When It Comes To Us (BWWM) ✓

Part One •

Coffee.

Coffee.

What I needed was some fucking coffee, Killian decided, as He made an abrupt 180° in the direction he had come. There was only one place he could think of that had coffee worth buying, and was open this time of the night. He glanced down at his watch. It read 10:25 pm.

There was a homeless man that stood at the corner of Lyndale and 83rd. His clothes looked incredibly worn and paved in dirt, which almost matched the aesthetic of the New York City streets. Killian felt obligated to slip some change into the styrofoam cup of his bony fingers, but there were far too many homeless people in New York City to donate money to.

The building the man sat besides, was a little hole in the wall of a coffee shop. Something Killian had stumbled upon on another one of his nightly adventures.

He took one last hit of the cigarette He was smoking, before killing it on the ashtray above the trash bin outside the building.

As he opened the door, his senses were instantly hit with the strong aroma. His craving for the hot, soothing drink only intensified.

The place itself was nice. It was far too small and a little cramped, but homey nonetheless. Fairy lights were strung across the roof of the shop and around the pillars that held up the ceiling. He expected for the cafe to be dead and empty so late into the night, so it took him by surprise when He saw another figure sitting by the window.

His eyes gravitated to hers, as she glanced out through the panels of the glass. He could see the bright blue wire from her earbuds peek out under her thick scarf. She wore a knitted hat, but it did nothing to tame her wild curly hair that practically covered the surface area of her shoulders and a bit of her back.

Laura didn't mean to get lost in thought. It sort of just happened. She, too, had stumbled into the cafe at this odd time of the night. She hadn't even known cafes could stay open this late, so it came to her surprise when the neon OPEN sign flashed through the window of this hole in the wall.

She had walked in and ordered herself a regular cup of coffee. There was no one there when she arrived.

She hadn't attempted to take off her thick army green jacket. Instead, she continued to sit there, staring out the window as her fingers gently traced the rim of her coffee mug. From this angle, Killian could see how sharp her facial features were... but he wanted to see more.

He was pulled out of his thoughts by the lady at the register welcoming him.

"Great to see you again, Killian, what can I grab for you?" She asked. He recognized her face, but never remembered her name. He was sure it started with an S... or was it a C? She was always working whenever he came in.

"Hi." He smiled. "Just a cup of coffee tonight. Black with one sugar."

She nodded to him, then turned to get to work.

He glanced back over at the girl that he had seen earlier, and his eyes caught hers. Her face was expressionless as she stared blankly back at him. Though she wasn't actually listening to any music, she was so consumed by her thoughts, she hadn't noticed anyone else come in. He offered her a small smile, but she just turned around and glanced back out the window.

She wasn't used to someone noticing her. But then again, how could he not? She was the only costumer in this cafe.

He couldn't help the curiosity that had now seemed to itch away at him.

"Here you go." The women at the counter chirped as she placed the cup of coffee down for him. He handed her a five and told her to keep the change. He had meant to just take his to-go cup and leave, but something else made him gravitate his way towards the girl.

He took a seat across from her, yet she didn't seem to notice until he tapped her hand that was rested on the table, lightly. He expected her to startle her since she looked like her mind was somewhere else, but she just turned to him expectantly. He waited for her to remove her earbuds. She never did.

His fingers finally reached up and tapped his ears, seeing if she could get the message that He wanted to talk to her.

"I can hear you just fine." She replied. Her voice was unexpectedly low. It took him by surprise. "It's not plugged into anything." She explained, as she lifted the wire and showed the exposed jack. She had unplugged her phone from it a little while ago to check into her Instagram. She left the earbuds in because they oddly felt nice pressed gently to her ear by her knitted hat and untamed hair.

"Then why are you wearing them?" He asked curiously.

"Because usually when people see others wearing headphones or earbuds, they leave them be." She replied. He couldn't help but smirk at that. She wasn't going to tell him she just liked the feeling of her earbuds in her ears. That would be too weird. Then again, a handsome stranger deciding to sit down and talk with her was also weird.

She usually managed to make it through life unnoticed. There wasn't anything unique about her. She was just... Laura. Bland Laura.

"So you want to be left alone tonight?" He asked.

No, she thought.

"Yes." She replied.

"This makes me want to stay."

"I bet it does." She whispered. There was something in her, that was hoping he would. She didn't want to be left alone tonight. She didn't want to be given the opportunity to think, because thinking meant reflecting, and reflecting meant remembering which always brought on sadness.

He grinned at her response. "You look sad." He noted. Her eyes turned back to the window.

"It's a sad day." She replied.

He nodded. Somehow she felt as if he understood.

"I have a proposal." He spoke after sometime. She turned back to him.

"What is it?" Curiosity was laced in her tone.

"We've got about an hour and a half left of the day. Why don't you let me try and make you happy again?" He asked.

"What's in it for you?" She countered.

"Besides seeing a beautiful girl smile, you can also buy me a cup of coffee same time next week if I succeed."

Her cheeks got heated at his compliment. No one had called her beautiful before now.

"What's in it for me?" She asked finally.

"If I can't get you to smile, I'll buy you coffee same time next week."

Laura finally nodded to herself.

"Deal?" He asked.

"Deal." She replied.