What it was about this old coffee shop... [PM]

[Moved.]

thread status [dropped]

Tyler heaved a heavy sigh as he tossed the pen onto the table and clasped his face single-handedly. Glancing out the window he was settled in front of, he distractedly reached for his mobile phone and glanced at the static screen. To be honest he had absolutely no interest in the papers scattered before him, but he knew he was expected to complete the paperwork that accompanied his field research. Still, it was bloody nonsense to be spending such a beautiful day indoors. Stifling a yawn unsuccessfully, forced to raise his hand to his widening mouth, the brunette glanced towards the coffee shop he was sitting in. The atmosphere was not unpleasant, but he would much rather be outside, soaking up the sunshine. In fact he would have been outside had there not been a relatively strong breeze which would have surely blown all his papers off the table and away.

Reaching for the back of his head, he scratched his nape and reached into his shoulder-bag for a hair tie he’d placed there hours prior. During his time back in London last autumn, his father and brothers had pleaded he cut his hair, for in their eyes it represented nothing more than extra work. In fact, so had Tyler for many years, until a Thai co-worker had explained to him that it helped with the sunburns; and he was right. Since then, he'd grown used to it. Reaching back over his shoulders with both arms, the male pulled his coffee-coloured strands into a mid-level ponytail. Then, he reached for his cup, only to discover it was empty. Did he really want another coffee? Glancing around, he realized the place was beginning to get crowded, and that the number of free tables was dwindling. He realized how lucky he was to have secured an entire booth to himself by the main window, and so he decided he would take advantage of his gain.

Lifting his hand up to call the busy waitress over, he set his cup on the edge of the table and ordered himself another mocha. He also asked to see the lunch menu, after all, if he was not going to go looking for a dainty take-out place in favour of keeping this perfectly situated table, then he might as well make the most of it here. It was as the waitress walked away with his empty cup and the promise of a menu, that Tyler noticed someone looking for a spot making their way from the door. Usually he would not mind sharing; he had been raised in bustling London and spent sufficient time in Asia, where having someone too close meant they were literally breathing on him. When he noticed the young woman was headed his way, he tidied his paperwork so that if he was asked to share, he would not have to risk valuable information. Slipping files into colour-coded sleeves and tilting his laptop’s screen away from the opposite side of the booth, he avoided making eye contact. Quite frankly, if they walked passed him, he’d be relieved, though he surely could use a distraction.

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[Adeline]

Adeline breathes out. It’s a deep and shaky sort of breath. Her slender fingertips lift to comb through curled locks, tugging the mess away from her pretty face before her palms are left to slap upon the curve of her hips.

She’s simply exhausted of seemingly everything; the apartment she was currently cooped up in, the job she was gathering the nerve to officially quit from and last and most importantly, this damned city that she seemed to be stuck within. Fuck RavenBlack - very little good was coming from it. Oh, sure, she’d made friends, but she didn’t see them enough to make any sort of real difference within her life. Between Thaddeus, Derrick, and Julian she couldn’t truly seem to keep herself occupied. Perhaps she needed a girlfriend. Someone she could paint her toenails with, to giggle with, and gossip with. Or maybe not, still, she wanted to have that option.

Perhaps it was best she leave before she wound up overturning that table for two within her kitchen nook.

Nooks, that’s all that fucking apartment was.

So, instead of overturning that table Miss Graham simply balances her rump upon such to pull on a loose fitting and almost ancient pair of sneakers, and thereafter a light coat before spilling out the door and into the hallway. The stairways were quickly conquered and soon enough she found herself upon the stoop of her complex. Where to now, was the problem. Between her apartment and the mall anything sounded better. Maybe even a walk would be nice, though walks never truly suited Adeline.

Coffee? People got coffee when they didn’t have anything better to do, right? She could always just walk there and back, if nothing else. Why not.

And by the time Adeline had managed to wedge herself into that coffee shop it’d become more than abundantly clear that people truly did go to waste some time. Were there even any empty seats? No. Had that ever stopped Adeline before? Not yet!

Without missing a beat Miss Graham slides into an unoccupied seat, unfortunately this seat was directly across from a decidedly good looking young man with dark hair. Miss Graham finds herself offering an almost bashful smile, “There was nowhere else to sit,” she utters, shrugging her shoulders from that light jacket, turns out she hadn’t needed it after all.

[Moved.]

