Coffee

May 13, 2017
 
Venus was too tired for this shit. After a night of guarding Calypso through lengthy contract negotiations with a new supplier, all she wanted to do was go back to her Clan apartment and fall into the void of sleep. But no, Calypso wanted her to work on drafting up the fucking final form of the contract based on the changes and agreements made last night, and they wanted that done before eight. But naturally, the first chance Venus got to slip away and grab some damn coffee was during the morning rush, and the line was nearly doubled over and out the door of the Starbucks.
 
The poor baristas already looked worn out, and Venus had counted only three behind the counter in the minutes she had been standing in line. If the espresso in the Orchid House headquarters didn’t taste like dogshit, she would have happily removed one less customer from the line and taken herself back to the office. As it was though, she sighed and pulled out her personal phone to try and pass the time without falling asleep on her hooves. And sighed again as the customer in front of the cashier raised her voice at the barista, demanding a free upgrade since she stood in line so long.
 
There was a small debate in Venus’s mind if she should just keep her head down and mind her business, but in the end her own indignation at the rude bitch won out. Sliding her phone back into her suit jacket, Venus stepped out of line, mourning her spot temporarily while she moved towards the front.
 
Blonde Bitch was practically screeching at the done looking barista when Venus put a hand on her shoulder, firmly saying, “Ma’am, excuse me, but it is not even 7:00AM, can you please kindly shut the fuck up and just pay for your goddamn coffee so the rest of us can move on with our days?”
 
Whirling around, Blonde Bitch opened her mouth, then paused, looking up into Venus’s face. Venus could have chuckled at the way her eyes widened, thinking about how the fear in them would have been that much worse if she didn’t have her magical disguise pulled up. “A-and who do you think you are? I don’t care, it’s poor customer service to have to wait in line this long and they should give me that free upgrade!”
 
“You could have left the line at any time and gone somewhere else,” Venus’s hand on her shoulder tightened, “So, once again, pay for your fucking bean juice or I would be happy to remove you from the premises and you don’t get your vanilla bean frappe. Your choice.”
 
Perhaps Blonde Bitch was more observant than Venus thought, because something in her eyes said she knew not to mess with her. She turned back around and grumpily paid for whatever it was she wanted. In all the mess, the baristas had already finished her drink, and handed it to her with a look of discomfort. Blonde Bitch made a quick escape, looking redder than a burnt tomato.
 
The cashier opened their mouth, a grateful look on their face, and Venus just held up her hand, “Glad to help, no thanks needed.” And without another word, she turned back around to try and find her old place in line, willing to be mean about it to reclaim it.
 
At least, she would have, if a hand didn’t pop into her view with a hesitant, “Donovan? Donovan Flynrie?”
 
Freezing, her eyes followed the hand to its owner. And blinked. Blinked again, and she wanted to rub her eyes to make sure she was seeing things correctly.
 
“Sage?”
 
They grinned, and some part of Donovan that she had fought long and hard to kill for ten years lit up. “You remember me!”
 
Like she could forget her first big crush. Donovan almost forgot who she was, but she cleared her throat, stepping closer to them and getting a look at them. Sage Mendez looked… nine hells, she still thought they were beautiful, those brown eyes warming her more than they had a right to. The set of their broad shoulders, too, the way they carried themselves and the confidence and ease… it was obvious they were comfortable and settled in themself. Much more than they had been in high school.
 
Her eyes caught on an odd necklace they wore, looking almost like a shield with a dragon’s head cut out of the shining metal. Donovan didn’t remember them being into dragons, but it had been 10 years…
 
Clearing her throat and fighting down a blush - her, Venus, blushing? Gods the other warlocks would roast her ass - she managed to get out, “I’m surprised you recognized me.”
 
They laughed, the only person in the entire Starbucks capable of laughing at such a godsforsaken hour, “There are only so many people that tall and willing to take on a rude customer for others.” Sage moved aside, allowing her into the line with them, “How have you been? I haven’t seen you since… has it really been since 2007?”
 
“2007, yeah,” Donovan smiled, and such a genuine smile felt… weird on her face. “I’ve been getting by, how about you?”
 
The quick once-over they gave her did not go unnoticed, and even though she was used to it, something about them being the one to check her out... “It looks like you’ve been doing more than just getting by, Donovan.”
 
The cashier cleared their throat, reminding both of them that they were in a public space. Sage insisted on paying for her coffee, eyebrows rising at the number of shots of espresso in her americano.
 
As the two of them waited together, Donovan couldn’t help but ask, “What are you doing in the Financial District on a Saturday morning?”
 
They shifted, one heavily muscled arm rising to play with one of their earrings, “I volunteer at a church when I’m not working at the clinic. People come for some medical attention or counseling… and I’m happy to give it for those that need it desperately.”
 
Sage took her eyes widening for something other than the sinking feeling in her gut, quickly holding up their hands, “It’s not much or a big church at all, but there’s good people there and we focus a lot on community involvement and justice for the underrepresented.”
 
“I see,” Donovan didn’t know why she felt so badly, guilt settling into her gut. “That’s amazing, I’m glad to hear you’ve found your place.”
 
Their grin was almost blinding, especially at an early hour after no sleep, “I did. But what about you?”
 
Shrugging, Donovan fixed her sleeves and tie, absentmindedly grabbing her coffee, “I work for some hedge fund managers, helping to keep their offices organized. Nothing much.”
 
“They have you working on a Saturday?” Their brow wrinkled, “Explains the suit too.”
 
She laughed at that, taking a bracing sip of caffeine that had her feeling better already. “Yeah, my bosses expect a lot from their employees and I have some paperwork that cannot wait.”
 
“I see,” their eyes almost looked sympathetic. “Sounds rough.” There was a pause as they grabbed their coffee as well, before they blurted out, “Do you have any plans for tonight?”
 
Against all odds, Donovan almost choked on her drink. “Uh, I think so, for once.”
 
Turning red, Sage shyly asked, “Would you maybe want to catch up more over some food tonight? I know a really good sushi spot in Soho, if that’s not too out of the way for you…”
 
Surely she was asleep and dreaming, “How about 6?”
 
“Perfect,” their grin returned in full force, causing her heart to thunder and heat her face, “It’s a date! What’s your number so I can text you the details and location?”
 
Oh, she was in so much trouble if even now their smile had her head over hooves. Donovan quickly gave them her personal number, smiling and straightening the collar of their shirt before she even realized what she was doing. “I’ll see you then, sugar.”
 
Little did Donovan know she would be thinking about them the rest of the day, barely finishing the contract revisions by the deadline Calypso gave her and quickly finishing other odd bits. Even when she returned to her apartment to nap and get ready all she could think of was her memories of them, dusting them off from where she hadn’t even realized she had kept them.
 
And when their date went better than she could have ever hoped, leaving her laughing until she nearly cried over how many pieces of sushi they could fit in both of their mouths, only then did she finally believe that she wasn’t dreaming about the day. Especially not when Sage had carefully pulled her down to press a kiss to her cheek, smelling like the sushi they had both devoured and a hint of honey and marshmallow… and well, the red kiss mark on her cheek from their lipstick when she saw herself in the mirror later.
 
That was when she knew she was in danger of loving them even more than she had in high school. And that she shouldn’t let them get any closer, not when they were the opposite of everything she was these days. But she couldn’t help but text them late that night, already planning their next date, smiling at the screen and the emojis they sent her. Donovan was stupid to allow herself to, but she couldn’t find it in her to care. Not when it felt so right.
 
She only hoped they never found out what she had become.