"She's here."

"Who?" I asked, looking up as Margot suddenly rushed into the kitchen.

I squished the dough back into a ball and flattened it out again with the roller.

"Sabrina."

I stared at Margot.

Worry was written across her face. I hadn't seen her that stressed since the swimming team had gotten food poisoning at a swim camp she had led.

"I don't know what she's doing here." She anxiously paced up and down the kitchen. I was scared she'd trace right through the carpet of flour I'd accidently created. "This place is way out of her way."

I shrugged. "Maybe she wants a Mocha latte."  Even as I said it I knew this wasn't true, Sabrina was not here simply for a coffee.

I bit my lip and pressed down hard on the cookie cutter, slicing the dough into perfect little circles.

I would bide my time out in the kitchen, I decided. I wasn't particularly interested in having to interact with the Barbie Demon anytime soon... or again in this lifetime.

It was a shame for Margot though, she was on serving tables. Still, I didn't understand why she looked so anxious. I knew that her friends and Sabrina had fallen out, but surely it wasn't so bad she couldn't even serve her?

I looked at Margot standing in the shadows of the doorway looking miserable. I tried to give her a somewhat encouraging nod.

I mean, it was just Sabrina.

She certainly didn't have any power of me anymore. But maybe for Margot it was different. They certainly had been attached to each other.

I shrugged, not my business.

Margot muttered something and then left the kitchen back into the dining area. I took a deep breath and continued happily cutting out circle shapes.

Just as I had constructed the most perfect pastry shell, Angel stuck her head around the door.

"Sorry Riley, we're filling up. I need you out front."

"No problem."  I lied.

I gave my pastry shell a mournful look then turned and walked through the doors. .

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It was heading to noon on a Saturday. So the restaurant was a buzz. I assisted Julien by whipping around the tables and giving people their different orders.

I'd just set down a strawberry cheesecake in front of a man reading a newspaper, when I spotted Margot at Sabrina's table a little way over.

Margot looked like she'd just walked into her execution.

She stood rigid like a statue. Her face was so pale she looked almost ghostly... and her fingers were tightly knitted together.

Her jaw was clenched and she was completely silent, which was a first.

Sabrina, on the other hand, was jabbing on and on! I could see that every word Sabrina said was like a added spike in Margot's body. Even though she was standing, Margot seemed to virtually shrink in front of Sabrina.

I felt bad for Margot. I thought she might crumble or something.

Without thinking, I put down the man's tea next to his cheesecake, and quickly moved across the room.

I appeared next to Margot's side in front of Sabrina's table.

I looked solemnly down at her. There was still time to turn away...

Just being within the breathing space of this girl, put a sour, stale taste in my mouth.

Sabrina regarded me in suprise.

"Oh isn't this great!" Sabrina's shrill cackle made me want to hit her over the head with an extra large menu. But unfortunately that was against our customer service regulations.

"It's soooo cute you two would work together, predictable really," She cooed, she shot me an ugly look, "Margot, you did always have a problem of opening up bad habits."

Her comment flew right over my head. Sabrina didn't scare me, she didn't intimidate me! In fact I felt pity for her. What a sad excuse for a human.

"We're not together." I cut in, though I didn't feel I had to explain anything to her.

She pouted with her oversized lips, making her look more like a duck than ever. "Aw that's such a shame, because poor Margot over here was so sad, weren't you Margie?" Margot glared at Sabrina and I'm pretty sure in an alternative universe she would have blown up Sabrina's million dollar head right there in the coffee shop.

"Yes," Sabrina drawled on, "Margot was so mopey and sad for... Ages! I tried to tell her she could do better." She laughed again. I rolled my eyes but I could feel the tension radiating from Margot.

I honestly wasn't listening to what Sabrina saying anymore - there were tables that needed serving.

"It was a shame Margie," She sighed, checking her immaculate nails, "You were really quite pathetic," She snorted, "You must be so glad now that you get to work long hours alongside your beloved." Margot recoiled and I chewed the inside of my cheek.

I'm not going to lie, I felt awkward.

"Actually," Sabrina put on a pretend shock expression and put down her glass, "I should be worried about the cleanliness of your hands, I don't know what you two do behind the count-"

"Is that what you came here to do!" Margot snapped. I gave her weary look, she needed to be careful, she couldn't be seen being 'rude to the customers'. No matter how many lines Sabrina crossed, Margot had stay polite.

But Margot seemed to have had enough of being chided by Sabrina. Her eyes were fiery, her face was red, I wasn't sure whether it was from anger or embarrassment, but I could see the vain popping out of her neck.

The fear she had demonstrated about Sabrina in the kitchen had completely evaporated.

I was kind of impressed. Sabrina was a bully. Her words meant nothing.

"Did you travel all this way just so you can come and make my life difficult."

Personally I felt Margot was waisting her breath....

Of course Sabrina had!

"Are you that vengeful and spiteful that you can't just leave people alone. L-l-let them live their lives!"

She was growing hot. I stared at her, her face was contorted in a mix of such anger and hatred that I was quite taken aback. She looked like she could jump at Sabrina.

Sabrina was completely unaffected by this. She smiled wickedly up at Margot, obviously satisfied in reaching her goal of aggravating the girl... and causing yet another upset in the universal veil of peace.

I placed my hand on Margot's arm. She was getting too worked up and it was starting to draw attention.

"Hey," I whispered, "I'll deal with her, you go back to Julien and help him."

Margot wasn't looking at me, "No you don't have to," She said through gritted it, "she was my friend, you shouldn't have to-"

"It's fine." I said, I was desperate to stop Margot from making a scene. I knew Angel, as kind as she was, would not be pleased if Margot shredded one of her customers. No matter how deserving, said customer, was of being shredded.

