It had been late at night and I was almost finished with my shift when a tall, bulky male with sunglasses entered the café. I had an unsettling feeling about the sunglasses and him entering just before closing time. My movements around the cleaning cloth in my hand began to slow down as I watched him lurking toward the bar. The café was empty and my manager, Bud was in the back. If something happens, he'll hear you scream. I had almost laughed at the thought.I forced it out of my head.
I had already dimmed the most of the lights and I was afraid the guy would trip over a set of chairs or something. He walked with swift movements over to the bar and ordered a coffee in a low, rough voice. I made myself stay neutral and stopped myself to look surpised. Nobody had ever ordered a coffee at 1 a.m. during my shift.
"Sure. Milk or sugar in your coffee?" I politely asked him. I really looked at him this time. Or as much as I could with the dim lighting. I know you, I know you. Thoughts raced through my mind but again, I pushed them away. I had never really met this guy in my life. I didn't know him.
"No, thank you," he answered. He sat down on one of the stools standing at the bar and sighed deep. Frustrated, he combed his hands through his hair.
"Rough night?" I asked before turning my back toward him to get him is coffee.
"Yes. No." He corrected himself as if lost in thoughts. "Well, I just have a busy life. Travelling from place to place, staying for a few days and then leaving."
I turned around with the coffee and placed it in front of him. I immediately noticed he put away his sunglasses, but it was too dark to see his face clearly. But his eyes. Such shining and brilliant blue eyes, even in this light. They were so damn familiar. Like really, really familiar.
Thinking about the sunglasses, I asked, "Are you a pilot or something?"
"Oh no, not at all. I um, work and travel with bands and other artists. Like setting up stage and body guarding and stuff." He seemed to grow uncomfortable. "It's complicated," he clarified.
"Sounds like fun. Tell me about those wonderful places you have been," I said, very curious at that point. I never really talked to costumers unless it was someone I knew. I just had some kind of urge inside of me to talk to him.
He was silent for a while before speaking. "I've been in Europe. Berlin, London, Paris, Madrid, Budapest, Amsterdam, Stockholm, you name it. I also went to Australia, South America, Asia... All places were extraordinary. But Amsterdam, oh what a wonderful place…?"
"It's Be… Tris. My name is Tris," I replied, not realty wanting him to know my real name and, to be honest, Beatrice sounded too lame.
"Amsterdam Tris, is so... wonderful," he said with a low chuckle.
"Because of Red Lights District and the weed?" I teased. I wiggled my eyebrows, suddenly feeling rather bold, but I was not sure if he could see it in the dim lights.
"No, of course not!" he snapped at me, but recovered quickly. "I'm sorry, I'm just- never mind."
"It's okay. What's your name? You know mine, I want to know yours."
He was silent for a moment, as thinking about whether to say it or not.
"You can trust me, you know," I reassured him.
"My name is Tobias."
"Nice to meet you, Tobias," I said, reaching over the bar, offering him my hand.
"Likewise," he said, taking my hand and shook it firmly. His hand felt so strong, so big. He stared at me for a moment. "Have you ever been to 'wonderful places'?" he asked, quoting me.
"No, I haven't been much further than just outside Chicago. I want to go to New York City one day though and beyond, oversea to Europe."
It was true, the only place outside Chicago I'd ever visited had been the woods an hour away from where I lived. I used to have summer camps there. My family and I never went on a holiday and that was fine.
"I'm sure you will go one day. I have been there, it's awesome. I currently live there too, actually."
"You're kidding right?" I laughed. He leaned forward on the bar, about two feet away from my face. His teeth flashed in the light as he smiled.
"No, I'm serious. I live in Manhattan, facing Central Park. My apartment is not that high though." He lets out a shaky laugh. "Not a fan of heights."
"That must be beautiful," I breathed. I couldn't imagine a life in Manhattan looking over Central Park. It was a dream I knew would never come true. With this job, I would never get enough money to even move to New York. Keep dreaming, Beatrice. Dream big.
"Yeah it kinda is," he paused. "What are your hobbies, Tris?"
I was a bit startled by his question. Not every stranger asked me my hobbies. It was not something I shared with everyone. I was kind of a lonely person; I wasn't open to anyone except my mom and best friend. But, telling my hobbies wouldn't hurt, would it?
"My hobbies… I don't have that many. I help the homeless sometimes." I was embarrassed by saying that, even though I shouldn't have been. "I also like to draw, but more like doodling in my notebook when I have nothing to do. I drew this too." I showed him my tattoo of three ravens flying towards my heart on my collarbone. I wasn't sure he could see it clearly. "Three ravens, flying towards my heart. One for each family member."
"You are a very thoughtful person, you know?" he chuckled. "I like it. You should design one for me."
I blushed and looked down. I never flirted with anyone before, if this was supposed to be flirting. I felt light, giddy and still very curious about this Tobias guy. "Me? Designing a tattoo for you?"
"Yeah, you obviously have talent." He was quiet. Then I realized I hadn't asked him about his.
"What about you, Tobias? Any surprising interests?"
He chuckled. "No. I don't have that many hobbies, but I like singing?"
I had to do my best not to burst out of laughter. Tobias didn't sound like a singer at all. "You sing? In a band or alone?" I asked instead, my voice full of awe and surprise.
"I'm in a band, indeed." His voice sounded somehow more excited. "I dare to say I'm pretty good."
I raised my eyebrows. "Is that so? Do you guys perform?"
He nodded. "That's why we're in Chicago. We're having a show tomorrow night." He paused. "Or today I should say."
I thought he had said he worked for bands? Was he lying to me? Hiding something? I looked into his eyes, which looked tired and I decided to shrug it off. He was cute enough to be that suspicious.
"I wish I could come to watch, but I have to work tomorrow." I looked around. "Speaking of which, I'm supposed to be cleaning the bar." I sighed and picked up a cloth and soaked it with water.
"Can I help? I can't stand to watch you work in front of me while I'm doing nothing at all."
I looked up at him in surprise. "Um, sure. You could place all the chairs on the tables." I pointed at the space behind him. "Thank you."
"No problem."
We chatted and talked while cleaning. He was so kind, so open that I could've talked to him all night. In the beginning he seemed tense, almost unkind. Maybe that was what he wanted in the first place, for me to think he wasn't an easy person, that he wouldn't talk so openly with me like he did now.
After the bar had been cleaned and the cafe was ready for closure, he said, "I think I should go. I got to work."
He put some money on the bar. Way too much. "Keep the change," he said with a wink.
"Tobias, you can't do that. You helped cleaning!" I shoved the money back to him.
He ignored my question and the money. "I hope we'll meet again, Tris. It was nice talking to you."
"You know where to find me," I said with a shrug, looking around. "Bye Tobias," I whispered, although I had no idea why. It felt a little bit like I lost a friend. He walked away and looked back once more as he reached the door. He put on his sunglasses and continued to walk down the street. I thought that would be the last time I saw him. Little did I know, oh little did I know.
So... I rewrote this chapter after almost 9 months since I published the story. I hope it's better than the last version, because that sucked. Let me know what you think, I really appreciate it!