Collection of TaeNy Oneshots (TheDonkatsu Collection)

Call Me Maybe - 2

(Part 2)

She stood in front of the small shop. The white rectangular neon sign showed a cute glowing cat drawing framed by a reddish brown square. "Coffee Drinking Cat," she mumbled, reading the brown letters. Looks like this is the place.

She looked at the orange painted wooden doorframe and took a deep breath. She pulled the door open and walked inside the small café. There were not many tables there and most were occupied. She observed the unique décor.

A young man in an apron greeted her. "Good evening."

"Good evening." She looked around. "I'm looking for my friend but I don't think she's here yet." She checked her watch.

"Ah she might be upstairs. Feel free to check."

She bowed politely. "Thank you." She headed to the old attic staircase to her left, carefully climbing up to the second floor.

There was a young woman there, sitting alone at a table for four, but she wasn't the one she was looking for. She heard footsteps and turned to see the waiter climbing up.

"She's not here yet," she told him. "Can I get a table for two?"

"Sure." He then gestured at the empty tables. "Take your pick. I'll be right back with the menu."

"Thank you." She walked towards a table near the corner, next to the metal railing that surrounded the opening on the floor where the stairs was. She sat down and looked around the small attic that housed the café.

There was a long table, set against the wall to her right. On it were several rows of books. She stood up to take a better look. After a quick browse, she decided to just grab one of the comic books. She figured that it would help make her appear nonchalant or less nervous and definitely not overexcited.

Footsteps echoed in the small space and the man returned with the menu.

She remembered what she was told and ordered a café mocha. She also ordered waffles but requested for it to be served later, after her 'friend' had arrived.

She sat back down when the waiter had left. She took out her phone and placed it on the table after making sure that the ringer was on. She didn't want to miss her message or call.

She took deep breaths, trying to calm herself down. She couldn't believe her luck. She was actually out on a date – or at least waiting for someone that wasn't her friend to meet her; someone she thought had the prettiest smile in the whole world.

Her heart started to race at the memory of the smile. She looked down, pretending to read the comic book, when the waiter returned with her drink. She briefly nodded to thank the man, acting as if she was absorbed in her reading in order to avoid looking directly at him. She knew she was blushing because she was replaying that moment when she saw her at the stream – complete with the ripped shorts, exposed shoulder and the wind blown hair.

"Hi! I'm look-... Upstairs? Okay, thank you!"

She suddenly heard the cheerful voice from the floor below followed by footsteps. She held her breath and instantly furrowed her brows, posing to look serious. In truth, her eyes weren't even focusing on the page. Her brain was short-circuiting as it frantically tried to come up with a cool opening line.

The girl reached the top of the stairs and looked around the small room. She finally saw her sitting at the table to her right. She quickly walked over. "Hi!"

She looked up slowly, as calm as she could. "Oh hi there." She smiled a little, gripping the comic book tightly to stop herself from shaking or stuttering.