One Call Away

Chapter Twelve: Coffee Shop

Stepping into the small coffee shop down the street from the district, Caitlyn was relieved to get away even for a little while from her desk; she was certain that her work would still be there when she got back.

Things seemed to pass slowly now that the search for her biological father had come to an end; she had reached out to Richard again but there was still no word back from him.

Shaking her head, Caitlyn hoped that he would call her soon, she wanted to know that things could be truly fixed between them; she missed their long talks and binge-watching television shows together.

She quickly ordered her drink and waited for it as she thought about what she was going to do now; it had been a couple of weeks since she had spoken with Mouse and she was still disappointed it had worked out this way.

Collecting her drink, Caitlyn thanked the barista before she turned around and accidentally bumped into the man standing behind her; her drink spilling all over the two of them and the floor.

"I am so sorry," the man said quickly getting some napkins and offering them to Caitlyn, the front of her coat now soaked and she thanked him as she started to pat herself off.

"Here let me get you another drink, I insist," the man said quickly moving to order the replacement before Caitlyn could stop him; he reached for his wallet and paid for the drink ignoring the protests along the way.

Caitlyn took the drink when it was offered to her, she wasn't sure what else she could do especially if the man was more than willing to replace the drink that had been spilled.

"Ted," the man said introducing himself, he smiled causing wrinkles to form on his face as he held out his hand for her to shake; the coffee shop was rather empty so that didn't have to worry about getting in people's way.

Caitlyn took his hand and introduced herself, the two of them moving over to a table; she wasn't in a hurry to get anywhere and she was sure her desk would be fine without her.

It wasn't like her work was that important, they were between cases right now and everyone was doing paperwork; she was barely doing anything right now.

"That was my mother's name," Ted replied with a sad smile, he had loved his mother dearly and he missed her, they had been rather close; he wondered what she would think of how his life had worked out after she had passed away.

It had been him that had looked after her while his father was busy with work all the time and his brother had been away in the army; even when she was rarely sick, he was the only one there for her.

"She was an amazing woman," Ted mused with a smile, he leant back in his chair as he thought about it; she had been a baker and made the most amazing cookies that he had ever tasted when he had been a boy.

He looked across the table at Caitlyn with a kind smile before sipping on his own drink; his mind slipping back to the wonderful memories of his mother.

"So, what brings you to this coffee shop on this fine Chicago day?" Ted asked curiously, he shook his head shaking away the memories of his mother and focused back on Caitlyn.

Peering out of the window, she looked back towards the district and sighed not sure what she was doing anymore; she didn't feel like she really fitted in there.

"Uh-oh... trouble at work?" Ted guessed following Caitlyn's gaze out of the window for a moment, he could only imagined what was troubling the young woman that he was sitting with.

She turned back to him and hesitated for a moment not sure if she should talk to him about her problems.

"I have no idea what I'm doing anymore. Or who I can talk to about this," Caitlyn told him not going into detail, she leant back in her chair as she thought about the mess that she had landed in.

A part of her was beginning to think that coming to Chicago had been a mistake, she should have known that it wasn't going to end well and she wasn't going to get the answers that she wanted.

"Well I'm a willing pair of ears if you want to rant," Ted told her, he had nowhere that he needed to be in a hurry and it was nice to just sit in a coffee shop and chat with someone.

It was rare that he had such a chance these days like this, he was rather busy and with everything that was going on; he was having to stay on his toes.

"My uncle got me a job at his work... it's a secretary job but it's not what I want to do," Caitlyn explained not going into too much detail, the man was still a stranger and she didn't want to find herself in danger. Ted nodded his head listening to what she was saying, a small frown on his face as she spoke; he thought for a moment before speaking.

"What would you rather be doing?" Ted asked her, he was sure that she had dreams of her own and he knew that being stuck behind a desk wasn't for everyone; he was an example of that not working out for everyone.

He had been stuck in a dead-end job and it had nearly killed him, he was ignored and often bullied there and no one seemed to notice what he did until he left.

"Baking... I would love to have my own bakery one day," Caitlyn replied remembering how hard she had worked on her dream, she'd had a pretty nice following when she'd been back in New York.

The small café where she worked wasn't much but she made stuff that people seemed to enjoy and her items would often sell out quickly; the owner had even allowed her to do orders for people sometimes.

"Maybe you'll do that someday, you should do what you love," Ted said encouraged her, owning her own place would take time but there was no harm in her seeking out a job doing what she loved.

If she truly loved baking then he was sure that there was somewhere in Chicago that she could do that; there were plenty of places that could give her what she wanted.

"I'd have to come into a lot of money for that to happen," Caitlyn snorted with a shake of her head, moving to Chicago had eaten away at any savings that she had and she wasn't going to ask anyone to lend her money.

It might have been boring but at least working at the district was a steady pay check right now; even if she was growing tired of answering phones all the time.

Ted wasn't silent at her words, a gleam appearing in his eyes for a moment before he cleared his throat; he glanced down at the necklace that he could see around her neck.

A smile formed at the sight of it but he quickly covered it up with a laugh and nodded his head as if agreeing with what she had said.

"You never know," Ted joked before finishing off his drink, it had been nice talking with her and he was certain that their innocent interaction had gone unnoticed; he doubted that anyone would notice the two of them just talking.

Caitlyn watched him get to his feet, she clutched at her own drink knowing that she should probably get back to her desk before Voight phoned demanding to know where she was.

"Thank you for sitting and talking with an old man, it's nice to see the younger generation still has hope," Ted said smiling kindly, he offered out a hand to Caitlyn and she took it; he shook her hand and pressed a piece of paper into her hand.

Caitlyn looked at the paper confused about why he would be giving this to her.

"Should you ever need willing ears again," Ted told her before walking away, he stepped out of the street and looked towards the district with a smile before he turned the other way and left.