"If you did, I forgot," Lucas admitted with a shrug. "So...we'll call it even?" he offered a little smile.

Claire chuckled, her cheeks growing red as usual with this guy. "Sea turtles? Hmm... I dunno... I guess they'd be easier to manage..." She mused the blush fading as she seriously thought about what it would take to have a sea turtle for a pet not that she'd ever get one.

"Well, I love the sea, as you know. Dolphins have always just been really cool to me, I guess," he said, shrugging. "It would be cool to have a real bond with one, you know? Like you get with a house pet. I mean, I assume anyway." At this point, he let his head fall on the table, quickly picking it up and looking at her apologetically. "I'm sorry, I'm probably boring you out of your skull right now. I just...you know. Beach life."

"N-No!" She shouted, drawing in the attention of the entire store, including James. She swallowed, her cheeks growing red as she silently apologized to those in the store and then shook her head at Lucas. "I think... I think that's really sweet. It's certainly more interesting than a dog lover. And I mean... the thought of living on a little island with a dolphin friend is really nice." She explained, grinning at him awkwardly.

Great... Now he's going to think you're some big sob.

"Claire, break's over." James called from behind the counter, the crowd having picked up.

She turned to Lucas with an apologetic smile. "Sorry. I have to go. I get off work at 5 if... if you wanna come by and... Actually... You're probably busy... I... I'll just see you later." She blabbered on, fumbling with her chair as she tried to push it in but eventually gave up in her embarrassment and rushed back behind the counter to grab her apron and go back to work.

M-Maybe he'll come back anyway and take me somewhere.

...Yeah right... That'll be the day. Claire, getting picked up by a total stranger.

Still, she wanted to get to know him more... even if they just... sat around and talk for forever.

"Sorry. I have to go. I get off work at 5 if... if you wanna come by and... Actually... You're probably busy... I... I'll just see you later."

No!

Hey hey, at least it's just because she had to get back to her shift.

What? You're not supposed to agree with me.

Oh right. Shut up.

That's better. But...what do I do???

Come back at 5. Really dude? It's not that hard.

Yeah but...but...what if she was just saying that to be nice?

You really second guess everything, don't you? The signals are all there.

Yeah, like a coworker who would really rather us not be a thing.

Exactly.

This entire inner dialogue seemed to an observer like Lucas was just sitting there with a distressed look on his face, not knowing what to do. He snapped out of it, and called after Claire.

"O-ok, I guess I'll see you later! Thanks for spending your break with me!"

Lucas walked out of the store, flustered. He could tell that she liked him because she was fumbling over herself just as much as he was (if not more), but he wondered if coming back at 5 was the right thing to do. For the rest of the day he mulled it over with himself. At the very least, it gave him something to occupy his mind with as the hours rolled by.

---

Time Skip

---

Lucas looked down at his watch. 4:50. It was now or never. Or, you know, tomorrow.

Just go, man. She obviously likes you.

But what if-

No buts. You've gotten this far, just keep at it. I'll be worth it.

How do you know?

I don't.

Lucas eventually got over himself and walked back to the coffee shop. He walked in and noticed that Claire wasn't there. Trying to remain cool, he sat down at a table by the window. I'm not late, am I? he wondered. He looked at his watch, which said 4:56. Good. She must just be in the back then. He decided to wait for 5 to come, and see if she showed up. Fortunately he had picked a good spot to look out to the ocean, as if he hadn't been doing that all day anyway.

"I'll be right back, James. Mind clocking me out while I take this out?" Claire called out, already removing her apron. She moved towards the back of the store, a large black trash bag slung over her shoulder. She back door closed as the front door opened with Lucas walking in.

The dumpster wasn't too far from the store and Claire quickly threw the bag over the side, the bag hitting the bottom of the metallic container with a thud. She smiled softly and stretched her arms up to the blue and pink sky. The sun was setting and Claire looked forward to the thought of talking with Lucas and watching the sun set over the beach. It felt like a dream, honestly. For a girl who'd spent most of her life in central Georgia, the beach was refreshing and calming and everything she wanted in life.

It was just a moment; a moment in time. Claire would remember it for a while to come. Time seemed to slow down in that moment. Her arms slowly fell back to her side as with a small smile still on her face, she looked over to a teenage boy standing in the center of the road, glaring at nothing in particular.

Her smile faded as her head turned and she noticed the on-coming traffic. Without much thought, Claire bolted for the boy. She felt every pound of her feet hitting the asphalt like it was the pounding of her heart beat. It felt like ages before she finally reached the boy, but it was too late. Just as she grabbed onto the boy, she heard the screeching tires of the car heading for them. Luckily, because the driver stopped in time, the impact was much less. The car slide out of control and the right bumper of the car smacked into Claire's knee. The boy tried to push her away but she held on tight as they both flew to the ground, hitting their heads on the asphalt.

The boy was out cold, a probable concussion, and Claire was barely conscious. She heard people shouting and yelling but it sounded more like listening to people whisper from underwater. She could tell they were yelling, but it sounded so quiet and peaceful. She could see in front of her, but everything was blurry and seemed to be moving very slowly. How many people could she see? 3? 6? She couldn't tell.

She kept drifting in and out of consciousness. At one point she remembered seeing James, another she saw white lights, bobbing up and down, another she saw the same pink sky moving slowly away from her, and then she saw lights looming over her. There she slept, her face seeming peaceful as she laid on the hospital bed. The boy was a few beds down, also sleeping peacefully.