nine
N ate took them to a small cafe in their neighborhood that she remembered from her childhood. It was easy to get there, so they decided to walk, even though Nate could have driven them.
A light drizzle had started but Maddy found that she didn’t really mind.
If anything, the subtle raindrops made everything around her sparkle, the colors of fall slowly receding, the beginnings of winter setting in.
She felt the wet breeze on her face, stray drops landing on her glasses making her surroundings slightly blurry.
Everything but the strong presence at her side.
They reached the cafe just as the rain was starting to get a bit heavier.
It was warm inside, a delightful heat suffusing her body.
Maddy was met with the familiar images of the local coffee shop. Cute, round tables were strewn everywhere, many of them already occupied. Large windows provided the perfect view out on the street and the passers-by running to find shelter from the rain.
Hues of burnt orange, auburn and mahogany created the perfect autumn atmosphere, while the accompanying aromas of strong coffee blends, the sweetness of chocolate, and the spiciness of cinnamon filled Maddy with a sense of warmth she only ever associated with home.
She inhaled greedily, feeling a smile forming on her lips. She hadn’t realized how much she’d missed this.
Nate was already scanning the place. They moved towards an empty table in the shop’s corner with comfortable-looking chairs. Taking a closer look, Maddy frowned at their seating choice.
“I don’t think you’re going to fit,” she said and promptly realized how that might have sounded.
Throwing a sideways look at Nate, she hoped her comment hadn’t been misinterpreted.
Nate’s sly smirk proved her prayers would go unanswered.
“I’m sure between the two of us we’ll figure something out,” he replied helpfully.
She coughed. “Good to hear.”
They made themselves comfortable, shedding their coats and jackets to let them dry. Maddy took the seat opposite the big window loving the rain-soaked scenery outside, and Nate sat opposite her, his long legs sprawled in front of him, almost entangling in the legs of her own chair.
See?
She had been right.
He barely fit. She could have phrased it differently, though.
Nate’s amused expression never left his face as she surreptitiously tried to situate herself in a way their legs wouldn’t accidentally knock together.
Thankfully, the waitress appeared just then to take their order.
With two cups of hot chocolate on the way, Maddy’s curiosity decided to take the reins.
“So... what do you do?” she asked, suddenly shy, not meaning to pry. “Where we came from. Or should I say in the future? I’m sorry I’m still getting used to the time-travel lingo.”
“Are you curious about me, Madison?” There was no hiding the smile in his voice.
“I wouldn’t say curious. Just interested. As a topic of general conversation.” She should probably stop talking.
Nate chuckled, so at least he was amused.
“I work in a company as a data analyst.” Nate’s relaxed stance didn’t falter.
“Oh. Wow.” Maddy had always been impressed with people who worked with numbers. She really envied that particular skill. Probably because she was horrible at it.
“I know, it’s not really exciting,” Nate said, probably mistaking her tone for sarcasm, “but apart from basketball, working with numbers and facts has always been something that I’d been good at.
It’s something I understand, it makes sense to me.
And I knew sports would only get me that far.
I have the cricking knees to prove it,” he said with a small, self-conscious grin.
Maddy couldn’t help but smile at this more and more tension-free Nate she got to see. He looked as young as his current age dictated. The absence of frown lines between his brows made her want to prolong his good mood for as long as possible.
“Not exciting? Are you kidding me? I can’t even calculate the price of clothes after the discount is applied.
And do not mention cricking knees in my presence.
If we have to be plucked from our timeline, then I refuse to carry with me any sort of problems one has when they’re above thirty.
Embrace your temporary youth. Plus, I bet you only have to blame your freakish size for your early cricking knees.
It’s not my fault you’re practically a giant. ”
“Are we back to discussing my size? Because you seem oddly fixated on that.”
Maddy hoped her neck and cheeks weren’t as red as the cups filled to the brim with hot chocolate that the waitress placed in front of them right then were, saving her from procuring an answer.
She took immediate advantage of the interruption to sip her beverage, the warm and thick chocolate sliding down her throat, the flavor nothing short of divine.
Maddy’s eyes seemed to close for a moment of their own volition as she relished the taste. She hummed appreciatively, barely containing the moan wanting to slip out.
Suddenly remembering she wasn’t alone, her eyes snapped open, hoping to find Nate too busy with his own drink to have noticed her.
Except Nate hadn’t even touched his cup yet. His eyes had assumed a hard, intense edge and they were fixed on hers, becoming dark pools that sucked her in.
She’d always had trouble maintaining eye contact for long, and at that moment she didn’t know if she wanted to avert her gaze and cleave that look in half, or drown in it.
All she knew was that she could hear her heart thumping in her ears as she struggled to think of a way to bring the conversation back to some neutral, harmless ground.
Where those liquid eyes didn’t threaten to swallow her whole.
“I edit books!” she blurted out.
Nate’s eyes widened slightly at her sudden statement, before his expression melted into his earlier amusement. He relaxed further back in his chair before saying, “That’s shocking.”
Maddy frowned. “What’s that tone for?”
Nate huffed in disbelief. “Madison, I’ve literally never seen you without a book in your hands. I bet if you could read in your sleep you would. It only makes sense that you would choose a profession that involved something you apparently love.”
Maddy’s words dried up in her mouth. She didn’t know if she looked as astonished as she felt.
“But, how would you know that? We’ve only ever crossed paths a handful of times.
I mean, we’re only just starting to get to know each other.
” She shook her head. “I didn’t think anyone would have noticed,” she said quietly, almost to herself.
Her eyes found his, something passing between them before Nate chuckled, diffusing the tension.
“You mean that there’s another Madison that has barely avoided walking into various objects, moving or otherwise, a great deal of times throughout the course of her school life because she was focused on a book and not where she was going? ”
“I can neither confirm nor deny,” she scrunched her nose at him, cursing his accuracy.
Nate murmured something under his breath that sounded like “Didn’t think so.”
Maddy chose to ignore it.
Nate seemed to fall quiet for a while, his expression becoming serious.
“What are we going to do, Madison? Do we act like nothing’s wrong, like this is where we’re supposed to be?”
Maddy thought about it before answering.
“I don’t think there’s anything to do,” she started.
“If this a dream, a figment of overactive imagination, or true, all we can do is just see it through. I don’t think this is something we can control.
It just is what it is. Maybe…” she hesitated.
“Maybe we could have a re-do,” she suggested tentatively.
“We could make a list of things to experience again, silly things or even not so silly.”
Nate’s piercing gaze was difficult to read.
“Or not,” she laughed awkwardly.
Nate leaned forward, putting his forearms on the table.
With an imperceptible sigh, he said, “What’s the first thing on the list?”
There was no way Maddy could control the smile that split her face.
She pretended to think hard. “How do you feel about a movie night?”