× Mercury

"I ordered waffles, not pancakes."

"Right, I'll go fix that for you," I smiled before grabbing the plate of pancakes and heading to the back to make the correction.

I couldn't make it there before someone stopped me, asking for cream for their coffee. I told them I would be right back with it as the door of the bar opened and more customers walked in. I quickly smiled at them in greeting before I picked up an empty bowl sitting on the edge of a booth and made my way to the back once again.

"There's two orders ready, you going to deal with it or what?" the cook asked once I was behind the counter.

"Are you going to get them right?" I retorted, placing the pancakes on the ledge of the window between the bar and kitchen. "They ordered waffles."

The cook double checked the order and gave me a look. "How in the hell am I supposed to read your handwriting?" he sneered, holding the order list in front of me to prove his point. "That looks like pancakes to me."

"Just fix it," I said sternly.

I grabbed the two orders on the ledge along with the coffee creamer. I put some menus under my arms and went back out onto the floor. Someone asked for a refill on their drink as someone else wanted extra cheese on their chili fries. I quickly told them I would get right on it just as the door opened again with more customers. I didn't bother greeting them this time and continued to do my rounds, giving the lady her coffee cream and handing out the menus to the new comers.

Left and right I was being asked to get this, or to fix that; being ordered around like a puppet. But I wasn't complaining. It wasn't Finn's fault that he called in sick and asked me to manage for the night. It wasn't the customer's fault that it was only Jillian and I working on a Monday night. And it wasn't the cook's fault that all the breakfast dishes were discounted for today only.

Strange as it might seem, I wanted this. I wanted this hectic atmosphere because if I was to stop what I was doing, even for a second to catch my breath, I would think about Niall.

He wasn't in English earlier today, but I guess that was understandable. After what I did to him, I didn't blame him for skipping out to avoid me. But he also wasn't at practice, which was pretty much comparable to death in Coach's book. But I had a feeling Niall didn't care. I had a feeling he didn't really care much about anything now.

I was a horrible person.

I've never been on either side of the heart breaker or the broken hearted because I've never been in love with anyone before. But I was feeling pretty awful, to the point of making myself throw up, so I couldn't image what he was going through...

"Waitress!"

I suppressed a sigh and made my way over where I was called. "Do you know what you want?" I asked the group, forcing a smile.

"Do you have anything that's gluten free?" a woman questioned. She had short blonde hair, lips the color of blood, and a black dress that barely reached her knees. "I'm trying to lose weight."

I should have told her that there was absolutely no evidence that getting rid of gluten will result in weight loss, but I only smiled and told her what we had. She ended up ordering a glass of water. That's it. I quickly took the other people's order in her group and went back to put the orders in for the cook just as he fixed the waffle order along with three other plates.

From the corner of my eye, I saw Jillian on the other half of the room looking just as busy as I was, but handling it a lot less smoothly. She was continuously running a hand through her hair anxiously, her smile was wavering, and I could see on her face that she was about to snap at any moment.

I took two of the orders in my hand and the other two on the crook of my arms and went out onto the floor once again.

Right as I was passing by a table, someone took that moment to push their chair out.

One second I was standing, and the next I was on my hands and knees, food a mess all around me. Scrambled eggs, French fries, burger buns and patties littered the floor. The ketchup and other sauces had splattered up onto my shirt and face along with any surface in the splatter zone.

Everyone in the room stared down at me like a train wreck. The place was deadly quiet, nothing like a good humiliation to silence a room.

Gritting my teeth together, I sat up and slowly gathered the plates off the floor, thankful for whatever reason that they didn't break, and stood on my feet again. Then I turned on my heels and went into the kitchen and dropped the plates into the soapy sink before heading into the backroom.

Control and composure was the one thing I always was, especially on the field. But at that moment, alone in the back room, I lost it. I ripped my name tag off my shirt and hurled it against the wall. I didn't even bother untying the white apron around my waist and tugged it off before throwing it on the desk in the corner.

