Chapter XIX: Architectural designings.
The steam of the hot coffee hits him like a brick to the face. He rubs his eyes and looks up at the waitress. She's a middle-aged, large, red-head in a severe need of make-up tips. He smiles at her and grabs the cup of coffee. He picks the sugar container and releases an oddly large sum of the grain into the black liquid held within the cup. He picks up a spoon and stirs the contents while the waitress serves a cup of coffee to his companion.
Waitress: "Well, what's it going to be, boys?"
Wes: (taking the cup from her hands) "I think I'll have a Pastrami sandwich."
Waitress: "We're out of Pastrami at the moment, hon."
Wes: "Well, then I'll have a Midnight without pickles."
Waitress: (writing on a pad) "No pickles. The rest as it comes?"
Wes: "Yes. Thank you."
Waitress: (to Lindsey) "And you? What're you having?"
Lindsey: "I'll have a bacon, cheeseburger. Sans onions."
Waitress: "Alright then. I'll be back in a little while."
She puts the note-pad in one of her apron's pockets and grabs the coffee pot from the table. She walks away from the table leaving them alone in the back of the diner.
Lindsey: (picks up the cup) "Nice cliché of a place."
Wes: "It works perfectly for what we're going to be doing."
Lindsey: (takes a sip) "Yeah. I know. Coffee could be better, though."
Wes: "You could've asked for something different."
Lindsey: "It's alright. Needed a caffeine kick anyways."
They both take a sip from their respective cups almost simultaneously. Lindsey looks at Wes then at the waitress at the other end of the diner, taking orders from a couple that arrived nigh two minutes ago.
Lindsey: "So this is where everything will be laid down?"
Wes: "You could say that."
Lindsey: "How many meetings a week?"
Wes: "One." (takes another sip from his cup)
Lindsey: "One?"
Wes: "Yes. Shouldn't take too much time before everything begins."
Lindsey: (sharply) "You brought her?"
Wes: "She came willingly, which isn't really a surprise. I didn't even ask her to come."
Lindsey: "Who else came?"
Wes: "Spike."
Lindsey: "Does he know?"
Wes: "No."
Lindsey: "I don't know if that's good or bad."
Wes: "It's neither."
Lindsey: "Hmph."
Wes: "What?"
Lindsey: "Just..."
Wes: "Having second thoughts?"
Lindsey: "No, just... if I do this I'm gonna need more than just what's in the contract."
Wes: "What do you want?"
Lindsey: (ponders on the question then looks at him) "How are you doing this?"
Wes: (taking a sip from the coffee) "Excuse me?"
Lindsey: "Sorry. That came out wrong." (pauses) "No... wait. It didn't."
Wes: "Are you referring as to why I'm here?"
Lindsey: "I think so."
Wes: "When Angel gave you the reigns to Wolfram & Hart he knew he wasn't going to come back. Before he left England I talked to him about Illyria and what I had discovered and he left me with a promise to do what I have to in order to bring Fred back. We had discussed the matter as best we could and decided to give you the keys to the castle. We figured you had the most possibilities to be allowed control of the firm by the Partners."
Lindsey: "Yeah, I know that already. I'm just a figure-head." (picks up the cup) "How about telling me something I don't know?"
Wes: "In the contract you signed it reads that in order to get the company you would first have to do certain tasks in my service. You signed the document with your own blood which prevents you from backing out of this."
Lindsey: "What? You put a hex on the paper or something?"
Wes: (sharply) "Yes."
Lindsey: (slightly shocked) "Oh."
Wes: "The Senior Partners think that you just played your part in this because you were under the threat of Angel. They believe that you were just a peon in his game and that is why they allowed for you to take over."
Lindsey: "Yeah, but that doesn't mean they aren't suspicious. They got Hamilton set up as liaison."
Wes: "He's just continuing to play his role from previous rounds. He never left so there's really no need to change his role."
Lindsey: "Figured as much."
Wes: "I'm sure you did."
Waitress: (coming from behind Wes) "Here you go, boys?"
She stands in front of their table with two plates, one on each hand.
Waitress: "Midnight without pickles..." (puts it in front of Wes) "...here you go. And a bacon, cheeseburger for you." (puts the plate in front of Lindsey) "Anything else?"
Wes: "Yes. I'd like a refill, please."
Waitress: (picks up his cup, then at Lindsey) "Another one for you too?"
Lindsey: "No. I, uh, I'll take a Pepsi. Thanks."
