The coffee shop was warm, bright and cosy. Yellow walls, coloured couches, comfy chairs and tables. In one end, a fire roared in the fireplace. On the opposite end, the workers bustled about, preparing teas, coffees and hot chocolates. It was packed full of people, barely a chair was unoccupied. The queue to order a take-away drink was nearly out the door. On rainy days such as this one, "Hanji's House" always did good business.
Marco smiled, handing the hot chocolate to-go to the customer. As he handed her the change, he looked out the window. It was still raining. It was just one of those days, he decided. The sky was dark, even though it wasn't that late. The rain had been pouring all day, sometimes lightly, sometimes thundering. The whole world outside of the coffee shop seemed dull and grey. Marco sighed, his smile slipping a little. He had to walk home today. At least he had an umbrella with him.
He noticed someone outside. A young man, looking through the window. He made no motion to come in to the coffee shop…he was just standing there. He didn't have an umbrella or a proper jacket, just a worn-out hoodie. He must be freezing, Marco thought. From his current position, he couldn't see his face at all.
"Yo. Marco," Hanji said, flicking him with a tea towel. "You in a trance, or something?" The light reflected off of her glasses momentarily.
Marco jumped. "S-sorry!" he said, slightly embarrassed that his employer had caught him staring at some guy while he should have been working. "I'll get making those lattes straight away!"
Hanji laughed. "Check the time, Marco. Your shift is over. You should be getting home soon."
Marco checked his watch. Sure enough, it was six o' clock. "Oh! Well, thanks!" he said. "I'll probably be getting going soon, then. Are you sure you don't need me to stick around? It is kind of busy…"
Hanji shook her head. "Christa's coming in soon, we'll manage without you. Now get going – that rain has lightened a little. I'd tell you to take a coffee to keep you warm on the way home, but you don't drink coffee, do you?"
Marco's gaze darted to the window. That guy was still there. "Actually," he said. "I might take a coffee today."
"Excuse me!" Marco said, umbrella in one hand, coffee cup in the other. The man in the hoodie turns around to look at him for a second, before turning on his heel and walking away.
Marco's brow crinkled slightly. He followed the man. "Excuse me!" he said, louder this time. The man turns again. Marco jogged a little to catch up to him. Now that they're closer, Marco can see his face. Suspicion clouds the man's face. His hazel eyes are narrowed slightly, his mouth in a grimace. Marco could just about make out a shock of blond hair under his hood. He didn't just look suspicious. He looked…defeated. Like someone who had given up on something big. Marco shook his head – those were weird thoughts.
Marco smiles widely, handing him the cup. "Hey there," he said. "I work in the coffee shop just there. I saw you looking in, and gosh it's so cold and wet, I thought you might need a little warming up."
The man's face showed disbelief. "I…I don't have any money," he said. His voice was low, and smooth like velvet. Marco could listen to that voice all day.
"It's okay," Marco said. "Hanji – she's the owner – always lets us take a coffee at the end of our shift, and she never charges us! But I don't really like coffee…I saw you looking in the window but you didn't come in, so I thought that you might enjoy a free coffee more than I would!"
The man still looked slightly suspicious. His hazel eyes flickered from the coffee to Marco. He looked kind of surprised, too. Marco didn't understand why – it was just a cup of coffee.
"Why are you being so nice?" he asked. "You don't know me."
"Do you have to know someone to be nice to them?" Marco asked. "It's just a cup of coffee. It's no big deal."
Slowly, the man raised his hand to take the cup. His fingers brushed off of Marco's. They were freezing. The man took a sip, and shuddered slightly. "Thank you," he said to Marco, genuine gratitude in his eyes.
Marco beamed. "Anytime."
The man turned and walked away before Marco could ask him his name. He held the cup of coffee like it was a precious treasure. He was odd, Marco thought. Though then again, so am I.
Connie laughed heartily. "Dude! You're such a weirdo. Just giving people on the streets free coffee!" He laughed again.
"Shush!" Sasha said, flicking Connie on the head. "Marco was being nice. At least he has a heart, unlike you!"
"Who needs a heart when you can have Sasha's cooking?"
Marco laughed at his roommate's behaviour. Sasha, their friend, handed him a dish. Marco didn't even know what it was, but if Sasha made it, it was bound to taste good. Most nights Sasha ended up cooking for him and Connie – they couldn't cook at all, whereas Sasha was a master.