Impoliteness, he witnessed it everywhere he went in this city. Having been raised in a big city, Tyler knew well the foul humour of metropolitan inhabitants; this did not mean he was accepting of it. When he realized the female was indeed walking towards this particular table, he realized what would follow. Yet, what did follow he did not expect nor appreciated. Her bashful smile was contrary to her bold actions, and it took a few seconds for him to overcome the shock. Clearing his throat, he allowed his tongue to slide along the back of his lower teeth as he bit back a snide rejoinder. Tyler was not a brash person, but her invasive approach did not bode well with him. He found himself thinking along Aunt Jemima’s words, and it bemused him to hear her through his thoughts. But truly, the least this stranger could have done was ask before plopping herself before him. Had this same incident taken place a year prior, he would not have thought much of it; yet today he did. The city air surely sullied his mood, but he would not let it get to him.

Offering her a practiced smile, he glanced over her at the neighbouring booths and tables. This could be a great opportunity to meet a new acquaintance, but he knew that if he turned his attention away from his work now, he would never get it done. Reaching for his pen, one of the final things that were stranded across the invisible line separating the table in two, he replied pleasantly.

It’s quite alright

His British accent poured past his lips unrestrained; he found no reason to try and repress it. Clicking on the end of his pen with this thumb, he settled back into the cushion behind him, having pulled away minutes prior to rearrange the table. Sniffling, he lowered his eyes back to his paperwork and flipped through two coloured sleeves before finding the sheet he would proceed to write on. The smile on his face dissipated as seriousness took over his youthful features, and his lips pressed into a thin line. Tyler was too aware of her presence to be able to fully focus, and he could only hope the discomfort would pass.

The waitress passed, leaving behind one menu on the edge of the table as promised. Tyler did not glance up at the girl opposite him before reaching for it, knowing fully it had been set there for him and not the newcomer. In fact, given how casually the young woman had settled herself before him, throwing courtesy out the window, he presumed the waitress would assume he’d expected the stranger. As his fingers settled upon the laminated menu, he glanced up at the girl.

[Adeline]

Was Adeline being rude? Perhaps, then again something like this could be considered socially acceptable. Or at least down south it was. In a few places, anyway. Okay, so maybe this wasn’t the norm, but to be fair almost nothing about Adeline’s life or way of being could be classified as normal.

Normal or not she’d have to cope with any potential awkwardness which would ensue.

Adeline simply shifts her gaze downward to the paper work he seemed to be tending to, before those chocolate eyes of hers flit toward that short drink menu poised near the wall. Biting upon her lower lip Adeline gives some attempts at a subtle shift to snatch up the drink menu. All the while she half expects to be scolded, despite the fact that he’d said it was fine she sit with him. Her jaw braces nervously, and legs draw beneath her side of the bench, lest her closeness irritate him any.

So with shoulders slumped upon the backboard Adeline simply eyes the menu. Oh, sure, Adeline knew what she wanted, but it was best she simply occupy herself, after all, not everyone was such a fan of her way of being.

A small hand lifts upwards, to signal a passing by waitress, “When you get a moment,” Adeline utters offering up a slight, if not coaxing smile. And with that Adeline settles that piece of shrink wrapped card board back into place near the wall. Her elbow lifts and props upon the back of that bench lazily, head propping within her cupped palm. Adeline eyes the outdoors.

“It’s nice out,” Adeline offers up for ways of conversation.

[Moved.]

Tyler quickly glanced at the retreating waitress, curious as to whether the young lady had even heard the stranger settled before him. Oh well, what did he care? As long as the waitress was back with his mocha and took his order, he was content with ignoring both women, for now. Lowering his eyes to the laminated card before him, the brunette stretched his legs under the table before retrieving them, unbeknownst stopping short of touching hers. The menu had many tempting options, put he opted for something simple that would not require too much handwork as he’d try to work through his lunch in order to finish sooner and enjoy the day. As he set the menu down and glanced towards the shop for the waitress, the stranger before him spoke once more.

At first he was unsure whether se was addressing him, given she was still looking out the window when he cast a brief side-glance at her, but he thought it would be polite to acknowledge her remark nonetheless. On most occasions he was instinctively quite amiable, but today he was far too aware of the consequences that lay ahead if he got too chatty with the girl before him. No, he wouldn’t, he wouldn’t allow himself to; after all he’d left the apartment in order to get the work done. Flipping the menu, he added a remark of his own, eyes scanning the backside of the laminated sheet.