Waitress: "We don't have Pepsi."
Lindsey: "Oh, well, I guess I'll--"
Waitress: "Can bring you a Coke, though."
Lindsey: (smiling) "Thanks."
Waitress: "I'll be right back."
She leaves with Wes' coffee cup. He turns his head and sees her as she walks away.
Wes: (looks at Lindsey) "Bon appetite."
Lindsey: "Ditto." (takes a large bite of his burger)
They eat for the following minutes, neither saying a single word to one another. During the interval the waitress approaches them and hands Wes his cup of coffee. She tells Lindsey that they're out of Coke at the moment so he asks for anything else that's not coffee. After she leaves, she reappears with a glass of 7-Up in her hand.
Waitress: "Here you go. Sorry for the lack of kidney stones inducer." (smiles and walks away)
Lindsey: "I take it she hasn't had a very fulfilling life."
Wes: (swallows a piece of his sandwich) "Look at where she's working."
Lindsey: "My point exactly."
Lindsey takes another bite of his burger. Ketchup drips from his teeth as he sinks them on the bun. He takes a napkin quickly and wipes his face as he chews. Wes takes in the final piece of his sandwich and wipes his hands on the napkin he had set on his thighs. He drops a considerate amount of sugar into his coffee cup and stirs it. He looks over at Lindsey just as he reclines on his seat after finishing his burger.
Wes: "I take it you're satisfied?"
Lindsey: "If only they made the coffee as good as they make the food."
Wes: "It takes time to adjust."
Lindsey: "You're using this place's coffee as a metaphor of us?"
Wes: "Not quite... although it is kind of fitting, if you think about it."
Lindsey: "Hmph. Yeah."
Wes: "So? About your compensation?"
Lindsey: "I need to find Eve."
Wesley looks at him dubiously.
Lindsey: (cont.) "I already have search teams looking for her. I need to find her before I do this, Wes."
Wes: "Very well."
Lindsey: "It shouldn't take much time anyways."
Wes: "Again. No problem in that."
Lindsey: "I need you to give me back the information the Partners took away from me."
Wes: "Your memories?"
Lindsey: "Yes."
Wes: "They altered your memories?"
Lindsey: "More like erased them. I checked every source that I have on this. The memories, the information I had on the Partners is gone."
Wes: "The Apocalypse?"
Lindsey: "No." (pauses) "The ones on how they're going to do it."
Wes: "Did you check with Eve?"
Lindsey: (slightly agitated) "You mean after Angel took me out of that cell he had me in for a nearly a month or before I told her to run away?"
Wes stares at him.
Lindsey: (cont.) "She didn't know anything. Only the basics."
Wes: "Which you already know."
Lindsey: "Mm-hmm."
Wes: "Very well. I'll do it... but only after you help me bring back Fred. Not a moment sooner."
Lindsey: (shrugs) "Fine."
Wes: "Anything else?"
Lindsey: "Are you sure he'll come?"
Wes: (coldly) "Yes."
Lindsey feels a sudden chill up his spine. He grabs the glass of 7-Up but feels it burn on his palm from the chill. He takes a sip through the straw and sets it down on the table. He looks at it straight and turns it around, looking directly at the ice cubes floating inside.
Wes: "Are you alright?"
Lindsey: "Mm?" (looks at him) "Yeah, um, what about Spike? He could prove to be a liability."
Wes: "I'm still not sure why he came."
Lindsey: "What do you think it is?"
Wes: "He wasn't keen on coming back here. Then after the arrow-thing I was pretty shocked he didn't even try to kill me after he healed back."
Lindsey: "Wait. What arrow thing?"
Wes: "I shot him four times with a bow. One on the hip, one on the stomach, another in his shoulder and one in the chest."
Lindsey: "Why the hell'd you do that?"
Wes: "To make him realize that he's never going to measure anything more than the status of wise-cracking side-kick."
Lindsey: "Tough love, huh?"
Wes: "I guess you can put it that way."
Lindsey: (smiling) "Yeah, but something tells me you did it just to shut him up."
Wes: (picks up the coffee cup) "That too. But you never heard it from me." (drinks from it)
Lindsey laughs. The two of them sit there through the rest of the night. Talking. Making jokes. Drinking 7-Up and lackluster coffee. They are preparing for something that makes them shiver in panic. Fear of failure is the foremost feeling shared by these two human souls. Failure is unacceptable at this juncture. Failure... something they both know all too well.
It began with a cup of coffee...
