YOUR DEMEANOUR

Chapter 1: Le Petit Café

Le Petit Café

There is a cafe owned by a French lady named Adaline Boneit. She is 38 years old and travelled from Nantes, a small city in France, to London to open her cafe. The cafe is located near the British Army's ministry office and is often visited by a fellow soldier who takes breaks while patrolling the city. Averyn, a 22-year-old girl, works part-time as a barista at the cafe. The locals refer to it as the army cafe due to the frequent visits by soldiers.

"Excuse me, Madame. Our cafe has been frequently visited by the army. Don't you think we should change the name of the cafe from Le Petit Café, to Army Cafe instead?" Averyn shared her thoughts with her boss, Adaline, in a casual tone.

"Ma chère petite fleur, I don't think that's necessary. The name of the cafe is already in place. Besides, shouldn't you be working on cleaning the coffee filter?" Adaline jokingly commanded Averyn, though she was still being strict.

Averyn pouted as her boss didn't take her joke. "Yes, Madame..." She went back to the coffee machine to replace the old coffee filter. "I'm just joking anyway..." she adds softly as she heads to the coffee machine.

Adaline chuckled softly at the young girl's reaction, finding it cute. "This café has the honour of frequent visits from the army. It's a pleasure that our country's soldiers have chosen this café as their go-to place for coffee. Don't you agree, Averyn?" She calmly took a seat beside the counter, enjoying a cup of freshly brewed coffee made by Averyn.

"I understand your point, madame. However, I can't help but feel uncomfortable. Most of my customers are men, and it seems like they are more interested in me than the coffee I serve," she said while quickly and skillfully cleaning the coffee machine as instructed.

Adaline chuckled softly at Averyn's comment. "That's because there's a cute flower in this beautiful garden, my dear. Of course, the bees would want to approach you upon seeing how sweet you are," she complimented Averyn's appearance. Despite hating it, Averyn had become the mascot of the cafe to attract more customers. However, she couldn't help it since she needed to work to survive.

Averyn rolled her eyes. "If they don't pay enough for the coffee, I'll chase them out. This cafe needs to make a profit!" She said while shooing something away with her hands.

Kling!

The sound of the bell from the door signalled the arrival of a customer. Adaline got up from her seat and went back to the kitchen while Averyn fixed her appearance to greet the customer. It was the soldiers who had visited the cafe on parade day. Averyn smiled, remembering how awkward it was for her at that time.

"Hello, sir. What would you like to have today?" she asked warmly, but the soldier remained unresponsive to her sweetness. He scratched his neck and gave a stiff smile.

"Um... I would like something sweet today. A hot mocha, please, with extra whipped cream on top," he ordered shyly. The other soldiers also placed their orders. Then, Averyn's eyes met with the cold-hearted Lieutenant, Calliax, who also placed his order. The usual word that had almost made her lose her temper with him.

"Sure, I'll get that ready right away!" she said before turning back to prepare the drinks.

After a short while, the coffee was ready. Averyn herself delivered the drinks to the soldiers who were seated by the big window in front of the counter where they had just placed their orders. She carried the tray carefully and placed it on the table before serving the drinks to the soldiers, being cautious not to spill any. "Here are your coffees. Please enjoy them," she said warmly, bowing a little before returning to the counter to wipe it clean while waiting for the next customer.