Page 13 of In the Middle of No(ah)where (Rockport Ridge #2)

Noah

O verall, I enjoy my time working at Steamed.

The customers are great for the most part, except for the asshat that went off on Caleb this morning.

Hanging out with Caleb while getting paid is the best part of working here.

He's the best friend I always wanted, and I wouldn't trade that for anything.

But… I'm twenty now, and I need to start thinking long-term.

My parents' words from years ago ring in my head: 'What are you going to do with your life? '

I pull out my phone while I'm on break, sitting at the small bistro table in the back room.

Clicking on the screen to wake up the device and seeing the background—an alien scene I had drawn the previous week—my heart aches.

I wish I could do something with this. I let out a small laugh.

How cliché. A starving artist who works in a coffee shop.

I shake my head before pulling up the LEGO website.

Some new space kits were just released this morning, and I want to check them out.

I typically don't buy the kits and prefer to create my own masterpieces, but. ..hello, space stuff.

Slipping deeper into a middle mindset, I start scrolling through the site and already see a kit that I want. I enlarge the image of the astronaut and add it to my cart. This will be perfect on display in my room. I already have a few other limited-edition sets on my bookshelf.

"NoNo! NoNo! Are you busy tomorrow?" Caleb yells, bouncing into the backroom with excitement. Tomorrow? I have the day off and don't have much planned. Thoughts of touring the aquarium again run through my mind, but seeking out Marcus is only setting me up for heartache.

"You know I can't deny you anything when you use that nickname," I tell him with a wide smile. He only calls me NoNo when he's hovering or deep into little space. "Where would you like me to take you?"

"Kavi is about to pop," he mentions with an exaggerated popping sound. "I wanna go see her and maybe her new baby. I wonder if it's going to be a boy or girl."

Kavi has been the talk of the town. She's the Asian Elephant at the zoo, and I think her pregnancy is all people talk about. Okay, so I'm pretty excited about it too. "The zoo, huh? We haven't been there in a while." I rub my chin to pretend I'm thinking about it. He already knows I'll say yes.

"Pleeeeeezz, NoNo!" He drops to his knees all dramatically. Part begging. Part whining.

"Since you asked so nicely, little buddy." I rub the top of his head. "I'll take you to the zoo tomorrow."

"Yay!" He shouts, doing this cute little wiggle-dance.

Caleb goes back out to the front, and I finish up my break feeling a weight lift at the idea of spending the day with Caleb tomorrow.

It's been a while since we just hung out and relaxed without other friends around or here at work.

I enjoy the last few minutes of my break in silence, thinking about the fun we'll have at the zoo tomorrow.

???

"There are a lot of people here," Caleb says with a smile.

We arrived early and secured spots right next to the fence.

Lions are my favorite animal, but the elephant habitat is one of my favorite exhibits at the zoo because the elephants can come right up to the edge of the fence and interact with the guests.

Most of the time, they don't, but there have been a few instances where they have come close.

"Thanks for inviting me today. This is fun." I bump Caleb's shoulder with mine before looking down at his cute Dumbo backpack.

"The mostest." He leans his head against my shoulder. "I wonder how long it will be before we know if she has her baby."

Caleb is getting a little antsy, and I don't blame him.

"We could go walk around and look at other animals and then make our way back here later," I tell him. I'm starting to feel fidgety myself.

"No way! I want to be here the minute Kavi gives birth, even if that means standing here all day."He exaggerates.

I squeeze his shoulder.

"Okay. We'll hang out here all day if we must. But…we may need to get lunch at some point." I tease as we see a couple of guys come out from behind a small fence. The fence wasn't there the last time we visited, so it must have been installed for the delivery.

As the two guys walk around, their gazes are set on the ground.

The sun is in my eyes, and it's hard to make out who they are.

I wonder if I've met them before during one of the information sessions they have around the zoo.

Caleb loves hearing the animal facts when he comes.

Refocusing on the two men, I notice they are similar in size, with both being tall and broad-shouldered. Each walks with confidence.

As the guys walk the area, scanning the habitat, Caleb gasps. His hand reaches up and grabs my bicep. Squeezing hard. "Holy shit. It's Barrett."

"Language," I warn. I look out at the two men and realize that the guy on the left is the older guy from the coffee shop yesterday morning who flirted with Caleb. It was cute how flustered Caleb became over their interaction.

"Saw-y, NoNo."

"That's okay, buddy, but you don't want anyone to hear you use that kind of language. Do you?" I ask him, words sounding like something my mother told me growing up. He just shakes his head.

As the two workers approach the crowd, my breath hitches when my gaze finally falls on the second guy.

The sharp intake of air was a physical manifestation of anxiety while my hand trembled at my side.

Marcus' polo pulls tight across his chest, and I feel my knees go weak.

His body is even more defined than before.

I can't fucking believe it.

Two years. It's been two years since our abrupt goodbye, Two years of failed dates. Two years of several new scars. I still can't believe how he snuck into the recesses of my heart and made a home there.

I've visited this zoo a handful of times in the past year with our annual membership and have never run into Marcus.

Would he even recognize me? He's probably forgotten all about me and moved on while my heart has been missing a part of itself for the better part of two years.

I've never felt a connection to someone like I did with him. Would that connection still be there?

"The guy with Barrett is kinda cute," Caleb says.

"Yeah. He is." I tell him in a whisper without taking my eyes off him.Chest clenching.

"Why do you have that look?" Caleb asks.

Part of me wants to turn and bury myself in the anonymity of the crowd, to pretend I don't see him. The magnetic pull toward Marcus is strong, and I'm trying to be brave. The crowd around us starts asking a barrage of questions, pulling my focus to Barrett, who is answering them.

Is it a boy or a girl?

What's the baby's name?

How much longer?

Within another couple minutes, Barrett and Marcus step over to stand right in front of us. As Barrett and Caleb converse, I can't take my eyes off Marcus.

He's here.

From this closeness, I can see the subtle fine lines around his eyes. And when he smiles, my world is filled with the warmth that I remember from years before.

He's really here.