ENIGMA / Frank Subway surfers

10

walking to work, I remembered he was supposed to see me after today.. I felt a sense of dread, all I wanted to do was just go home and go to bed after my shift.

a couple hours had passed and I was cleaning up after I had served Tricky and Yutani. they had come to see me during work hours as I hadn't seen them for a while, I'm not entirely sure why.. it's not like I had been avoiding them, just too caught up in my own stuff I guess.

placing the used glasses onto the countertop, I saw that someone wanted to be served at the counter, and as I approached, I recognised who it was. it was fucking 4:30pm! why the fuck is he seeing me so early? maybe he's arranging with me to where we could meet?? god.

I looked up, and he was wearing his dumb mask.
"hey, Frank! how are you doing?" I asked him skittishly, his mask is really off putting.

"I'll just take a black coffee to go please."

fuck man, be polite I guess.

"...sure" I replied.

as I made his stupid black coffee, my mind wondered, and I started getting that awful sickly feeling at the bottom of my stomach. first of all, why am I feeling like this? and second if all, I only met this guy like 4 days ago, and THIRD of all WHY is HE making ME feel like THIS?

my mind wondered a bit too much.. I poured the boiling water into the French press, and accidentally started pouring it all over my hand that was holding it.

"D'HaGh!!" I made an awful cry, almost dropping the coffee pot, but thankfully I wasn't holding it too high on the counter, so i managed to get it down without any spillages.
my eyes were wincing and watering, and my hand stung a whole lot.

"just a minute..! your coffee is brewing..!!!" I shakily said while running over to the sink and running my hand under cold water.
looking back, his mask's eyes were aiming like bullets at me, pupils like needle pricks. I felt rushed, so I braced it and turned off the water and carried on.
this whole situation felt like 4 hours but it was only a mere 2 minutes, my hand was shaking pouring the coffee, and I handed it to him.

"here you are, that'll be £2, cash or card?"

"thanks." he uttered, not answering my question. he handed me a £20 note, picked up the coffee and left. the fuck was that ?? replaying the situation in my head, why was he being all mardy? I looked at the £20 bill and it had a note attached. it read:

"this is the only form of cash I have, keep it. I can't do tonight, work needs me, just came to let you know"

okay, understandable, but I don't know, be polite I guess??
why on earth am I actually so fumbled by this.
-
opening my bedroom door, it's now ten to seven, I throw my bag on my bed and sit down, picking up my phone, I think about frank coming into work today.
I open my messages without thinking, and start typing, finding his contact and starting a message.

"hey, why weren't you talking to me today when u came in"
I sent the message without a thought, and opened up tiktok for some mindless downtime.

checking every notification, I realise I'm being a bit too obsessed with him replying, and I don't really understand why. I've been left on delivered for around 2 hours now.
--

frank:

my personal phone beeps, and I look. it's (y/n), and she's asking me why I never spoke to her when I came in.
well, I kind of did, but I guess not in the friendly way she expects.
I mean, I couldn't really speak to her, I had an earpiece in, and work can't know I'm forming other relations outside of work. it's just a bit too dangerous, but it's bound to happen.. were human, we're made to form relationships.

I open my phone and start typing.
"sorry about that." I send, and the message was read immediately. someone's a bit eager..
"Typing..."
"well u couldve been more polite ig"
I sign, she's kind of right. but I didn't want anyone to hear me talking to her.
typing again, I say "I was on a work call, I cant hold a conversation with two people at once, I'm sorry"
and I hit send.
she just leaves the message on read, and I feel a slight twang of a pit in my stomach.

--
(y/n)

gah fuck this wtf am I doing for REAL. I'm gonna facetime tricky.
...
"hey girl! haven't seen you in a while, how are you doing!?"
she's laying in bed on her side, in a dark bedroom, and only her phone light is illuminating her face, and she's got a silly looking skincare mask on.

"you look dumb Trix, anyways, I'm doing well, I've gotta catch you up on stuff"

"omg tell me more" her eyes widened to the point I could see her phone screen in her eyes

"so you know that guy I met the other day when I dropped my skateboard in the subway and he put his number in my phone-'
"OMG HE PUT HIS NUMBER IN YOUR PHONE YOU NEVER TOLD ME THAAAAT???" she shrieked
"holy fuck let me finish!! I thought I told you.. so anyway he and I have gotten to kinda know eachother.."
"why kinda?" she asks
"well, I don't know a lot about him, and he doesn't know a lot about me, but he has slept over at my house-"
"HOLY FUCK?? DID YOU FU-"
"NO DONT EVEN QUESTION."

"oh.. then why did he?"
"he walked me home.. he saw me in the corner shop buying a fuckton of comfort food and he BOUGHT it all for me."
I could see her expression change rapidly
"what a gentleman!" she exclaimed
I laughed, and carried on with catching her up.

"so he walked me home, but his apartment was a way away, and it was storming and pouring it with rain, and he didn't have a car, so I just offered for him to sleep on the couch, and he took it. nothing happened, but it was nice to have company.. I guess.. he saw me the next couple days over, and he did ask if we could meet for lunch after my shift, which was supposed to happen today, but now I think about it, I think I'm overreacting about him doing this thing today.."

"that's kinda a hell of a story (y/n), what did he do today?

"so he came into my work, and was wearing this mask? you know the anonymous looking one. and he just bought a coffee, no hey, no how are you, just like.. deadpan. he gave me a £20 note for a coffee and the note had a written paper on it, saying he can't do tonight because of work."

"whooaah a £20? well at least he told you. I'm not sure what you're worrying about (y/n), I mean, the way you're complaining sounds like you low-key have a crush.. I could be wrong though."

I was taken aback, although she could be having me on. I don't think I like frank in that way, I haven't known him for long so there's no way that's happening.
I wish he didn't cancel on lunch though.