When Mariana was getting ready for the day, she was up earlier than usual so she decided that she'll go for a walk before making her way to the cafe.

After she plaited her hair into two french braids by her bathroom mirror, she fastened two small pink flowers between each interlock.

To complete her look, she used concealer to cover her freckles so when the sun shines down, her face would look clear while she walked around. She always had this unnerving idea that people were staring at her face, thinking it was dirty, and she hated this feeling.

Once she was satisfied, she gave herself a thumbs up and exited the room. She was being unusually optimistic this morning.

She ran into Rio as he nearly made her trip by going between her legs, his tawny tail flicking them aggressively.

"I'm guessing you're hungry?" She said, her voice laced with a tint of annoyance as she raised her eyebrow.

He just meowed in response as he rubbed his head against her affectionately, in an attempt of warming her up.

Mariana sighed and shook her head before picking Rio up in her arms. His eyes focused on the ceiling as his paws were slightly pushing Mariana's face away.

"Let's go get you your food then," she said and then descended down the stairs, holding onto her tabby protectively.

She poured out his food first into the bowls and then made herself some chopped sausages, fried egg, roasted tomatoes with cheese and basil and then sat in front of the TV, eating peacefully.

She had a quick look at Rio eating before looking out the window. She saw the tree outside her house quietly blowing and her mood waned down like the clouds passed by slowly. Somehow, they made her think of Micah and she started to miss him. Maybe she could send him a quick text while on her break.

When she was done, she cleaned her plate and then said goodbye to Rio by gently tickling his neck. She had a smile but her inner melancholy mood said otherwise.

She went outside and closed the door behind her. The sun shone down on her creamy white sweater as she breathed in the fresh air. Her mouth tweaked the smile slightly wider as she walked down the pathway to her gate.

She sauntered down the streets amid the morning dew. The early rays of the sun glinted off the glass of the tall buildings and street poles. Her skin bathed in the light, making it look like tiny crystals.

She sat down on a bench to rest. She sniffed before she brought out her mother's necklace and looked at the picture inside.

She smiled and closed it in her palm. Her eyes then peered into the distance.

With the few people that were out and the calmness of the sunrise, Mariana was in a moment of peace.

After everything that had happened in the preceding year, her mother dying at the hands of her own brother, Xavier almost taking her life too, she thought that she wouldn't have been here to experience this blissful environment. She was grateful for the people in her life, especially Micah since she loved him so dearly.

A smile crept on her face as her thoughts drifted toward him while staring into the pleasantness of the morning light. He filled her heart with so much joy and happiness, especially when she was cuddled up in his arms, all safe and protected.

She sighed out of content and got out her phone. She sent Micah a quick text saying that she missed him and hoped she will get back to her soon.

Once she had enough, she picked herself up and made her way back to her house.

When she got to her workplace, she had a jovial smile on which brought light into the room. Her mood had improved from her morning walk and she didn't feel so gloomy now.

She stood attentively at the cashier with her apron on.

"How are you finding your new tops, Mariana?" Elena suddenly asked.

"I really like them! Especially the blue one."

"Yeah I like the top that I brought and since one of my old shirts is a bit old, I made it into a ball and gave it to my Timmy."

"That's a good idea, is that why you wanted to go shopping? To replace that shirt?"

"Well that's part of the reason, the other thing was just I saw it while passing by and it looked nice."

"Mm okay, that's fair enough."

Suddenly, the door opened the same peculiar woman walked in. This time, she wore a summer hat with a cerise summer dress and her honey hair rippling down.

"May I have two strawberry doughnuts and a hot chocolate please?" She asked, her tiny voice like a bird came out of her bright red lips.

"Okay, that will be $3.80 please."

The woman took out some money from her glittery purse and then handed it over to Mariana with a hidden sneer. Afterward, she sat down on one of the brown rounded chairs, her bum squeezing out as she smiled conniving at her.

Mariana didn't take much notice and started getting her order prepared. She placed two doughnuts on a plate and got a cup and took it to the lady. When she placed it down, she backed away with a charismatic smile plastered on her face.

She went back behind the counter and was about to go inside the kitchen when she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket.

She quickly got it out and her heart leaped with joy when she saw it was a reply from Micah.

Bubba❤️❤️: Hey baby! Sorry for the late reply, I've missed you too❤️ how are you this morning?

Mariana: It's okay😊😊 I've just been missing you that's all xx I was also wondering if we can do something on the weekend together?

Bubba❤️❤️: Sure, what would you like to do?

Mariana: Well... I am planning to do some grocery shopping on Saturday, do you want to come with me?

Bubba❤️❤️: Okay baby girl we can do that. Do you want me to meet you at your house?

Mariana: Yes, please🥰🥰

Bubba❤️❤️: Okay my baby, I'll see you on Saturday😘😘.

Mariana: See ya 🥰🥰

Mariana happily tucked her phone back into her pocket as she headed into the kitchen. She was now feeling much happier seeing Micah's text and now they were going shopping together on a Saturday.

She quickly put her phone away and made her way to the back for her break.

****

When her shift was ended, she hurried out of the cafe so that she can go chill with Leilani. It felt like ages since she last saw her even though it was only last Sunday.

When she got to the address that Leilani sent to her, she parked it outside and got out. She strode towards the porch and knocked.

Leilani came out with a smile on her face. She wore a pink shirt with her wavy hair slightly damp, and gold trapezium earrings dangling from her ears.

"Hi, Mariana!"

"Hi!"

They hugged and she was led to the living room. Miguel was already sat down with Mateo in his arms. They were watching the TV that was stood on a glass stand in front of them. They wore matching dark blue hoodies and gray sweatpants.

"Hey Mariana," he greeted.

"Hi, Miguel!"

"Did you just come from work?"

"Yeah I did," she said as she and Leilani sat down on the black, leather couch.

"How was it?" Leilani asked.

"It was quite good actually," she said with relief in her heart. "How's your son?" She signaled to Mateo.

"He's good, he's been watching cartoons with his daddy." She blew a kiss to Mateo and then shifted her body so that she faced Mariana. "And how's yours?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean Rio, who I keep wondering whether he's a kitten or an adult."

"He's an adult, only one year old though so he's still my baby."

"Yeah I understand that, but I can't stop thinking of that time when you wrapped him in a blanket pretending he's a newborn."

"Oh yeah..." She laughed nervously while scratching her head. She couldn't forget the time where Rio got scared of the blow dryer she used to dry her hair.

"The only reason I did that was to comfort him since he was meowing at the door, trying to escape."

"Aww, that's actually cute, to be honest."

"Yeah. I actually kept the dryer on so I can keep on hearing him meow."

"What..."

"Yeah... he was just too cute though so I kept it on for a few more minutes," she said but secretly felt bad because of how scared Rio sounded.

"Wow... okay then," Leilani said with bewilderment and picked up the remote for the TV.

"Do you mind if I hold Mateo for a little bit?" She asked hopefully.

"Sure," she said and handed her Mateo from Miguel.

Mariana held him up and bounced him on her lap gently. "He's so cute!" She squeezed his cheeks which earned her a smile as a giggle erupted from his lips.

She cuddled his warm little body as her eyes watched what was playing on the screen.

Little did she know, that the peace her mind currently possessed, would not last for long.

A/N: Hey guys I hope u enjoyed the chapter! I'm so sorry for the long wait, I had terrible writers block and was really stuck.

Tbh, I think my irritated and extremely hungry mood kinda reflected into Mariana's gloomy mood by accident 😂😅