3 months later...

When Mariana entered the cafe she worked at, she had a neutral expression as the sun's light followed her when she closed the door. She left the cold breeze of the morning and let out a sigh of refreshment that it was a new day. She smiled when she knew she arrived just in time when everyone was setting things up.

She got behind the counter, and Elena popped her out from the kitchen.

"Hey, Mariana!" She hollered, waving her fingers at her.

"Hi." She gave her friend a small smile as she wrapped her green apron around her waist like a bow tie. Her hair was tucked into a bun, with loose strands coming down like spaghetti, and her face was rosy and plump compared to the sorrowful state it was some months ago. Never would she allow herself to become like that again.

How are you feeling?"

"Good, you?" Mariana replied. Her mood had greatly improved and the past three months, she had been getting on well with her life. No drama, no stalking and had not run into any trouble since escaping from Xavier. But she still kept looking over her shoulder, checking every corner in case that he was following her.

"I'm good. After this, I'll take you to my apartment because I have something for you."

"Oh, okay." Mariana wondered what that thing was, but she was excited to receive it.

When customers began pouring in like a river, Mariana served them while the sweet flavor of flowers made their home into her nose. The natural scent lifted her lips into a smile while the eye of the sun looked upon the cafe. Everybody looked happy and cheerful, and Mariana felt comfy in where she was.

She enjoyed seeing the smiling faces that surrounded her. She wondered what went on during their lives, whether they had exciting plans with their loved ones or surprising trips. She remembered when she was that excited about life, even if she wasn't quite there yet, she was getting to that point again.

For a while, there weren't that many customers popping in, until Mariana noticed an empty table now needed serving. So she grabbed a notebook and pencil and went to them to take their order.

"Hello, what would you like?" She asked sweetly, but when she looked up, she froze. Her heart stopped for a second when she saw Micah sat down and his friend seated opposite him, whom she remembered was Kevin. They were still searching the menu and didn't notice that she was there, but she was shocked and quite speechless to see him in front of her after so long.

He looked mostly the same but a little rough around the edges. The biggest difference was that he had a broken arm which she secretly wondered how and when he got it. He also seemed to lost a lot of weight, and around his lips looked dry, eyes tired, and he looked like he was drained.

But she was relieved to see that he was alright, despite Electra's dreadful words that something bad had happened to him.

Micah's head snapped up, which caused Mariana's face to bend down, sliding her notebook further away because she didn't want to have to face him. After six months of not speaking, this was incredibly awkward.

Micah was startled to see her so close. He even felt a bit wary because of the message she sent to him some time ago. Which thinking about now sent pangs of pain across his chest like he was getting slashed with whips. Seeing her here hurt so much because he still didn't know what he did to make her say those hateful words. It made him think if she really thought of him like that?'

Kevin stared between them as they both had their heads turned away from each other. Micah had his hand as a barrier, and Mariana was just stood there, her face tucked into her collar so you couldn't see her face that flushed from embarrassment.

"I'll have some blueberry pancakes please," Kevin said, ignoring the awkward tension between them.

Mariana wrote it down and then twitched her feet slightly to Micah. She was getting hot by every minute she had to stand there as if they were inside a furnace. There was a small lump in her throat as she dreaded talking to Micah, even for a few seconds.

But she pulled her collar away from her face, not hiding anything, as she opened her mouth. "And what about you?" She felt a knot tighten inside her stomach, making her feel sick like she was going to embarrass herself.

"Um... s—same as him," he muttered, as his eyes roamed around the table, anywhere they could find other than her.

Mariana wrote it down and then quickly went back to the counter. She gave the order to the chef and watched Micah from a distance as she managed the cash machine. She cooled herself down by blowing air out like she was a steam train.

"Hey, who's that guy you keep staring at? He looks familiar," Elena said.

"Oh, he's the one I used to be in a relationship that I broke up with," she explained nervously. She didn't want to refer to Micah as her "ex" anymore as that seemed too harsh, considering what really happened.

"Is that the one who hurt you? I'm going to kill him!" Elena exclaimed as the freshly steamed pancakes came out. Mariana quickly grabbed the two trays so Elena won't get to them.

With the one she was going to give to Micah, she decorated it with some syrup and made tiny flowers but didn't make it too noticeable. She was still angry about Electra's sick game, so the least she could do is make his food nice.

When she was about to take it out, Elena suddenly pulled her back.

"Come, let me put something in his food!" Elena said, grabbing the salt shaker and wanted to take the tray.

"No! Don't hurt him!" She protested.

"Why Mariana? Wasn't he the one that hurt you first?" Elena placed her hands on her hips and looked like she was ready to slap her.

"N—No, he didn't, he never cheated. It's—It's a really long story, Elena." Mariana sighed like she was getting a headache.

"Oh really?" Elena crossed her arms, not believing a word she said.

"Yeah, It's a long story, and I'll tell you later, but for now, I really don't want to talk about it." She quickly grabbed the trays. She didn't want to remind herself of that torturous moment when she was faced with Xavier's cruelty, and the harsh mockery of Electra's words that were like daggers of saliva she spat out. Out of all the things that she endured this year, that was the worst.

She took the food to Micah and Kevin and placed it down without looking at their faces.

"Thanks!" Kevin said before grabbing his knife and fork.

"Yeah... thanks," Micah mumbled.

She went back to the counter, and in the corner of her eye, she saw Micah fidget in his seat while looking around his pancakes. She saw his face scrunch up as he poked the side with his fork.

"Look at him, Elena," Mariana said, nudging her head in their direction. "He probably thinks I poisoned him."

"I mean...I wouldn't be surprised." She shrugged.

"True, he still has in mind that I hate him," Mariana said as she discreetly watched Micah's terrified face over an innocent stack of pancakes. He even placed his and Kevin's side by side, as if he was examining them for any difference, well the only difference was that Mariana added a little decoration to his.

He eventually started eating it but only taking little bits. Mariana was happy that he didn't just leave it on the table, and he seemed to be enjoying it. Sometimes, he would look up toward her, but then she would look away and attend to the people who arrived. But she still felt his eyes on her, even if she wanted to pretend that the feeling wasn't there.

When they there finished they paid and left some money on the table. Mariana went to pick it up. She stuffed Kevin's tip into one pocket, but when she picked up Micah's, she paused as there were more dollars than she expected left by his plate.

She went through the cash that Micah gave her, and tears began to form in her eyes. The money that she held in her hand was way more than she had ever received in the past few months, and it just reminded her of how well he used to treat her when they were together.

She was so surprised that he would leave her such a big tip despite what she said to him. She wondered why he would do that, but she was grateful regardless.

When she returned to the counter, Elena glanced down at the money that she hid inside the pouch of her hands.

"Woah, which one gave you that? Was that from your ex?" Elena widened her eyes hungrily at it.

"Yes... yes, it was." Mariana sighed, looking back at the empty table.

"Damn, that's a lot of money. You know, if what your saying is true, I think there's still some love there."

"Yeah..." Mariana mumbled sadly. "I will go speak to him after work tomorrow since I remember what time he finishes." She wanted to talk to him and clear the air between them since a lot happened since that day, and she needed to say a few words and let him know how she truly felt.

"Okay, do you want me to come with you?"

"Yes, please." Mariana looked hopefully at her because she could really use the support.

"Okay, I'll come and help you if you need me for anything." Elena grinned from ear to ear.

"Thanks, friend." Mariana smiled at her, full of gratefulness, that she had someone to count on.

A/N: Hey I hope you enjoyed the chapter! It's nice to see Mariana and Micah together again😁except they ain't speaking to each other and it's very awkward 🤣🤣.