Part One •

Coffee.

Coffee.

What I needed was some fucking coffee , Killian decided, as He made an abrupt 180° in the direction he had come. There was only one place he could think of that had coffee worth buying, and was open this time of the night. He glanced down at his watch. It read 10:25 pm.

There was a homeless man that stood at the corner of Lyndale and 83rd. His clothes looked incredibly worn and paved in dirt, which almost matched the aesthetic of the New York City streets. Killian felt obligated to slip some change into the styrofoam cup of his bony fingers, but there were far too many homeless people in New York City to donate money to.

The building the man sat besides, was a little hole in the wall of a coffee shop. Something Killian had stumbled upon on another one of his nightly adventures.

He took one last hit of the cigarette He was smoking, before killing it on the ashtray above the trash bin outside the building.

As he opened the door, his senses were instantly hit with the strong aroma. His craving for the hot, soothing drink only intensified.

The place itself was nice. It was far too small and a little cramped, but homey nonetheless. Fairy lights were strung across the roof of the shop and around the pillars that held up the ceiling. He expected for the cafe to be dead and empty so late into the night, so it took him by surprise when He saw another figure sitting by the window.

His eyes gravitated to hers, as she glanced out through the panels of the glass. He could see the bright blue wire from her earbuds peek out under her thick scarf. She wore a knitted hat, but it did nothing to tame her wild curly hair that practically covered the surface area of her shoulders and a bit of her back.

Laura didn’t mean to get lost in thought. It sort of just happened. She, too, had stumbled into the cafe at this odd time of the night. She hadn’t even known cafes could stay open this late, so it came to her surprise when the neon OPEN sign flashed through the window of this hole in the wall.

She had walked in and ordered herself a regular cup of coffee. There was no one there when she arrived.

She hadn’t attempted to take off her thick army green jacket. Instead, she continued to sit there, staring out the window as her fingers gently traced the rim of her coffee mug. From this angle, Killian could see how sharp her facial features were… but he wanted to see more.

He was pulled out of his thoughts by the lady at the register welcoming him.

“Great to see you again, Killian, what can I grab for you?” She asked. He recognized her face, but never remembered her name. He was sure it started with an S… or was it a C? She was always working whenever he came in.

“Hi.” He smiled. “Just a cup of coffee tonight. Black with one sugar.”

She nodded to him, then turned to get to work.

He glanced back over at the girl that he had seen earlier, and his eyes caught hers. Her face was expressionless as she stared blankly back at him. Though she wasn’t actually listening to any music, she was so consumed by her thoughts, she hadn’t noticed anyone else come in. He offered her a small smile, but she just turned around and glanced back out the window.

She wasn’t used to someone noticing her. But then again, how could he not? She was the only costumer in this cafe.

He couldn’t help the curiosity that had now seemed to itch away at him.

“Here you go.” The women at the counter chirped as she placed the cup of coffee down for him. He handed her a five and told her to keep the change. He had meant to just take his to-go cup and leave, but something else made him gravitate his way towards the girl.

He took a seat across from her, yet she didn’t seem to notice until he tapped her hand that was rested on the table, lightly. He expected her to startle her since she looked like her mind was somewhere else, but she just turned to him expectantly. He waited for her to remove her earbuds. She never did.

His fingers finally reached up and tapped his ears, seeing if she could get the message that He wanted to talk to her.

“I can hear you just fine.” She replied. Her voice was unexpectedly low. It took him by surprise. “It’s not plugged into anything.” She explained, as she lifted the wire and showed the exposed jack. She had unplugged her phone from it a little while ago to check into her Instagram. She left the earbuds in because they oddly felt nice pressed gently to her ear by her knitted hat and untamed hair.

“Then why are you wearing them?” He asked curiously.

“Because usually when people see others wearing headphones or earbuds, they leave them be.” She replied. He couldn’t help but smirk at that. She wasn’t going to tell him she just liked the feeling of her earbuds in her ears. That would be too weird. Then again, a handsome stranger deciding to sit down and talk with her was also weird.

