Kite In The Snow by Karla Lopez

 

I stare at the beautiful blue-eyed angel that is sitting in my cafe right in front me. She’s even more breathtaking up close. I was at first stunned when I saw her sitting there. When she asked for a job, I didn’t hesitate because I knew I wanted her around. Her pregnant belly was definitely a surprise, but that made me want to help her even more.

She looks really young—eighteen to be exact. I know if she’s new in town and looking for a new job, she probably wants a fresh start.  I have this overwhelming sense of wanting to be there for her, especially after seeing her for a week, sitting out in the cold.

She must have nowhere to go and no money. The thought that she might be homeless and broke tugs at my heart and wills me to help. I will do everything in my power to make sure she’s okay.

I cannot just leave her be knowing she’s probably struggling.

I do need the help for when Camila is at school, but I also don’t want to overwork her knowing she’s pregnant and on her feet all day. I plan to ease her into her role without her realizing.

“When can I start?” Her soft, sweet voice breaks me out of my thoughts, but it’s hard answering her. I feel like my heart is in my throat every time I talk to her.

I clear my throat and look at her blue eyes. “You can start right now if you want. Between Camila and I, we’ll train you.”

Her eyes light up at my answer, and it makes me feel like I won the lottery. “That would be great. Thank you.”

“Yeah, yeah. Of course. Uh, let me go get you an apron, and we’ll get started.” I flash her a smile before I head back into the kitchen.

I let out a breath I didn’t know I was holding. “What’s up with you?” James asks while he’s kneading dough.

“I just hired a new employee.”

His eyebrows crease, and he stops doing what he’s doing. “I thought you said you were going to wait to see if you really needed it.”

“Well, I couldn’t help it.” I shrug and stare at the floor. I feel flustered knowing that Mae affects me in a way I can’t explain.

“What do you mean, you couldn’t help it?” He chuckles.

“I hired Mae.” I wait for the reaction that I know I’m going to get.

“The bench girl?” His laugh echoes all around the kitchen and it makes me want to punch him. Lately, it seems that’s all I want to do to him.

“Don’t call her that, you dumbass. Her name is Mae,” I growl at him, irritated.

He rolls his eyes and starts kneading the dough again. He cuts them into small dough balls and adds more flower to them. “You’re so fucking whipped and you don’t even know it yet.”

“Shut up, asshole.”

I huff a sigh and make my way back out with the apron in hand. I look for Mae and start to panic when I don’t see her in her chair, but then I see Camila huddled in the corner talking with her. I instantly relax.

Yeah, dude, you need to chill.

“Here.” I hand her the apron and watch her put it on. Her round belly is small but popped out. I know nothing about pregnancy, so I have no idea how far long she is.

She struggles to tie it behind her back. “Here, let me help you.”

“No!” she shouts, startling me and Camila. “I mean, Camila can do it.”

Camila’s eyes meet mine before she goes to help her. I stare at Mae, and she looks away, avoiding my stare. That was weird, and I obviously made her uncomfortable.

An uneasy feeling washes over me that I made her feel that way. I would never want to. I leave her to train with Camila because I’m scared to overstep again.

I lock myself in my office and get some work done. I decide to stay out of the way and let Mae learn under Camila instead.

After many hours later of hiding in my office, I go over behind the counter and watch how Mae is filling the sugars. I watch her from afar, not wanting to freak her out again.

Camila is helping our last customers for the day; we close soon, and I wanted to come help them.

My eyes make it over to Mae again, and I can’t help but stare at her pregnant belly. I wonder who the father is and if Mae was ever in love with him. My stomach dips at the thought of Mae loving the father of her child. A weird feeling of envy that I have never felt before hits me. The feeling is absurd because I really don’t know Mae.

I go into the kitchen and see that James already left and cleaned everything up. I’m so grateful for him, but I know I need to get another baker soon, especially because we’re starting to get really busy.

Besides the diner, I’m the local coffee shop. I know that everyone mostly comes in here, so I need to hire a few extra people. Camila and James don’t complain about working long hours because I pay and treat them well, but I know more than anyone that work isn’t everything.

I make my way back to the counter and go close the register. Camila is locking the doors while I count the cash we made. As I’m counting, I feel Mae’s eyes on me from behind.

I look over to Camila as she’s making her way to me. “You guys did a great job today. Go home. I’ll clean up.”

“Ah. You’re a lifesaver and the best, Wyatt Carter.” I roll my eyes at her dramatics while she grabs her stuff and heads out the door.

I look over at Mae and offer her a soft smile. She stares at my lips with a certain sadness, and my heart clenches inside my chest.

“I just wanted to say thank you for the opportunity, and I’m sorry about earlier.”

“No worries.” I shake my head at her.

“I just don’t like being touched,” she admits.

I recall Camila touching her, and I frown at the thought that she might not like being touched by me.

“I understand.” I turn back toward the register and pretend to look busy.

“I can help you clean. I don’t mind.” Her soft voice comes from behind me again.

“It’s okay, your feet must be killing you.”

