"He's here again." Jake told her, motioning to the door of the cafe.
Trying to be subtle, Audrey turned slowly so she could look at the man who had walked in. Tall and thin, he had bright red curly hair that you could recognise immediately. He pushed his horn-rimmed glasses further up on his freckled nose as he found himself a seat in the corner of the room. His clothes were smart, a black suit with a blue tie. Other than his distinct red hair, he was quite ordinary.
Despite that, Audrey had begun to notice whenever he arrived.
He was there every day for lunch. Every day he would walk in and sit at the same table, by himself. Every day he would order a black coffee. And every day he would sit in silence as he drank his coffee, before leaving again. It was the same routine, day after day.
Audrey was determined to change that. Starting today.
His table was never in her section, so she had never spoken to him. But today was different, she had swapped with one of the other waitresses. She wanted to speak to him, to help him.
She noticed him the first time he came to the cafe. Haggard and tired, he had shuffled in and taken the seat in the corner. She had noticed then how pale he was, how exhausted he seemed. But what stood out the most were his eyes. They were sad. But not just the sad that people get when it starts to rain, or even when their date doesn't show up. This was raw despair, something that Audrey didn't think she had ever seen before.
Every day he came in with that same look in his eyes. While he seemed to become a little more healthy, like when he lost the purple bags under his eyes, he never lost that sadness. She had never seen him smile, not once.
If there was one thing Audrey couldn't stand, it was people who were too sad to smile.
That's why she had to do something. She had to see him smile, even once. Who knows, it might even help him.
So she grabbed his black coffee and a cappuccino for herself and headed for the corner table.
"Here's your coffee!" She said brightly putting it down in front of him. He looked up in surprise, before his eyes widened even more when she sat across from him.
"I hadn't even ordered yet." He said softly, confused.
"Yes, but I already knew what you were going to order." Audrey said, sipping from her cappuccino. "You are here every day."
"Right, of course." He mumbled, taking a sip of his own drink. There was a moment of silence before he said "I'm sorry, but why are you sitting here?"
"I'm on my break." She replied smoothly. "Now tell me, what's your name?"
"Percy. Percy Weasley."
"Nice to meet you Percy Weasley, I'm Audrey Farrow." She stuck out her hand. He hesitantly shook it.
"Not to be rude, but your name tag says Aubrey." He said.
"Yeah, I know. When I started working here, my boss misheard me and thought that was my name. I never bothered to correct him and by the time he knew his mistake, the tag was already made. Thought it would just be easier to keep it, you know?" She explained with a laugh.
She was amazed when he seemed to relax. "I had a boss once who thought my surname was Weatherby. Called me that for months."
Audrey giggled. "How do you get Weatherby from Weasley?"
"I have absolutely no idea." Her giggles became louder. To her delight, his lips curled up into a small smile. She grinned at him.
"Tell be about yourself Percy."
And that's how it started. Every day after that when Percy Weasley came into the cafe, Audrey Farrow would take her break. She would sit with him and they would talk until he had to go back to work. They would talk about everything, from simple information to more personal stories. Audrey could only hope that one day she would know everything about him. But for now, this was all she needed.
Because every day his eyes became a little less sad.