21

Her chin rested upon her hand as she leaned against the counter. She followed the movements of Antoine, her new staff member, with only a passing interest. At the urging of Erisa, River had finally made a choice. Dismissed that choice and decided on another candidate. Panicked and wondered whether she could afford to hire all the people that had applied for the job and then decided, once and for all, on one, final choice.

She felt a hand on her shoulder as Erisa emerged from the door behind her. Changed out of her normal work clothes, she now wore a sensational flared cocktail dress that tickled the top of her knees and clung to a body that many women would cry for. River wished she had a body half as fit and toned and she wondered when Erisa managed to exercise as well as work, go to university and keep a happy, satisfied, gorgeous boyfriend.

"I shall have a steaming cup of that new tea, from McInnerny's, please, boss." With make-up applied so perfect, it almost made River cry, Erisa slipped on to the stool in front of the counter. She glanced over her shoulder towards Antoine. "How's the new boy doing?"

River turned away, hiding the little grimace by preparing to make Erisa her cup of tea. She tried to think of the best way to describe Antoine as the kettle rose to a boil. She swilled out the little tea pot, dropped a spoonful of tea inside and then poured the fresh, hot water inside. Setting the tea pot before Erisa, she caught the raised eyebrow and realised she had taken too long to answer.

"He's good. Great." A clean cup, placed onto a saucer, clinked as River placed it before Erisa. A tea spoon followed and River adjusted it a few times until it sat straight. "He's nice. Friendly. The customers seem to like him. He's a little ... he can be a little ..."

The sound of a cup shattering on the floor turned everyone's heads. Antoine held up his hands. "Sorry! Sorry! Sorry!"

"Clumsy. He can be a little clumsy." She leaned forward, whispering to Erisa. "I'm a little afraid I'll lose all my profits by having to buy new tableware. But, apart from that, he's nice. A nice young, pleasant, friendly, clumsy man. It's good. Is it good? Have I made a terrible mistake? He likes tea, though. Apparently."

Erisa cast a studious eye upon Antoine as he crouched down to pick up the broken pieces of cup. He used his table cleaning cloth to mop up the remains of the tea, and Erisa pursed her lips. However, she gave an appreciative nod as several of the older women, sat at various tables, cooed and fussed about as they helped him clear up his mess.

"I'm sure he'll learn. The customers like him, it seems." She waggled a finger towards the scene, a perfect, long painted fingernail making wheels in the air. "He's the type people mother. You'll get repeat custom from people who just want to pinch his cheeks. Give him a little time and see how it goes."

That all seemed perfectly reasonable. As Erisa twirled the tea spoon in the pot and then poured out the tea into her cup, River noticed the new necklace about Erisa's neck. Delicate and fragile looking, it complimented Erisa's dark skin so well, resting upon the top of her flawless chest. Erisa took a sip of the tea and smacked her lips in appreciation.

The new teas had proven popular, even though most people would find it difficult to tell the difference between them. The increase in customers had steadied over the past few days and River now doubted it would ever return to the quieter levels of before. She missed those times, but enjoyed the extra money that she banked.

Taking on a new staff member had eased the majority of River's worries, freeing Erisa to reconnect with her life outside Leaves. She hadn't wanted to mention anything, but she had seen a mid-semester test result of Erisa's and her grades had slipped. Only a little, but Erisa rarely ever had bad grades. River could do nothing but blame herself. It made River happy that Erisa could now focus on the more important aspects of her life; her education and her boyfriend.

"Going anywhere nice?" She made an exaggerated flourish towards Erisa's cocktail dress. A dress River could never wear and look good in, she decided. "Special occasion? Party? Just for the hell of wearing it? I do that. Sometimes I just pop on my best togs to sit and watch a movie. Not often! Just, once in a while. Every so often. You know."

"Gavin has booked us an anniversary meal and then on to a nightclub. An entire year together." A far-away look crept into Erisa's eyes and she produced the most wonderful smile as she thought back. "I never thought it would last."

"I did." River looked over her shoulder as she prepared fresh kettles to boil. More customers had arrived and she took their orders before continuing. "Right from the beginning. The way you acted. The way you talked about him. It was love. Right away. Oh, it was so sweet. My Erisa, falling in love after swearing blind she had no time for 'that nonsense'."