-- End.
The steam of the hot coffee hits him like a brick to the face. He rubs his eyes and looks up at the waitress. She's a middle-aged, large, red-head in a severe need of make-up tips. He smiles at her and grabs the cup of coffee. He picks the sugar container and releases an oddly large sum of the grain into the black liquid held within the cup. He picks up a spoon and stirs the contents while the waitress serves a cup of coffee to his companion.
Waitress: "Well, what's it going to be, boys?"
Wes: (taking the cup from her hands) "I think I'll have a Pastrami sandwich."
Waitress: "We're out of Pastrami at the moment, hon."
Wes: "Well, then I'll have a Midnight without pickles."
Waitress: (writing on a pad) "No pickles. The rest as it comes?"
Wes: "Yes. Thank you."
Waitress: (to Lindsey) "And you? What're you having?"
Lindsey: "I'll have a bacon, cheeseburger. Sans onions."
Waitress: "Alright then. I'll be back in a little while."
She puts the note-pad in one of her apron's pockets and grabs the coffee pot from the table. She walks away from the table leaving them alone in the back of the diner.
Lindsey: (picks up the cup) "Nice cliché of a place."
Wes: "It works perfectly for what we're going to be doing."
Lindsey: (takes a sip) "Yeah. I know. Coffee could be better, though."
Wes: "You could've asked for something different."
Lindsey: "It's alright. Needed a caffeine kick anyways."
They both take a sip from their respective cups almost simultaneously. Lindsey looks at Wes then at the waitress at the other end of the diner, taking orders from a couple that arrived nigh two minutes ago.
Lindsey: "So this is where everything will be laid down?"
Wes: "You could say that."
Lindsey: "How many meetings a week?"
Wes: "One." (takes another sip from his cup)
Lindsey: "One?"
Wes: "Yes. Shouldn't take too much time before everything begins."
Lindsey: (sharply) "You brought her?"
Wes: "She came willingly, which isn't really a surprise. I didn't even ask her to come."
Lindsey: "Who else came?"
Wes: "Spike."
Lindsey: "Does he know?"
Wes: "No."
Lindsey: "I don't know if that's good or bad."
Wes: "It's neither."
Lindsey: "Hmph."
Wes: "What?"
Lindsey: "Just..."
Wes: "Having second thoughts?"
Lindsey: "No, just... if I do this I'm gonna need more than just what's in the contract."
Wes: "What do you want?"
Lindsey: (ponders on the question then looks at him) "How are you doing this?"
Wes: (taking a sip from the coffee) "Excuse me?"
Lindsey: "Sorry. That came out wrong." (pauses) "No... wait. It didn't."
Wes: "Are you referring as to why I'm here?"
Lindsey: "I think so."
Wes: "When Angel gave you the reigns to Wolfram & Hart he knew he wasn't going to come back. Before he left England I talked to him about Illyria and what I had discovered and he left me with a promise to do what I have to in order to bring Fred back. We had discussed the matter as best we could and decided to give you the keys to the castle. We figured you had the most possibilities to be allowed control of the firm by the Partners."
Lindsey: "Yeah, I know that already. I'm just a figure-head." (picks up the cup) "How about telling me something I don't know?"
Wes: "In the contract you signed it reads that in order to get the company you would first have to do certain tasks in my service. You signed the document with your own blood which prevents you from backing out of this."
Lindsey: "What? You put a hex on the paper or something?"
Wes: (sharply) "Yes."
Lindsey: (slightly shocked) "Oh."
Wes: "The Senior Partners think that you just played your part in this because you were under the threat of Angel. They believe that you were just a peon in his game and that is why they allowed for you to take over."
Lindsey: "Yeah, but that doesn't mean they aren't suspicious. They got Hamilton set up as liaison."
Wes: "He's just continuing to play his role from previous rounds. He never left so there's really no need to change his role."
Lindsey: "Figured as much."
Wes: "I'm sure you did."
Waitress: (coming from behind Wes) "Here you go, boys?"
She stands in front of their table with two plates, one on each hand.
Waitress: "Midnight without pickles..." (puts it in front of Wes) "...here you go. And a bacon, cheeseburger for you." (puts the plate in front of Lindsey) "Anything else?"
Wes: "Yes. I'd like a refill, please."
Waitress: (picks up his cup, then at Lindsey) "Another one for you too?"
Lindsey: "No. I, uh, I'll take a Pepsi. Thanks."
