"There she is! Independent woman!" Terry announced from behind the register. Her feet kicked up on the desk, she wore a dirty pair of Doc Martens and an old Sister Sledge t-shirt. She'd recently dropped out of college, for the third time, and had started working here until she "figured everything out." I'm not judging, but I don't think she'll have anything figured out anytime soon.

"How was the move?" she asked when I joined her behind the counter.

"It was good. I had a lot of help." And thank God for it, I would have never gotten that couch upstairs by myself.

"What's in the box?" she asked looking at the white box I held in my arms.

"Cake, you want some?" I'd cut it in half taking the parts I'd already eaten from. I could feel my thighs growing with every bite, not that I minded, but it felt like my jeans were going to bust open at any moment, so I thought I'd spread the love a little.

"Definitely, what's the special occasion?"

"I graduated."

"What! That's great, Maya!" She exclaimed, her black rimmed eyes growing wide with excitement. "Did you have a party or something? I would have gotten you a card."

"Nope, no party." Much to Nia and Tasha's dismay. They said I had to have one, but I stood my ground. There would be no party for me.

"Well, congratulations, anyway."

James stuck his head out of the office. "Did I hear something about a party?"

"Where is it? And am I invited?" He said coming out. Our lovely manager, James, was always ready for a party. Standing only a few inches taller than me, he looked more like he managed a country club than a record store. He had his straight brown hair in a Ryan Seacrest style faux hawk, and he wore a light pink polo and khaki shorts.

"There's no party," I told him.

"But there is cake," said Terry showing the box to him.

"Looks good," he said appreciatively. "Can I ask the occasion?"

"She graduated!"

He looked at me in shock. "And you didn't call me! I have to say I'm hurt." He's so full of drama.

"It wasn't a big thing." It wasn't a thing at all actually. "They're mailing my diploma."

He sighed. "I still wish I had known. You know I love giving gifts." The last thing I need is more gifts.

"It's okay James, I appreciate the thought."

Terry swung her feet off the counter and stood. "With that being said it's three o'clock and it's time for me to go. I'll be taking some cake and leaving now."

"Goodbye, Terry," James and I said to her as she disappeared into the break room with the box of cake.

James rolled his eyes once he was sure she was gone. "I don't know why she was in such a hurry to leave she hasn't done anything all day. Or I should say the last four days. I haven't seen her do anything but sit on her butt since you've been gone."

"Yikes." I slipped my backpack under the desk and sat on one of the stools. "So what do you want me to do?"

"Can you go through the cds?" He asked. "They're a mess, and you organize them so well."

I smirked at him. "It would be my pleasure."

"See, Maya this is why you're my favorite."

"I thought it was because there's only two people that work here."

"And out of the two, you're my favorite."

I hummed. "Sure." Seeing the state of the cds I went to work quickly.

James wasn't kidding when he said all Terry did was sit on her butt. From the looks of the rows upon rows of unorganized cds she hadn't laid a finger on them since I left. After almost three years of working here, I still can't understand why people refuse to put things back where they found them. Carrie Underwood should not be in the Michael Jackson section.

I was mumbling some choice words about her and the customers alike when I heard someone yell my name from the entrance.

"Maya!"

I looked up from the cd's that I was filing to see Nick walking towards me. He was still wearing his uniform, and I had to say he made the stuffy dress pants and button up look good.

"Hey," he smiled down at me.

"Hi," I replied.

"How's the new place?" he asked. "How's your bed?"

Uh, did he just ask me that. "It's great. Can I help you find anything?"

"Uh, no," he replied, suddenly nervous. "I came to see you, actually."

"Me?" I'm not complaining, but what could he want to see me for?

"Yes," he said, sure. "I have a proposition for you."

"Uh, okay," I said skeptically still putting my cds away. "What is it?"

"I'm applying for mechanic school, and I have to refinish a car," He explained following me down the aisle.

"Okay, haven't you done that before." I distinctly remember him telling me that he's done that before. "Yes, but I've only refinished two and I need a third one for my application," he explained. "And everyone I know their cars aren't..."

"Pieces of shit, like mine," I finished for him. I could see where this was going and I wasn't sure how I felt about it.

"No, no, no!" he rushed to explain. "I didn't mean that, I just meant that if I did someone else's like Marcus' or Sam's it might not show what I can do as much like if I used your car."

I know he didn't mean to be rude. My car is a rolling piece of scrap metal, but I couldn't help but give him a hard time.

"I'm sorry," he apologized. "I shouldn't have asked." He began to turn away and leave the store, but I stopped him.

"Wait! Wait," I called after him. "Nick, I was just kidding." I was just being an asshole, as usual. It made my stomach hurt thinking that I had hurt his feelings.

"Oh," he sighed. His blonde hair fell into his eyes. It looked like he had skipped out on shaving today and his jaw was covered with dark stubble. Ugh, he makes me think impure thoughts.

"So let me get this straight. You came here to ask me if you could completely redo my shitty ass car, so you can get into mechanic school."

"Yes, but I don't think your car is shitty. I just think it needs some work," he reiterated.

"Whatever. Do I need to pay you anything?" Almost all my savings went to rent and furniture, so I have nothing left to pay him.

"No, you don't have to pay me anything. I'm doing all the work."

"Are you sure?" I asked him. Has he seen my car? There's thousands of dollars worth of work, and a lot of it is held together with duct tape, like my bumper, and my sideview mirror and my rearview mirror. Granted, I did buy it for two hundred dollars.

