Café
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Pulling out the key out of the ignition, I gathered my stuff up and left the car, making my way in the café. I woke up early this morning, again, but this time, it was because; I wasn't physically, emotionally, and mentally ready to face a likely edged atmosphere I'll experience at our breakfast table.
'𝘐 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘩𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘦. 𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘵'𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘺 𝘐 𝘥𝘰𝘯'𝘵 𝘱𝘪𝘤𝘬 𝘧𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘴, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘴𝘦.'
Since my father and I never really had a fight before, I don't really know how to approach him after everything that just happened so I just decided to go out earlier than expected, leaving a note in the kitchen of my plans to head out and have breakfast with Liam.
I also messaged the idiot earlier on my way here, that I'll be arriving at an earlier time and hopefully Liam's already awake and has read my message already, or else I'll have to wait here for like two whole hours.
Upon stepping at the wooden porch entrance of the resident café, I pushed the front door open, setting off a dissonant chiming that echoed throughout the place.
Because this was a 24/7 resident café at 7am, on a Wednesday morning. The place was still empty as a shell. A bartender and a waiter standing by the counter were the only people that contained the store, also now including me.
I walked past the chairs and couches along the way and found my way to a corner spot. A place for a pair, two single couches lined up in between a table and were side up against the glass wall.
I sat on the couch and looked upon the glass, gazing at the scenery outside. Faint layer of fog covering the trees and bushes fanned my car with thick enough moist that you could even draw on it.
I also saw some few cars passed by, and a person with a pair of air pods through his ears, jogging up in a sweatshirt and sweatpants, making his way on a straight path that would pass the café.
That mop of blonde hair bouncing off atop of his head while he jogged seemed oddly familiar, and his eyes, strikingly ocean blue, that remind me of a certain idiot.
My eyes widened when I realize who the person was. Leaning closer through the glass, I squinted my eyes at the person to refocus his figure and make sure that this was indeed Liam. He was about several walks before the café when he caught my eyes. He stopped and mimicked my action earlier, and squinted his gaze at me, probably analyzing if it was in fact me.
His eyes lit up like a child being taken into an amusement park when he realized it was me. 𝘗𝘳𝘰𝘣𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘺. Anyway, upon recognizing me he waved both of his hands up in the air like a rag doll, almost like it could fall off anytime at how harsh and exaggerated he swaddled his entire arms at me.
He called out my name rather loudly. Because despite his distance and the barrier between us, I could still hear his faint voice all the way from where I was.
I rolled my eyes at him so hard that I might probably see my brain. I hissed at him to quit what he was doing and gestured, even texted him altogether to get his stupid butt over here already.
He stopped at his actions, stared at his phone, grinned, and continued his jog, making his way to this café.
'𝘎𝘰𝘰𝘥𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘐 𝘢𝘮 𝘨𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘪𝘥𝘪𝘰𝘵.'
Clinging of chimes resonated throughout the café once again that morning as he opened and entered the door. Closing it behind him, I saw his eyes scanned the surroundings. And when the moment his eyes landed on my figure, the ambience I was savoring also shattered alongside it.
"Yo! Reyna!" I flinched at the sudden volume, his voice echoed throughout the café.
"Keep it down, Liam. It's 7am." I hissed at him, grimacing at his current state. Out of breath, sweat sliding down from his hair down to his face, and sticky, that the thin layer of fabric was hugging him, clinging desperately to his shaped figure.
'𝘌𝘸, 𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴 𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘬? 𝘎𝘰𝘰𝘥𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘱𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘦 𝘥𝘰𝘯'𝘵.'
"It's only 6:55, still have five minutes before 7." He grinned a dorky smile as I returned it with a deadpanned stoic face.
Taking out a towel I have no idea where he pulled out from, he dabbed it on his face, wiping the rest of the running substance from his body.
"William Anderson."
Oceanic eyes widened. Panic and urgency immediately splattered all over his face at my words.
"Wait! No! Stop! Sorry! Yup, I'll behave now."
Smiling like a child caught red-handed, he pulled the chair off and sat down. We exchanged a few words of gestures and remarks and complaints, the majority from me on how sticky and sweaty he was before we got up and ordered our breakfast.
---
"You're really serious about following me to Northwestern?" I asked for like the million'th time that morning, still unable to somehow register and believe his decision.
