The Suite Adult Life

Halloween (1.3)

Bailey sat in the cafe, nerves coursing through her system. She was shocked to get his text. But not surprised at how sparse their conversation had been. Greetings, scheduling, and location. She wasn't sure what she expected. She had hoped there would be more warmth to his voice. But she couldn't really expect that, not after how they left things. It was ten years of not knowing and not telling. Of running away and burying that part of her life. She would say their chance encounter was unexpected, but that wasn't the truth either. She had followed his career, subscribing to the Times just to find his name and photos in print. It took some internet stalking, and a little bribing and cajoling, to find his neighborhood ending with a prayer for luck that he had become the man everyone said he had.

Right now, her fiancé, Chad, didn't know who she was meeting with. If she was lucky, he would never know. Friends go for coffee all the time. Friends who hadn't seen each other in ten years certainly would make the time. But she and Cody weren't friends. They were exes who were each other's first love. Who made carefree vows to spend the rest of their lives together, no matter how far apart they were. And she was the one to break it.

The bell hanging from the door rang as it opened, and the lanky boy that was all limbs crossed the threshold. He was still on the thin side but he had filled into his shoulders and his legs somehow looked impossibly long in the well fitting denim. He was dressed smartly. Did he dress up for her? Bailey wondered. No tie, but a white oxford with his sleeves rolled up and a well worn leather jacket slung over his shoulder with his black curls playfully falling to one side. She wondered if he always had curly hair. It was thicker than she remembered and the scene kid bangs were replaced with a more sophisticated yet easy playful coif. She almost expected him to wear a hat. Fedora or beanie maybe. But all it did was make her want to run her hands through it. She was certain he got that a lot though.

Bailey had come from work. Not a power suit but a fitted sapphire dress whose color accented her brown eyes and now chocolate tresses. She missed the easiness of her blond highlights that being on the farm or the boat brought her. But brunettes were taken more seriously in the legal field. Legally Blonde may be a beloved film but it was still just a fantasy.

The barista handed Cody his coffee without him making an order. He turned around and saw the light of the window haloing his ex. A small carafe of cream and a basket of different sugar packets sat in the middle of the table. Always prepared, she was. He cleared his throat trying to catch the beat his heart skipped at the sight of her. No way to escape or buy a little more time. He could really use a cigarette right about now.

As Cody sat across from her, he noticed her smile wasn't as easy as before. There was a forcefulness to it. Was she nervous? What did she have to be nervous about?

"Hi." Her soft voice cut through his thoughts. "I thought for a moment you might not come."

He sniffed in a breath, yeah a cigarette would be really great right now. One of those hand rolled, tobacco scooped fresh in front of you kind. France was the last time he had one of those. France... fuck. "How come?"

Bailey shook her head and shrugged a shoulder, "no reason. How have you been?" She took a sip of her latte.

"Busy. Halloween usually is." He, too, sipped at his coffee half pretending it was a cig. He wasn't trying to play it cool. He was trying to steady his heart and the way his hands shook from nerves.

"I'm sure there's a lot of people wanting their picture taken!" She smiled, trying to lighten the mood. Sip.

He nodded. Sip. "So what is it that you do?"

"Oh! I'm a lawyer. Corporate, that is." Sip.

"Yale Law? That's impressive. But, you always were." There. He gave her a compliment. He could tell Zack that he was being nice.