Falling Up

31. Burning

"Of course. Feel free. Ian has just taken off though, so do you mind helping yourself? It's on the house. We'll call it training. Only you two will have to be the guinea pigs," she said with a laugh.

"Thanks," giggled back Riley, even though she wasn't too keen on having Kain being the guinea pig to her coffee experiences. If it was anything like her cooking, they were doomed. She popped behind the counter to the coffee machine, starting it up. She hadn't used the machine that much, but her co-worker, although a bit of a grouch, had taught her the basics.

She poured two cups of coffee, making sure to get Kain's order correct. He came into the coffee shop almost everyday so it wasn't too hard for her to remember his order. He made sure that she didn't forget it.

Once the orders were complete, she picked up the mugs and walked carefully over to Kain, making sure not to trip and spill the coffees. As she approached, he placed down his newspaper, pushing it to one side as she placed the mug in front of him.

"Long black, extra shot of espresso," said Riley as she sat down on the opposite seat, pulling her own mug to her lips and taking a sip before Kain, just in case it was an absolute disaster as she had to pry it from him hands.

Not bad, she thought of her own coffee making skills as the steam continued to rise from her cup. Much better than her cooking skills. This would do. This would definitely make do.

"Thank you," said Kain, lifting his own mug up and taking a sip. His eyes widened for a moment before he lowered his cup, then proceeded to lift his finger to his bottom lip, tenderly wiping a droplet of liquid from the corner of his mouth. He briefly licked his finger clean of the excess coffee before lowering his hand again to his mug.

Kain took another sip. "This coffee is different today."

Riley looked nervously down at her own mug. She didn't think it tasted that bad, but then again she was more used to instant coffee at home. "I'm sorry. Ian already clocked off, so I just whipped these up. If you want another cup, I'm sure I can get Bridget to make you one."

Kain looked up from his coffee, staring curiously at Riley. "No," said Kain. "It's actually pretty good."

Riley laughed. "You don't have to be nice, Kain. It's not your style."

"You think I would be nice to you on purpose?" Kain grinned. "But seriously, this is good coffee."

She didn't know what to say to the compliment and instead got up from her seat to grab her study books. "I'll just grab my bag. We're still on the study session, right?" she said nervously, hoping he hadn't decided to back out, even though she told him he could. She really needed to pass this exam.

Kain nodded, leaving Riley to disappear out the back to grab her bag from her locker. When she returned, she found Kain's mug of coffee already finished and she wondered how he could remain so calm with that much caffeine in his system.

Riley placed her bag on the table and, after getting Kain another coffee, to his insistence, she grabbed her laptop, placing it on the table in front while she shoved her bag down onto the seat next to her.

"So, which area are you struggling with?" said Kain.

"I'm having trouble understanding the Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Act," said Riley as she pulled up her notes on her screen.

Kain opened up his notebook, flicking through a couple of pages as his long fingers skimmed down the lines on the page. "Here," he said, stopping at a line halfway down the page and leaning forward closer to Riley.

"It's related to the 2018 Owens vs Owens case. But before we get to that, you'll want to look at the Griswold vs Connecticut case, as I'm positive that will be on the exam."