moments ; k.powers

01

01: WHEN THEY MEET

Keith looked like a fool when she walked in. His work hat was on backwards, there was a brown stain on his apron from when he and Dari bumped into each other with scalding hot coffee, and he hadn't slept the night before.

Jess looked somewhat better. She hadn't slept much either the previous night, but a little concealer and foundation covered it pretty well. Her curly hair was piled in a bun and the oversized t-shirt she wore did no justice for her figure.

"Welcome to Kameron's Cafe, can I help you?" Keith's voice was monotone. He wasn't facing her, his back turned to watch the muffin Dari had left in the toaster. But it still managed to pick Jess's gaze from her white sneakers to his face.

Her mouth made a sudden 'o'. She scanned the menu behind his head.

"I'll have the medium mocha with whipped cream please."

Then, he finally turned around. He took her in with his backwards visor still on and brown stain. His mouth went dry. It was like the words fell out of his mouth. On cue, the timer on the oven rang and Dari burst through the employee's room.

"Speak Keith. The poor girl's still waiting." she interjected.

Keith licked his lips and made eye contact with her. "I'm sorry, I was distracted. You said a medium mocha?"

Jess smiled. He was cute. "Yes. For Jess."

Keith tapped the screen several times. "Yes, for Jess," he repeated, "that will be $4.97."

They exchanged money and Keith busied himself with making her drink.

His face was hot and he was pretty sure Dari was going to mess with him after Jess left. As soon as her drink was done, he called out her name. He licked his lips again and prepared for the interaction.

"Thank you... Keith." Jess's voice trailed as she searched for his name. Unfortunately, like his hat, his name tag was upside down.

Keith blushed and rested his hands on the counter. "No, uh, no problem. I like your shirt."

Jess looked down at the Justin Bieber concert shirt. "You listen to Justin Bieber?" Her voice held a teasing tone to it.

Keith fumbled for a response. "I-I, you know, respect the man. You know, he's all married now and what not. My mom used to be a big fan and-," He felt Dari's heated gaze. " I have to get back to work. Bye Jess." The line was growing too long for one person at the register.

Jess lingered for a while after he left. Watching as he fixed his hat and name tag before he helped the next customer. He was jittery, bouncing from one foot to the next. But it was cute.