Yes, but quite gusty unfortunately

Tyler glanced over the top edge of the carte to make brief eye contact before returning his attention to the menu. Mmm, that dish surely looked good, but it would require more effort than he was willing to put into a meal. Finally decided, he was about to set the menu back on the edge of the table before pausing in midair and glancing back at her. Menu in hand, almost stretched out to her, and his eyebrows raised, he presumed the woman would be able to pick up the cue, though so far she had proven to be rather careless.

[Adeline]

Gusty? Who spoke like that? Adeline somehow managed from pulling a face and speaking this thought out loud. Apparently he used the word gusty, which Adeline had to admit, she hadn’t heard that term anywhere but the Hundred Acre Wood. Only that was blustery. Ah, same shit, she supposes. Whether it was more blustery, or gusty out. It was a quirky turn of phrase to be sure.

And Adeline was simply happy with being out of the apartment.

Her shoulders lift to a lazy shrug in reply to his words, “Better than rain,” Adeline confesses, her face tipping thereafter to smother that soft mouth of hers with her palm. She simply wouldn’t have known what to do with herself had it been raining. Perhaps she simply would have gone mad.

Then he was offering up what appeared to be a lunch menu, Adeline seems quick to catch it up. She’d previously had no intention of staying for lunch. A quick cup of coffee was all she’d left her complex for, “Thanks,” she utters nonetheless, her gaze lowering to flicker over the face of that folded sheet. He was probably simply being polite anyway, “I’ve only really got time for coffee, though,” Adeline lies. She’d nowhere to be anytime soon - not even work needed her today - still, it was the only excuse she could manage for denying lunch.

Addi finds herself shifting within her seat once more, turning in the slightest to search for a waitress once more.

[Moved.]

Surely rain would have not deterred him from leaving his apartment to pursue his paperwork; after all he was a true Londoner, where it rained 11 to 15 days out of every month. Still, he had to admit a sunny, but gusty, day was better than an overcast one. Yet, he did not voice out his agreement.

Tyler relaxed when she informed him that she was staying only for coffee; he hoped everyone else in the establishment were similarly minded. Retracting the menu, he set it atop his papers once more, before following the young woman’s gaze towards the bustling interior of the shop. The waitress was busy at the other side of the room, taking orders from a large table of businessmen. Sighing quietly, the brunette turned his head in the other direction to look for another source of service; surely they should have more than one waitress at the peak hours. Spotting a second woman clad in what appeared to be the uniform of an equally revolting pink hue, Tyler raised his hand in order to catch her eye. She motioned for him to wait, clearly busy at her current table, but her body language suggested that she would be right there.

Turning back to face the stranger before him, Tyler plopped the menu behind the napkin dispenser and out of his way. Straightening his shoulders, growing quite aware that his posture was deteriorating the longer he sat in one attitude, he glanced back at his papers. He’d lost his last-read word amongst the lines of text, and decided he would not attempt to pick up just now; too many distractions. Perhaps once he had his coffee and food he would be able to focus, no longer needing to keep an eye on the surroundings. And so, he set his pen down and closed the coloured sleeve to mask whatever information had been on the papers. Moving the Toshiba laptop in order to have better access to it, he tilted the screen and allowed his fingers to slide along the keyboard methodically.

Blasted, he muttered, glancing up to notice all the laptops that people had; the internet traffic was making it impossible for him to access his e-mail account. Pushing down the lid shut, he slid the thing off to the side and hesitantly folded his hands upon the paperwork. Then he reached his hand forward across the tabletop and offered the stranger a smile.

I am Rupert It was much easier to introduce himself as thus now that he had had sufficient practice, though for the first few weeks he had struggled with his new identity. Of all the names Harvey could have picked for him, he picked Rupert. As he looked at the stranger, he caught sight of the approaching waitress in his peripheral vision.

[Adeline]

Adeline’s left to watching those waitresses buzz about with no end. To be honest she almost felt bad for those two women. Adeline knew well that people tended to get fussy pretty fast, and thanks to commercial coffee vendors they expected their coffee ten minutes ago and no later. Aside that, they probably weren’t making all that much. Not that Addi would know, she’d never had a waitressing job, after all.

Adeline, on the other hand, didn’t so much mind waiting. Though she kept in mind the little lie she’d told this brunette - that she didn’t have time for lunch. And truth be told, Adeline would be fine leaving without so much as a drop of coffee hitting her tongue. She was simply here to kill some time, after all.

