Page 25 of Can't Kiss the Chef

“How did it go in there?”

“Good, Chef Stroll was pretty understanding, but I hate being late, so I wanted to let her know why.”

The halls are quiet– the next time slot of classes started a few minutes ago. We start walking towards the student parking lot.

Lola’s eyes soften. She’s happy. Like genuinely happy.

“Why were you late?”

“I was helping Charlotte with a therapy ride at the barn. We were just about done with the session when the horse bucked alittle. The little girl on the horse got really spooked.” Lola pauses. “She had a meltdown and said she was never coming back. I had to stay and help. I let her know that kind of stuff happens to all of us.”

I look over to Lola, who is picking her nail beds.

“I’m sure you staying and talking to her made a big difference, Lo.”

“I don’t know. I just hope she comes back.” She lets out a sigh. “She was really starting to make some strides.”

I hold the door open for her when we reach the exit. She stops in the middle of the doorway and looks back at me quizzically.

“Why did you wait for me?”

“I was wondering if you had time to go to Expresso Yourself. I was hoping we could get some more stuff done for the project before I start my season,” I say as I rub my neck.

Lola keeps walking and I follow after in silence waiting for her answer. We get to her car, and she opens the door.

“I assume you still don’t have a car, right?”

I shake my head.

“Get in. I guess I have a couple of hours I can spare.”

“You really had me sweating.”

“Yup.” she pops the “p”.

A few minutes later we are seated at a high-top table in the back of the restaurant.

“Thanks for doing this, Lola,” I tell her genuinely. “I just know things are going to get crazy in a few weeks. I actually have a team lift in an hour and a half.”

“Yeah, Oliver is nervous. I told him he had nothing to worry about and that most of his teammates were good guys.”

“How is Oliver liking Westvale so far? Coach was really excited when he committed here.”

Oliver was one of the top goalie recruits in the northeast. The kid has a chance to be a legend.

Lola looks at me, eyes pinched. “We don’t have to do this, Byron. You made it clear this summer that we were never friends.”

It would have been less painful if she stabbed a knife through my heart. Did Lola really think that we were never friends?

“Lola, of course, we are friends. Sometimes things change, but that doesn’t mean I don’t want to be in your life.”

Lola’s eyes are glassy as she inhales deeply through her nose. She is doing everything she can to not cry in public. When I go to place my hand on top of hers she pulls it off the table and tucks it into her lap, leaving mine there alone.

“Lola, between this project and how intertwined our friend groups are, we are going to be seeing a lot of each other,” I wait for her deep green eyes to meet mine before I continue. “Lola, I miss you. I don’t know what happened this summer, but I want to prove to you that we can be friends. I think we could be best friends.” I tack on my most charming smile.

She stays quiet, eyes trained on me. It feels like a test to make sure I won’t run if things get uncomfortable again. I fix my posture and make sure I’m looking her dead in the eyes, showing her I’m not scared to put in the work.

After what feels like eternity, she squints and places her hands on the table.

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