The Spade Coffee

Chapter 3

Ace had Marco's number for two days before he gathered the courage to send him a text. 'I hope you had a nice day' and another second later 'It's Ace btw'

'Hello, Ace.'

And that was how their exchange of texts began.

Ace was sitting on his couch texting Marco since he came back from the grocery shopping. It was dark outside, and he was waiting for his home made pizza to bake. 'How many languages do you know?'

'I can read latin, ancient greek. I speak french too. And you ?'

'Sabo and I learnt German in school, I can still understand some but I can't speak it really well.'

November started and more people were coming in the coffee. It was the lunch break, when Ace received a text.

'So why baking?'

'It was something my mom and I did together when I was little.' Ace hesitated before sending a second text. 'After my mom died, I wasn't able to bake for a year, it's when I found her notebook with all her recipes, that I began to bake again.'

Marco was in one of the booths reading a book, when his phone vibrated in his pocket, he got it out and see a text from Ace. 'What books do you like? Do you have a favorite?'

'I appreciate fantasy. Right now, I enjoy reading again A Discovery of Witches from Deborah Harkness. And you, did you read a lot? What do you like?'

'I don't read a lot, but I enjoy adventure novel occasionally'

'Okay, What did you want to be as a child? I wanted to be a pirate.'

Marco chuckled as he imagined Ace with a wooden leg, a hook and a parrot on his shoulder. 'I can imagine it. I wanted to be a dinosaur.'

'So, do you feel like going to see a movie? With me'

Ace was talking with Deuce, when he received the text, he stayed silent staring at it after he read it.

"Ace, what's going on?" Deuce asked, seeing him frozen.

Ace turned his face to look at his friend. "Marco ... Marco asked if I wanted to go to the cinema."

"Oh, like a date?"

"I... I don't know. I mean, we have been exchanging texts with each other for a while now, but he could still ask as a friend, right?"

"That's possible." Deuce nodded "But you should ask if it is what he means. You know, to avoid misunderstanding."

"Yeah, right. I'm gonna ask" Ace began to type and sent 'As a friend thing?'

Deuce waited until Ace read the answer before asking what Marco responded.

"He said he asked for a date, but if I wanted to be friends only, it was okay for him."

"Sooo, what are you going to answer?" Deuce asked.

Ace took a rag, threw it at him and chased him out of the kitchen. He took his phone back. 'I'm buying the popcorn'

Ace and Marco agreed to go see Encanto the following Friday night. Ace arrived in advance, a little nervous. Sabo had come by his apartment to help him choose his clothes, and his choice fell on a pair of tight black jeans. Sabo had tried to make him wear a dress shirt but Ace had reminded him they were only going for a movie. So Ace chose a t-shirt and plaid shirt with the sleeves rolled at his elbow, and of course he put on his combat boots.