Jess's POV

Ohio is filled with nothing but gross farms and bad drivers. I'm in Lima and this town is so small that everyone knows each other- which basically means that everyone gossips nonstop. I cannot wait to get out of here and travel for my writing. But for now, I am stuck in community college, working at a small vintage store to make whatever money I can. Today I have the inventory shift, which means I have to be at the shop at 8am. I groaned getting out of bed and heading to the bathroom. Damn nightmares. I'm so tired… The only thing about getting up this early was that my roommates were fast asleep so I could sing as loud as I wanted to while I showered.

Around 7:30, I drove to the shop. I parked in the back and let myself in through the employees' entrance, immediately running into boxes of old clothes as I opened the door. Everything smelled like it was from the 60's thanks to our hippie bosses. They have incense burning all the time. I sighed and picked up one of the bigger boxes, carrying it to the front counter and checking all the items into our system.

While I put the new items on hangers, there was a small knock on the door and I realized it was time to open. I rushed over and let the customers in. It was a young girl, probably around 14 and a guy around my age. I am guessing they were brother and sister- both had the same dark brown eyes. The girl quickly flew to the racks, while he stayed behind and smiled at me. He's gorgeous. Probably taken. I smiled back at him and got into my work-mode. "Hello, you both must be new around here. Visiting anyone or just stopping by?" He shook his head and shrugged, "We just moved here actually. Our dad got a job transfer to Lima so we have been looking around. Liz freaked when she saw the vintage shop… pretty much the only exciting thing about this town so far. N-no offense" he quickly stammered the last bit. I was not offended at all: "Don't worry, I totally get it. This place is too small-town for me. That's why I can't wait to travel- but let me go help your sister…" I turned to make my way towards the racks but he stopped me, holding out his arm. I looked up at him confused. "Sorry," he said, "Would you mind talking a bit more about that? You're like the only person who doesn't seem set on living here the rest of their lives and honestly it's so refreshing." I chuckled and shrugged, still peaking over at the racks, "I want to be a traveling novelist. I love writing and I have always wanted to leave Lima. I wanted to leave for college, but we didn't have the money." "So you've always lived here then?" he asked. "Unfortunately yes, but don't let your sister hear us, I want her to see some hope from your move," I joked. He smiled and walked a little closer to me, opening his mouth to talk when Liz came over with a handful of clothes. I smiled and grabbed them from her: "I'll get you a fitting room, lovely." The girl smiled, looking almost exactly like her brother in that moment, and followed as I lead her to a closed room in the back.

I stood outside the fitting room, telling Liz to come out and show me the different clothes. I was always fascinated to help strangers shop- plus, it usually helped my commission. Her brother came next to me and kept shaking his head at different dresses, causing his little sister to pout. "They make you look like an old lady," he'd say. I sighed quietly to myself as she listened to him and changed into her normal clothes. So much for that sale. Unfortunately, the guy heard me and looked over. "What, you think she looked like a normal teenager in those?" My eyes widened and I shook my head, "I mean no, but if she is confident in it, why does that matter?" I tried not to sound rude, but by his reaction it did not come out the way I wanted it to. "Come on, Liz. We're leaving." Stupid, stupid, stupid. They started walking towards the door and I yelled an apology after them. The girl stopped and smiled at me, mumbling that she still liked my shop and that she'd be back. The cute guy, however, still seemed a bit annoyed. Great way to start the day. Just wait until your screw up gets around town, Jess.

A few hours had gone by and the day was slow. I'd say we only had about 10 people in total come in so far. Right now, the store is empty and I am just sitting behind the counter, scrolling through the playlist on my phone. I decided to play some 80's rock. Suddenly, the door opened and two familiar faces walked in. Well, Liz was sort of pushing her brother in front of her as he rolled his eyes. She stopped when he was stood in front of me. "Say it," she grumbled, looking at him sternly. I looked at her confused and then at him. His eyes changed from looking annoyed to sympathetic. "I'm sorry- I thought you just wanted our money for yourself. I didn't realize you had been working here while your mom was in the hospital." Damn town gossip, now he thinks my mom is sick or something. I smiled awkwardly: "Uh, actually... my mom is a nurse… I really just wanted your sister to get one of the dresses because she looked so happy in them until you said she looked old." His eyebrows raised and he looked mad for a few seconds before smiling slightly, turning to his sister, "Her mom isn't sick... But wait- did you really like those?" She crossed her arms, "Duh- since when have I ever dressed 'normally'?" He chuckled and nodded her to go get the dresses, "Pick your favorite and I'll buy it for you." She smiled widely and ran to one of the racks. I looked at him and mumbled, "Sorry you heard false info about my mom... and sorry too for being rude. I am very friendly on a normal day- I just didn't get the right amount of sleep…" He cut me off and just shrugged, "It's no big deal, I was a jerk too. How about we start over? I'm Ryder- and you are?" He held out his hand and raised an eyebrow, waiting for me to respond. "Jess," I smiled, shaking his hand. "Well, Jess, it's nice to meet you. Now can you check us out?" I looked over as Liz came running with a black 50's dress, laying it gently on the counter. "You looked amazing in this one," I smiled at her. Then, I typed in the info into the cash register and looked up at Ryder: "That'll be $35." He looked shocked, but didn't argue. He pulled out the wallet from his pocket and handed me the money. "See you around, Jess." I nodded and handed Liz her bag: "If you don't, Liz will."