Coffee Beans

Time Goes By

A few days passed and Robin was nowhere to be seen. Ellie had considered taking the short walk down the road to knock on the door and see if she was ok. Or something along those lines. Instead, the brunette continued working and made sure to keep a smile on her face at all times when serving her customers, even if she couldn't smile inside. A typical Thursday meant there was a rush just after opening at eight, and a second wave of businessmen as they returned home at four. Although the coffee shop gave her an adrenaline rush and gave her the satisfaction of helping people out, Ellie found that each day got longer and longer. It was as if each hour was being tugged at by some mystical force.

She glanced up at the clock. It was just about six o'clock; three hours left until she could close the shop. Ellie sat down on a stool she kept behind the counter and rested her head on one of her hands. There were a couple of people chatting away at either end of the shop, but they'd already been there a while. At this rate, she'd be sat by herself for hours with only the clunks of the coffee machine for company. Soon enough, she was proven right. The few groups of people thanked her and left, a couple of people leaving a tip to the side of the till.

An hour passed as Ellie cleaned all of the tables and chair in the room. She took out every cake and its stand and wiped down every surface of the glass cabinet. Even the coffee machine was cleaned with a special blue liquid that made the metal shine. She was scrubbing the steamer arms when the door opened. There was no bell attached, but there was a very loud creak that Ellie had been meaning to get fixed. She quickly put down the cleaner and cloth, wiping her hands on her apron to get the grease and coffee grains off of them.

With a beaming smile and a slight pink tint to her cheeks, Ellie turned around. "Hello - "

"Ah-ha! You didn't expect to see me, did you?"

Ellie sighed and went back to cleaning the coffee machine. "No Mark, I didn't expect to see you."

"Well here I am," he said, laughing a little to himself. "What do you want to do this evening then?"

"What on earth do you mean?" Ellie asked, turning round to give him a questioning look.

"It's a Thursday evening," he said slowly as if Ellie were being stupid. "Half price drinks at the pub?"

Ellie rolled her eyes and hit him with the cloth she was holding. "Oh for goodness sakes. If you aren't here to get a coffee then please leave because I have better things to do."

Mark held up his hands and apologised. "Ok, I really am sorry; that was a dumb thing to say. What I'm trying to ask you, is if you'd like to spend the evening with me. Like on a date if you want to put it like that."

A/N: Sorry this is late XD Hope you like this chapter :) Let me know what you think in the comments below!