She usually managed to make it through life unnoticed. There wasn’t anything unique about her. She was just… Laura. Bland Laura.

“So you want to be left alone tonight?” He asked.

No, she thought.

“Yes.” She replied.

“This makes me want to stay.”

“I bet it does.” She whispered. There was something in her, that was hoping he would. She didn’t want to be left alone tonight. She didn’t want to be given the opportunity to think, because thinking meant reflecting, and reflecting meant remembering which always brought on sadness.

He grinned at her response. “You look sad.” He noted. Her eyes turned back to the window.

“It’s a sad day.” She replied.

He nodded. Somehow she felt as if he understood.

“I have a proposal.” He spoke after sometime. She turned back to him.

“What is it?” Curiosity was laced in her tone.

“We’ve got about an hour and a half left of the day. Why don’t you let me try and make you happy again?” He asked.

“What’s in it for you?” She countered.

“Besides seeing a beautiful girl smile, you can also buy me a cup of coffee same time next week if I succeed.”

Her cheeks got heated at his compliment. No one had called her beautiful before now.

“What’s in it for me?” She asked finally.

“If I can’t get you to smile, I’ll buy you coffee same time next week.”

Laura finally nodded to herself.

“Deal?” He asked.

“Deal.” She replied.

Part Two •

Killian kept unintentionally stealing glances her way. He watched as she swiped her credit card to pay for the cup she had ordered earlier. She had also ordered on more cup of coffee to-go.

Of course he had offered to fit the bill, but she immediately shot him down.

He wasn’t sure what it was yet, but the way she slid her reading glasses out of her pocket and onto the tip of her nose to read her receipt, seemed to drive him crazy.

Once she was satisfied with the transaction, they both said their goodbyes to Cindy and left. The September air had brought with it, evening chills. Both Killian and Laura bundled up their coats before starting down the street. They didn’t get very far though. Laura stopped abruptly, the turned around.

“What is it?” Killian asked. She said nothing as she made her way to the homeless man. He barely noticed she had approached until she set the coffee cup she was holding, down in front of him.

“Stay warm tonight, Pete.” She said. He smiled back at her as he nodded a thanks and took the coffee.

“The was very nice of you.” Killian noted when she walked back to him.

“I never felt comfortable giving out money to the homeless because there’s no way of knowing a persons true intentions, but give a homeless man a hot drink, or a meal, and you know that at least one of their needs have been met that day.” She replied.

“That’s very selfless.” He added.

“Nothing we do is selfless. Our hearts may be in the right place, but we help the less fortunate to help ourselves. Some of us do it for our morality. We crave the feeling of knowing we did something right. The rest of us are addicted to those few seconds of admiration… having our good deeds noticed.” She replied. He couldn’t help but smile at her.

He had begun to understand that she was a realist. He had found something unfiltered, in a world so fake.

There’s something I need to buy.“ He announced. They had stopped outside of a corner store. “Wait here.”

She nodded back at him, before he dashed into the store.

She sat down on the bench besides the entrance, and waited.

The lights from the busy streets of New York, had become so much a part of her, she never really realized how restless the city was. There was a few buddies who had stumbled out of a bar across the street. It was a little early to be drunk, but no one really cared around here. Some couples walked about, enjoying the beautiful lights from the tall buildings…

The sky scrapers.

Laura did her best to clear her head. She was determined to finish off the last hour of this retched day, happy.

She wasn’t sure why though.

Did she really deserve to be happy on a day like this?

Before her mind could spiral further this road of self deprecation, she heard the door to the store open again. Killian had emerged with a few bags. He had done his best to hurry in and out, but he had some trouble finding a bottle of dish soap.

“What did you get?” She asked curiously, but he just pulled the bags to his side.

“It’s a secret.” He replied.

After a few moments, she nodded and the continued on.

