The Coffee House

- chapter one

Conan looked outside from the moving train. He saw the ocean behind all of the window covered, tall buildings. He didn't expect to move into the city so soon. He was nineteen, getting ready for college. His friend offered him a room in their apartment if he paid rent, too. Which meant he needed to find a job soon. The train came to a slow stop, passengers got ready to get off, Conan, too. As soon as the train stopped, everyone rushed off the train. Some were business men, others were students. Conan stepped off the train and looked around the station. He spotted the exit and took his phone out of his pocket to find a notification from his mother.

Mom // 3:04PM - Make sure you call me when you get there. Have a safe trip. Love you!

Conan smiled, and clicked on the phone icon to call her. He waited a couple of minutes,  but was sent to voicemail. So, Conan decided to text her that he was safe and well. He closed the messaging app and opened the GPS to search for his friend's apartment. It was a five minute walk. He nodded and started following the GPS' directions, observing some road and buildings so he could find his way around town on his own. He soon found Summer Apartments which was the name his friend gave him, which his apartment number which was 207. Conan walked inside.

Conan was greeted by a tall, slender man wearing dark clothes. Next to him was a shorter girl who had pink hair with brown roots. They were both pale and wore exotic clothes. However, the boy next to them had a different style going on. He wore an athletic sweater with sweatpants. He didn't dress up but when he turned, Conan immediately noticed him.

"Conan!" The boy yelled out, getting up, reaching for a hug. Conan smiled and hugged up, looking up at the other two in confusion. The boy scoffed, "Oh yeah. These are my roommates; Heather and Arch." The two waved and smiled. "This is Conan. He's my childhood best friend, and moved in to go to college." The boy winked and grinned, mocking his "smartness." Conan nodded and punched him in the shoulder. After a small conversation, they started to head up to their apartment.

"Hey, Theo." Conan asked the boy. Theo looked behind him and let the other two lead the way while they talked. "Why were you guys waiting in the lobby? I didn't make you wait long, right?" He worried, trying to laugh it off. 

Theo nodded, "We figured we'd wait for you in the front since it'd be such a hassle trying to find our room number. It was actually Heather's idea. Heather slightly turned at her name being used, but quickly turned back after noticing Conan's stare. 

"Thanks." Conan said after a long silence. Theo patted him on the back and went in front of the crowd to unlock the door.

"Welcome to our crib, Co." He said right as he opened the door. Conan hasn't heard that nickname in years. He was soft and excited to be moving in with his old friend. Arch and Heather spread around the living room to give Conan space to look around. They had polaroids of everyone and their friends at parties. They also had a weird collection of pennies glued on the wall. Theo gave him some time to look around before he alerted him that they were going to show him his room. Conan nodded and followed them to a slightly big room. It had a small open closet and a small window above a mattress on the floor.

"Aw, you shouldn't have given me the mattress. So sweet." He joked, walking into the room and sitting down on it.

"The mattress doesn't come with the room. Hope you know that." Theo kept a serious face to see Conan's reaction. Conan nodded and got off the mattress only to see Theo smiling and laughing quietly, "I'm kidding, buddy. Everything in this room is your's." Conan's face lit up again, and he sat on the thin mattress again. Theo told the others they could leave, so they can catch up. Arch and Heather said bye and and went to their rooms. Theo closed the door behind him and sat next to Conan. 

Conan side hugged Theo and put his head on the boy's shoulder. Theo put his hand behind Conan and smiled. "You owe me rent next month." Theo whispered. Conan giggled.

"I'll go find a job tomorrow. School starts in two weeks, anyway." Conan whispered back, lifting his head from the other's shoulder. He laid down behind Theo signalling him to leave so he can leave. Theo got up and started to head out for the door. 

"Sleep well, Co. We're having pizza for dinner." Theo knew Conan didn't like pizza but he got it, anyway. Conan gagged and turned over to face the white wall. Theo closed the door behind him. 

Conan woke up to the sun rising. He checked his phone to see that it was the next day. Conan quickly got up and went into the living room to see a note from Theo or Heather. 

It read: "We all went out to work. There's left over pizza in the fridge. Don't make a mess. Also, there's a coffee shop down the street I think you should check out GO GET A JOB THERE -Heather and theo"

Conan sighed, and went back into the room to check his backpack for clean clothes. He went to the bathroom and turned the shower on. He took a shower and refused to eat the pizza. He opened the fridge to see if there was anything else, but there wasn't. Conan shrugged and grabbed the key they left for Conan. Assuming it was the apartment key. He left the apartment and locked the door behind him. He made sure to keep track of where he was going so he can come back without having to bother the others. He left the building and looked to his right to see the coffee shop Heather was talking about. It was called The Coffee House. Conan put his ear phones on and started walking to it.