Chapter Text
Charlotte always made certain to be early for work. It was her reprieve, her familiarity, something that could be good when home life wasn’t. Usually, she would be the first one there and the one to brew a pot of coffee. Another ritual, something to make her feel important. When she walked in on this Monday in October, however, Paul was already sitting at his desk with a paper cup next to his computer. She frowned and tapped him on the shoulder.
“Oh, hi, Charlotte,” he said.
“Where’d you get that? Y-you never come in with your own coffee.”
“Ah, yeah! See, this new coffee shop opened about a block away from the office. ‘S called Beanies, it’s really nice. I went over the weekend with Emma, we really liked it. You should check it out!” Paul seemed pretty content this morning, which was a nice reprieve from the chronically nervous man she saw most days.
“But, uh, well, I’m here already, it’s almost nine, and—”
“Nah, it’ll be fine.”
She nodded an okay and walked back outside. The October sunrise was late, and so the light was shining almost directly into her eyes. She grabbed a pair of cat-eye sunglasses from her car before walking the block to this ‘Beanies’, pulling her long jacket tighter around her as the autumn wind blew her curls across her face.
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It had been a slow morning at Beanies. “It’s not what it’s always like,” Nora reassured, but Ted wasn’t certain about that. They’d been open for a week already and he was one of their first hires, and so far it had been exactly like this. Their coffee was overpriced, their atmosphere was mediocre at best, and there was a Starbucks just down the street. Nora had just walked into the back room when the bell jingled to signify a customer. He put on his best customer service smile as he looked up to see a doe-eyed, auburn-haired woman glancing around, surveying the space.
“Welcome to Beanies,” he said. Her face lit up at the greeting and he couldn’t help the inexplicable warm feeling that flooded to his heart. She seemed extraordinarily kind and effortlessly beautiful just from the first glance. He couldn’t wait to speak to her.
As she approached the front counter, she returned the smile he had given her and looked up at the menu board, tapping a steady rhythm on the counter’s surface. He leaned forward, clasping both hands together just inches from hers. He wasn’t going to try anything, but…
“What’ll it be?” His tone was smooth and steady. She continued to look at the menu board for a few seconds, blinking as her eyes flitted from line to line and her tapping picked up in pace. She seemed nervous. Eventually she broke out of her haze with a sharp gasp.
“Oh, I’m sorry, I’m taking so long. Um… okay, what would you recommend?” She finally lowered her gaze to properly take him in. He appeared suave, kind, a little mischievous, but overall warm and friendly. She read his hand-printed name tag: Ted. That was simple, she’d remember that.
“Ah, well, I’m a fan of the chai iced tea, but if you’re lookin’ for coffee, you can’t go wrong with a classic iced caramel macchiato or a cold brew. If you’re lookin’ for something hot, well, that’s right here.” He winked and she laughed. He was charming, she had to admit.
“Okay, I’ll try the caramel macchiato. Uh, not iced, please.”
“Sure thing. Can I get your name?” Ted wasn’t ashamed to admit that one of his favourite parts of the job was getting to learn the names of attractive people on company time. And he was certainly going to remember this name.
“Charlotte.”
“Alright then, Charlotte, that’ll be four sixty-five.” She pulled a five dollar bill out of her jacket pocket and handed it to him, their fingertips brushing against each other as they exchanged the paper. He swiftly opened the register and handed back her change, which she promptly dropped in the tip jar with a soft smile. He smiled back. “I’ll have that ready for you in just a moment.” She nodded and stepped to the side.
He started working on the drink. It was simple, thank god, because he didn’t know if he’d be able to succeed at anything more complicated and he wanted her to enjoy it. After all, happy customers come back.
She stood with her hands shoved in her jacket pockets, a soft smile painted across her face. Her expression was happier than her usual troubled look, like she’d seen something for the first time. Maybe she had.
After a couple of minutes, he set the drink down on the counter. “Charlotte?” He called. She was still the only one waiting, but it made her happy to hear her name anyway. She grabbed hold of the paper cup and smiled warmly.
“Thanks, Ted.” And she left again. He hoped to God she’d be back.