“Tell me about your day?” He asked.

“It was rather uneventful.” She replied. And it was true. She had done close to nothing all day, besides reading.

She enjoyed reading.

She loved the way she could insert herself into another world… another time…

For a few hours, she was no longer Laura from Account and Finance.

She was Gweneth: Betrothed to King Arthur as he continued his rule of the Knights at the Round Table. Friends with Merlin, his sorcerer who’s one goal was to raise Arthur to be the greatest king there ever reigned.

She was someone else. She was some thing else.

“I’m sorry to hear that.” Killian replied. “My day was uneventful as well.”

It was also true. He had spent the majority of his day playing the violin. He had called in from work pretending he was sick, so he could get through the last few hours of the hangover he had.

“Where do you work?” She asked him. He just smiled back at her.

“Let’s leave the conventional questions out for tonight, okay?”

“But you asked me how my day went. Isn’t that as conventional as it gets?” She countered. His grin only widened.

“You’re sharp.” He noted. She looked away at that. No one had ever called her sharp before.

“Where are we heading?” She asked. He just gave her a wink before turning them onto another street.

She still recognized where they were, but everything looked more… slowed down. The buildings weren’t as modern as they usually were… everything seemed older and more elegant than that. She noticed a beautiful park located behind one of the buildings she hadn’t recognized.

Killian had been through here many times. This was where he usually went when he needed sometime away from the fast paced city life. There were much less people walking about this area. Mostly a few dog owners watching over their pets, or late joggers using the trails.

He lead her over to the large fountain that stood in the center of the courtyard. The water gently created dome-like seals as it tumbled down the beautiful stone base into the well portion.

Laura was still a bit lost as to what was happening as Killian reached into one of his bags to remove the soap.

Realization settled in, but it was too late.

Killian had begun to empty the blue liquid into the fountain.

Part Three •

“Holy shit.” Laura whispered to herself. She had meant to freak out at this mysterious man that had swept her away from a cafe to pour soap in a fountain, but all that went out the window when she stared at the soapiness that had begun to form.

“I’ve always wanted to do that.” Killian admitted. They both took a seat over by one of the benches as he reached into his shopping back to pull out a bottle of Jack Daniels along with some shot glasses.

“I don’t drink.” Laura spoke, but Killian just chuckled.

“Tonight, you do.” He replied, as he poured the liquid into the glass, handed her the shot. Her fingers paused mid air, before she hesitantly accepted the drink.

Killian downed his shot. He always loved the way the liquor burned going down. It was soothing… something he hoped this woman needed, to take the edge off. She downed her shot soon after him, but hers went down a little rougher. He couldn’t help but smile as her face cringed from how strong it was.

“That was horrible.” She whined.

“Yes, but you’ll get used to it.” He replied. He filled up both their glasses again. “How about a game of two truths and a lie?” He offered. “If you lose a round, you take a shot, if you win a round, I take a shot. Vice versa.”

“Okay.” She replied. “I’ll go first.”

He didn’t expect her to volunteer, but nonetheless he liked the fact that she was getting more comfortable with him.

“I’ve been working hard on the discovery of mermaids since the age of 9, My favorite animal is a Tasmanian devil, and I’ve seen every episode of Friends.”

Killian couldn’t seem to shake his smile as her heard his options.

“I’m going to have to say the lie is, your favorite animal is a Tasmanian devil.” He replied. She shook her head almost immediately.

“I’ve only seen one episode of Friends. I’ve seen every episode of Two And A Half Men.” She replied.

“Well I’ll be damned.” He laughed, as he downed the next shot. “My turn: I’m in Med School, My first date ever ended with both of us finding a dead body, and I collect rocks.”

He watched as she bit the inside of her lip. She looked so puzzled. It was cute.

“There’s no way you’re in Med School.” She said after sometime. His grin widened.

“I totally am.” He replied. He knew his leather jacket and tatted body didn’t seem like the makings of a Doctor, but he didn’t mind the look of surprise people had when he told them he was in school to become one.

