Mirror

Red Gold

A cold breeze swept into the coffee shop as an old lady pushed the glass doors open. The stale winter air mingled with the sweet fragrance that my hot macchiato gave off and crept up my nostrils, making them flare uncontrollably. I took a sip of the brown liquid, which flooded my mouth with rich flavors within seconds. Successful in containing my excitement, I let out a soft sigh of satisfaction.

It has been years since I have last visited this coffee shop but I still vividly remember the heavenly taste of their macchiato. Something that I loved as much as their coffee was their 'Thursday Surprise', which always comprised of a cup of espresso, a piece of plain toast and a small, slightly overbaked donut. I was sixteen when it came to my attention that the element of surprise in this weekday special really did say a lot about this small town of ours. Despite its mediocrity, my heart was still attached to this place. This, perhaps, was the reason why the confinement was such a big deal to me: I was torn away from my birth town.

"Geez, Nathan Herber, you know you weren't supposed to drink that!"

A muffled voice with a thick Australian accent exclaimed. Nearly choking on my coffee, I looked up and found Tyler behind the door, hollering. I was quick to put away the cup as he came up to me with an agitated look.

"No food or drink. You know the rules."

He was panting when he found himself a seat across the table. I knew I was in trouble, but he did not know that yet. It was his first day at work, which meant I could probably get away with breaking a few rules by laying down one or two meticulously crafted excuses. Flashing him an awkward smile, I handed my coffee over and offered,

"Try it. It's good."

Tyler, who was boiling with rage at the moment, rejected my gesture of kindness by pushing the cup to his side.

"See, I don't want to lose my job because of you. Do you know how hard it is to find a job nowadays?"

Protested Tyler as he gave me a menacing glare.

"You can't blame me for not knowing how messed up the economy is when I only get to come out two hours every month," I shrugged and continued, "and let's just say a tiny cup of coffee won't cost you your job. Alex lets it slide all the time."

Alex has been my bodyguard for two years by now. Suffering from a mild flu, he called in sick today lest he should pass the illness onto anyone else. As a replacement, Tyler was sent in to watch over me on my 'cheat day'. As a senior member of the shelter, Alex had the regulations engraved on his mind. He was excruciatingly strict about my diet for the first couple months but over the course of these two years, he has slowly come to realize that the shelter was being overprotective and sympathized with my situation. His compassion, albeit much appreciated, meant nothing in the face of the rules imposed by the shelter.

At the end of day, I was still prohibited from consuming anything while I was out on the streets. Now that Alex was on leave, I was able to regain control of my life for a day or two without having to worry about accidentally throwing him under the bus.

I could tell Tyler was unconvinced from the way he furrowed his brows. A weak grunt escaped his lips when I interrupted with a suggestion,

"I won't blame you for being worried. How about we just keep this a secret, one that's only between you and me?"

Carefully considering my offer, he leaned back with his arms crossed. His features contorted like a vortex as if the idea I was presenting was shaving bits and pieces off his sanity. The sound of his phone ringing was what released him from his misery. I could barely hear who was talking on the other end but somehow, I was certain that this caller was up to no good. After what seemed like ages, Tyler slipped the phone back into his pocket and slammed his fist against the wooden table,