She returns the next day, staying true to her promise.
"Latte?"
"Latte," she says sleepily, noticeably more tired than yesterday.
"How was it last night?"
"Breathtaking. But it's not even at its full potential yet - the best is yet to come!"
It's quite hilarious to see her so tired but so excited at the same time. She giggles at herself tiredly, putting a sheepish smile on her face.
"The best is yet to come," she repeats. "Thanks for the coffee."
...
The third day comes, and she comes back, not able to resist the need for caffeine.
"Latte," I say, and she nods, exhausted.
"You need sleep," I smile. She looks at me, dead serious and replies, "No kidding."
We both laugh.
"So, how are the meteors?"
"Amazing."
We chat for a while as she sips her coffee. I try my very best to keep the conversation directed at her, but it's difficult to resist blurting out everything I already know.
"So, what about you? We've been talking about me long enough."
"Me?" It's inevitable. I can't just lie to her...
"Yeah, you. Tell me your story - where you went to school, where you're from, your family..."
"It's a long story -"
"I have time - I don't have to be anywhere until the sun goes down." She looks at me, pleading.
"Okay. But my story's fairly crazy; brace yourself." I laugh, and she joins in.
"Stuff was really hard for me back home - with family and at school. I really liked to write, and still do, and I got bullied for that. And my mom and dad never really cared about me..." I begin. "Anyways, it kept getting worse, and this year I just - I just left. I didn't finish grade 12. And now I'm here and much happier, I guess."
Her eyes are wide, struggling to comprehend my backstory. "Where do you live?"
"Um, nowhere really - wherever I can put my sleeping bag for the night."
"Wow."
...
She's back the next day still, more cautious this time.
"Latte, comin' right up."
"Thanks."
I make it as she leans against the counter in silence, biting her lip. Handing it to her, I ask, "What's up?"
"I was wondering... Well, tonight's supposed to be the best night of them all, y'know, with the meteors and stuff, and I wanted to ask if you wanted to come see, maybe help me out a bit with the film and stuff..."
"I'd love to," I smile. "You're camping in the national park, right?"
She nods. "Campsite 63. Can we meet at sunset?"
YOU ARE READING
Plot Twist
JugendliteraturElias is a runaway author with his debut novel all planned out. But his main character was supposed to be fictional, right? He meets Elle, and the only thing he didn't expect in his book outline is himself.