Waitress: "We don't have Pepsi."
Lindsey: "Oh, well, I guess I'll--"
Waitress: "Can bring you a Coke, though."
Lindsey: (smiling) "Thanks."
Waitress: "I'll be right back."
She leaves with Wes' coffee cup. He turns his head and sees her as she walks away.
Wes: (looks at Lindsey) "Bon appetite."
Lindsey: "Ditto." (takes a large bite of his burger)
They eat for the following minutes, neither saying a single word to one another. During the interval the waitress approaches them and hands Wes his cup of coffee. She tells Lindsey that they're out of Coke at the moment so he asks for anything else that's not coffee. After she leaves, she reappears with a glass of 7-Up in her hand.
Waitress: "Here you go. Sorry for the lack of kidney stones inducer." (smiles and walks away)
Lindsey: "I take it she hasn't had a very fulfilling life."
Wes: (swallows a piece of his sandwich) "Look at where she's working."
Lindsey: "My point exactly."
Lindsey takes another bite of his burger. Ketchup drips from his teeth as he sinks them on the bun. He takes a napkin quickly and wipes his face as he chews. Wes takes in the final piece of his sandwich and wipes his hands on the napkin he had set on his thighs. He drops a considerate amount of sugar into his coffee cup and stirs it. He looks over at Lindsey just as he reclines on his seat after finishing his burger.
Wes: "I take it you're satisfied?"
Lindsey: "If only they made the coffee as good as they make the food."
Wes: "It takes time to adjust."
Lindsey: "You're using this place's coffee as a metaphor of us?"
Wes: "Not quite... although it is kind of fitting, if you think about it."
Lindsey: "Hmph. Yeah."
Wes: "So? About your compensation?"
Lindsey: "I need to find Eve."
Wesley looks at him dubiously.
Lindsey: (cont.) "I already have search teams looking for her. I need to find her before I do this, Wes."
Wes: "Very well."
Lindsey: "It shouldn't take much time anyways."
Wes: "Again. No problem in that."
Lindsey: "I need you to give me back the information the Partners took away from me."
Wes: "Your memories?"
Lindsey: "Yes."
Wes: "They altered your memories?"
Lindsey: "More like erased them. I checked every source that I have on this. The memories, the information I had on the Partners is gone."
Wes: "The Apocalypse?"
Lindsey: "No." (pauses) "The ones on how they're going to do it."
Wes: "Did you check with Eve?"
Lindsey: (slightly agitated) "You mean after Angel took me out of that cell he had me in for a nearly a month or before I told her to run away?"
Wes stares at him.
Lindsey: (cont.) "She didn't know anything. Only the basics."
Wes: "Which you already know."
Lindsey: "Mm-hmm."
Wes: "Very well. I'll do it... but only after you help me bring back Fred. Not a moment sooner."
Lindsey: (shrugs) "Fine."
Wes: "Anything else?"
Lindsey: "Are you sure he'll come?"
Wes: (coldly) "Yes."
Lindsey feels a sudden chill up his spine. He grabs the glass of 7-Up but feels it burn on his palm from the chill. He takes a sip through the straw and sets it down on the table. He looks at it straight and turns it around, looking directly at the ice cubes floating inside.
Wes: "Are you alright?"
Lindsey: "Mm?" (looks at him) "Yeah, um, what about Spike? He could prove to be a liability."
Wes: "I'm still not sure why he came."
Lindsey: "What do you think it is?"
Wes: "He wasn't keen on coming back here. Then after the arrow-thing I was pretty shocked he didn't even try to kill me after he healed back."
Lindsey: "Wait. What arrow thing?"
Wes: "I shot him four times with a bow. One on the hip, one on the stomach, another in his shoulder and one in the chest."
Lindsey: "Why the hell'd you do that?"
Wes: "To make him realize that he's never going to measure anything more than the status of wise-cracking side-kick."
Lindsey: "Tough love, huh?"
Wes: "I guess you can put it that way."
Lindsey: (smiling) "Yeah, but something tells me you did it just to shut him up."
Wes: (picks up the coffee cup) "That too. But you never heard it from me." (drinks from it)
Lindsey laughs. The two of them sit there through the rest of the night. Talking. Making jokes. Drinking 7-Up and lackluster coffee. They are preparing for something that makes them shiver in panic. Fear of failure is the foremost feeling shared by these two human souls. Failure is unacceptable at this juncture. Failure... something they both know all too well.
It began with a cup of coffee...
-- End.