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“You know, one of these days I’m going to make you order something other than espresso and cups of bacon,” the smooth voice had Lydia glancing up from her books for the first time in what felt like hours. When she glanced at the wall, she had seen hours wasn’t too far off of a guess.
“Excuse me?” Lydia asked once the words registered in her mind. She looked up at the person the voice belonged to and was momentarily stunned by the beautiful woman in front of her. “I-- I’m sorry, should I order something else? Am I taking up a table? I promise I’ll leave a good tip,” Lydia promised, already starting to pack up her books. It wouldn’t be the first dining establishment that kicked her out for spending too much time there without ordering any food.
She couldn’t study in her apartment as her coed floor seemed to be the spot for partying on weekends, so when she had found Taki’s Diner a few blocks away, she had thought it was perfect. There was always soft acoustic music playing and the clatter of dishes from the back was just enough white noise to help her focus instead of distract her. She had really hoped it would be the place she could stay, but she was ready to find another location if the gorgeous woman told her so.
“No, no,” the woman laughed and rested a friendly hand on Lydia’s shoulder. She usually would have shrugged off the touch but it was incredibly welcome coming from - Lydia glanced down at the nametag on her apron - Maia. “I just meant that we make really good food here that consists of vegetables and proteins that’ll probably make the increasing amount of studying you're doing a whole lot easier,” Maia suggested.
“I, uh, I should be leaving anyway,” Lydia shook her head and cleared her throat, running a hand through her hair. She wasn’t sure when she had taken it out of its usual ponytail, but she was grateful she could hide behind it as Maia stared down at her. She went to pack up her things again when Maia grabbed a pot of coffee from another waiter who wandered by and settled across the booth. She refilled Lydia’s cup before lacing her fingers together and glancing at Lydia as if she was waiting for something. When neither of them spoke, Maia laughed again.
“I wasn’t kicking you out, babe, promise,” Maia said. She gestured around the diner and said, “I mean, it’s not like we’re swarming with paying customers. And none of them look nearly as cute as you,” she tacked on and Lydia’s face turned bright red. She had never been good at flirting and with someone like Maia’s unrelenting gaze on her while she did the most unattractive task of studying made it even harder for her to form words back.
“You’re just trying to get me to buy an actual meal,” Lydia countered, raising a challenging eyebrow at Maia. She wasn’t in law school for nothing.
“How about one meal? With me?” Maia asked. Lydia gaped at her and let out a huff of disbelieving laughter.
“You want to have a meal with me?” Lydia clarified, narrowing her eyes at Maia because it was obviously a trick. She was in yoga pants, a t-shirt that almost passed as a blouse, and her hair was probably frizzy and knotted from the few hours she spent hunched over the table in front of her, anxiously running her fingers through it. There was no way Maia was being serious.
“I want to have many meals with you, honestly, but I’ll start with one because…” Maia trailed off and stared at the clock. Once it clicked, signifying 6pm, Maia tore off her apron and tossed it at her coworker without a second look. “I am now free of work and have no plans unless they involve getting some real food - and maybe some water - into you.”
“I--” Lydia shook her head. Her eyes darted from Maia - stunning, vibrant, mysterious Maia - to the textbooks that she had practically memorized. It was a no brainer and she said as such as she tossed her books into the bag underneath the table. “What’s good?” Lydia asked. She realized she had never actually looked at a menu there and blushed, hoping Maia hadn’t noticed.
“I already have Simon cooking you up our famous veggie omelet with a side of--”
“Bacon?” Lydia interrupted, glancing hopefully at Maia who laughed again. Lydia thought she could get used to that laugh. When she ate the omelet and spent the next few hours forgetting about her impending finals in favor of getting to know Maia, she thought she could get used to that even more.