Love, Poetry, & Coffee

~ 38 ~

We both sit in silent, the anticipation that's been building for quite a while is making my palms sweaty. Knees weak. Arms are heavy... Okay, that's enough Eminem for today. Damn, my mind is all over the places. This happens whenever I feel like panicking and anxious about what might happen. In this case, I'm anxious on what Constance might ask me about my life. Please be something simple like what's my favorite color or something. I would love to answer those kinds of questions than answering a very personal one on the spot. There's a reason why I don't do impromptu entertainment.

"So..." Her eyes wander off from me and towards the window, watching a person who's walking their—I'm not even exaggerating—8 dogs. Do they work as a dog walking job, or that's their actual dogs they're walking? Because my God, that's a lot of dogs that needs love and care. I'm usually a cat person, but I find dogs adorable. Okay, that's a lie, I'm an animal person, but I'm not a people person. "That's a lot of dogs," Constance mumbles under her breath, and I find myself chuckling on our same thought process. When she finally gazes back at me, I can already tell what question she wants to ask me first. "Speaking of dogs, are you a dog person?"

I may or may not have sigh in relief when she asks the simplest of questions. I've already established this in my head, but I'm afraid that Constance won't agree with. With a slight shrug of my shoulders, I finally mutter out my answer, and I make sure that I'm using the appropriate words to insinuate my idea. "To be honest, you know how there's different kind of person, like there is a car person or a sports person." When I notice her head bobs up and down to show me she understands, I continue on my point. "I'm more of an animal person, so I'm basically both a dog and cat person."

She purses her lips together and raises both her eyebrows, "You really think your words carefully, huh?"

"Well, it's what writers mostly do in their day-to-day lives," I mutter as I give her another shrug of my shoulders. Uh oh, I could already tell what will be her next question.

"Speaking of being a writer, are you writing something recently?" She rests an elbow on the table while her cheeks leans in her palm. Her eyes shine with interest and I swear I haven't seen anything like that before. I've seen in before, but Constance's interest towards me seems stronger than the ones I had before.

Since she asked me that question, perhaps this is the great time to mention her name in my story. The problem is, how will I answer it without sounding too desperate? An involuntary sigh escapes my lips, and the person in front of me looks like she's attempting to read what's going on in my brain. Can't blame her, since I could feel the change in my expression when I've realized I'm about to spill her my story. "About that, I would like to ask your permission about something..." I let the last sound from my mouth trails off once I've realized Constance's sudden seriousness. How come it looks so scary to see her in a serious mood? Perhaps I've got to used to her happy-go-lucky demeanor.

"Permission to what exactly?" I'm certain that she can put two and two together. Constance is smarter than she looks, so there's no need for her to act clueless about this. She would only do this when she's delighted to see me stammer anxiously for the words I'm about to tell her. A soul full of mischief, that who's Constance Montgomery is in one sentence. She must have notice my sudden uptight nature because there's a sly grin that had formed in her innocent-looking face.

"Could you at least take down the scary investigator act for a minute? It's making me feel anxious." I did my best to plea at her while she chuckles at my honesty. Relief struck me once I've heard her soft laughter, at least she's not serious, even if it's just a moment. When she finally stops laughing, I gather all my courage to finally ask for her permission. "I would like to ask your permission to use your name in my story," A wince forms in my face and I feel like crawling under a rock, away from the society.