Emily watched the two of them from the side of her eyes. She was pretty sure Angela was crushing on Blake. Blake seemed oblivious to it. Typical guy. To his credit, though, Angela was nowhere near as obvious as Jeanie Francis.
Emily, Angela, and Jeanie had all grown up together. In grade school, Angela and Jeanie were actually best friends, but by middle school, Jeanie had moved on to who she considered the cool kids and left Angela in the dust. Probably because Angela was a bit overweight back then. She’d gotten the big black glasses in middle school, dressed in baggy clothes to cover her weight, and kept to herself most of the time. She’d slimmed down over the past couple years, not that her outfits had changed.
Emily glanced over at Angela. Her clothes today were a bit loose and ill-fitting. Like she’d never gotten over being overweight and trying to hide it. She kept shoving her glasses back up in place. Emily bit her bottom lip. What she wouldn’t give for a sixty-minute Cinderella makeover with Angela.
Angela was a pretty girl, but she never wore makeup or clothes that might be better suited to her. It seemed like she liked to fade into the background and not be noticed. But there was this slight vibe that maybe Angela was tired of not being noticed, of being in the background.
She bit her lip, not knowing how the makeover could ever happen without it being awkward. It wasn’t like she could say something like—um, hey, can I help you dress, do your hair, and maybe pick out some clothes that suit you better? Crazy thoughts.
She stood and grabbed her things. “Hey, Blake, I’ll see you at work later.”
He looked up quickly and nodded. “Okay, see you.”
“Angela, you should stop by after school and get some ice cream. On the house for helping him with this calculus problem.”
“Oh, thanks. Maybe I will.” Angela gave her a tentative smile.
“You should.” She walked away, glancing back once to see both of them sitting with their heads almost touching, poring over the math problem. She grinned as she headed off to her locker, hoping Angela would take her up on the offer.
Shortly after Emily and Blake started their shift, Emily looked up to see Angela come into the cafe. Perfect. She elbowed Blake as he cleared off a table. “I’ve got those. Go wait on Angela.”
Blake looked up and she swore a faint blush crossed his cheeks. She smothered a grin.Aha!There was something there.
Blake headed over to the ice cream counter and made Angela a malt. Angela sat on the last stool, a bit away from another group of kids from their high school.
She finished clearing up the dishes for Blake and took them to the kitchen before heading back out to the ice cream counter. Another group of kids from the high school came in. “Hey, Blake, why don’t you finish up with the napkin rolls and I’ll get these orders.”
He could roll napkins and chat with Angela, couldn’t he? Besides, rolling silverware ranked right up there with filling salt and pepper shakers on her list of jobs she hated at the cafe. She’d much rather be waiting on customers and chatting with them. That part of the job was fun.
After about an hour, things slowed down and most of the customers drifted away. Angela got up to leave. “Thank you for the malt. It was really good.”
“Come in anytime. It’s a great place to hang out after school.” Maybe she could encourage her to come by more often. Blake would like that, even if he wouldn’t admit it.
Angela nodded and smiled. “Bye, Blake.”
“Bye, Angela.” The dopey look on his face as he watched Angela leave said it all.
She walked over and elbowed him. “So… you like her, don’t you?”
“I don’t know. I guess so.” There was that blush again.
“So ask her to the Sandcastle Festival. You guys could walk around. See the sandcastles. Eat too much junk food.”
“I don’t know… I mean, we’re just friends.”
“Is that all you want it to be? Friends?”
“I wouldn’t want to mess things up.”
“I swear guys can be so clueless.” She let out a long sigh. “I’m betting that she likes you.”
“How do you know?” His eyebrows furrowed, and he looked toward the door as if she’d still be there.
“Trust me. I can tell.”
“I don’t know…”
“You’re so impossible sometimes.” She grabbed the tray of napkin rolls from in front of him. “You should ask her.” She stalked away, wondering if he’d take her advice or not.
