Hearts of Coffee

One Americano, please.

Scarlett:

After walking for a few minutes, I carried the tulips in one arm while texting Charlie on my cellphone. Hey Charlie. You still on for that algebra study sesh? I typed, clicking the send button.

Finally, I stopped at the corner of Cornelia Street, greeting Tom, the cross guard. I've been living in Rosewood since I was little, so I basically knew everyone.

"Hi Tom, how's Daisy?"

"She's gotten a lot better, and she's so excited to start first grade." He said proudly.

"Glad to hear that!"

I reached the coffee shop right on time, then I peered into the glass door. Huh. No sign of Charlie. He had a shift today, but maybe he took his car and got held up in traffic.

I went in anyway, taking off my coat and brushing my fingers through my hair. There was nothing new. The usual smell of roasted coffee beans, those warm lights on the ceiling, things like that. I walked over to the counter, expecting to see Jacob or Kylie.

Instead, I saw someone else. It was a boy, taller than me, but about my age. He was leaning against the counter with his airpods in, his back to me. I stood there, drumming my fingers quietly on the counter before he turned around.

"Hello, what would you like to order?" He said in a monochrome tone, still staring at his phone.

I choked on my words.

"Uh- an americano, wait no, uhm yeah, an americano please, thank you." I croaked. What the heck was wrong with me?

He set his phone down and stared at me, at my eyes first, then my lips.

"Okay, anything else?" He asked coolly.

"Nope, thanks- actually, okay, thanks."

He turned around and started brewing the americano, putting his airpods back on.

I wanted to dig a hole and bury myself alive. What was wrong with me? I mean, I've never been that social, but I've never messed up that bad just talking to someone else.

I came back to the counter after working up a lot of unnecessary courage.

"Hey, wait a sec."

"Hm?" He turned around.

"Where's Charlie? He's usually here on Saturdays."

"Why do you wanna know? Are you Charlie's girlfriend or something?" He rolled his cold eyes. "Charlie's nothing but a lazy jerk."

What? Why would he say that? In the seventeen years I've been living, Charlie has never once been a bad friend to me, let alone a jerk. I became furious. The anger bottled up inside of me, until I couldn't take it anymore.

"You have no right, and absolutely no right to talk about Charlie like that. I think others would agree that you're the jerk in this situation, who do even think you are?" I balled up my fists. My face turned fuming red and my eyebrows crinkled.

"Whatever. What's the big deal anyway?"

"That's all you have to say? Seriously? Look you might not know him the way I do, but you can't go around calling him a lazy jerk." After a few seconds, I realized that everyone's eyes were on us, and I was leaning over way too closely. I could feel his breath on my face, practically close enough that if I tipped my head just the slightest bit, our lips would touch. But I didn't feel the need to care what he or anyone else here thought. Not today. Not now.

Swiftly, I made my way back to my table, and threw my textbook on the table along with my cellphone. I tried to read the first page of the textbook, but it was too hard to focus. I was out of my mind angry, and I didn't have the words to describe it. Volcanic? Agitated? Vexed? I might be better off buried alive right now or bitten by a thousand piranhas, like on that survival show. I looked at everyone else in the shop. Then I looked at him. Bingo. He was definitely new to town. I scoffed, what kind of newbie just moves here to talk trash about someone else? Picking on others because he has nothing else better to do? What a loser.

I fidgeted with my pen as I considered leaving. But a part of me knew I couldn't let that jerk win so easily. He was going to have to face me. Instead, I stayed glued to my seat, focused on the textbook, but it made no sense without Charlie explaining.

Suddenly, I felt the seat across from me move. I felt the slightest bit of hope that it could be Charlie here to fix everything. I looked up from my textbook, and lost that sliver of hope.

"Are you kidding me?" I groaned.

"What? Thought you could use some company." He said.

Don't lose it, stay calm, I told myself.

"You know, there's like twenty tables open right now. You can sit somewhere else."

"So do you have a name?" He asked, completely ignoring me.

"Will you stop pestering me? I'm just trying to study." I scoffed.

"Hi Scarlett, I'm Jace." He said, looking at the name on my textbook.

Jace slid the americano towards me.

"I don't want it, and I'm not paying for it, you can keep it."

"It's on the house. Take it as an apology."

I mean, it did smell good. It had that rich smell of an americano, which I could never resist. Slowly, I picked it up, still keeping my eyes pinned to him. I took a small sip. It wasn't bad. But I immediately changed my mind, as my eyes searched the shop for the nearest trash can.

"Did you put sardines in that?" I snapped at him after forcing myself to swallow it.

"Nope. I followed your perfect boyfriend's recipe." He grinned smugly.

"Okay, he's not my boyfriend. You need to stop saying that." I popped open my textbook. Time to get serious.

"Need help?" Jace asked, noticing the puzzled expression on my face that I didn't hide well enough.

"No, I don't," I said sternly.

"Well, I could keep you company." He offered again.

I looked up at him. I didn't want to make this situation any messier.

I sighed. I raised my eyebrows at him. Maybe if I let him, he'd just get bored and go away.

"Fine. But don't think about pestering me, I'm already stressed as it is."

"You got it." His icy eyes were glued to me. I tried not to look up too much and stared at my assigned reading instead.

"So, you wanna hang out sometime?" He ran his fingers through his dark hair.

I shot him a glare that said "Definitely not."

"Okie-dokie then."

A few minutes passed. He tried to strike up some more conversation.

"You have any hobbies?" He grinned.

"Nope." I rolled my eyes subtly.

Jace checked the time on his phone. "I gotta get back to work, see you later." He slapped a bright yellow sticky note on the table and jotted behind the counter.

I pulled the sticky note off the table. He had written his address and phone number. I flipped the sticky note onto the back, and the word "friends?" appeared in messy handwriting. I groaned. I stood up to leave, then threw the "americano" in the trash on the way out.