Disclaimer: I own nothing.
Note: This is a muggle AU. Just sayin'.
A Glass Of Water And A Cup Of Tea
Chapter 1
"Oh, you should have seen her, mate," James Potter says in a tone of wonder "she turned her head to look at me, and I could see it in slow motion: her face turning to look over her smooth shoulder, the beautiful red hair being flipped back with the movement, her eyes looking so fiercely green at me and her mouth opening, slowly, so perfectly, so kissably-"
"And that's when she told you to bugger off?" Sirius interrupts him.
"That's what those perfect lips said, Sirius," James continues, with an idiotic grin on his face "but her eyes, her eyes promised something else."
" ... to kick your ass?" Sirius guesses, putting a hand on his forehead.
"No, no, mate, you weren't there, you didn't see, the way she spoke ... " James sighs, a dreamy look on his face "I'm going to marry her, Sirius."
Sirius doesn't say a thing, already being used to this kind of talk coming from James, and always about the same read haired girl.
James Potter is an excellent friend. He's loyal and doesn't judge, he's smart, witty and good for laughs. He loves mischief and pranks, and that goes well for Sirius. But he's a nutter. He's been in love with this girl since they were merely teens, and Sirius doesn't know if it's a good thing that he got used to listen to James rambling about emerald green eyes, and red hair that looked like fire.
But Sirius puts up with it because James is the brother he wishes he had, and Sirius is the brother James never had.
"Where is she working again?" Sirius asks, not really interested, but not recalling the place. He's sure James knows, because he goes bother her several times per day there.
"On that bookshop, two stores over the restaurant," and he doesn't need to say he's talking about his parents'. "We were there on the other day, remember? I accidently bought that book about gardening." And by accidently he means that he grabbed a random book so he'd have an excuse to talk with her.
"Hm," Sirius tries to recall it, but he can't, so he just shrugs and looks at the time "Ah, got to go, Jamsie boy." He gets up "My shift starts in ten minutes." Sirius grabs his jacket and pauses, to pat James' head "Don't be sad now, my sweet pumpkin," he adds in baby talk "I know you're going to miss me very, very much, but I-"
"Oh, shut it," James moves his head away from his hand with a smile "Go on, idiot, Alphard is pissed off enough, and we need him in a good mood for our next prank."
"And wiser words have never been spoken," he says, before saluting James and walking out into the cold streets on November. He doesn't bother to put on the jacket, just having to walk two streets until he gets in the warmth of his uncle's shop.
He rubs his hands together and nods in greeting to the usual costumers as he walks to the kitchen to change clothes.
This time it's a bit later than five into the afternoon when the mysterious man passes by the coffee shop, the sky outside grey and darkening, with the moon rising soon. Sirius decides to make his break then, the cafe being empty, and for the first time, he doesn't have a glass to separate his vision from the other.
And he is looking sick.
Sirius sees the other walk with wavering steps, more tired than even, his shoulders down and panting a bit. And Sirius, also for the first time, does something else besides watching.
"Are you alright?" he asks him, "Would you like to get a glass of water?" he puts a hand on the glassy door and opens it a bit, inviting the other in.
The other takes a moment to look at him, panting, and Sirius notices his reddening cheeks and a bit of sweat, as if he was feeling hot, but that is absurd at such hours and with such weather.
"I'm sorry," the other says, and Sirius takes in his voice, calm and smooth, quiet "but I'm in hurry." He shifts his feet, cautiously looking up to the sky for a moment.
"Oh," Sirius says, trying not to sound disappointed, and lets go the door.
The other bites his lower lip, thinking "Perhaps another day, though?"
Sirius feels himself smile a bit "Yeah, another day then."
The other looks at him for a moment, smiling too, and takes that as his cue to leave, now almost running to catch up with the time he lost speaking to him.
Sirius watches him go, still standing against the showcase, and stays there, looking up to the sky. He goes in again when it starts raining, and hopes the other has reached his destination by then.
He works late into the night, as the cafe is opened for the gentlemen who go out to drink wine and whiskey and comment on politics while they eat simple things, and when Sirius closes the shop, outside – on these days, the time he closes it being too late for his uncle Alphard to be up at – and looks up, to see if it was going to rain again.
The sky is clean, and the street is illuminated by the bright light of the full moon.