She chuckles and the sound startles me, so I turn to look at her again. The sound is odd coming from someone who always looks sad.

“My feet always hurt.” She points at her belly. “Pregnant.” I chuckle at her playful side.

“Right. You can just clean the tables, and I’ll clean everything back here.” I smile at her and go back to counting.

We clean everything in silence and before we know it, we’re done. “Thank you for working so hard today. I’ll see you tomorrow at ten. Camila will do the opening.”

“Okay,” she answers softly.

I watch her walk out and make her way across town. I don’t offer to walk her because the crime rate in this town is literally non-existent. You can’t really get away with anything in such a small town. I’m also scared to overstep again with her. I want her to be able to trust me for some reason.

I turn off the lights and make my way into my apartment. I lie on my couch, exhausted with the day. As I lie here, I can’t help but think about Mae.

I have this overwhelming need to help her, but there’s so much more to her than being pregnant. The way my touch scared her won’t probably ever leave my mind.

I stare at the ceiling, aimlessly lost in my thoughts before I get up and shower. Once I’m out, I make my way to my cassette player and play some Bon Iver.

I feel so much more relaxed with his soft voice hitting my ears. I walk into my bedroom and head over to my dresser to grab some briefs. I look outside and see that it’s snowing, and the night looks so peaceful.

My window is one of my favorite parts of my apartment, its huge and I can see most of the town from here. The Alaskan stars are even more beautiful from here too.

I look down to see someone sitting on the bench outside my shop. I shiver just looking at them. It’s way beyond negative degrees so I could only imagine how cold it is.

I stare at the figure and then something hits me.

Mae.

I put my boxers on and drag a pair of sweatpants over them, then slip on a white t-shirt and a hoodie before making my way downstairs.

I spot Mae sitting out there like if it’s nothing. As if it isn’t as cold as I’m sure it is.

I open the cafe door and yell, “MAE!”

She looks at me, and her face is blotchy and red from the cold. The bitter, icy air hits my face, and I wince. I have lived here all my life and it’s still hard to endure without the proper gear.

“What are you doing out here? It’s freezing and it’s going to be one of our coldest nights.”

Her face looks panicked, and I can see she’s trying to come up with an answer. “I have nowhere to go,” she admits so quietly I almost miss it.

I have a million questions to ask her, but I also don’t want her to freeze, so without thinking, I open the door wider. “Come on.”

She looks at the door, then at me and I can see her hesitation. Another gush of wind hits us and we both wince. That makes her decision for her, and she walks past me and into the cafe. I close up again before turning toward her.

“My apartment is through there.” I point toward the stairs beside the kitchen, and I see her hesitation again.

I give her all the time and space she needs before she starts making her way up the stairs. Once we get inside, her eyes move around my apartment. Bon Iver is still softly playing in the background and her eyes pause on my cassette player. A soft smile meets her lips.

“This is where I live,” I say as if she hasn’t figured that out.

“It’s cozy and warm.” The look in her blue eyes stuns me for a moment. She likes my apartment.

I clear my throat. “When you said you had nowhere to go. What exactly did you mean?”

Her eyes drop to the floor before she answers me. “I have no money and nowhere to stay.”

“Where have you been staying?” I ask.

Her eyebrows crease, and I want to smooth them out with my finger. “I walk around the Walmart at night and sleep in the restrooms when I can’t keep my eyes open any longer.”

I rub my chest to ease the pain of her confession. It hurts to hear that she’s been doing that because she’s homeless.

“What about your family?”

She shakes her head vigorously and there’s panic in her eyes. “No, I don’t have any family.” She grabs her belly protectively. “My baby is my only family.”

She’s just like me. She doesn’t have any family, and I don’t have any family left.

I get the feeling she doesn’t want me to ask any more questions by the look on her face. “You can stay here. I don’t mind. You can stay in my bedroom, and I can sleep on the couch.”

“Are you sure? I don’t want to put you out from your comfortable bed.”

I shake my head. “No, not at all. You take the bed. You and your baby deserve a good night’s rest.”

I walk into my bedroom, knowing she won’t follow me and get out some sweats and one of my t-shirts and leave them on the bed for her.

“I left you some clothes that you can change into on the bed, so you can be more comfortable.”

She stares at me unmoving for a few seconds before her soft angelic voice hits my ears again. “Thank you, Wyatt.” Her eyes water, and she rapidly blinks to clear her eyes.

“Of course.”

She makes her way into my room and closes the door behind her. I make my way into one of my closets and take out extra blankets and make my bed on the couch.

I hear no noise coming from my bedroom, and I assume she’s already in bed. I turn off all the lights and turn off my cassette player, then turn up the heater just to make sure she isn’t cold.

I toss and turn to the thoughts of knowing Mae was homeless and alone in this world. No one should be alone, especially someone like her.

In another life, she would be loved deeply, and she would be constantly smiling instead of wearing that frown she carries with her all day. She’s too angelic to have such a sad life. She has this light to her that anyone would be lucky to experience in their life.

I drift off to dreams of Mae in a garden holding a small child. I feel happy in this dream.