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The Stranger In The Café

What happened when two strangers met at the cafe, story unfolds.

It was a torrential downpour. In the pouring rain she was running for cover. Her sandals thumping in the puddle, she tried to open her umbrella, but to no avail. It seemed that somewhere fate was laughing at her expense.


She was drenched in water. Shivering and chattering her teeth, she opened the door to the cozy old café, her favorite place in the world, with its old world charm, pastel-painted tables, and brass vases. A little bell tinkled above the door, and next she bumped against a soft warm wall. Confused, she looked up into the most beautiful eyes she had ever seen, the color of the ocean.


Looking into his eyes, hot blood ran down her cheeks. Puzzled by her rising heartbeat, she mumbled an apology and swiftly moved towards her favorite ottoman near the window. Sitting there, she overlooked the street and its hustle. She loved to read her favorite novels in that little corner of hers. But today she felt restless; her gaze kept following the handsome guy she bumped into. It seemed like he was waiting for someone.



Suddenly realizing that she was cold, she went to the counter. After being greeted by Mr. Collins with a wide grin, she placed her usual order, a hot choco mocha latte, generously topped with whipped cream. Waiting for the order, she decided to plug in her earphones and turn on her latest playlist. The waiter brought her order.


As she was about to take a sip, she realized that it wasn’t her order. She inspected the cup and saw that it was named Alan.


She went back to the counter and told Mr. Collins that her order had been swapped with someone else’s. Just then the guy with the blue eyes came to the counter and complained that his coffee had been replaced with someone named Ellen.


His gaze turned towards the cup bearing his name in the hands of the pretty girl he had crashed into earlier. He smiled and said, “Hi Ellen, I think our orders got interchanged”. A timid smile appeared on her face as she handed him his cup.


While gently sliding her latte towards her, he said, “I’m Alan, by the way, I saw you sitting alone in that corner. Mind if I join you?”


“Of course not," replied Ellen.


Alan followed her to her corner and took a seat across from her.


Just then the clock chimed to three and she realized she was running late for her lecture. Seeing that the rain had stopped, she dropped the change on the table and left in a hurry, leaving her novel on the table.


Realizing that she had left the book she was reading at the café, she decided to go there the next day.


When she reached there at her usual time, she found the same guy from yesterday, with two cups in front of him, one bearing her name, sitting alone in her corner, and holding her book.


She decided to greet him and thank him for keeping her book safe. Just as she took a step towards him, he saw her and gave her a deep smile. Walking towards her little corner, smiling at him, she felt her breath hitch.

“I was waiting for you, hoping that you would come here today,” he told.


“What if I hadn’t?”she questioned.


“Then I would have come again tomorrow.”


Her eyes lit up, a shy smile spread on her lips, she took a sip of her mocha latte, startled that he had ordered it just the way she liked it.


“So did you find anything interesting?” she questioned.


“A beautiful girl, soaked to the skin, teeth chattering, talking to a stranger she barely knew," said Alan.


“The stranger’s gorgeous eyes held me prisoner; denial was a lost cause", smiled Ellen.


“A poem, I love it”, he replied.


“Then you and I have something in common, besides our names, and I hope you wouldn’t get bored with me spouting poetry every chance I get.”


“Looking forward to it," said he, lips twitching flirtatiously.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
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Somya Pandey

Writer

Somya Pandey is an engineer by profession and a storyteller by heart

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