Margot was still glaring at Sabrina, but she nodded slowly and turned away.

"Aw, so cute. The girlfriend helped miss huff-n-puff out of her tantrum!"

Margot traipsed away without saying anything more.

I turned back and looked at Sabrina.

"Would you like to order anything?" I asked impatiently .

She looked at me menacingly a sly smile on her lips.

I sighed and let the menu drop to my side. I wasn't waisting my time if Sabrina wanted to mess around.

"What do you want Sabrina?" I said matterafactly. "I'd like to get to work please."

She took a long sip of her decaf latte. She kept her eyes focused on me, as if she was zooming in on her prey.

I didn't move, I stared straight back at her, awaiting an answer.

Finally she set down her drink. She regarded me as she spoke.

"I don't know why you think you can compete with me." I arched an eyebrow at her. I had to resist the urge to laugh. She thought we were in some sort of competition? "You're not even a millimeter close to me."

"Thank God." I muttered.

Her nostrils flared, "Don't act like you're better than me Riley. Because believe me, I have one thousand more friends than you do."

"So.... I'm guessing you don't want to order then?" I tapped my notepad.

Sabrina gritted her teeth, irritated that she hadn't hit her target.

"Listen, Riley." She growled. "You might be back with Margot but-"

I huffed. And shoved my notepad into my pocket. I was annoyed. I had lost valuable work time and my patience for this self entitled pathetic, plastic, princess had worn out.

I put my hands on the table and leaned into her face.

"No, you listen." I said, my voice was a low. I made sure her eyes were locked on mine. "Sabrina. You are a selfish, arrogant, concieted person." I was definitely breaking the customer regulations now, but I didn't care, she needed to be put in her place. "But I'll be honest with you. I feel sorry for you. You have to be pretty empty and unfeeling to find joy in messing with other people's lives." She was looking at me with such loathing, but she didn't speak. "I don't have space in my life to deal with people like you. But I pray that somehow you look inwards, do a shit load of soul searching, and hopefully find happiness within yourself one day. But for now I'll tell you two things," I dropped my voice so low only she could hear, "I do not appreciate you disrupting my work day and I don't not  appreciate you upsetting my co-workers."

I gave her one final hard look then pulled back and walked away towards the counter.

Margot was staring in our direction. She held a glass in one hand and a blue and yellow cloth in the other.

"What did you say to her?" Margot gasped as I walked behind the counter.

I shook my head, "Don't worry about it."

Sabrina let out a what sounded like a mix between a bark and a squeal and snatched up her bag. She stormed out of the café. I nodded my head satisfactorily, knowing that something I'd said stuck.

Sabrina's half drunken latte sat on the table.

"Did she pay for that?" Louis' sturdy figure was on the other side of Margot, he pointed at the drink.

"I don't think she did." I said smoothly.

Louis grunted, "Well that's a problem." He clicked his beefy knuckles and walked out of the café.

I winced. I would not want Louis on my bad side.

Margot looked at me with wide eyes. I gave her a little smile.

"Come. Back to work." She said tossing me a dish towel. "These glasses aren't going dry themselves."

"Yeah," I muttered catching it in my left hand. "Especially since you're so incredibly slow!"

I knew that a damp dish towel would collide with the back of my head. But that didn't stop me from flinching when she hit me.

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"Thank you for standing up to Sabrina earlier."

It was the late afternoon and the café had died down. We were starting to clean up for closing time.

Margot was wiping down the tables while I stacked the chairs. We had done it in silence until she spoke now.

I looked over at her, "No problem. Sabrina's a bully."

Margot sucked in her cheeks and nodded.

"Why did you freeze up like that?" I asked, remembering how she'd turned as white as a sheet in front of Sabrina.

Margot stopped wiping down the counter and stared at the table. I cocked my head at her.

"Riley, you know how I said that Sabrina was constantly in my ear, whispering and saying things?" I nodded slowly. "Well it was more than that," She sighed and dragged her hand through her hair, "Sh-she reached a point of... controlling me." She sighed at the confused look on my face, "I know you probably won't get it, but it came to the point where I had completely lost my identity. I was nothing but... A puppet."

My frown deepened. I tried to register this. I found it hard to believe. It must have been pretty bad if Margot, Margot! The most self assertive, stubborn girl I knew had become a... Servant to Sabrina?

"Anyway," She continued wiping down the table, "After I'd come to my witts end, and after we had the big fight, I -I became sick."

"Sick with what?" I asked lifting up another chair.

"Um, in my head sick," I turned to look at her, she was grim, "I wasn't okay... Uh, Mentally."

"Oh." I said, wetting my lips. "I -I'm sorry."

My heart suddenly felt a little heavy.

She smiled at me, "It wasn't your fault. I was stupid and made dumb decisions." She moved and put the last chair on the table for me. "I cut out good people in my life, people who," She glanced at me nervously, "who cared about me."

I had nothing to say but that seemed okay because a she continued speaking, "So, yeah, seeing Sabrina so casually seated in the café today it... I don't know, it took me back to that time."

I assumed she meant the time when she was mentally unwell.

I still didn't know what to say, but I figured I should say something.

"That sucks." I finally said.

I internally kicked myself! That was the most immature, unsympathetic thing I could have said!

But Margot took it well. She nodded and laughing said, "Yep, it sucked." I felt relieved. "Thanks though, I am grateful for what you did."

"Yeah well, I figured I should try stop you from getting yourself fired." I gave her a smug look, "I'm not sure if you know this but viciously attacking our customers is something we try avoid doing here at Cofeesio."

She gave me an exasperated look and I grinned.

"You wanted to hit her too."

I nodded.

"After all the rubbish she was saying," I shook my head, "Ya, I really did."