Coffeehouse angel

1 | Sigma Chi

"Arabella please can we go somewhere else for once?" Taryn whines dramatically as I have to practically drag her through the threshold of the familiar coffee shop.

"Have you met me? Absolutely not." I chuckle, plopping down at my usual spot in a ratty but still comfy old chair in the corner.

She sighs but sits down in a similar chair next to me. I know she doesn't actually mind coming here, she quite likes it actually, but Taryn is the type of person who likes to be spontaneous, and daring, and she loves to go out and do new things, meet new people, otherwise she'll just get bored. She's a Gemini, what can I say?

I'd know, she's been my best friend since pretty much forever, my neighbor growing up, and well, I'm somehow the only person she hasn't gotten tired of.

While I admire that about my best friend, the fact that she's completely fearless and spontaneous, and borderline insane, I'm definitely not.

I guess I should introduce myself, we are about to become very close so I suppose you might like to know a little bit of what you're getting into.

My name is Arabella Michelle Winston. I'm 21 years old and starting my senior year at Portland State University, studying to get my degree in English with the intent to be an English teacher.

I've lived in Portland my whole life, and although I grew up more in the suburbs, I've always much preferred living downtown. That's why I chose a school right in the middle of it, just a few blocks away from my apartment.

To my right sits my adorably nuts best friend Taryn Priestly. Like I mentioned earlier, she has been my best friend since the day we were born. Well actually if we want to get technical I'm 3 weeks older-

Despite her free-spirited personality, she shockingly stayed here in Portland to attend Portland State along with me to get her degree in Psychology. Yes, she's a psych major, I'm sure that tells you pretty much everything you need to know about her.

When I say Taryn is my best friend, I mean it. The girl once pulled a tampon out of me that had gotten stuck, I don't think you can really be any closer than that to be honest.

While we lived together in the dorms as freshmen, we've since both gotten our own separate apartments. The catch is that they're right across the hallway from one another.

We truly are attached at the hip.

Taryn keeps me on my toes and I keep her grounded. It's hard to explain, but we work somehow.

"You know you could branch out and order something else for once..." She says in a singsongy voice.

Speak of the devil.

"No thank you T, I'll just have my usual." I smile sweetly as I pull my laptop from my backpack and begin getting comfy in my chair, sitting criss-cross like a little kid but hey if it's comfortable.

She huffs and I don't have to look at her to know she's rolling her eyes, but I also know her better to know that she's not actually annoyed and we have this conversation almost every day.

While I continue to pull things out of my bag I might need, my notebook with my guide for the essay I'm currently writing, the book I'm writing about, and the rubric for the assignment, Taryn pulls her wallet out of her bag and walks up to the counter to order our usuals.

Well actually she gets a different thing nearly every time, so I'm not sure what she's getting but I know she'll order me my typical poppy seed muffin and chocolate hazelnut latte.

What can I say? I'm a creature of habit.

See, right across from our apartment building is this hole-in-the-wall kind of coffee shop/cafe called The Broadway Brew. If you hadn't guessed or just aren't familiar with the city, it's located right on Broadway Street. (Yes there's one here too, it's not just a New York thing.)