The Coffee Shop

H e r D r o p B y

THE COFFEE SHOP | HER DROP BY

The sound of rain filled the coffee shop, it was almost completely empty with little orders to fill and little to do. Rain leaned against the table counter his sigh filled with boredom. He twirled his hair around his finger and stretched with a yawn. Tick, Tock, the silence of Cafe Lacie seemed to make the clock all the more louder. Wandering by the window, he saw a familiar girl walk along the sidewalk. He didn't know her name, but he saw her often. She always ordered the same thing, Cafe Latte, cake, and fruit. They were popular but most people would add more of a variety each time. Different types of coffee, drinks, and other sweets were available. But the little shop had considerably less variety than most cafes resulting in fewer regular customers. Rain straightened his back at the creaking of the stairs. He lingered by a group of fellow waiters and waitresses to look busy but looked in the reflection of the window to see the customer. The bell fastened to the door jingled and sure enough, she was there. She stood, peeking through the door for a while, and then walked to the seat she always sat at. The corner booth by the window. Rain froze as he caught her nod. Glancing around him, no one had noticed her walk in. Rain walked to her booth and asked, "what can I get for you?" Rain took note of her shy smile and thought, "Cafe Latte with latte art along with the daily cake special and fruit cup." Just as he thought out the order, The girl replied with exactly that and Rain gave her a knowing smile. He felt a hint of pride as he said, "coming up!" After that, Rain had few other customers to tend to. While waiting for her order to be ready, he couldn't help but stare at the girl in a quiet slumber. Her head was slightly tilted with her chest moving subtly up and down. Rain snapped out of his trance realizing that her coffee had been ready for quite a while. Hurriedly, he took her food and brought to her. His little blunder made him a little nervous and he set the plate down harder than he meant to. The girl's long eyelashes fluttered open and she looked at the plate being set in front of her. "Sorry for the wait. I hope your coffee hasn't gone cold," Rain said, hiding his embarrassment. The girl smiled and tucked a lock of hair behind her ear, "No problem, I always wait for my coffee to cool anyways," she said. Rain felt a wave of relief and hid a smile with a nod at her feminine habits. Rain walked away slowly while thinking about his little encounter. He stared at her, watching her fidget a little, and eventually pull out her phone to take a photo like she always did. Rain casually walked by to get a better glance at her and accidentally met her eye contact. His heart beat a little faster in his shock. "Did she notice me looking at her?" Rain thought as he looked away. He felt a hint of excitement and anticipation. He felt a bit of fleeting embarrassment wondering what she thought of him. Though Rain secretly hoped that she was feeling the same shyness as he was. Rain continued watching her while wiping coffee cups. The sun had come out, seemingly putting her under a spotlight of warm yellow light. The raindrops sparkled around her as if highlighting her area in his vision. Rain's hands stopped moving and didn't even notice his own staring. But the trance was soon over as he snapped back to work at the sound of a loud motorcycle. The static sounds of silence flooded into his ears filling him with a blank type of feeling. At peace, similar to a quiet morning at home. Time seemed slow yet it still flew by. Before Rain knew it, the last sip of her coffee was being taken. Walking by again, the girl stumbled and Rain watched in shock. Faster than usual, he took her hand to steady her. His wrist felt stiff at the sudden contact. He didn't want to be rude and pull his hand away- But a quiet "Thank you," interrupted Rain's thoughts. The girl stood up and steadied herself. It was at this time that Rain noticed her petite stature. He could feel his heart beat a little faster at the fact that the tip of her nose was almost grazing is name tag. Rain's eye's wavered. Where did he look? At her? At the ground? He was stiff as a bored as he tried to look relaxed and cool. The girl looked up at him and said another fluttering, "Thank you." Rain watched the her walk strangely to the door, until he noticed a cream-colored umbrella on the floor by his feet. He picked it up faster than he usually would pick an item up and said, almost shouting by accident: "Don't forget you umbrella!" The girl turned around almost as quickly as he picked up her umbrella. Ah, uhm, thank you again..." She said, half mumbling. Rain barely caught her sentence but replied, "No problem, hope you enjoyed your stay. Come again!" His usual phrase to a leaving customer had maybe a larger hint of hope than it usually would.

"Thanks," The girl said smiling, "I will."

The tinkling of the bell fastened to the door signaled the end of their quick encounter. It was only a quick drop by, just as quick as the rain falling down, but this little meeting held a little more anticipation than any other.

Rain stood there a little while before looking out the window watching a familiar girl skip the opposite way of the little coffee shop. The smell of coffee & cake reminded Rain of a certain someone. He smiled a joyful smile at the sound of the clock. At each tick was the chance that she would come again.