Wrong Number, Pal

Coffee Shops

The quiet sounds of early 2000's pop music filtered through the peaceful air of a coffee shop, surrounding its inhabitants with a calm, yet upbeat, feeling.

This was where Bruce Banner stood while waiting for his order to be ready.

Why Tony had elected for the scientist to get the tower's coffee today, Bruce would never know. So there he stood, in a nearly empty coffee shop with far too many things on his mind.

'Where did Tony hide my stuff this time? How will my next experiments go? Who was the mystery person I messaged yesterday?'

Soon the jingle of the shop's door opening drew him from his thoughts.

In walked a woman with black hair and gray eyes.  Hanging onto her arm was a taller man with brown hair, a pair of red oval glasses perched on his nose. The two were chuckling to themselves about something as she led him to the front counter to order.

Seeing nothing of extreme interest, Bruce decided to divert his gaze away from the pair and onto his phone.

'Should I message them again?' He thought to himself while selecting the conversation between him and the mystery number.

However, before he could type out anything, a white cane tapping the area beside his foot caught his attention.

He followed the end of the cane up to its handle, which just so happened to be held by the man with red glasses. Quickly glancing at the woman beside the, obviously, blind man, Bruce was a bit confused to find her looking away from him- her empty hand nervously rubbing the back of her neck while she avoided his gaze.

"Pardon me," the man greeted, a welcoming smile on his face. "But are you Bruce Banner?"

Surprised by the recognition, especially from a blind man, Bruce couldn't help but return the man's smile- though his was a bit more startled than the blind man's. "Uh, yes. That's me. Can I help you?"

Somehow the man's smile grew even larger. "I believe you can." He tilted his head to face his companion, a teasing tone filling his words. "See, I told you it'd be fine." With another grin sent towards the scientist, he got back on track. "My friend here is a big fan of your work and was wondering if she could get an autograph."

The black haired woman whipped around to face her friend, a look of betrayal splayed across her features. She lightly whacked the man's arm in distress. "Matt," she warned quietly.

"Sure thing," Bruce replied, his smile becoming a bit more forced at the request. It wasn't unusual for an occasional citizen to approach him in search of the Hulk's autograph- he just disliked the constant reminder of his big green friend. Quickly swiping a spare napkin and pen from the counter, the Avenger prepared to scribble something down. "What's your name?"

Upon hearing no response, the man squeezed his friend's hand gently and chose to answer for her. "Mel. Her name is Mel."

Bruce nodded slightly, understanding how shy people could be when confronted with someone they may admire. "Right, Mel. Is 'Have a smashing good day. From: Hulk' okay?"

"What?" The woman, Mel, muttered with furrowed brows. After a moment, a look of realization appeared on her face. "Um- I think you may have misunderstood, Dr. Banner. I don't want the Hulk's autograph... I want your autograph."

Seeing the slight shock on his face, she rushed to correct herself, "If that's alright, of course."

Bruce shook his head at her nervous tone. "No- no. It's fine. It's just- well, people tend to ask for the big guy, y'know."

"Of course," she assured, a small breath of relief escaping her lips as she began to relax. "Don't get me wrong, the Hulk is cool and all. But I've read loads of your research papers and projects- they're really good, by the way. So I've kinda grown to like your work more than his."

The trio was silent for a moment as Bruce took in this new information.

A deep chuckle broke both Banner and Mel out of their stupors. "That's a bit of an understatement," the man, Matt, informed the doctor with seven PhDs. "I've lost count of how many times I've listened to her rants about your work at the office. Never understand what she's talking about, though."

"Oh, really?" Bruce questioned, his head tilting to the side as he glanced at Mel. He watched the two friends interact while writing down a little message on napkin.

"Yeah," Matt confirmed. "She practically never shuts up about your achievements." He sent the woman beside him a teasing glare, which was difficult to see because of his glasses. "Even after we've asked you to stop."

She huffed, her features forming a childish pout. "Foggy likes my rants. Why don't you?"

Raising his eyebrows expectantly, the blind man explained, "That's because Foggy has a crush on you."

This information caused Mel's pout to deepen. "Really, still? I've turned him down nine times, when is he going to give up?"

Matt shrugged slightly. "Foggy's an optimist. So, probably never."

The sound of a barista calling for Bruce caused the duo's attention to once again focus on the famous scientist. Soon several stackable holders were placed on the counter in front of them.

"These are mine," Bruce stated the obvious, unsure of how to leave the shop without seeming rude. "I better get going. The team tends to get antsy without their caffeine. But, before I go," he held a napkin out to Mel, who cautiously took the offered item. Her eyes flickered between the man and the napkin, curiosity swirling in her gray irises. "The autograph you wanted," he explained.

Blinking back her surprise, Mel felt a genuine smile appear on her face- which she directed at the kind brunet in front of her. "Thank you, Dr. Banner."

"Please," the scientist waved off while picking up his order, "call me Bruce." He adjusted his grip on the coffees before heading for the door. "Have a good evening."

With unseeing eyes, Matt shot his grinning companion a teasing look. "Have I ever told you how great you are at talking to celebrities?"

"What?" Mel questioned while attempting to shake off the shock of meeting one of her personal heroes. "No, you haven't."

Nodding solemnly, the lawyer snatched his order from the counter once it was brought out. "That's because you're awful at it."

"You little shit," she jokingly sneered at the man hanging onto her arm as they left the coffee shop. They meandered through the streets, choosing to not rush their journey back to the office. "If you weren't blind, I swear to Loki I'd-"

"You'd, what?" He interrupted with a playful grin. "Beat me up?"

Mel released a faux heavy sigh at her friend's suggestion. "Something like that."

For the rest of their trip, casual conversations would pop up before quickly simmering out. Once they returned to the law firm, both individuals retreated to Matt's office.

"What did he end up writing anyway?"

Mel smirked at her friend as she remembered the words written on the napkin safely tucked in her coat pocket. "Who's to say?"

The blind man sent a blank look at the woman. "You know you'll tell me eventually, right?"

She hummed her acknowledgment, knowing his words to be true. "But not today."

—

Thanks for the support, Mel.
I've got a new paper coming out soon.
Feel free to use it to annoy your friends.

-Bruce.