PICS and IT DIDN'T HAPPEN

07. The Coffee

Sunlight is orange. Wind is cold. Pavements are wet. The air is dense.

Is this how depressed early mornings are supposed to look like? Don't people describe this time as beautiful? Where are the butterflies and songbirds?!!

The class duty rotation had eventually reached me yesterday. For a week I'm on the early morning schedule with the club volunteering.

It's called volunteering but its's just part of the class duties that's mandatory so that the kids could learn how to be responsible or something like that.

I'm so sleepy, dammit.

I stretch my neck and hips, hoping it keeps me awake. Or else I might just drop unconscious at the metro station and start snoring.

This is also another hassle - No ride with Tess and Becca for a whole week. And I sure as hell won't drive partially asleep.

A woman in heels, wearing a pencil skirt and coat, runs past me as if she's going to catch a train that's about to leave.

Wait...

I look to my left and see the train.

When on earth did it arrive?! Thought I was still awake. And why did it stop this far from me?

I run after the woman.

In the nick of time, I'm in. The metro resumes its expedition.

Panting, I look around. Surprisingly there are a lot of people even at this hour. But it's not crowded like it will be soon during the infamous rush hour.

I start walking inside the coach, carefully considering my potential seat mates. I don't want to sit next to someone who might further ruin my already ruined morning.

I look a little ahead and see a handsome boy. He seems to be wearing a dark green school uniform. Must be from that Lincoln private school at Gerb Street.

Well... Why not? There's no harm in having a good looking bench mate. There's an empty seat right next to him.

I move my backpack to hang over my front and sit down at the seat adjacent to his. I hug my bag tight and bury my face in it, substituting it as a pillow. Darkness feels good and comforting.

Everything is serene and peaceful until I get this sudden feeling that I'm falling. Startled, I wake up and sit straighter.

I hear a snicker next to me.

I look at the boy. Damn, he is really good looking. Fine I'll forgive him.

I look forward. My vision turns funny again. Groaning I press my face against my backpack. Stay awake, Ellie!

"First time you've been up this early?" He says.

I twist my neck to see him. He's looking at me.

I nod. "Class duties."

"You must be from Mariston," he says.

"Hmm. You from Lincoln?"

He nods.

"You also have class duty?" I ask, wondering what pitiful circumstances must've brought this fate upon him to travel so early.

He laughs. "No. Baseball practice."

Oh yeah. Raylan and Tony also often leave early for football practice. Must be tough for the sports students. Although I don't care if it's tough for Raylan and Tony.

I face forward and hug my bag tighter.

"Come on," he says, "I know what you need." He gets up. Gestures me to do the same. "We're getting off in this stop and take the next train."

I'm confused. What is this stranger doing? But I also can't keep sitting here. The sleep is haunting me.

At the GRD station we get off.

"I remember when I had to start going to school early. This is how I managed," he says. We had walked up to a small coffee stall at the station. A large machine, leaking steam, is at the left. Mounts of disposable cups are at the right.

"Two, please," he says to the old man manning the stall. The air around the counter is warm and smells delicious.

The old man places two cups of steaming coffee on the counter. The boy picks one by its rim and gives it to me.

I take a sip and feel the fog lift off my mind instantly. I feel human again. Before I was the undead.

Now that I can perceive the world clearer, the boy next to me seems even more beautiful. Tall. Dark hair. Soft eyes. He has this warm princely air about him.

"What's your name? I'm Ellie," I say.

"Frank."

Frank and I chat while drinking our warm coffees. We finish our cups right on time to catch the next train.

Soon my stop comes first. I stand up and pull up my bag over my shoulder. "Thanks for the coffee, Frank."

"Today is your first day, right? Then I guess I'll see you tomorrow," Frank says.

"Not if I sleep through my alarm."

"Think about coming to see me and you'll be up in no time," he says, grinning.

I laugh. His confidence is too adorable. I wave him a goodbye and get off at the stop.

My school is in a walking distance from this station. So I start walking, thinking about Frank.

He was sweet, thoughtful, polite, and nice, exactly the opposite of all the boys I have had the displeasure of knowing.

Maybe I'm still asleep and dreaming, and I'd conjured up Frank in my dream. He does seems like someone a teenage girl would dream about.

A car slows down next to me. I recognize the dragon's transportation. This confirms I'm definitely not dreaming. Raylan rolls down his window and says, "Need a lift?"

My eyebrows shoot up. Is this like one of those days where strange things happen all day? Are all the boys I see today going to be nice and courteous to me? Is that even feasible?

I smile and nod.

"Good. I'm sure someone will give it to you," he says, smirking, and speeds away.

"Fuck you!" I shout at him. He didn't even give me the time to pull out my phone and blackmail him with the photos.

What was I thinking? Raylan being nice to me? Like hell that can ever happen.

End of chapter