This mystery girl’s response was the complete opposite of what he expected.

“Well, shit.” She sighed, before downing the shot. This one went down a little smoother, but her face still squinted from the slight burn. “What was the lie?” She asked.

“I collect lucky pennies.” He replied. Her eyes grew wide.

“You found a dead body on your first date?” She asked in wonder. I wasn’t sure whether to be glad that she looked over the whole lucky penny deal, or slightly disturbed that she asked that question in fascination. Regardless, He decided test the waters.

“Yeah it was a homeless man that had passed away. He was buried under a layer of snow so you could imagine the scare my date got when she saw a hand sticking out.

“Woah.” She whispered to herself.

They hadn’t noticed how close they had gravitated towards each other until her knee brushed his. They both glanced down then slowly at each other. Somehow this game of two truths and a lie, had become something more. Before Killian could do anything senseless, like grab her by the neck and pull her lips to his, she suddenly turned to the fountain that was now overflowing in bubbles. “Woah.” She whispered again.

“Come on.” He spoke, giving her no time to protest as he grabbed her hand. They both ran up to the edge and he began to slip off his shoes.

“W-What are you doing?” She asked. “Are you seriously getting in?”

“No, we are getting in.” He replied. As he glanced back at her, he fully heartedly expected her to protest some more, but instead, she slipped off her boots and stepped in. The water wasn’t as cold as he expected it to be, and the bubbles that rose well above their feet, felt oddly soothing.

Killian couldn’t remember who splashed first, but it didn’t take long until both of them were in an outright war.

“You got it in my hair!” She whined. There was now a large amount of bubbles slowly sliding down the side of her face. He couldn’t hold back the laughter, and pretty soon she had joined in.

All he could do was watch her.

Their laughter had both died down, and they took a seat on the ledge of the fountain, facing each other. Both of them completely drenched in soapy water. Both of them happy… content.

He wanted to ask her questions. So many questions. Like Why are you so sad? And Who did you lose today?

But those questions would ruin things. They’d ruin everything he’d worked hard towards for tonight. They were the questions he would ask her a week from tonight…

When she wasn’t so sad.

For now, he would enjoy this beautiful women for the last few minutes he had her for. He would enjoy her smile…

Laura couldn’t get rid of the grin that was now plastered on her face. It had been some time since she had smiled like that.

It had been some time since she had had a distraction like that. She glanced up at him, and he glanced down at her.

We’re his eyes always this blue or was it the lighting? She wondered.

Was her skin always this smooth and chocolatey?

Or her lips so plump and soft? He asked himself.

“How many minutes do we have left?” She asked him. He reluctantly pulled his eyes away from hers to glance down at his watch. It was now 11:58.

“2 minutes.” He replied. He could see her smile start to falter. “There’s just one more thing I wanted to do before I loose you.”

She said nothing, but nodded.

His hands shakingly graced her jawline before slipping to the nape of her neck. He hadn’t noticed how nervous he was up until now. The alcohol had done nothing to calm him.

Laura’s breathing hitched almost instantly as she felt the tingling sensation from his touch. She involuntary leant against his hands.

It was like every mannerism her body made, drove him to the brink of insanity. He truly hadn’t seen something so beautiful.

He pulled her closer to him until she was practically a hairs length away, before he gently placed his lips against hers. The kiss was slow and gentle. She was very hesitant but soft as her fingers lightly trailed the edge of his jawline.

It made his body shiver.

He pulled away soon after, lingering just enough to get one more light peck in.

“That wasn’t so bad, was it?” He breathed. She shook her head. You could slightly see the warmth of her breath against the crisp air. He glanced down slightly to check his watch again.

It was now 12:01.

“Did we make it?” She asked. For a change, He gave her a nod. Another smile crept onto her face.

It was now Monday, the 12th.

They had both made it through the night of September 11th.

••