"Anyway," Sasha continued, sitting down at the table herself. "I thought it was kind of sweet! Did you get his name? What did he look like?"
Marco shook his head. He regretted it. He wasn't sure why, but the man in the rain intrigued him. "He left before I could introduce myself." Marco tried to remember the details. "He had blond hair and he was a little smaller than me. I'd never seen him before."
Sasha nodded thoughtfully while Connie shook his head. "You guys," he said through a mouthful of food. "Don't you realise that it can be dangerous to go up to some fucking stranger? You don't know who it could be. Marco's coffee guy could be a murderer or a stalker or something. You guys need to be more careful."
Marco shook his head. He put down his fork. He understood what Connie was trying to say, but… "He wasn't like that," he said. Connie raised an eyebrow. "Oh yeah, I'm sure you know him so well after exchanging what? Three sentences with him?"
Marco smiled, trying to placate his roommate. "I can't explain it," he said. "I just felt as if he wasn't dangerous. I guess I just had a good vibe from him." He laughed a little, aware of how dumb it sounded.
"Right. Dude, what the fuck are you on?" Connie asked. All three laughed.
Later, after Marco and Connie had said their goodbyes to Sasha, Marco's phone beeped.
From: Potato Girl
To: Freckled Jesus
yo marco, don't get upset about what C said. he has our best interests at heart J i wont be over tomorrow, but i left a lasagne in ur fridge so u wont starve :D if u see coffee guy again tell me! night J
Marco smiled. He knew Connie was just looking out for him. He and Connie had known each other since childhood. They lived on the same street but they didn't become friends until high school (which was when they met Sasha, too). The three had become inseparable. They all went to the same University too, the Uni on the outskirts of the city. While Sasha lived on campus with her friend Mikasa, Connie and Marco rented a tiny apartment in the city. They liked staying closer to the city, and the University was only fifteen minutes on the bus anyway.
Marco was studying journalism at Uni, and worked at Hanji's House in the evenings and weekends to pay for his rent. He was working at the same time again tomorrow. He wondered if he'd see coffee guy again tomorrow.
From: Freckled Jesus
To: Potato Girl
hes here!
From: Potato Girl
To: Freckled Jesus
Who?
From: Freckled Jesus
To: Potato Girl
COFFEE GUY
From: Freckled Jesus
To: Potato Girl
OK my shifts over im gonna give him another coffee
From: Freckled Jesus
To: Potato Girl
here we go
From: Potato Girl
To: Freckled Jesus
gl!
Coffee Guy smiled at him. He didn't look suspicious like he did yesterday. Well, that wasn't true. He looked slightly wary still, but not as much as yesterday. He was looking considerably perkier than the previous day too. When he took the coffee he gave Marco a smile, which showed his teeth. He was wearing the same clothes as yesterday, but his hood wasn't up. Marco could see his whole face now.
He could also see that he was…very handsome. Marco gulped.
"I'll pay you back for these, Freckles," he said. "I promise. I can't right now, but I will."
Marco laughed. "It's only coffee. I don't like it anyway; it's really not a big deal!"
Unlike the previous day, Coffee Guy didn't leave immediately. "Thanks," he said, his voice slightly lower. His voice was smooth as water, Marco could listen to it all day.
Coffee Guy ran a hand through his messy blond hair. "I'll be going then," he said.
Marco didn't know what to say. He wanted to talk to Coffee Guy more – he was mysterious and attractive, who wouldn't want to talk to him more? But Marco wasn't brave enough to say anything, so he watched Coffee Guy walk down the street.
An idea struck him. He chewed his lip for a moment, before deciding "oh, fuck it, let's try this."
"Hey! Coffee Guy!" he yelled.
Coffee Guy whirled around, an eyebrow raised. His mouth curled upwards slightly.
"My name isn't Freckles!" Marco yelled.
Coffee Guy laughed. It wasn't a proper, hearty laugh. It was a short laugh, but even so it was a great sound.
"What is it then?" he called back.
"Marco! Marco Bodt!"
"Well, Marco Bodt, my name isn't Coffee Guy!"
Marco smiled widely. Coffee Guy returned the smile before turning. "My name is Jean Kirstein!"