Page 8 of All Stars Fall
Penelope
I spent the entire day unpacking, downed at least two glasses of wine before crashing on the small couch I’d brought from Montana, and nearly missed my first shift.
I still hadn’t showered from the day before, which meant I smelled like potato chips and road kill, but I didn’t want to be late, especially since I knew that the alternative was unpacking more boxes and wondering what the heck I was thinking driving from everything I knew in Montana.
To a strange place where I had exactly one friend who barely spent any time in the area because she was married to a famous actor.
Like A-list famous.
What did I expect?
That I’d get here and everything would suddenly feel fresh and perfect just like the salty ocean breeze?
I threw on a Nike sweatshirt, a pair of leggings, tennis shoes, and a Mets baseball hat that I’d purchased on a whim because I liked the colors.
Yeah, I was that person.
I didn’t have time to do much to my face, so I swiped it with a makeup wipe, grabbed mascara, and then added a touch of pink lip gloss.
This, I sighed as I stared in the small mirror, was as good as it was going to get.
I exhaled and locked up the house, then made my way over to the small coffee shop. The lights were already on, even thoughthe door was locked. Jennifer said she’d arrive early and get the first pot of coffee going for me so I would actually make it through the busy morning.
I wondered what she meant by busy.
Especially after looking up and down the dead streets of Seaside.
It was five a.m.
And the only things I saw wandering around were seagulls that seemed hell-bent on diving toward the water in search of food.
Despite the tattered screen, the small coffee shop was inviting, homey in a way that made my chest ache.
One thing that the universe never seems to remind you about fresh starts: they’re almost always extremely lonely and uncomfortable no matter how fresh they can be.
I loved the ocean.
I loved to travel.
It was an adventure, right?
An adventure at 27.
Don’t focus on the past, focus on the now.
The now is all you can control, right? Inhale, exhale, exist in the moment, and make yourself a coffee.
I pulled three espresso shots, dumped them into a cup, added a bit of cream, and chugged the thing before making sure the cash register was flipped on and counting the till.
By the time I was done making sure the store was ready to go, it was time to flip the sign.
How very exciting.
Not.
I flipped fromClosedtoOpenand took the few steps back behind the counter, wondering if I would need another three shots of coffee. The bell over the door rang.
An elderly man in his seventies gave me a wave with a newspaper. “Extra hot drip, black.” He held out exactly one dollar and seventy-five cents and then honest to God dropped a dime in my tip jar.
