Coffee

There he was again! I hid my grin behind the newspaper I was reading at the café. Every day at just after one o’clock a handsome dark blonde man wearing a dark suit walks in and orders the same caffeinated drinks in takeaway cups. When he goes to leave, as he strolls past the petite tables and heads to the door with his lean body, he glances over at me, wherever I’m sitting in the café, he catches my eye and smiles. At first, it was just a small gesture, the corners of his lips turning up so slightly that I barely noticed it. These days he was showing his bright white teeth in a very gorgeous grin. He was a stunner who must have a good job, and was clearly content with his life. Anyone could judge him like that just by glancing at him for one second. I felt so flattered he took the time out of his work day to come here and smile at me. Such a simple act, but it easily made my day.

I watched as he strode up to the counter and ordered the usual; no surprises there. He waited for the drinks, keeping his focus forward as he fiddled with the edge of the counter. I stared at him the whole time until he finally received his drinks. That was when I diverted my attention back to the fine black print that I was attempting to disguise myself with. Most days it sat on the table next to my mug and sandwich as I read, but today I wanted to observe the stranger behind it. I stared intently at one word at the top of the page, using my peripheral vision to watch him. His blonde hair walked over to the door and looked over in my direction, his teeth shining at my direction. But I wasn’t looking. Well, to him I wasn’t. And then he broke his routine.

The stranger paused, his hand outstretched towards the door handle, but not touching it. Then his arm fell to his side and he weaved between the tables, heading straight for me. My eyes fell down further, my heart speeding up as I attempted to concentrate on the article. What was he doing? This wasn’t part of his habit! He was a positive thing in my day, something I looked forward to, but talking to each other could ruin it. It would wreck the mystery that he was surrounded by. I wasn’t sure if I was willing to risk that happening.

“Hi,” a deep voice said simply, no signs of joy or anxiety in the tone. I flicked my eyes up, spotting the blonde man towering above me. The whole moment felt so cliché. I noticed his features were even sharper and more gorgeous up close.

“Hi…” I managed to breathe. I noticed my newspaper was still up, and quickly put it down on the table.

“I’ll just be honest… Your beauty has caught my eye, I like that you seem intelligent and interested in current events because you read the newspaper every day, and I really want to get to know you better…” he sort of blurted. It was as if he hadn’t done this before, but still knew what to say to flatter a woman. “I was wondering if I could go on a date with you. Maybe we could grab some coffee, since we both seem to like it?”

“No,” I replied curtly with a slight smile. He stuttered a little, shock all over his face.

“O- Oh, um…” he began, awkwardly trying to find a way to shamefully leave. I chukled a little, catching his surprised attention.

“I said no to the coffee, but yes to the date.”

“Oh. Wow, what a relief,” he breathed before chuckling lightly.

“After all this observation, you never noticed I don’t drink coffee?” I teased and he laughed as he ran a hand through his light hair.

“No, I never got here early enough,” he answered. “What do you drink?”