Can You Hear the Ocean?

Chapter 5

The summer storm season had finally arrived. As rain dripped down the windows of Leila's apartment, Leila's finger hovered over her phone. She stared down at her text message once again and sighed. Fuji, who was resting on her lap, looked up at her and meowed.

"I know. I know. I'll send it in a second. I just need to read the text over one more time," Leila said.

It was just Mia, after all, and yet, Leila's fingers continued to stay frozen Perhaps it was Mia, but the Mia Leila knew was from twelve years ago. They hadn't exchanged any communication since early high school. It was possible a lot had changed in that time. But then Leila remembered that Mia had willingly given out her number. There was no excuse not to text. She wondered why it was so difficult, then.

Finally, Leila shut her eyes, and quickly pressed the send button before she could hesitate again:

Hey Mia, it's Leila. Glad to see you in town again. Want to grab a coffee sometime?

Leila set her phone down and gently scratched Fuji's chin. As he nuzzled into her hand and purred, she sighed and looked down at him.

"Why was that more nervewracking than asking a girl out?" she murmured to the cat.

Fuji's purrs didn't provide a very clear answer.

Leila leaned back and ran her fingers through her hair. She jolted slightly as her phone buzzed on the couch seat beside her.

Sure. What about Saturday?

...

If Leila thought it was nervewracking to simply text Mia, she had no idea how anxious she would be the day she met Mia in person. She'd spent the morning changing her outfits multiple times, even though again and again she had repeated the same mantra in the mirror: "It's just Mia."

The storms had subsided thankfully, making way for beautiful sunny skies. Leila hoped the nice weather was a sign that her reunion with Mia would go well. She surely hoped so. Her stomach was doing backflips just searching for a place to park. They had settled on a simple café along the seashore, a few blocks away from the café that Mia worked at. That had been Mia's one request, that they eat somewhere away from her work. She had left all the other details up to Leila, just as she had done when they were kids.

"I'm easy," was what Mia would always say.

The coffee shop they had chosen, Seaside Coffee, was tucked away in a quieter part of town, away from the tourists. It sat on the far end of the street corner with a wooden patio stretching out over the white sands of the beach. As Leila stepped inside, the paint appeared to be chipping some and the furniture had seen better days, but Leila knew better than anyone that the older businesses always had the better coffee. The café that Mia worked at just didn't offer that same sense of nostalgia to Leila as this place did.

Leila lingered in the back of the shop, glancing back at the door. Each time the door's golden entry bell rang, Leila's eyes would quickly dart to the entrance, but each time, her heart would sink slightly to see someone else enter.

Finally, Leila gathered the courage to step in line and order, figuring that if Mia had stood her up, she at least wanted to enjoy an iced coffee. Suddenly, the door opened once more, and Leila turned to see Mia stumble into the shop, clearly out of breath. It was strange seeing her not in her café apron. She was wearing pale denim shorts and a pink t-shirt, a typical outfit Leila had always seen Mia wear a rendition of during the summer.

"Sorry, sorry, sorry," Mia murmured as she met Leila in line. "I tried to text you that I was running late, but my phone died, and I didn't have a charger—"