[5]
“What’s wrong?” Nina asked me as we walked down the paved street to her dorm. We were going to have movie night but I told her that I would sleep at my own room.
Of course, her definition of sleep wasn’t the same as mine.
“Nothing,” I told her. “Why do you ask?”
Nina shrugged.
“You just kind of seem out of it, today.”
And I was out of it. After what Coffee Boy had told me last night (or rather, this morning), who wouldn’t be? And to think that I had been complaining about a horrible roommate. I hadn’t told Nina about my late nights. It was weird, but I almost felt as if those nights were mine and Coffee Boy’s and mine and Coffee Boy’s only. I liked to think that that was the one thing we shared that no one knew about. Other than the guy behind the register of course, but he was probably too sleepy to understand that there were two people in front of him half the time.
“Oh. Well I’m fine,” I told her.
Tonight, I’ll tell him about Blue, I think to myself. After talking to me about his dad, he deserved to know about Blue.
We watched some rom-com Nina had picked out and then I said goodbye and left. At 1:15 a.m. I set out to Ben’s Burgers.
***
“Hi,” I sniffled. The harsh winter air outside was unyielding and no doubt I would soon catch a cold.
“Hey,” he greeted.
I took my tray of Ben’s Vegetarian Special and sat down five stools away from him. I ate while he drank his BB coffee. Then I turned and took a deep breath before talking.
“My sister’s name is Blue. She’s seven. She was diagnosed with cancer last year.”
Coffee Boy set his paper cup down and looked at me for the first time tonight.
“I would say I’m sorry, but I don’t think you would want to hear that,” he told me. I gave him a small smile but he didn’t offer one back. The eight days that I had known him he hadn’t smiled once. I was dying to know what he looked like when he smiled; almost as much as I wanted to know his name. But like asking for his name, asking for a smile would be weird. Silence settled around us and I listened as the snores of the boy behind the register filled the room. I finished eating. One of the only bad things about these nights were that once he was done talking, usually so was I. And I couldn't just sit there and stay silent for the rest of the time--that's too awkward. So I would have to leave. It just didn't feel like I got enough time to unravel Coffee Boy.
“Good night."
Like that.
A/N:
I like Coffee Boy. :)
Vote? Comment?
-Nova.
