The Coffee Shop

There she was again.

She wore pants that accentuated her figure, along with an oversized sweater that made her look adorable. Her blonde hair was tied up in a loose ponytail and several strands fell in front of her face. Her glasses somehow made her green eyes more noticeable, and let me tell you this, I was never so fond of the color green, but if you saw her eyes, you'd understand why I was secretly crushing on this girl.

She was beautiful.

Every day I noticed something new about her. Is that creepy?

Maybe.

Okay, yes.

No?

I don't know. I mean, I'm just admiring this beautiful girl from afar. Nothing wrong with that, right?

She sat down and flipped through the book she had been reading since yesterday.

I know what you're thinking. I'm not a stalker. We just happen to come to the same cafe every morning around the same time. And F.Y.I. I know pretty much all the familiar faces in here. I just know hers more than others because she's new.

I took a sip of my coffee and directed my gaze from her to the newspaper I had bought.

C'mon, Jack. Pull yourself together. Stop staring at her so much. She's probably got a man. Or she could be looking for one.

Hey. I could be that man. I mean, I'm not that bad. I'd give myself a solid eight. . . out of twenty. So maybe I have insecurity problems. Who doesn't?

I had inner conflicts about the beautiful blonde as the days passed by.

I should just go up to her and introduce myself. It should be easy, right? I've introduced myself to people a thousand times before.

I started to rise up, but then I felt something strange in my stomach and sat back down.

Tomorrow. Tomorrow when she orders something, I'll sneak behind her and say, "Make that two, please," and then I'll pay for her order and then we'll talk and laugh and live happily ever after with kids and grandkids.

Not.

Not unless I chicken out and do nothing about it!!!

Tomorrow rolled by a little too soon.

I woke up in a grumpy mood. I couldn't find my lucky shirt. I lost my wallet in the jungle (A.K.A. my closet). I was out of milk. I would continue on listing every other horrible thing that happened this morning, but the list is far too long and I just really want my coffee right now.

I grabbed the loose change and the couple of dollars I left on the counter and set off on foot to the cafe.

I heard sirens and millions of conversations going on as I stepped outside of the apartment building. I turned right and went through the maze of people to get to the coffee shop.

As soon as I stepped inside, I smelled the amazing aroma of all sorts of coffee flavors. My mouth was ready for the warm taste of heaven. I went up to the cashier and handed them the money for my drink.

"You're missing a dollar, Jack." Nathan, the employee working the cash register, said.

I frantically searched all my pockets for any other change that I might have.

"I'll be right back, Na-"

"I can get it for him." I turned around, startled by the sweet, angelic voice.

It was her.

I stared at her for a moment with my jaw dropping a slight bit, then I snapped out of my daze. "No, you don't have to do that. I live just a minute down the street. I can-"

"No, don't be ridiculous. It's a dollar. I wouldn't want to have you mess up your daily routine." She said.

Nathan gave me my coffee and gave the all-too-kind blonde female hers.

She looked up at me, smiled, and started to walk over to her usual seat. I caught up with her.

"Thanks. For the coffee. You really didn't have to." I said.

"It's no problem at all. I see your addiction with coffee. I have one as well. I can't go a day without it, which is really horrible to a person's health, but it could be worse." She sat down.

This is your chance, Jack. "Do you mind if I sit?"

"No, no, not at all!"

"I'm Jack, by the way." I held my hand out for her to shake.

"I'm Ezra, but you can call me tonight." She shook my hand and winked at me.

I gawked at her. Did she really just use a line on me? This girl's got more balls than me!

She laughed. Her laugh was almost sweeter than my coffee. "I'm kidding, I'm kidding. You should have seen the look on your face, though!"

I laughed with her, admiring her gorgeous smile.

I called her that night.