Looking Up

-----Elle's POV

As I sweep the bakery floor after the afternoon rush, "Play it Again" by Luke Bryan plays through the speakers.

"Elle, are you going to sweep the same spot for the next 10 minutes?" Mel yells over to me from behind the counter. She's an old family friend who's been working here for the past three years- she just got out of college for the summer so she's finally able to work again.

I chuckle a little bit and give her a small smile; I'm not in a joking mood today. "Hey! What's wrong?!" she asks me.

What's wrong? What's wrong???! The Flyers lost Game 7, and I haven't seen Steve in days, sure we've texted and all but nothing compares to seeing him in person. He's been in an off mood since they lost a night ago- which, of course, I don't blame him for it. Watching them lose like that crushed me and the rest of Philly. But I can't tell Mel that; she'd think I'm crazy- she isn't much of a hockey fan and the last thing I need to hear from her or anyone is, "it's just a game." So, I just say "nothing, just tired- don't worry." She nods and starts telling me about her spring semester and all of the parties she went to.

After a couple minutes of her talking, I zone out- I can't help it, I just have so much on my mind. I'm so worried about how my dad's been doing- I haven't heard much from my mother, which could be both a bad or good thing. I miss Steve- but does he miss me? Do I miss him too much? Does he think about me when I'm not around? It's so frustrating being in this "limbo" with him. It's literally driving me crazy that I have no clue whatsoever what we are or what I am to him.

All of the sudden Mel gives my shoulder a little shake, "Hey! Elle- I said how's your spring going so far."

"Oh- uhm- sorry- it's been.. okay."

"No- c'mon tell me more. Don't give me that "okay" shit- your aunt mentioned Steve so I want to know what's going on between you two! You've been in a rut since Wednesday, time to get out of it and talk." I like Mel and all, but she's all about "tough love" and sometimes it's a little hard to take, especially when I'm feeling like this. As soon as I start to tell her about everything, I hear the bell on the door ring, and I see Mel's eyes widen. I give her a confused look and start turn around to face the door to see what she's gaping at.

"Hey! Elle!" Scott Hartnell yells startling me. Steve, Claude, Wayne, Scott, and Jakub's faces greet me with smiles. My starts to beat faster, "uh- hey guys!"

While the guys walk around the bakery looking at the different pastries and cakes, Steve stays where he is, still smiling at me. "Hey, sorry about not being around for a few days Elle," he apologizes with a heart melting side smile. "Sorry?!" I blurt out, "You were- well- doing your job! There's no reason to be sorry!"

"Hey lover boy, pick out something to eat!" Scott yells to Steve while he is paying for his coffee swirl pastry. We all laugh at Scott's nickname for Steve and he picks something out to eat. Within a few minutes, we all combine some of the tables and sit down to eat our sweets. Aunt Kate lets Mel and I take a break and eat with them since we practically begged to her on our hands and knees.

The guys tell us where they're going for the summer- a majority of them are heading back home tomorrow. As we all sit there and talk, I can't believe I'm actually having the chance to hang out with them. Many of the people that come in and out of the bakery stop and ask for their autographs, and of course, they all happily gave them their autograph. It's amazing to see them off the ice and out of their jerseys and in an average environment.

Before the guys leave, Steve takes out his phone. "Hold on guys!" He opens up Instagram, and holds up his phone to take a 'selfie'. "Hey get on the other side of the table, we need to all get in this." Mel, Claude, and I get up and stand behind Wayne and Scott , attempting to fit into the square picture with Steve's head right in the front. After a couple of 'move over''s, 'wait, move back''s, 'move to the right more''s, Steve finally takes the picture. While he is uploading it to Instagram, a few of us are standing around talking about random topics. "Okay we'll hopefully see you guys soon!" I say to them as they start to leave. Steve gets up from his chair and jogs over to me,"Elle, I'll be back in a few, I got a ride with them, but they're going to drop me off at my place, but I'll be right over, okay?"

"Sounds good!" I reply cheerily. He grabs my hand strokes it a couple times and follows the rest of the guys out of the door.

"Oh my god! You guys are so cute together! Are you two official?! Any dates yet?! Spill!" she asks me hurriedly as soon as the door closes. "Well not yet and I don't even know if we ever will be. As far as dates, we went ice skating, and then out to a club with them after a win." I tell her as we put the tables and chairs back. "Well that's upsetting!" she exclaims. 'Yeah, tell me about it' I think to myself. "Now that the season is over, I'm hoping that I get some answers to questions that have been killing me," I add.

After a few minutes of putting the room back together and cleaning, I lean on one of the pastry display cases and check Instagram to see what the picture that Steve posted looked like. I start to laugh out loud right away and show Mel; it is such a silly picture of all of us crammed into the little square space. The caption is "One last day with the boys before they leave for the summer with two our new favorite girls. #goodlookinggroup #dreamteam #summeriscoming #thegirlsarefatteningusup #thebakeryisruiningmybeachbody." Mel and I laugh at his hashtags for a while- there's no perfect word to even describe him.

Suddenly, Steve texts me: "Headed back over now!" Before I can text him back, I am getting a call from my mom. My stomach starts to twist- this can't be good.

"Hey mom!" I say trying to sound cheery. My mother lets out a sound that sends chills down my spine. She inhales and exhales quickly a couple of times in hopes to pull herself together- I can tell she's been crying. My throat starts to tighten and I fight tears back. "Hey honey, I have some bad news," she says while fighting back sobs. I don't say anything back to her. I try to, but I can't even find my voice; I just wait for her to continue- the silence between us kills me.

"Well, uhm, Dad stopped his treatment. The doctors said that his numbers weren't improving so they decided to stop chemotherapy. H-honey, they told me.. he.. has about 15 weeks left."

My heart drops and I feel myself crumbling into a million pieces.

Notes

Hey everyone! Sorry it took so long for me to post this chapter! Things got a little busy around here with family and work. Hope you enjoyed this chapter- I apologize that it's so short, but the next one will be up within the next couple of days.

I wanted to create some suspense at the end there! Will Elle finally tell Steve about her father? Or will she fight the tears and put on a smile for him like she's been doing all along? Thank you so much for reading! I love feedback so don't be afraid to comment!

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