Coffee Beans

Eleven 'till Three

She locked the door and switched off the front window lights. Heading over to the coffee machine, her phone rang for the third time. "Let's see what you have to say," Ellie mumbled. She slid the green phone across the screen and prepared for a difficult conversation with her Dad.

"I hope you aren't going to make this a habit," a gruff voice echoed out of the phone's speaker. Ellie rolled her eyes and attempted to put on a cheery facade.

"No, Dad. Today I've been at work so calling me was a pointless idea. You know when I'm working because I emailed you the times. Or if you still weren't sure, you could have rung Jason; he always wants an excuse to get out of work." Ellie out a hand to her head and wiped her brow. Less than a minute of talking and she was getting frustrated.

"Alright, calm down," her Dad said. "I just wanted to see if you were coming round for Sunday dinner tomorrow. It's a family tradition, you know."

Again Ellie's eyes rolled dramatically within their sockets. "Like I just said," she took a deep breath to calm herself. "You know when I'm working. I have the shop open eleven 'til three on a Sunday." Her brows knitted together as she heard her Dad tut on the other end of the line.

"I get very good business on Sundays," Ellie explained. "Some weeks I even get more money on a Sunday than I do on a Saturday. It's days like this that allow me to keep the shop open." 

Silence killed any positive mood left in the phone call.

"I'm sure you could close for one day?" Her Dad sounded vaguely hopeful. "Jason quite often takes days off of work to come and see me. It would be nice to see you as well as your brother once and a while."

Ellie sighed heavily. "There's nothing stopping you coming for tea, Dad. You're just being stubborn. If you're really that desperate to see me, you can come over tomorrow and I'll cook you dinner. I'll even text Jason and get him to come as well."

Another tut came from the other end of the call. "That's not the tradition, Ellie. What would your mother say if she knew you worked on Sundays? Hmm? She'd be distraught."

"No, I think Mum would be proud of me actually. She helped me start the shop and now it's grown into an important part of people's everyday lives. I've even offered to go halfway with you and ask you round for dinner. So yeah, I don't think she'd be distraught. You can take my offer or leave it. Either way, I'll invite Jason round. Have a nice evening, Dad," Ellie pressed the red phone icon on the screen and the photo of her Dad faded away.

As she leaned back on the work surface behind her, Robin came into her mind. If the blonde didn't get along with touch screens, did that mean she had a flip phone? Or no phone at all? It was certainly more satisfying to put the phone down on someone when you could flip the phone shut or press a physical button. "A screen doesn't exactly do much," she mumbled under her breath.

Ellie glanced around the shop to make sure everything was tidy and clean ready for tomorrow. A few tables needed moving but when she was happy with her work, she turned off the lights and locked the door to a side corridor. Going up a small flight of stairs, Ellie unlocked the door to her flat, turned on the living room light, and collapsed onto the sofa.