart System

Chapter 793: Chapter 793

I looked over. Kayla was standing behind the counter, and she had already noticed our group. She raised a hand and waved at us.

We all waved back.

”I wonder when she’ll get off work,” Nala said.

”Five or ten minutes,” I replied. ”I texted her before we came here and asked if she’d like to join us. She said yes.”

”I heard her car had broken down,” Jasmine said.

”Really?” I asked.

”Not broken down,” she corrected herself. ”Sorry. She got a flat tire.”

”How?” I asked. ”She just bought the car.”

”Some people are bad drivers, man,” Tessa said. ”Trust me.”

”Hmm.”

My thoughts drifted back to Hannah.

Seriously, what was she doing at Tuck’s place?

She was way out of Tuck’s league if they were actually together, although I had no idea whether they were dating in the first place. Maybe Tuck had somehow managed to score her, or perhaps she had been there for some business he hadn’t told me about. Considering the people Tuck knew, something gang-related wasn’t impossible, but Hannah didn’t exactly look like someone who belonged to a gang.

Then there was the matter of her crashing into my car twice.

Was that really a coincidence?

Maybe I was overthinking it. I had enough things going on already, and adding Hannah to the list wasn’t going to make my life any easier.

Then I remembered the shop owner from the Dungeon and what she’d said about breaking my personal record.

That bothered me too.

”Ugh...”

I rubbed my forehead.

I had way too much on my mind. There was Melvin’s girlfriend situation, and I still had to play matchmaker between him and Isabella. Then there was the pregnant woman who owned that sex shop. She had bruises all over her body, and I still couldn’t shake the feeling that something was wrong there. An abusive boyfriend or husband seemed like an obvious possibility, but I didn’t know enough to say for sure.

”You exhale a lot,” Nala pointed out, looking at me. ”Are you that tired of us, Evan?”

”I’m just tired of seeing my boss every single day.” I smirked.

Nala kicked my leg underneath the table. ”Then I should fire you.”

”Sorry, sorry.” I rubbed the spot she kicked. ”Hey, may I smoke a cigarette with the coffee?”

”You ordered black tea, dumbass,” Tessa said.

”Whatever.” I threw both hands to the sides.

A few minutes later, Kayla came over carrying a tray. She wasn’t wearing her usual apron or work clothes anymore, so she must have finished her shift. She placed everyone’s drinks on the table one by one before taking the empty chair beside me.

Everyone grabbed their drinks.

”Phew.” Kayla exhaled as she leaned back in the chair. ”I’ve been working for nine hours. I’m finally done.”

”Yeah, girl.” Tessa nudged her with her shoulder. ”How was work?”

”There was this guy who came in around noon,” Kayla said, shaking her head. ”He ordered a caramel latte, took one sip, and then came back to the counter demanding a refund.”

”What was wrong with it?” Jasmine asked.

”He said it tasted too much like coffee.”

Tessa stared at her. ”He ordered coffee.”

”I know.” Kayla laughed. ”I told him that. He said he wanted it to taste like caramel, not coffee.”

”Did he want caramel syrup with a side of milk?” Kim asked.

”Apparently.” Kayla shrugged. ”Then he started complaining that I was being rude because I asked him what he expected from a coffee.”

Nala chuckled. ”Some people really wake up looking for an argument.”

”Exactly,” Kayla said. ”And then he demanded to speak with my manager. My manager came over, listened to him for thirty seconds, and told him the same thing I did.”

”What did he do after that?” I asked.

”He bought another drink.”

The table burst into laughter.

”See?” Tessa said. ”That is why I could never work customer service.”

”You would get fired in three days,” Jasmine replied.

”Three days? You’re being generous.”

Kayla laughed along with them, and I found myself relaxing into the conversation. They kept talking about difficult customers, ridiculous orders, and people who apparently thought baristas could perform miracles with a coffee machine.

Then the front door opened.

I glanced toward it without thinking, and my attention immediately settled on the woman who had just stepped inside.

Layla.

I recognized her from the shop. She was the pregnant woman I had met before, and seeing her again caught me off guard. She was wearing a simple dress that followed the shape of her pregnancy, and her dark skin had a slight sheen from the heat outside. She looked a little out of breath as she walked toward the line, occasionally resting one hand against her stomach.

I quickly looked back toward the table before she noticed me watching her.

Kayla was still talking.

”So then I told him, if he wanted his coffee made completely differently, he could explain what he actually wanted instead of yelling at me.”

”Am I not in the right here, Evan?” she asked.

I realized I had barely heard the last part of the conversation.

”Yeah, for sure,” I replied, nodding. ”Some customers are just jerks.”

”Exactly.” Kayla pointed at me. ”And you were a gas station clerk. You should know all about jerk customers.”

”Most of mine were too drunk to be a jerk.”

Tessa laughed. ”That somehow makes it worse.”

I glanced toward the counter again. Layla was waiting patiently in line. She eventually reached the register, placed her order, and waited near the side while the barista prepared her drink.

The girls continued talking, and I tried to follow along while occasionally checking Layla from the corner of my eye.

A few minutes later, she collected her coffee and thanked the barista before heading toward the exit.

I watched her leave through the glass doors, then rubbed the back of my head.

”I, uh, forgot my power bank inside the car, girls. I’ll be right back.”

Jasmine looked up from her drink. ”Oh, can you grab my USB-C cable as well? It’s on the front seat.”

”Yep.” I pushed my chair back and stood. ”Be right back.”

I walked outside and immediately looked around.

Layla was already several steps ahead, heading down the sidewalk with her coffee in one hand. I picked up my pace and caught up with her.

”Hey, excuse me.”

She stopped and turned around.