A Midnight Mind

Chapter 30: Coffee Date

Violet parked the Honda diagonally in the parking stall, the back wheel crossing over the stall line. She backed up and tried to fix it, but just made it worse.

When they got out of the car, they observed that it was almost perfectly straight--but taking up two stalls equally.

"Shut up," Violet snapped.

"I didn't say anything!" Ethan said, laughing.

She swatted his arm, which he figured he probably deserved, somehow.

"It's not busy here, anyway, and you've got that sticker." Ethan motioned to the "NEW DRIVER" sticker on the back window of the car.

"Let's just be quick," Violet grumbled. "Do you even like coffee?"

They approached the front of the Ink Spot Café, a cozy-looking local place he walked past on his way to school. It had the well-worn, exposed brick look he would recognize from any Instagram-worthy coffee joint. If nothing else, it looked like the kind of place one would bring a girl if one were so inclined....

"I have coffee all the time," Ethan lied. He couldn't remember a specific time he ever drank coffee, but he must have had a cup at some point because he knew he didn't like it.

"Oh yeah? What's your flavor? Don't say Colombian."

"Why not?"

Violet gestured up and down at herself.

Ethan felt a little lightheaded. He grinned sheepishly. "That would have been a good line, though."

"Doesn't count if you steal the line from me, dude."

Violet's sideways smirk made Ethan happy he delayed going to see Westbrook so they could "wake themselves up" with some coffee first. The worry that he was a coward for doing so didn't bother him as much now that they were here.

But as soon as Violet reached for the handle of the cafe door, Ethan saw a familiar face through the window.

Two familiar faces, actually.

Uncle Vic and Ms. Stafford.

And they were sitting at the same table, just the two of them.

Ethan shot his arm out and pressed the door closed before Violet could pull it. No one inside seemed to notice.

"It says 'pull,' not 'push,' genius," Violet said. "Learn to read before you try to be chivalrous." She tried to pull again, but Ethan continued pushing on the door so she couldn't get it open.

"Ms. Stafford is in there," he said by way of explanation.

Violet frowned at him, then peered through the window.

"Oh yeah," she said. "So what? You draw a dick on her whiteboard or something?"

"No," Ethan said, "but she's..."

"She's what?" Violet asked.

Right, Ethan thought, Violet doesn't know Stafford is psychic. And she doesn't know my uncle, either.

"Just... It's awkward having coffee near a teacher," Ethan fumbled.

"Why would it be awkward?" Violet asked in a teasing voice. "Afraid she'll start a rumor?" Violet looked through the window again. "We could start one about her. Who do you figure the old guy is? Her dad? Or maybe she's just got a thing for silver foxes."

"Dude," Ethan said, scrunching his nose. "That's my uncle."

Violet's eyes widened at him. "That's not the kind of thing you should admit to the head of the school newspaper, y'know. We both know how quick rumors go around. But I won't say anything. Cross my heart."