I couldn't go out there again. Not because I embarrassed myself, but because I couldn't handle it anymore. Not only were we under staffed tonight, but it was like everyone was oblivious to that fact and made everything that much harder. Not to mention the tips they were leaving were shitty.

I was already under emotional stress, not to mention physical with the way Coach has been treating us at practice.

It wasn't worth it anymore.

After convincing Annie to take over my shift, I left through the backdoor. I probably would have left without a word, but Jillian would have been all alone and as it was she was taking it pretty hard. If Finn fires me after this, then so be it. I had too much on my plate as it was, getting fired from this place may just be a blessing.

I ran all the way to the Aspin House, making sure to keep my mind blank of any thoughts of him.

Pushing through the doors, I slowly made my way up the steps and to my room. I thought skipping out on work and going home to go to sleep early was the better option, but when I opened the door to my dorm, I should have stayed right where I was at The Courtyard Bar.

But then again, if I would have stayed, I wouldn't have seen this.

"What the fuck are you doing!?"

Chloe looked over at me, eyes wide, caught in the act. All the lights were off in the room, the moon shining through the window illuminating her features and the object in her hand. Chloe quickly dropped the camera on my bed and stepped away, like that would make this all better.

"That's mine!" I yelled as I grabbed the camera. "Why the hell were you looking at it?"

"I was curious," she said. "You're always playing something on it before bed and I wanted to know what it was. I'm sorry."

I clutched the device in my hand. "So that gives you the right to look at it? Do you see me going through your things without you knowing?"

"I'm sorry," she said again. "I just- I'm sorry."

I ignored her and turned the camera on and looked through the pictures. When a familiar video started playing, I exhaled the breath I didn't know I was holding in. It was still there. Chloe didn't carelessly delete it. Did she see it? Has she put the pieces together yet?

Chloe kept looking at me, probably waiting for me to forgive her. But I wasn't going to do that. She was going through my things, that didn't deserve to be excused.

"Jesus," she suddenly said. "Are you bleeding?"

"What?"

She took a step toward me but instantly stopped, thinking better of her actions. "You're face. Were you in a fight?"

I went to the vanity and looked at myself in the mirror. The ketchup that had splattered on my face and neck could have looked like blood in the darkness of the room. My hair was still up in a bun, but it was a mess and my eyes looked dead. I could have easily pulled off looking like I just got out of a brawl.

"It's ketchup," I explained to her. "Rough night at the bar."

Grabbing an old shirt of mine, I wiped off the sauce on my face and neck and changed into some pajamas. I'll make sure to take a shower first thing in the morning. At that moment, I just wanted to get to bed as soon as possible.

"On the video," Chloe said into the silence, looking at her hands. "Was that woman your mum?"

I ignored her and grabbed my toothbrush and paste. So she did see the video.

"Did she die in a fire?"

"You should learn to stay out of people's things, Chloe," I advised before stepped out into the hallway, closing the door behind me.

Taking my things, I walked to the woman's bathroom down the hall. All the lights were off once I stepped inside, meaning I was all alone. Flicking on the lights, I put my stuff on the counter and stepped into one of the stalls.

Just as I was about to exit the compartment once I was finished, I stopped when the bathroom door opened and two girls walked in. I didn't hesitate on leaving the stall because of the new arrivals, but because of what one of the girls was saying as they walked in.

"-Mercury at the New Year's Eve party?" one of them was saying. "I saw her leave one of the restrooms, hair a mess and I swear I saw some hickeys on her. God, she's such a slut."

"Who was in the room with her?" the other girl asked.

I pressed myself to the stall door, peeking through the crack at the girls. They were standing at the sinks, looking at their reflection in the mirror. I didn't know the girls, but apparently they knew me.

"Get this," the first girl said, turning to her friend with a wide grin that was clearly full of secrets. Her dirty blonde hair was obnoxiously yellow and frizzy. "Niall Horan came out shortly after her."

