Cafe Away

It really is the little things that matter. The little things are the parts of a whole that make up what we cannot always see.

Left on Jefferson, right on 5th, and two blocks down. Darren's feet kept perfect time with Audrey's as they moved along the path as if by muscle memory.
“How will you ever get used to California?”, Audrey asked as she pulled her striped scarf tighter around her pale face.
“I'm not thinking about that yet, A. It's still a month away.” Darren said, watching his words make smoky patterns in the frigid air.
Audrey frowned. “That's not very long you know.”
“Yeah yeah. Sure it's not.” He replied, getting the door for her.
The aroma of coffee and the sudden warmth mingled together in the small, cozy shop.
“Hey guys!” the barista called out. “Your usuals?”
“You bet, Maeve.” Audrey said.
“Actually,” Darren piped up, “I think I'm going to try something new. Sometimes the usual gets a bit boring.”
“Sure thing my man. Wanna try our new London Fog?”
“Sounds adventurous. Medium please.”
Darren turned around to face Audrey, but she wasn't there. She was already seated directly across from him.
He strode over to her. “Being daring too huh?”
“Our usual booth was just so quaint. I thought I would try the one by the water fountain for a little more pizzaz.”
Pizzaz was not the word he had in mind when he heard her voice. Her eyes wouldn't meet his as he slid into the small seat across from her. Darren wished he could see her iPhone screen, because whatever she was looking at, it sure was fascinating her.
“Work was wild today!” He tried.
“I'm sorry.”
“Yeah, you really sound like it, A.”
“What do you want me to say?”
“I don't know. You usually ask me seven million questions and make stupid jokes the whole time I try to tell you my stories.”
“Well the usual is boring, Darren.”
“House roast black, two sweeteners and a London Fog!” Maeve called out.
Darren brought them both back to the table and Audrey put her head up to take a sip. Her green eyes had more liquid in them than her coffee cup.
“What's so bad about the usual?” She asked in a husky voice.
Darren's hand halted and set his mug back down. “It's just tea, A. Chill.”
Even her enormous eyes couldn't contain the hurt anymore. Her small hand shook on her coffee cup as her tears hit the surface of the warm beverage like raindrops.
“This is what I was drinking the first day you helped me write that stupid paper. This is what I was drinking when you comforted me after Jason left. This is what our friendship tastes like to me.”
Leave it to Audrey to be so ridiculously poetic about coffee. He slid into the booth next to her and put his arm around her. She collapsed against him as he soothed her dreadlocked hair, trying to calm the storm inside her. Maybe a month was closer than he thought.