The Donna Chronicles: Coffee Adventures
Something's fishy about my Nina girl. I need to figure this out. Perhaps... I need coffee. Coffee before work: brilliant, Donna!
The redhead steered her moreso fiery colored car towards her favorite coffee shop, The Best Bean. Her distracted thoughts turned to the dog scampering across the road-- that she missed by a hair, and thankfully, too, her dear "James" with whom a successful relationship was forming, if she did say so herself, and the yellow-ish-red-ish light she sped through, and which kind of coffee she might get.
I'm so addle-brained. No wonder I keep Nina around.
Without major incident, she parked her car in front of the 'Bean, making sure to place keys, phone and wallet in places she would remember. A double check of face and hair in the mirror, and she leapt from the car.
The shop was filled with the usual morning crowd, not that Donna knew them all by name. Perhaps Nina would. And that boy was there, too. The coffee-Edward-boy. How he gets mixed up with Edward was a puzzlement to Donna -- not particularly handsome, and he had a lip piercing. Perhaps it was the eyes. A different color but just as intense. Intensely bloodshot at the moment, though.
The door burst open again behind her, wafting in a draft of cold air and a smallish girl dressed in faded black clothing. Her hair was cropped short, but not styled. Perhaps it was once, there were little hints of color in the feathers of black, but Donna was looking for her wallet.
The small girl stepped to the stools at the counter, clearly uncomfortable. Donna heard muffled curses from Edward-boy... Chase! That's his name... and Nina had... oh, look, a nickel!
The black-haired girl whispered something harsh to Chase behind the counter. She looked barely sympathetic as he told her to wait until he got through the customers waiting at the register.
She sat. And kicked. And sat. And fidgeted as Donna dumped her purse on a nearby table, successfully locating wallet, keys, phone, lipstick, movie ticket stubs, and a receipt for...
The room finally cleared except for a man sleeping over a book, and Donna rifling through her purse. "Damnit, Ally, what do you want?"
"You came to work after last night?!" was the spiteful counter.
"What else am I suposed to do? I miss enough school and work as it is, kid," he glowered, "I need this. We need this."
"Barely," the black-haired girl, Ally, scoffed, "I'm almost sixteen. I can get a job soon, Chase."
"I know, but..." he looked pained.
Nina went to see Twilight with that kid..., Donna remembered. Without me!
"But whatever, Chase," she grabbed a pack of madelaines from the counter, ripping it open and stuffing one in her mouth. "You owe me anyway," she said as he glared at her and sullenly rang the purchase with the money from the tip jar.
"You know I don't have cash on me, Ally."
"I know. Let that eat your conscience, too." She hopped lightly from the chair and scampered out the door.
Donna quietly walked up to the counter and cleared her throat. Edward-Chase-person did not look happy. "Can I help you?"
"Hopefully," Donna gave the poor boy a sweet smile, "if you can get me and iced chai, please?"
Chase -- it was the name on his tag -- smiled, "Sure thing... Donna, right? Nina's friend."
"Abso-tively!" she sang. "And you're the cad that assumes he's some sort of Edward?"
"Ha! Nina didn't tell you? I am Edward Cullen."
"More like Edward Sullen, love," Donna sipped her drink as he counted her change. "What gets you so down these days?"
"Well, Eddie ain't perfect, you see, Donna."
"We all know that," she gave a semi-solemn nod.
"He has a drinking problem," he licked his fangs for playful emphasis.
Donna giggled, "Become a vegetarian."
"I'll make note of that. Anything else?"
She dropped chiming coins into the tip jar, "Have a good day, for all our sakes, Ed."
Smiling, she waved good-bye and managed not to trip over the curb, kill shrubbery or maim herself as she dug through her purse, balancing her drink in hand, to find her keys.
Good deed done. Now, off to work.