"No! You don't think-"

"Absolutely not," she said with a sneer and a look of disgust. "Niall would never go down on someone like her. She's way too egoistic for him. You saw the two of them go off on each other when she first joined the team."

"Then what do you reckon happened in that restroom?"

The blonde looked at herself in the mirror. She pushed her boobs together and made kissy faces at her reflection. "I don't 'reckon' anything. I know," she said, glancing at her friend before she went back to the mirror. "She got Niall in there somehow and tried to seduce him. Niall told her no and she got mad. He left the restroom all wet. Apparently she soaked him in the shower."

"So you don't think the rumors about them are true?" the friend asked.

"God no," the blonde said. "Lynn probably made all that up herself. You saw her when she first got here. She walked the room like she owned everyone inside. She may be a blessing to the football team, but anyone with any common sense can see that she's a slutty fake looking for attention."

The friend fixed her hair in the mirror, looking like she didn't quite believe what the blonde was saying, but was too scared to say so.

"But all of that is irrelevant," the blonde said, adjusting her shirt one last time before she started toward the door. "Because when I get Niall alone at the party this weekend, he won't be thinking about any girl but me."

I waited a few minutes after they left before I exited the stall. I went over to the mirror and stared at myself. The shiny surface was covered in greasy fingerprints and there was a lipstick smear near the bottom edge. However, through the mess, the mirror showed the girl the world saw. But that wasn't right. Inside were fireworks and rage, love and frustrations, ambition and fear. All they saw was light brown hair and the kind of blue eyes you forget while you're still looking at them. All they saw was a slutty, arrogant, attention-seeking girl.

But maybe I've been wrong all along. Maybe these girls had me pinned down to a T.

After I brushed my teeth, I walked out of the bathroom and made my way back to the room. Chloe wasn't there which surprised me. It was around nine in the evening, where could she possibly go?

I took the silence into my own hands and grabbed my laptop and sat it on my bed. I popped in a Friends DVD and pressed play. I was about five minutes into the show when there was a knock on the door.

"Just a second!"

Removing the laptop from my lap, I got off the bed and adjusted my shirt before going to the door and seeing who the visitor was.

Elizabeth McGrath was tall, tan, and built with raven black hair falling in lush curls down her back. Her bright, vibrant blue eyes were identical to her daughter's and her cheekbones were to die for. It was no wonder she was on the cover of thousands of magazines as she had that natural Photoshop, unrealistic beauty that no one could achieve.

"What are you doing here?" I asked, completely and utterly dumbfounded that my friend's mom was at my door.

She laughed. "I expected a hello."

I blinked at her one last time before opening the door wider for her. "Sorry, I'm just surprised is all. Come in."

She stepped inside and looked around the room, touching things on my dresser and desk as she did. I closed the door after and stood in the middle of the room, wondering why the hell she was here. Macey was telling me that she never sees her mom anymore; I really would have thought she would go home during a free time.

"I happened to be in London and thought I'd pay you a visit," she explained. "Macey has told me all about your adventure to get here."

I took a seat on the edge of my bed, not really sure what to say. I've talked to Elizabeth before, countless of times, but this was the first time I was doing it alone... and I was slightly intimidated. When she was with Macey, it was easy to see her as a mom, but knowing I was in a room alone with one of the most famous women soccer players in the world, well, that was a different story.

Elizabeth picked up a picture frame from my desk and looked at it. "You look so much like your mom," she observed. "I always thought so, but now that you're older, there isn't any denying that you're Rachel Mercury's daughter."

"I was always told I was a spitting image of her," I said.

She sat the picture back and looked down at me. "I'm sorry I wasn't at your parent's funeral," she admitted sadly. "I tried all that I could to get out of the press conference, but it was out of my hands."

"I understand," I said with a smile. "I've been in that position lately and I get it."

