𝐦𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬. | conan gray

𝟎𝟓. | paparazzi

i walk into the café, a familiar bell jingling above the door. the scent of freshly ground coffee beans wafts through the air, triggering memories of days long gone. my heart is pounding with a mix of anticipation and nerves.

i breathe in and out deeply as i approach the counter, where my old coworker jenna has just finished serving a customer.

"hey, jenna," i greet her with a small smile.

"amy!" she exclaims, her eyes widening in surprise. "wow, it's been ages! what brings you here?"

"well, i've actually moved to the heart of new york. thought i'd come by," i say.

jenna's face lights up, "no way, that's amazing! you always talked about moving here."

"yeah," i reply, "it finally happened." i clear my throat. "uhm, so... i was just wondering... you remember conan, right?"

she replies, "of course! he's practically a regular, comes in almost every morning."

i can't help but feel a mix of curiosity and confusion. "really? every morning?"

jenna nods. "yeah, he's got his routine. gets his coffee, sits at the corner table, and works on his laptop for a while. quite a down-to-earth guy, you know?"

"why would he do that," i mumble to myself, forgetting the fact that jenna can hear me.

she shrugs, "i guess he just has sort of a special connection to this place, you know? also, it's a bit hidden, so he doesn't get bothered by fans too much. i think he enjoys the peace and quiet."

special connection.

"right," i mutter, trying to process this new piece of information. "thanks, jenna. i'll just order something."

"sure! what would you like?" she asks.

"uhm..." my eyes scan the table with all the drinks and pastries above my head. "what's conan's usual order?" i inquire, uncertain of why i'm asking. perhaps it's a weird way of hoping he'll walk through the door any minute now.

"he's a black coffee with cream guy. i actually think he never ordered anything else when i served him," jenna laughs.

black coffee with cream, of course. i don't know why i'm acting like i didn't know that. it's practically common knowledge when you're close to conan. well, when you were close to conan, in my case.

i attempt to laugh along, "alright, same for me then."

she nods and cheerfully prepares the coffee, her smile never fading. i've always admired that about her – her positive demeanor is consistently present, and i don't know how she does it.

suddenly, a rush of questions floods my mind. why does conan really come here? why every morning? that has to mean he's been in new york for a while now. but why? as far as i'm aware, he still lives in los angeles. has he moved here?

"why are you asking about him?" jenna snaps me out of my spiral of questions, continuing to work on my order, and i celebrated too soon, thinking she wouldn't follow up. "you two stayed in contact after his music video was shot, am i wrong?"

"yeah, uhm... well, we haven't spoken to each other in a while. i actually bumped into him yesterday, but he... he was in a rush, i guess. i didn't have the chance to catch up with him, so i thought maybe i'll meet him here."

"well, if you're lucky, he'll be here any minute; usually, he comes before noon. but if you want, i'll let him know you were here the next time i see him!"

i shake my head. "oh, no, that's not necessary! it's fine, really. otherwise, i'll check by another time," i say, trying to put on the best smile i have in stock.