Heartbeats & Ink

Sofia

The night after our first discussion, I lay in bed, replaying the conversation over and over again. The excitement of finally talking to him made it impossible for me to fall asleep. i called my friend Tatia, a very well know model at golden media agency, as much as she has one heck of a scandalous life, i can not be more grateful to god for her being my friend, i called her and we had a long conversation about my conversation with Adrian, it was the first time i was very intrigued about a guy and apparently talking about it with my best friend, When Tatia asked if I was in love, I laughed it off, insisting that he was just a crush. But her warning about men being heartbreakers lingered in the back of my mind.

The next day at the cosy cafe, my heart raced with excitement at the mere thought of seeing him again today at the gym.

The café is filled with the warm, inviting scent of freshly brewed coffee. As I walk to the counter, I notice the sunlight streaming through the large windows, creating a golden glow.

"One iced americano please!" I ordered. my mouth watering at the thought of the iced americano, a perfect balance of bitter and sweet.

Suddenly, I heard a familiar voice behind me. "Iced americano for a girl as sweet as sugar? I guess this bitter drink won't suit you," he teased with a smirk. My cheeks flushed at his comment and I turned to face him, catching a glimpse of his pumpkin spice latte being served. "Hm...a Halloween drink in June? Someone's really into fall early," I quipped back, It was him, Adrian my new found crush,

That was the moment when our eyes locked and I noticed a cute little dimple on his left cheek, just like mine. We stood there in silence for a few seconds, lost in each other's gaze until we were interrupted by a voice from behind me. "Hey, move it! Take your love staring contest somewhere else!" I snapped back to reality, realising that we were holding up the line at the counter.

Embarrassed, I gave him an apologetic nod and quickly moved away towards my usual seat. But to my surprise, he followed me as I was seated on my seat and asked, "Is this seat taken?" My heart skipped a beat as I responded with a shy smile, "Yup, been saving it for you." Realising what I had just said and done, my eyes widened in shock. "I-I'm sorry...I didn't mean..." I stumbled over my words in embarrassment. But he simply laughed and reassured me with a kind smile, "Hey hey hey, relax. It's okay, I don't mind." And with that simple gesture, my nerves calmed down and we spent the next hour chatting and getting to know each other better.

Adrian

This one encounter, one conversation in silence is what I wanted and I guess universe is quite on my side for this, I couldn't help but take my self to the nearby cafe today as I was quite tired from my shift, I needed my caffeine for the day, however I was not expecting this coffee takeaway turnout to be a coffee date with Sofia, I recognized her the moment I came close to the similar caramel fragrance, this time more fresh and exotic,

When I commented on her choice of drink, She sassed back at me, making me laugh and instantly feel comfortable around her. We were so lost in each other that we didn't even notice the line forming behind us until someone spoke up. As we moved to the side, I couldn't help but steal glances at her and wonder if this could be something more than just a chance encounter. And when she looked at me with those big doe eyes, I knew I had to talk to her more. So I followed her towards her seat as she left, determined not to let this opportunity slip away.

"Are you waiting for someone here? A date perhaps?" She looked up at me with surprise in her eyes, and I could smell the faint scent of caramel on her breath.

"A date? Seriously Adrian? Look at me," she said dramatically, gesturing to her casual outfit. "I am looking," I replied, unable to tear my intense gaze away from her. She blushed and murmured something about never wearing pants or a t-shirt on a date. I couldn't help but laugh at her words. She was too cute for her own good.

"So what brings you here?" I asked curiously, hoping for an opportunity to spend more time with her.

"I'm here to write," she said, a small smile playing on her lips. "Sometimes I just need a change of scenery."

"Do you come here often then?" I inquired, noticing that I had never seen her here before.

"No, I actually just discovered this place recently. This is only my second time here," she explained. "But I can see myself coming back more often."

I couldn't help but feel like she was hinting at something, but I didn't want to jump to conclusions.

"What about you? Do you come here often?" she asked, turning the question on me.

"To be honest, I come here quite frequently," I admitted.

"I usually come here when I need some peace and quiet. The smell of medicine all day can get overwhelming. Plus, the aroma of coffee draws me in, but these days some other fragrance is drawing me in."

"What is it?" she asked curiously..

"Caramel," I replied with a sly smile. She was smart and understood exactly what I was trying to say.

I could feel the tension between us as we continued our conversation. Suddenly, her phone rang and she excused herself in a hurry.

"All good?" I asked, concerned.

"Yeah, everything's fine," she reassured me. "It's just Dante calling and I need to be there. I'll see you later at the gym though. Have a great day."

And just like that, she was gone, leaving me wondering who this mysterious Dante was and why he was so important to her. I shrugged off my thoughts and finished the last sip of my latte, realising too late that it was actually her americano that I had mistakenly taken a sip from. Even her lip gloss tastes like caramel.

I couldn't help but wonder what her lips would taste like. I was lost in my thoughts when my phone beeped, snapping me out of it. It was probably an emergency at the hospital, so I quickly left to attend to my duties.