(BEING REWRITTEN) bitter coffee beans (with a side of warm latte)

picking up the pieces

Espresso would grab an umbrella, his bag and some boots and then he went outside into the rain. The café was a bit far, but it was fine to him, since he could have some alone time in the rain. 

Looking up at the sky as the rainstorm was raging as he walked, he turned the corner, seeing the café at the end of the street. He looked at his phone with one hand, while spinning his umbrella in boredom with the other. " Hmm.. The coffee Herb prepared must be getting cold now.. I must pick up the pace. ", He said to himself. As he walked faster, he thought of Madeline. That piece of shit. He growled, spacing out. Even as he spaced out, he was still walking quite fast, but then- 

Crash!

" Ugh.. Ow. What was that? " He found himself lying on the pavement with a stranger with long white hair that faded into a soft brown. Both of their things were scattered on the ground, And the stranger was rubbing their head. 

" Sorry if I bumped into you. I was out of focus for a second. " Espresso would say, still poised as ever.

Everyone near them was staring. Espresso and the stranger could almost hear the discomfort between the both of them. 

" Ahh.. Sorry about that, darling. Don't worry, I spaced out for a second, too. ", The stranger said calmly.

" ... "

" ...? "

" Ah, sorry if I called you darling. It's a force of habit. " She said sheepishly. 

Espresso gathered his things, and the stranger gathered hers. " It's no problem, really. Thank you for not acting weird about this,- Wait, what's your name? " Espresso would say.  " Ah. My name is Latte Cookie. I am a professor at The Parfaedia institute. " Latte said, as she introduced herself.

 The rain was pouring on their heads, and they were starting to get wet. Sitting in silence, Latte suddenly said " Oh no.. My precious books are a bit damp.. " Latte would sigh. " Oh well, I can dry them later. " She'd say. " Anyway, " Espresso would get up and reach out to Latte to help her up. " Here. Grab my hand, I'll help. " Latte took Espresso's hand, nodding as a thank you. " I guess this is the part where we part ways, Hm? " Espresso would say. " Yes, I suppose. " Latte would smile warmly, fixing her hair. " Goodbye, perhaps we will see each other again. " Espresso said. " Goodbye, darling! " She'd shout at Espresso as he continued walking. Espresso briefly turned around to wave goodbye, not noticing something was wrong.