Tea for Two

Surprise!

"So, I walked in to find a dead mouse and a VERY smug cat!" Sarah was regaling Annie with her tale of woe.  Sarah was still disgusted at the thought of the half chewed dead mouse, and Annie was almost howling with laughter.

"Oh my God, I can just imagine Sumo Cat thundering around. Death and destruction in his wake." She wiped the tears of laughter from her eyes. "Thanks, Sarah. I haven't laughed like that for a long time! Now go and open up, please.  We're late!"

They trooped through to the front shop, and Annie nudged Sarah's arm.  "You do the door, I can't reach the top lock." She grinned, and Sarah sniggered.

"Short-arse!" She mumbled under her breath.

"I heard that!" Annie retorted from behind her. "Get a move on you. We've a queue already!" Without looking, Sarah swung the door open and on the dot of 8am, at the head of the line, in walked a very determined man. 

"Tom!"

"Sarah!"

For a moment, they looked at each other, and silence descended. His eyes seemed bluer than she remembered. His smile brighter.   Sarah, on the other hand, was every bit as perfect as Tom remembered.  Her eyes twinkled, her smile as pretty as he'd pictured.

"Hi."

"Hi."

They stood like two awkward children at a school party. Each excited, neither wanting to show it. 
Annie decided to give them a gentle shove.

"For God's sake, you two, just agree to go on a date and get ON with it!"

Tom and Sarah turned and looked at her, each horrified and thankful. They could blame someone else while getting all the benefits!

"Sarah?" He actually called her by her name, and it took her by surprise.

"Oh! Yes?"

"Would you like to?" He smiled and took her hand in his. Her hand was small and delicate, her eyes wide and beautiful.

"Yes, yes, please." She smiled up at him.

"Good.  Good." He stared at her smiling, and she she stood looking at him. 

"Aaaand??" Annie rolled her eyes and shook her head "before we all die of suspense?"

They looked round, and the cafe was full of silent onlookers, just hanging on every word. This was better than any Romcom on the tv!

"Oh yes, I mean, well, tomorrow? Dinner? Pick you up at seven?"

"Yes, yes, please." She smiled up at him.

"Good." He stared at her again, smiling.

"Thank the LORD!" Annie said loudly, and everyone clapped.  Tom and Sarah blushed furiously, and he let her hand go.

"I - I better go, I have a script meeting." He stood, not moving an inch.

"Yes, you better go." She smiled.

Annie saw where this was going. With a smile and a laugh, she walked up to them. "You!" She pointed at Tom."Go to your meeting."  Tom blushed and nodded.  "You!" Now she pointed at Sarah."Counter. Till. Now!" Sarah giggled, Annie looked at her in surprise.  Sarah actually giggled like a schoolgirl!

The two of them parted, and the world returned to normal.  For about sixty seconds.

The door burst open again, and Tom marched up to Sarah. "I dont know where you live!" He said with a palm to the brow.

Quickly, she wrote her address on a leaf of her order pad and tore it out.  Tom took it and folded it carefully into his pocket.  Then they stood looking at each other again. Smiling.

"TOM HIDDLESTON GET TO YOUR MEETING!" Annie scolded him with a laugh.  The door jangled loudly as he disappeared in a flurry of goodbyes.

Sarah looked at her friend, words failing her. Annie just smiled and winked, walking away to the back shop. She should take this up professionally, she thought to herself with a smile.

Sarah closed the door behind her and leaned against it, smiling like an idiot. In her hand, she clutched a bunch of flowers. They'd appeared a couple of hours after Tom had left. He'd burst in, run up to the counter, handed them over, and kissed her hand. Then, like some kind of reverse Cinderella, he'd scooted away again, jumping into a taxi and off.

She'd stood, amid the ooh's and ahh's, grinning as Annie rolled her eyes. Was this man real? Was he actually a Disney Prince? She looked on in amusement as Sarah clutched the flowers, sniffing them as she walked through to put them in some water till she got home.

"I'll just... I won't be a minute... I'm just going to... "

"Go! I won't get an ounce of work from you till you do!" She laughed. As Sarah disappeared, she lifted her phone.

"Gemma? Hi, it's me.  Can you do me - well Sarah - a favour?...."

So that was how, an hour later, Sarah was home having been given the rest of the day - and the next day - off. As she'd tried to object, Annie had simply pushed her gently to the door with a smile.

"You are liable to either cut your own hand off with a cake knife, pour boiling water on yourself or just  moon about scaring the customers. Go home and scare Cosmo instead! And details. I want gory details after ok?"

Sarah had nodded and floated home on a cloud of anticipation and nerves.

"Cos? Is that you? What are you doing now, you wee devil?" She heard a rustling in the hall and scrambled from her seat on the sofa.

Nothing. No cat.  Oh, wait, what was that? She spotted a note on the floor behind the door.  Bending down, she picked up a sheet of paper, folded in two.

"Hi.  Look out your window."

She looked around the hall as if somehow that would magically allow her to see outside. She laughed and scrambled to the window. Surely Tom wasn't here early? Please let him be here early!

She pulled the blind up in the living room, her heart racing. Could it be?

As she squinted down into the street, her eyes settled on a smiling upturned face. A face she would recognise anywhere.  Her stomach churned, and she let out a gasp. 

He was standing next to her pride and joy, leaning on the roof waving. His face was lit up like the sun, obviously enjoying every minute.

As she watched, he walked over to her front door, and she lowered the blind, coming back to let him in.

"Sarah!" He walked in and hugged her tightly. "Surprise!"

It was a surprise, alright. She would never have expected this in a month of Sundays. Finally regaining the power of speech, she turned to him as she closed the door. Barely able to believe it, she said faintly,

"Ty! You're here! You're actually here, now, here, in my home....."