What He Wrote

Chapter 6

A/n- my neighbor just gave me an absolutely gorgeous electric typewriter from the late 70's that they had laying around and I couldn't be more thrilled! Also, the feedback I'm getting back from you all is amazing. You have no idea how excited I get whenever you leave me comments about the story!

So, without further ado, here is chapter 6.

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"Hi! How are you?"

I heard Cleo's and my mom's muffled voices coming from downstairs. I didn't know why Cleo was at my house at 7 in the morning on a Saturday, but it definitely sounded like my mom was enjoying her company. I decided to shuffle down the stairs before my mom could bring up any potentially embarrassing topics.

"I thought I heard you! Good morning, Cleo and I were just discussing vintage fashion." My mom spoke as if discussing such topics with her was a regular morning occurrence.

"Uh, no offense or anything, but why is she here?"

"You do realize she is right here."

"Okay then. Cleo, why are you here?"

"It just happens to be my favorite holiday today, and you're going to help me celebrate."

She stood up and grabbed my sleeve in an attempt to pull me out of the kitchen.

"Wait, what holiday even is it today?"

Cleo smiled and began drum rolling on a nearby wall.

"It's...International Coffee Day!" She said as she posed the same way a woman would if she were presenting a prize on a game show.

"I suppose if you were to wake me up early to celebrate a holiday, it might as well be one that involves free caffeine."

"Exactly! Now go get dressed. We have coffee shops to hit."

She shooed me back upstairs, where I got ready at lightning speed. If there was one thing I knew, it was how Cleo felt about her coffee.

I ran back downstairs to where Cleo stood in the foyer, now wearing a bright red peacoat.

"Bye. Be safe. Pick something free up for me on the way home." My mom called from the kitchen. We yelled a simultaneous okay before heading outside.

"Okay. So we start at Chad's, get breakfast there, then go downtown. I know of a few great coffee spots that are giving away free stuff. We can wander around a bit, but I have a quick appointment at 11:30 with a friend of mine."

"What's the appointment for?"

"Weed."

I choked a bit on the water I had just sipped from.

"There's no way-"

"Calm down, I was joking. He's just going to give me a tattoo."

"That's not really any better." I said as I swallowed the urge to look at her as I drove down the road.

"Look, it's not like I'm getting a whole sleeve. I already have one on my wrist and I just wanted to get another one on the inside of my finger. My body is my canvas, Teddy. I want to paint it."

I didn't respond, but not out of anger. I just needed a moment to collect my thoughts and focus on getting to Chad's in one piece.

We arrived at the small, hip, breakfast diner after a short period of time. There was no one else in the exposed brick and photo covered interior, which was just the way we liked it. Cleo ordered a cup of coffee while I ordered a latte.