"I'm one hundred percent sure," he said confidently. "If I get in that will be payment enough."

"And if you don't get in."

"Then you'll have a new car for free."

I wasn't completely sold on it, but I said yes anyway. "Okay."

"Okay!" he said excited. "Thank you so much, Mya. You won't regret this."

"I hope not," I replied.

"Can we start tomorrow?" asked Nick. "After school, maybe?"

"That's fine," I agreed. " I don't have to go to school anymore, so you can come by any time."

"Did you drop out or something?" He asked confused.

"No," I shook my head. "I graduated early."

"Really!" He asked surprised. "Maya, that's great!"

"Thanks, it was unintentional. Do you still have my address?"

"Yep," he nodded. "I'll see you after I get out of school, I guess."

"Sounds good to me." He told me what time to expect him and we finished making the plans before he left. He said something about stopping at Car World next door.

"He's a cutie," said James, watching Nick walk next door.

"You say that about everyone," I said putting the last of my cds away. James is more boy crazy than any middle school girl I had ever met, and I've lived with a lot of them.

"What can I say? I love a good looking human being," he shrugged. "Are you two a thing?"

"Are we a what?" I asked taken aback. "No, he's just going to fix my car."

"Oh, he's sexy and a miracle worker. Wow, where did you find him?"

I scowled at him. "He's best friends with Nia's boyfriend."

"That private school boy?" he asked following me behind the counter.

"That's the one."

He exhaled. "Man, they didn't make them like that when I was in high school. If I could go back and do it all over again, the times I would have."

I rolled my eyes, he's so thirsty. "He's just going to fix my car."

"Well let me know he's done fixing your car," he winked, "Maybe he can fix mine too." He smirked walking past me to get to his office in the back.

"James, you have a husband! Control yourself!" I yelled at him.

"I'm married not dead!" he called back. Not dead, just thirsty.

Nick had only been gone a few minutes when one of my favorite people arrived with food, no less.

"Maggie," I smiled at the old woman. "What are you doing here?" Her gray hair was streaked with blue, and she wore a cheetah print pants and a big denim jacket. Since she's so petite, most of her clothes are too big for her, but it adds to her look.

"I came to see you, Chickpea," she said to me. When Tasha first brought us to Maggie's store, that was an antique store upstairs and an epic consignment shop downstairs, I was wary.

And who could blame me, it looked abandoned. But Maggie, with her colorful hair and too big jackets, won me over. She's funny, and she has the best selection of leather jackets I've ever come across.

She handed me a bag containing a cheeseburger and fries that smelled amazing. "I brought you dinner, because I know you're working late tonight."

"Thanks, you shouldn't have. Come over here, let's sit." I led her behind the front counter and pulled up two stools. It was a weeknight so that meant we were pretty much dead. Getting track to come through here in the days of streaming was hard enough, and trying to do that on a weekday was a joke.

I ripped the bag, folding it out to make a makeshift plate.

"What have you been up to?" I asked before popping a fry in my mouth.

"Oh, same old, same old," she sighed, folding her wrinkled hands in her lap. "I had a few customers at the store. Sold that clock that I told you about."

"The one with the woodpeckers?"

"That very one." She's been trying to get rid of that thing for ages. "What about you? How's your new apartment is it lovely?"

"It is," I said. "And guess what, Maggie."

She looked at me, her lashes caked with mascara. "What?"

"I'm getting my car fixed." I couldn't say what I was getting fixed on it, because the whole thing was just one massive issue.

"Oh, really," she asked with raised brows. "And who's going to fix it?"

"One of the guys that helped me move. His name is Nick," I told her. "He was just here actually. And want to here the best part, he's doing it for free."

She hummed. "This Nick wouldn't happen to like you, would he?"

I couldn't help but laugh. "No, he's doing it so he can get into some mechanic institute. But he doesn't like me, at least not in that way." I don't know what his ex-girlfriend looked like but I was guessing she didn't look like me. And I don't know if we had much in common, except for the whole crappy parents thing.

"I don't know. That's a lot of work to be doing for free."

"Well, he's rich, so he can afford to do helpful things like that."

She didn't look convinced. "If you say so."

"What about you? Did Ron stop by today?" This sweet old man comes by her store several times a week, just to chat, he says. But I think he has a massive crush on Maggie and it's the cutest thing ever. They're both widows, Maggie's husband died a few years ago, and since they had no children she was by herself most times.

"Of course," she said narrowing her eyes at me. "But Ron is just my friend. And I'm not looking to be with anyone, maybe ever. I've had my one great love in life, and I don't need another. You'll see one day."

I scoffed, "I doubt it." I can't imagine what that person would even be like.

"You will, I promise," she said. "And I bet it will happen so quickly you won't even have realized it. That's what happened with Stewart and I, I was too cool to pay him any attention, really, but then I did and it was already too late." she smiled softly at the thought. "He completely swept me off my feet. That's what's going to happen to you, I know it."

"Oh, so you're a psychic now?" I rolled my eyes, making her smack my arm.

"Don't get sassy with me. I know what I'm talking about."

I took a bite of my burger unbothered. I'm sure she knows a lot about love but I just don't think it's in the cards for me. I'm not upset about it. It's just not for me.

"Can you look in your crystal ball and tell me anything else about my future?" I asked jokingly. "Perhaps something about me winning the lottery."

Now it was her turn to roll her eyes at me. "Just eat your food, Maya, just eat your food."