Promising Young Woman

A Deer in Headlights

Cassandra stands behind the counter at the coffee, an old mystery classic in her hands, chewing on straw with a candy cane pattern on it. Her braided hair sits on her back as she flicks her bangs out of her eyes. She's wearing a white top covered with a little drawing of a rose plastered all over the shirt, tucked into a pair of light blue denim jeans, cuffed at the bottom. Sitting on her collarbone is a gold necklace—one that means a lot to her.

It's a golden chain with a half of a broken heart, the name "Nina" engraved in it. Cassie remembers Nina fondly. Friends since she could remember. Her best friend.

One of her only friends.

Nina was one of those girls that everyone liked. Everyone wanted to be her friend. Paired up in their sophomore year biology class for a project, Nina formed a close bond with the girl in the coffee shop. They did everything together. Hung out. Went to the movies. To the park. Carpooled with her to prom. Talked on the phone for hours, those hours feeling like just a few minutes. Everything. 

She yawns as the bell jingles, momentarily overpowering the sound of the faint indie pop music that Gail always loves to play. This time she's playing "Nihilist" by MUNA. Cassie thought it was a neat song. Slow. Sensual.

"Can I get a coffee?" a voice asks.

"Mm-hm," Cassie replies, setting her book down without even looking up to take a glance at the man. She turns around and heads to the coffee machine, grabbing a blue paper cup on the way. "You want milk?"

She turns around once again as she's met with silence. The man is staring at her.

He's a tall guy, running at about six feet tall. Skinny. He's still got that bowl cut that was popular in the earlier part of the decade, but it looks good on him. He smiles at her.

"What?" she asks.

"Cassandra?" She stops at the sound of her name. How does he know her name? She's never met the guy before. Or has she? Maybe they knew each other long ago? She can't remember.

"Yeah?" Her voice is stern. She's not amused.

"I'm Ryan."

Cassie still looks confused.

"Ryan Cooper? We were in the same class together at Forrest! Doctor Hadid's class?"

She fakes it. "Oh, yeah. Ryan. Hi." She sounds completely uninterested.

"What are you doing here?" He sounds rather condescending. He realizes this, correcting himself, "Wait. No, I'm so sorry. That was rude. I didn't mean—"

Cassie cuts him off, "You didn't mean what am I doing working in a shitty coffee shop?" Now she's amused.

Ryan trips over his words. "No, I didn't mean... I just thought... Oh, shit. There's no way out of this, is there?"

"Nuh-uh."

"Can I go out and come back in again? I can do another take?"

"Do you want milk?"

Ryan stops. "What?"

She looks down at the full coffee cup without a lid. "In your coffee."

"Oh. No." He stands there silent for a moment. Then, "But you can spit in it if you want. I deserve that."

She looks him dead in the eyes—no bullshit—and spits in his coffee, keeping eye contact with the man dressed in a blue wool shirt standing in front of her. She hands it to him, which Ryan accepts without hesitation.

He's silent again, looking for a way to continue the conversation. "Do you, uh, wanna go out sometime?"

She stands there, flabbergasted at the question she's just been asked. She just met the guy. "What?"