50 Shades of Alaskan Bush People - The Brown Boys

50 Shades of Noah

He sat quietly in the booth of the cafe. It was a rainy, lazy fall day. Most of the small community was shut up indoors. But the few people who had ventured out seemed even more reclusive than was typical. He pulled his black duster coat tighter around him as the cafe seemed almost chilly. It was either that, or the chills he was getting were from the intriguing woman reading at her table on the opposite size of the cafe.

Her dark hair complimented by a few blonde streaks. The window with it's rain-splattered glass framed her perfectly, her chin against her fist as her eyes fluidly scanned the pages in front of her. He couldn't help but smirk. In this little working community he didn't expect often to see a singular female reading a book titled Aristotle's Metaphysics as if it were some lazy-day reading material.

He'd let the tea he'd ordered turn cold, unable to shift his focus from the woman. Her jacket was draped across the back of her chair, her arms completely exposed. She seemed almost underdressed considering the weather was turning chillier and more volatile by the day. Her thin sweater jacket would be soaked in seconds, clinging to her colorful arms.

The few moments he had torn his eyes away from her silhouette, he'd let his eyes wander down her arms, completely covered in intricate, vibrant tats. He could see some literary characters represented, C.S. Lewis, Poe, Hemingway, Frost. Some were vague, but some were very obvious. They went from her shoulder all the way to her wrist

He could see another tattoo on her leg underneath the table, where she had her feet propped up on the chair across from her. Her shorts, also unsensible, were still a visual enjoyment. Usually exposed skin didn't exactly titillate him, but she was so mysterious, out of place, yet seemingly felt right at home. He'd hoped that she'd glance over, feel the heat of his gaze and attempt to make contact. But she didn't; she sat, poised so perfectly, reading.

The waitress broke him out of his trance.

"Well, it looks like there is no charge. Lady over there took care of it for you. Seems a waste, you didn't even drink it." The woman told him, first pointing to the mysterious reader, then to his cold tea.

"She did want me to tell you that if you're going to spend all morning staring, you might as well come over and introduce yourself." The waitress continued, walking away from the table.

Her words sank into him and he tried to not let his internal nerves show through. He ran a hand over his long, blonde pony tail as it splayed across his shoulder and stood, he grabbed his cane and carried his top hat at his side as he made his way over to her. He raced through his mind for the perfect opening line, wondering what would impress her the most, what would put her off the most, what would intrigue her.

"You're overthinking it." She said before he managed to say anything. She didn't look away from her book, but it was obvious she was speaking to him.

"I'm sorry?" He was again, caught of gaurd.

"You're thinking about it too much." Her wrist relaxed and her book fell away from her as she turned, her gaze upwards, meeting his eyes. He swallowed, looking at his feet for a moment before looking back into the brown eyes that were now fixed on him.

"I'm Noah." he held his hand out to take her's, holding his breath as she looked from his face to his hand, back to his face. She hesitated with a slight smirk on her face, lifting her hand into his, letting him kiss the top.

"Ashley, but most people call me Ash." She kept her eyes on his, "But you can call me whatever you like..." His face blushed as her cocked eyebrow suggested she was pretty interested in him.

She continued looking at him intently as the layers of silence started to build.

"I figured as much as you'd been staring at me all morning, you'd have come up with more to say....even if it was simply, 'thanks for the tea'. " She teased him. Noah snapped out of his daze, nervously grinning.