Heartbreak Hypothesis

s i x

It was two minutes past nine when I got to the cafe and I'd already spotted Daniel leaning against the counter, actively flirting with the female bartender. Something hot bubbled in my gut, obviously the anger that I was here trying to make him beg me to be his girlfriend and he was grinning at a brunette.

I scoffed and unplugged the earphones from my ears, pausing the music before walking up to him. My legs carried me to the counter at a fast pace, all the adrenaline still pumping in my veins from walking all the way here. The weather this morning was slightly chilly, but my insides felt exhausted. I really needed that coffee.

"Hi," I chirped at the bartender, bringing my hands down to the counter with a smack that definitely did the trick of making my presence known. Both to her and the male in front of her, who she looked like she wanted to jump on. I smiled sweetly at her frowning face. "I'm sorry, but I really need a chocolate latte. Think you can get that for me, or are you..."

My eyes drifted to the side to catch Daniel's as I completed my sentence with a smile. "Busy?"

She bit her lip, gaze flickering between Daniel and I. She must have felt pressured or intimidated, I couldn't tell. "One chocolate latte, coming up," the brunette announced, disappearing to get my order.

I felt my body go rigid when Daniel scooted closer to me but I didn't look at him.

"Jealous looks good on you."

An incredulous snort left my lips. I brought my gaze up to that spot between his eyes. "Jealous? Of you and her?" My hand pointed towards him and the direction the brunette had gone. "No thanks. I'll pass."

Daniel's eyebrows shot up comedically while I fought the burning urge to burst into hysterics at the face he was making. "So you're not attracted to any of this?" He motioned to himself with an excessive amount of pride.

I shrugged. "What can I say? I'm really not into desperate people."

"I'm not desperate."

"You found my name, background, phone number and favorite latte in less than a day. Define desperate."

Daniel fell silent, a pout gracing his lips. I found a teeny tiny part of me wanting to reach out and touch his pout. Find out if his lips were as soft as they looked.

The proud asshole, of course, caught me staring and his pout turned to a smirk. He probably thought I was into him. Foolish assumption.

But I was still staring at his lips. Why couldn't I stop staring at his lips?!

It was the brunette's voice that broke my stare. "One chocolate latte for the girl and two strawberry frappucinos for you."

I didn't miss the way she said "you", nor did I miss the way she'd casually dropped my drink in front of me but let her hand linger over his as she handed him his drinks. She was practically begging for the look of irritation that came over my expression.

Turning away from the both of them, I took a long loud sip of my latte, letting the bitter-sweet taste wash over me. I didn't even know when I closed my eyes and remembered home. When it used to be home.

"You look like a drowned moose."

My eyes snapped open and I scowled at Daniel. His brunette was nowhere to be seen by now. "What do you know about drowning animals?"

Daniel lifted a single shoulder in a shrug. "Nothing, but I do know that chocolate lattes make me want to jump into a lagoon."

"Haha," I said with a straight face. Unamused to the core.

He chuckled and slid the other cup towards me. With a tilt of his head, he said, "try it. I'm one hundred and twenty percent sure it's way better than that cursed thing you're holding."

I studied him for a second, then studied the drink he was offering. Eyeing him, I placed my latte aside and took the strawberry frappuccino, lifting it to my lips and carefully having a sip. Just Incase the bartender poisoned it or something.

The first thing that hit my tongue was the taste of strawberry. Slightly sweet and sour, like someone had squeezed lemon juice in it. Then the coffee part of it struck like a blow. It was good, I had to admit, but it didn't really do it for me.

Daniel's gaze was on me all through. From the first sip I took to the second. And when I took a third one, a smile broke out on his face. I was quick to kill his joy though.

"I still prefer my chocolate latte," I said matter of factly and dropped the strawberry flavored drink to pick up mine and savor it's taste.

"If that couldn't change your mind, then I'm sorry," his face morphed into a look of genuine pity. The kind of look you'd give someone when he or she lost his dog. It made me stifle a laugh. In one swift motion, he lifted his cup and downed all it's content, slapping the plastic back onto the counter and wiping his mouth with a napkin from the display before us.

I blinked at him but went back to sipping my coffee slowly.

He gave me a look of disgust. "Why do you even put yourself through the torture? That shit is bitter as hell."

I licked the but of latte that was on my lips and shrugged. "It was my dad's fav—"

My throat tightened on instinct, like it was trained not to disclose that information. But judging my the look on Daniel's face, he'd picked up every word, and my reaction. My heart hammered away in my chest and I stepped away from him.

"I—thank you, for this. Th—the coffee. But I really have to go now."

The words were barely out of my lips when my feet had already began carrying me away from him. Over my shoulder, I could hear his footsteps as he followed me, so I walked faster, shoving the door open with such a force that I almost slapped a passerby with it.

Ignoring the curses the guy was throwing at me, I took a sharp left and hurried away from there.