Suddenly it seemed time for pleasantries to be exchanged. Not necessarily something Adeline was fond of, moreso for the fact that she probably wouldn’t see this man again for the rest of her days, and this singular meeting would be coming to an end within a half hour. At least. While names weren’t exactly essential to having a pleasant conversation, Adeline simply couldn’t leave him hanging out in the cold, after all, he was putting forth an effort to be sociable and pleasant. Which was more than Addi could say for herself.

“Addi,” she comes to confess, slipping her own hand into his for a brisk handshake. “Or Adeline, if you prefer,” though it was usually made known to any friends that she preferred Addi, hands down over her full name. Though despite her insistence some folk referred to her as Adeline anyhow. Still, she offers up a gracious sort of smile, tucking her palms one upon the other, and slipping her fingertips between her knees easily enough.

Hands to herself.

“Do you have the time?” Miss Graham asks suddenly, lolling her head once more so she may seek out a clock upon the wall.

[Moved.]

Tyler shook her hand, wondering whether it was of use of bearing her name to mind. What were the odds of them meeting again in this city? As he retrieved his hand, he allowed his stare to linger briefly as he took in her appearance, finding himself disinterest in her features. He did not particularly have any preference when it came to women, or at least he had never considered the matter sufficiently to realize that maybe he did after all. Surely Adeline was pleasant to the eye, but she lacked whatever it was a woman needed to stir something within him. Simultaneously, he thought back to Chloe, glancing instinctively at his cell phone in hopes that it would flash to life, announcing a message or call from her.

Reaching for the orange phone, he flipped it open and glanced at the screen.

Quarter to one

Sliding his thumb over the keypad, he thought back as to whether he had any appointments today. No, his only responsibility was finishing the damn paperwork. How dull. Snapping the hand phone shut and setting it off to the side, he was glad the waitress materialized by their table; though he was not so happy about absence of his mocha. When the waitress questioned them as to what they would have, he motioned to Adeline in a gentlemanly fashion, reaching for the menu once more to verify that he truly wanted what he’d decided upon.

Once she had ordered and the waitress’ attention turned to him, he faltered momentarily, changing his mind at the last minute. The purposely established rule of not getting food that would impede his writing was tossed out the window as he ordered himself a club sandwich with the green salad side option. Lowering the menu, he glanced over at Adeline.

Are you sure you don’t have the time to eat something?

He would not impose it upon her, but the prospect of spending the next few hours here alone working was unappealing. Furthermore, Tyler worked best when distracted; it was a processing thing, similar to tapping his fingers or clicking on the pen cap repeatedly to help him focus on a tedious task. If she changed her mind, he would offer her the menu, otherwise he would settle it back down and remind the waitress of his mocha before she disappeared for another twenty minutes.

[Adeline]

So it was quarter to one. Adeline supposed she had another fifteen-to-twenty minutes to spare before her excuse became a moot point. After all, most jobs seemed to start, and end, on the hour. And if she did choose to stay that long she’d have to make quite the show of being late. Or at least sound the slightest bit shocked over how fast time seemed to fly when you were packed like a sardine into some coffee shop all whilst patiently awaiting one of two ever busy waitresses.

“Cute phone,” Adeline comments. Though most boys - men, rather - didn’t seem to accept the compliment “cute” in stride. Still, it had been the word that came to mind at the time, and with any luck it wouldn’t rub this Rupert the wrong way.

Did she have time to stay for something to eat? Well, obviously she did, though Rupert didn’t need to know that. And in all honesty Miss Graham wasn’t so sure she had the patience the wait about, first for a waitress to take her order, and then for the waitress to bother serving her. “No,” Adeline insists, “I probably don’t even really have time to wait for a coffee, but…” But there was always time for coffee, at least in today’s culture there seemed to be.

Adeline finds herself directing her attention toward the waitress who’d found time to situate herself before their table, “Can I just get a latte, please? On a separate bill. And it’d be great if you brought that out, right away, too,” Adeline requests. Sure, it may sound like a lot, and hopefully the waitress wouldn’t hate Addi for being such a bother, just in case, Miss Graham tacks on another quick, and grateful, “Thank you,” with a kind smile.

With the waitress gone, Adeline swivels within her seat once more to address Rupert, “I hope she doesn’t hate me for that,” she voices her thoughts with a wrinkle to her nose. It was busy, after all, and such a demanding request could send the poor girl over the edge!