lid mishaps

After mister jackass had left me a ten dollar bill and taken his coffee, the morning seemed to drag on. Alice kept things upbeat for the most part, gossiping about a girl with too much makeup in her politics class or the sexy graduate student assisting her professor in sociology. I listened and nodded while focusing on preparing each beverage for our customers, all the while envisioning the sharply dressed man with the bright hazel eyes who'd been so unjustifiably rude. I knew I needed to shake the thought from my mind, as the chances of encountering him again were slim to none. His preferred coffee shop didn't have such mediocre coffee after all, right?

When two thirty rolled around, Alice was eager to have one last word before fleeing to her history exam. She'd stepped in front of me, her pretty features easily visible within the short distance between us, and placed two slender hands atop my shoulders.

"Listen to me," she said slowly, her eye contact direct and oozing sincerity. "You are going to come out with me tonight. We are going to have margaritas and dance with attractive men. Is this in anyway unclear?"

I cocked my head slightly at her, lifting a hand to gently push one of her own off of my shoulders. "I told you that I would think about it, Alice."

Rolling her eyes with a groan, she dropped both hands to her sides. "Fine. But I expect you to call me with whatever you decide - " Pausing to button up her coat, she looked towards me. "And I'm expecting your decision to be in both of our favors."

A short laugh escaped my lips. "How is getting drunk and dancing with other drunk strange men in our favor?"

"Have you seen some of the bachelors wandering around this city?" Her eyes widened and she brought a hand up to fan at her chest. "They're unbelievable, Bella. Besides, you're single. And that's just not okay."

Draping her scarf around her neck, she offered a small smile. "Do you mind making me a caramel macchiato? I'm needing some major caffeine before I fail this test."

"I thought you studied," I teased, reaching below the counter for the bottle of caramel syrup. "But yes, I'd be happy to."

Alice took a seat near the front counter at a small table, strumming her fingers across the tabletop and humming lightly to herself. As I made progress in preparing her drink, the dinging sound of the door opening echoed through the store, and I caught sight of a young man making his way towards the counter. He was dressed in a pressed charcoal grey suit with a dark blue dress shirt and a black patterned tie. His hair was a strange color - a brassy blonde - and sprouted from his head in a wild arrangement of curls. His skin was an unsightly pale color, and the redness of his lips was even more detectable due to this fact. He stopped in front of the counter, staring at me with an odd expression.

"Hi, there," I spoke to him. "Just give me one second and I'll be ready to take your order."

"I'm not ordering anything." His voice was deep and even as he spoke, his eyes not meeting mine.

"Um…" I struggled with what to say as I finished Alice's macchiato. "What can I help you with, then?"

I noticed he was holding a small piece of paper with a shimmery gold accent running along the sides. He stared down at it for a moment and then spoke up. "I am here on behalf of Mr. Edward Cullen."

Silence.

"I'm - uh… I'm not sure what that means," I said slowly. And it was true - I had no idea who this man was referring to. "No one by the name of Edward Collins works here."

"Cullen," My mistake was abruptly corrected by the man, and for the first time since he'd walked in, he looked up at me with a hardened stare. "Edward Cullen. And no, I am not seeking out an employee."

As I capped Alice's drink with a clear lid and placed it atop the counter, I saw that she wasn't eager to rush and collect her favorite drink. Her attention was focused primarily on this young man, and her eyes were vibrant and indicative of excitement as she peered at him from her table.

"Then may I ask who it is you're seeking out, sir?"

He again let his gaze fall to the slip of parchment between his long, pale fingers. "At approximately nine o'clock this morning, Mr. Cullen purchased a black coffee from this facility."

"You'll have to be more specific, many people order black coffee - "

His head shot up, eyes locking on me in a vicious grip. "No sugar, no cream, no bullshit."

Ding, ding, ding. Bingo.

"Oh. Him."

The man nodded, looking back down at his paper. "I'm looking for a young woman in her early twenties. She has long, frizzy dark hair and is wearing a lumpy blue sweater - " he stopped short, looking up at me and studying me for a long moment. Alice let out a small laugh in the distance from behind her hand. My cheeks flushed as I glanced down at the horrid blue sweater I'd been forced to wear today. The man coughed uncomfortably, quickly shifting his eyes back to the paper. "Oh. Right. Well, um. Mr. Cullen ordered a black coffee and on his commute to work, the lid had fallen off and the beverage had splattered across his shirt. Due to the top of the cup not being fastened correctly by the young woman with the lumpy sweater and frizzy hair, Mr. Cullen burned himself and his shirt has been permanently stained."

I stared in bewilderment for a long, long moment at this man before conjuring up something to say. "I'm sorry that… uh… this incident happened. Would Mr. Cullen appreciate a free coffee on us?"

The man shook his head, his brassy curls moving a bit with the motion. With a swift draw of his hand, a sheet appeared on the counter before me with neatly typed black lettering etched across it. I leaned closer, narrowing my eyes to better read it. "What is this?"

The man cleared his throat, using his index finger to push it closer towards me. "This is a bill for the ruined shirt. Mr. Cullen expects it to be paid in full immediately."

What.

WHAT?

"Are you kidding me right now?" I stared at him. "This is a joke, right?"

The man shook his head, still avoiding my gaze. "The situation could have been avoided, but due to the circumstances - "

"What circumstances? I didn't seal the lid completely - so what?"

"The address of Mr. Cullen is printed below. You may send a check or money order to that residence."

I picked up the paper, inspecting closer. When my eyes trailed down to the number bolded near the bottom, I nearly had a heart attack. "Six hundred dollars?"

I heard Alice gasp lightly behind me as my mouth dried. The man nodded curtly. "Yes, that's right."

"Who is this guy? Who the hell spends six hundred dollars on a shirt?"

"Mr. Cullen would appreciate the bill being paid within the next two days."

I laughed then - but it wasn't a laugh of humor or delight. It was a laugh that said what the fuck is going on - and it truly indicated my state of mind. "What's your name?"

The man hesitantly lifted his gaze to mine. "Jasper."

"Okay, Jasper. Listen here - " I paused, pushing the paper back towards him. "I'm not paying anything. If your boss or whoever he is doesn't like that, you can tell him to be a man and come discuss this with me himself. Okay?"

He stared at me for a long moment, his eyes widening slightly, before taking the paper and folding it into his pocket. I didn't let my gaze soften at all as I looked at him.

"Very well," he said, his voice quiet and soft. As he turned to leave, I saw Alice's neck crane up a bit to follow him. He disappeared quietly, the paper gone and my heart hammering in my chest.

I looked at her, my breaths shallow. Oh, god, was I pissed. "Can you believe that?"

She was smiling slightly, her eyes still on the door. "He definitely was something else, wasn't he?"

I groaned then, my eyes fluttering closed. "Alice! That guy just tried to bill me for a spilt coffee!"

Her mesmerized state was broken immediately and she hopped to her feet, reaching for her drink. "People can sue companies for that, Bella. You should be lucky he didn't push it further. Especially since he and Jasper seem to be wealthy."

As she left with a kiss blown through the air, I was left at the counter seething. I don't care if people sue for lids being popped off. If he'd had the integrity to confront me himself rather than sending one of his monkey minions to collect - maybe I'd reacted differently. However wealthy or powerful this Mr. Cullen was - I wouldn't crumple under his authority. No, no.

I slumped against the counter a bit, pressing my palms against my face as that number of six hundred burned in my mind. Maybe I would get drunk tonight after all.