Connection

Chapter 1

Autumn is on the corner. You can feel it in the air, days are more and more shorter, and you can tell by the amount of lattes I make in a day. Finally. New, and by the way, last year in high school and I can get the hell away from this place. These thoughts come and go these days as I clean tabletops in the coffee shop I work. It's a small shop in the small town on the seashore, there's a lot of towns like this and a lot of coffee shops like this. Nothing special, just like me. It's now the time of the day when everybody is on the shore enjoying last bits of summer joys. I grab pack of juice from the fridge after i showed all plates and cups into dishwasher and go outside for a brake. It's to warm for my liking but it's better than siting in kitchen, the wind today is pleasant, but the smell it brings from the shore not so. I despise this smell of the sea, or to be more specific i hate everything about sea. 

My train of thoughts is disrupted by the sound of old Volkswagen beetle. Strange. Marisa never goes anywhere after afternoon. She's hardcore morning bird and her errands end before 12 o'clock. Thats why she loves me, she works in the mornings, I work in the afternoons, thats how we keep her small business at bay. Maybe she forgot something, after all she's not that young anymore. Maybe she forgot to take her medicine with her? The mush in my head is far more increased by big toned hand.

 "Thomas!" Mark my best friend shouts while shakes me. 

 "I would say it's pleasant surprise but I would be lying" I answer with monotonous voice to his cheerful one. 

"Well if I wouldn't be your best friend I would assume you're trying to hurt me"  

"You're my best friend I wouldn't change you to anything in the world. Or maybe I would. To dog. Dog would be nice" I say in a sad voice, because I know as long as I live here I wouldn't be able to have dog because dad, and my dear brother are allergic to any type of home animals. 

Mark laughs at my lame attempt to joke and starts new conversation about games. We continue to talk about new shoes on the market, school, his past and present lovers 'till I have to go back to take an order from old couple. The preparation of coffee doesn't take me too long because they'r old, they don't wan't anything fancy, just plain flat white. Normal. 

But what's not normal is Marisa's absence. Not normal at all. After quick smoke just around the corner Mark comes back. 

" One frappe with soy milk and low fat cream and magical sprinkles on top, please" he asks in girlish tone. 

"Serious?" I ask with flat expression. " You know how I hate to make all those girlish drinks..."

 " I'm drop dead serious, I know that you hate those, that's why I'm asking." Mark laughs at me, puts money on the counter and takes a seat near the entrance. I will make him his frappe, oh I will, but with fattest most dairy not free milk and cream and for the sprinkles he will get gravel, or dust. As I make his beverage with rage I can see him laughing. That boils my blood even more. 

"Here you go dick, hope you get diarrhea, or diabetes from it." He takes the drink and sips it with caution. 

" I knew you would get me regular milk and fat cream" he laughs at me again. I push all air from my lungs instead of pushing him out of his chair, and as I shake my head I head to the counter again. I sigh, and think about the end of the day, which is long long away. The only thought that stops me from suicide is that one more week and my work hours will go down.

 Don't get me wrong I hate school, but more than I hate school I hate vacationers, all their crying kids, all their big hats and bags. Ugh. And all those horny teenage girls who think that one wink and I won't ask to pay for their low fat lattes and frappes. Yeah like their wink gonna pay bills and my salary. 

"Why the long face?" asks Mark as he approaches me. 

"Just long day, or long summer, or long years."

 "Well as much I'd loved to listen to your reasoning, I have to go, by the way rush hour is on the corner and I hate to be here at that. See you after work darling, behave" He pats my head like I'm a dog and sends me a wink.

 "Bye, hope some good Samaritan hits you with a car." I say and smile at him with white teeth smile. While I prepare for rush hour Marisa comes in. 

"Hello darling, you've been alright?" she's asks with smile on her face, not that it comes off ever. "Yeah everything's brilliant."

 "Okay, I'm gonna prepare more pastries, for the evening" she says and ties apron. 

" I know it's not my business, but where you've been? It's not normal for you to go anywhere except home and it's a bit too early? Did you forgot your medicine? I ask with concern light in my voice, I care for Marisa like she would be my own grandma.

 "Oh it's alright honey, no I haven't forgotten my medicine, I just popped to flower shop, you know I thought it would be nice if I putted some in my granddaughters room." If I had any liquid in my mouth I would be choking. What the hell?! Granddaughter?! 

" Umm... Marisa I hate to tell you that but you don't have a granddaughter." I say with raised eyebrow. 

"Don't be silly, I told you about her last week, when you were cleaning kitchen after work" she assures me. Is she being serious? Every time I clean the kitchen I'm listening to music. Loud. I let out frustrated sound and with all my good will, put on smile, after all she's my boss.

 " And again I hate to tell you this Marisa I didn't hear you because I was listening to music loud, as every other time I clean the kitchen." My tone calm and slow if I'm talking to kid. 

"Well that explains why you didn't respond to me, or asked anything about that matter all week" she laughs, probably from her own silliness. 

"Well?" I ask as I become more and more impatient. 

"Well I had a daughter, we fought a lot when she was teen, she left me, got married and I haven't heard from her for about ten years, until her husband called me and said that she's dead. It was fifteen years ago. Apparently she had a two year old daughter at the time. I didn't know that, because she wasn't at the funeral. And about a week ago I had first talk with my granddaughter..." tears now running down her cheeks.

 I take her to my embrace and hug her. With shaking hand she wipes her tears and steps away from me. "Wow, this is not what I was expecting." I say with a small smile on my face to comfort her. Wow. This is so fucked up.

 "Yeah nobody would, and I can't believe I had granddaughter all these years and I didn't know. I wonder how she looks..." she sighs dreamily. "Well lets get back to work, rush hour starts in about" she looks at her hand watch "now". She laughs and comes back to her own self with big, welcoming smile, fixes her apron and goes to the kitchen. As she disappears first clients after hour of calmness comes in and the hell starts.

Hello my lovely reader. Thanks for starting this journey with me. I'll try to update every tuesday. Hope you like it and see you soon.