I grabbed a tissue and patted it on my lips. A sigh of satisfaction from the delicious breakfast meal escaped my mouth.
"Yeah, I am. Seriously I'm not joking."
I looked at him skeptically, trying to decipher such potency or any hint of hesitation. Albeit, I was met with only sheer determination and resolve.
'𝘐 𝘨𝘶𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴.'
I shrugged it off and rolled my eyes and just downed a glass of water. Apparently, he received my text, but never had the chance to read it.
Liam lived around this area just a few blocks down, and I entirely forgot that it was one of his 𝘮 𝘸 𝘧 schedule for jogging. And it was presently Wednesday. He had no idea that I was already here in the first place, hence he used the excuse to justify his actions earlier when he saw me.
'𝘛𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘦𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘸𝘢𝘺, 𝘪𝘧 𝘩𝘦 𝘬𝘯𝘦𝘸 𝘰𝘳 𝘯𝘰𝘵, 𝘐'𝘮 𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥𝘯'𝘵 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘮𝘶𝘤𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘢 𝘥𝘪𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦.'
"Idiot," I muttered, setting the glass down on the table with a tud.
Clinging of chimes and a wave of noise of people having a conversation with each other entered the premises once again. As the sun rose up, more and more people kept coming. Currently, the café was now almost half full.
He probably heard what I said, for he quickly retorted a reply, "Hey! Stop undermining my drive to do something. Isn't this the original agenda of this date?"
I kicked his shins from below the table. "I'm gonna splash you with your drink. This ain't a date idiot. So shut it."
He just frowned at me, still crouching down as he rubbed the pained area. After a few seconds of silence, he finally broke it.
"So when you gonna start getting ready for the exams?" He asked with still a dorky expression on his face, but a hint of seriousness was also evident in his tone.
"Tomorrow, I'll arrange a schedule in the review center. And after that I'll head to the library."
"Let me go with you! I think I'll also sign up to those review centers."
"Yeah. You'll terribly need those." I said, as I muffled up a laugh.
"Hey!" he said rhetorically, and me chuckling at his response.
"You can go with me. idiot. But for your information, if you're late even for a minute, I'll swear I'm leaving without you."
"Yes ma'am," He said straightening his composure and playfully mimicked a salute at me. I chuckled at that.
Shoving the last piece of gingerbread in his mouth, he chewed and uttered a question, "Where to tomorrow?"
"Let's meet here again at 9 am."
"Noice." Drinking his shake, he gave me a thumbs up.
I just shook my head, rolled my eyes, and let a small chuckle roll out of lips as he bantered some random stuff out once more.
---
We moved in silence as we made our way to the line, which was now pretty long, distinctly.
"I told you we should've ordered a while ago."
"If we ordered earlier, then the beverages will be cold, or warm already by now, idiot."
"But the lines too long." He whined annoyingly, per usual, behind me.
"By the way, why didn't you reply to any of my texts yesterday, I was worried. I came here at like 11am and got surprised you weren't here."
Scrunching up my face in annoyance, I turned to him and glared at ominously at him, "You came here at what time?"
He grimaced at his mistake, his face instantly forming into a regrettable expression of his slip of tongue.
"Yeah, that's not what I'm pointing out here. You texted me a few minutes after I arrived that you weren't gonna make it, telling me that you're sorry and you'll explain everything tomorrow at the same place and time. After that, you didn't reply for the rest of the day. I was so confused and worried, you know!"
"Yeah I know just, I'm telling you everything later on, after we finish ordering."
I glanced back up the line, checking that we were finally half way through.
"When we're both back in our seats, I'll tell you what happened. But for now, I still can't grasp and ignore the fact that you came here an hour later from our agreed meeting time."
Looking smugly at me he smirked, "What's the point of arguing about that, you didn't even come."
"Hey! Something happened unexpectedly, and it's considered an emergency! What about you? What was your excuse?"
"A girl accused me of harassing her." He mumbled barely above a whisper that if I wasn't right in front of him, I wouldn't have heard anything.
I chuckled.
"Probably true, pervert." I said blatantly as I turned around and face the line ahead, completely ignoring him and doing my best to swallow an inaudible laugh.
"Hey! I really didn't."
I just shrugged off all his ominous bantering and excuses as we went up the line. When we reached the counter, we ordered our respected beverages, found our way back to our table, and sat down.
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