Lullaby

You're coming, right?

Scarlett stared down at the text on her cell phone debating on what the answer to Josh's question would be. Her first thought was no. It had been a long day at school and all she wanted to do was change into some comfy clothes, cuddle up in front of the television, and watch one of her favorite horror flicks. Plus, she wasn't in the mood to watch Josh and his friends get wasted. But then again, it was Friday night, she was twenty one years old, should be out and about having the time of her life. Tomorrow was her day off, she could always be her lazy self then. Her phone vibrated in her hand again.

Get your arse down here right now. Please.

The text made her crack a smile. How could she refuse now? He asked so unusually nicely. Saying please to her was a rare occurrence for Josh. She unlocked the screen on her phone and texted him back.

Calm your tits, I'll be right there.

Scarlett rummaged through her dresser drawers finding something to wear. Apparently, her tardiness this morning had made her forget that it was no longer winter and the weather was far too hot to wear a long sleeved plaid shirt in. She threw different shirts every which way hoping that one would pop out and tell her it was the one to wear. A sudden pop sounded as something fell onto the floor. Scarlett looked down to see that an empty paper coffee cup had fallen to the ground. It instantly made her smile. She picked it up and turned it over until she saw Josh's handwriting. It read: Cheer up, Grumpy. His phone number was scribbled underneath it with a smiley.

TWO YEARS AGO

"Scarlett!" Her boss yelled to her, slamming his fist on the door. "Let's go! We have customers!" Scarlett was hiding from her boss in the supplies closet recovering from an anxiety attack. She had been on her feet all day, her boss and customers were screaming at her left and right, and she was exhausted and stressed. Just a few more insults from a tired and cranky customer, she swore she was going to throw their coffee order right in their face. Another loud bang sounded on the door, making her jump.

Scarlett had taken a job at a cute little coffee shop down the street from her apartment in South East England. A few months before, she moved to England from her home in New York City to intern as a photographer's assistant in hopes to achieve her dream of being a talented photographer someday. While her internship paid for her humble abode, she still needed money to live off of during her stay in England, resulting in her less than enjoyable job at the coffee shop.

Reluctantly, Scarlett emerged from the supplies closet and took her spot at the counter. She could feel her boss's eye glaring at her from afar. A slew of insults towards him and anyone who gave her bullshit gathered in her mind. A perfect ending to the day would be throwing a coffee pot straight into his plump face.

Her violent thoughts were interrupted by a customer. "Um…'ello!"

"What?" Scarlett groaned. She turned her attention to the person in front of her. She immediately felt sorry for her attitude when she saw a scruffy, brunette guy standing in front of her. "Josh! I'm sorry about that. It's just…" She threw her hands up in the air, it seemed to be a better explanation for her day than any words could have been.

"It's nice to see you, too, Grumpy." Josh chimed back with a smirk dancing on his face. He had been coming into the shop for as long as Scarlett had been slaving away there, probably even longer. When he wasn't on the road with his band, he came in everyday. Luckily he was one of the more tolerable customers. Whenever she waited on him, he always said some sarcastic or crude remark that would make her spit one right back at him. It wasn't long before the two became acquaintances and Scarlett found herself looking forward to when he would come home from tour.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah." Scarlett rolled her eyes at him. She grabbed a pen and pad of paper and got ready to take his order. "What will it be, Dopey?"

Josh gasped. "What? No rude comeback? I'm disappointed, Scar." He clucked his tongue while shaking his head back and forth.

"Don't call me that."

"I'm afraid we're going to have to do something about this, Scar." A cunning smirk appeared on his lips once again.

Scarlett glared at him. He ignored her request to not call her by her awful nickname and he was refusing to give her his order. Any minute now, they were going to hear her boss yelling at her. "Josh, c'mon. Just tell me what you want."

His smirk quickly turned into a frown as if he was hurt that she wasn't joking around with him this time. "Okay. I want an empty cup." His finger pointed towards a stack of cups behind Scarlett. She furrowed her eyebrows at him in confusion. "Go on. Get it."

"Ms. Wesley!" As predicted, her boss was busting her ass again.

Scarlett closed her eyes and took a deep breath before answering him. "Can you give me one minute? I'm with a customer right now." Her voice stayed as collected as it possibly could while speaking to him. Without another glance towards him, she grabbed a cup from the top of the stack and turned to Josh again, handing him the paper cup.

There was a sympathetic look on his face as he took it from her hand. After receiving dirty glances from most of her customers, his face was the first one to make her feel the least bit better all day. He slipped out a pen from his back pocket and began scribbling down something on the cup. Scarlett kept peeking over at her boss to make sure he wasn't looking to howl at her again.

"Here you go, darling." Josh nudged her with the cup before handing it to her when he got her attention. She rotated it around until she saw his writing. 'Cheer up, Grumpy' she read as a her face beamed. His number was written below it with a smiley face.

"Give me a ring tonight, yeah? We'll do something and there'll be less yelling." Josh's eyes glimpsed at her boss. Scarlett chuckled under her breath.

That night was the first of many nights Scarlett hung out with Josh. It was as if they had been friends forever. Their friendship was so comfortable. They could be assholes to each other without worrying about hurting the other's feelings. They could sit in comfortable silence enjoying each other's company without any pressure to say something. Josh quickly became Scarlett's first friend since arriving in England and soon enough, her best friend. He introduced her to his bandmates and slew of other friends.

Her horrible and lonely time in England made a quick turnaround, thanks to Josh. When her internship was over, she couldn't bare the thought of moving back home. She was so much happier in England. From not having her parents around to bring her down every chance they got to feeling like she belonged somewhere, it was better for her there. She transferred to a local university to finish getting her degree in England and left her old, depressing life back in the states.