Elizabeth nodded, a knowing smile on her lips. "Yes, I've seen quite a lot of you lately. For only being in college soccer, you've really made a name for yourself."

"Unfortunately, that name comes with another," I muttered under my breath.

Running her hands along the dresser top, Elisabeth walked the room and took a seat at my desk chair. "You're talking about that Niall guy, right?"

I didn't say it for her to hear, but I was secretly glad she did. It would be nice to get an expert viewpoint on all this and see if this might have jeopardized my chances of going professional. So I nodded my head slowly.

"Yeah, it's a shame the media created this whole imaginary world around you two," Elizabeth said as she leaned forward on her elbow. "Especially since it's a known rule that it's practicably forbidden for you two to see each other like that."

"It is forbidden," I clarified.

Elizabeth looked at me with curiosity in her eyes, and I was worried she would ask me the status on mine and Niall's relationship and I wasn't sure if I should be truthful with her or not.

"You know what, I personally think that's a fucked up rule," she said and I couldn't help but smile, knowing exactly where Macey got her sailor mouth. "I'm sorry for my French, but who does your coach think he is? It's not going to effect the players if you decided to get involved with one of them. If anything, it would make you stronger, I think."

"You might be right, but it doesn't matter," I said sadly. "If it happens, then it's all over."

She smiled then, but it was a smile I knew well from Macey. It was cunning and sly and totally McGrath trademarked. "You mean, if you get caught."

The twinkle in her eye told me that she knew more than she was letting on. And if I was being honest, I didn't care if she knew the whole history of Niall and I. Because at least someone who knows doesn't look at me like I was being ruthless or stupid and acting on my hormones. She looked at me like a human, like a friend of her daughter's, like a soccer player.

"Does your coach have any other stupid rules?" Elizabeth asked. "Like no watching porn or sacrificing your first born?"

"No, nothing like that," I said with a laugh. "But he does have a rule that if you don't show up at the practice before a game, you don't play in that game. The only way you can get out of it is if someone died."

Elizabeth looked mortified. "What? That's the biggest load of bullshit I've ever heard. Your coach sounds like he's manipulative - creating all these rules to keep you in check."

"He definitely likes to be in control."

"I should have a talk with him. He's not treating his players right."

I shrugged. "There are a lot of complaints, but it's not a big deal. We've been managing."

Elizabeth continued to tell me that she was going to have a word with him, and I continued to tell her that it was fine and if things got out of hand, we as a team can take care of it. I didn't want my friend's mom getting involved, especially with the status she has. In the end, I promised her that I would let her know if things were getting out of hand because she was happy to set Coach straight.

"I suppose I should be more concerned about my daughter," Elizabeth finally gave up. "Whenever I call her, she just gives me curt answers. I know this isn't ideal, but I thought she understood this condition."

"She does," I assured her. "She knows you're busy, but you're still her mom and she needs you."

Elizabeth tapped her fingers on the desk beside her. "I did say I would show up for thanksgiving, but there was an emergency meeting with my manager. Maybe I can work things out and see her for the summer. Or maybe I can take her with me..."

"I think whatever you decide to do, Macey will be happy just as long as she's with you."

"You're a good kid, Lynn Mercury," she smiled at me. "You deserve all the good things happening to you right now."

Five minutes later we were saying goodbye and I was left alone once again in the room. I finished the Friends episode I had started and then completed four more after. It was past eleven when Chloe got back. She gave me a small smile and grabbed her pajamas and went to the bathrooms to take a shower.

It was nearing midnight when I finally crawled into bed for the night. Before I could even shut my eyes, however, there was a knock on the door. Chloe and I looked at each other. She shrugged her shoulders and said that she wasn't expecting anyone.

When I open the door I came face-to-face with the bluest eyes I had ever seen. Jace looked at me, his black hair a mess and cheeks wet like he had been crying.

I already knew what happened before he spoke.

"She's gone. Hazel died."