The Yellow Brick Road
Chapter 22: COFFEE – Andy, Cagalli and the perfect cup of coffee.
August, C.E. 81
"Ten years ago, no one would've guessed that the Desert Tiger and I will be sitting together drinking coffee like this." Cagalli sips the brew Andrew Waltfeld made for her. "As always, this is really good coffee."
Cagalli always says it's the good coffee that makes her visit the veteran's humble apartment in Orb, but Andy knows it's because Cagalli longs for company. All their friends are either busy or far away. Some are both. Fortunately, working at Morgenroete under Erica Simmons makes Andy very accessible to Cagalli. He doesn't mind her frequent visits though; they're good friends, and he enjoys her company. He knows she enjoys his company too.
Andy snorts in laughter. "Hey, don't you forget that ten years ago, we did sit together to drink coffee. Aisha even got you to dress up pretty nicely."
At the mention of his deceased lover, Cagalli becomes silent, and she glances at the beautiful lady in the frame that's sitting on the side table. "I'm sorry."
Andy sighs. "What for? It wasn't your fault."
"I'm still sorry." Cagalli reaches out for Andy's hand; Andy looks at her gratefully. After a while, Cagalli leans back into her seat, intent on steering the conversation to another direction. "So, for the great Andrew Waltfeld, master of all things coffee, I never got to ask - what is the perfect brew?"
Andy's thoughts immediately go to Aisha, and he smiles gently. "It was never about the brew. It was always about the person you make it for, or the person you drink with, or the person who made it for you."
As Cagalli nods in agreement, Andy quickly adds, "Obviously, the brew can't be crap either. Otherwise, it's just bad for everyone."
Laughing, they both take a sip of another perfect cup of coffee.