She grinned as Erisa gaped and then made a look that screamed she hoped someone would kill her, right there and then, to save her from embarrassment. Then she smiled, dipping her eyes, a hand rising to the thin necklace. It wasn't often Erisa showed that softer side to her personality. That alone told River how happy her friend was.

As River laid out the cups and saucers for the customers, she waved to Antoine, who waved back. Then she rolled her hand, scowling, a little, telling him to come to the counter. With a comical 'O' expression, he headed back to the counter, tripping over a woman's handbag, apologising, backing into another customer, apologising and, finally, reaching the counter. River pointed to the correct customers and worried as he lifted the tray on to a trembling hand.

"Oh, you have to keep him! He's adorable." Hiding a grin with her hand, Erisa watched Antoine try to navigate through the busy shop. Then she turned back to River. "Speaking of 'love' ... well? Don't make me ask."

"There's nothing to tell." Now it was River's turn to dip her eyes, but Erisa was having none of that. She leaned her head down to catch River's gaze. "She comes in, at night, at her usual time. We talk a bit and then she goes home. Just like normal."

"And she hasn't said anything? Not a thing?" Again, Erisa pursed her lips, sitting upright. She tapped those long fingernails upon the countertop as she held River with her eyes. "Nothing about your confession? Nothing about China? Nothing at all?"

River found herself wilting under the gaze of her friend. She looked up towards the Art Nouveau clock and wondered if she could usher Erisa out of the door. Persuade her that she would be late to her anniversary meal, but, she knew, Erisa was never late. For anything. Her entire schedule planned to pinpoint accuracy. Erisa would leave when it came time to leave.

"Well, not nothing nothing. We've talked. About things." She waved both her hands in circles, a general emphasis on the 'things', but vague enough to not mean anything. "None of those things ever came up. It's not something you dive into. 'Oh, about that confession of mine, would you mind giving me some kind of definitive, yes/no/really-no/you-have-to-be-kidding-me answer. Please.'. It's difficult."

"So, you're letting it slide? Everything? Your feelings are important, River! You need to know where you stand, otherwise you'll never move on with your life." With a shake of the head, Erisa reached over for River's hand. "I think, and I'm not being awful about this, but, I think you should back off. Protect yourself. If she is interested, she'll chase you. If not ... life goes on, eh?"

Once again, Erisa made a lot of sense. That was Erisa's super-power. She had enough sense for a dozen people. River appreciated her advice, especially Erisa's candour. She never said anything to hurt people, but neither did she let people wallow in false premises. Erisa had seen the ups and downs of River's moods since that first night that River had truly talked to Celeste, and she wanted to protect her friend.

River, however much she valued Erisa's advice, could not let Celeste go. There was something about the franchise manager that had caught River so tight, she doubted she could ever escape from the feelings that burned inside her at every thought of the woman. Conflicted feelings, for certain, but feelings she could not ignore, nor suppress.

She wasn't certain she could back off. On more than a few occasions, she had come to the same conclusion as Erisa. Yet, she couldn't back off. She couldn't retreat. She thought about Celeste from the moment she awoke to the very second she closed her eyes to sleep. She dreamed about Celeste. And dolphins. For some reason, both Celeste and dolphins dominated her dreams.

"I can't." She placed her own hand on top of Erisa's and could see the concern in her friend's face. "I know you worry about me, I mean, I do nothing but do things that make you worry, but I can't let her go. I know I should. I know it's no way to go about things, to moon after someone that won't, or can't, reciprocate my feelings. I just ... I have to keep trying. Until she shoots me down, when she does, I have to try."

"Oh, River. Just be careful. Please." Erisa glanced at the clock and slipped from the stool. "I have to go, the taxi will be here soon. We have not finished talking about this. Not by a long shot. See you tomorrow."

Erisa leaned across the counter, pecking River on the cheek. Even as Erisa began to move, a cab pulled up outside the door to the shop. River didn't know how Erisa did it, but she had timed it to perfection once again. She returned her elbow to the counter and her chin to her hand as Erisa climbed into the cab.

A crashing sound caused River to jump. Antoine stood over a broken cup, his hands clutching his hair. "Sorry! Sorry! Sorry!"

River sighed.