𝙵𝙸𝙽𝙸𝙵𝚄𝙶𝙰𝙻 ° sky flaherty¹

January 9th, 2015

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kayla_bayla arrived at Little
Owl Coffee!

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The inside of the shop was warm and cozy, contrasting greatly to the bitter cold of the January weather. There weren't too many people inside, despite it being decently early on a Monday morning. That's why Kayla liked this coffee shop specifically; it was never terribly busy and the staff were kind.

"Ah, Kayla!" One of the baristas called out to her. Lifting her head from the door mat where she patted off her snowy boots, she saw Trevor giving her a wide smile. "The usual, I presume?"

"You presume right, Trev." She laughed softly, moving up to the counter as a business man moved away. "Throw in a muffin while your at it; I haven't had breakfast yet."

"Blueberry?" He questioned with a teasing smile, already knowing it was right. The nod the girl gave only caused him to laugh softly and start on her order. "Shouldn't you be at school, though?"

"We don't start until next week. You know how the school works." She told him with a small shrug as she dug her wallet out of her purse.

Trevor was a familiar face to the girl, seeing as she had been coming here since she was fifteen. He had graduated two years earlier, and found his job 'too enjoyable' to go anywhere else.

"That's true. The system is very strange."

The two then fell silent as the girl flipped through the magazines in the rack beside the counter, nothing but the coffee machine hum and soft background music filling the air. It was only a few minutes later when Trevor pushed the cup across the counter, giving the girl a smile as he handed her her bag.

"Thanks, Trev." Kayla said, giving him money before grabbing her stuff and leaving the cafe, not bothering to get her three dollars worth of change.

The cold air hit her hard in the chest, but she savored in the feeling. She always enjoyed winter...to an extent. She drew the line at ice storms and more than three feet of snow; she didn't want any more than what was needed to go snowboarding.

Her phone buzzed in the girl's pocket as she walked down the sidewalk, coffee in hand. Pulling the device out, she rolled her eyes at Parker screaming in their group chat, about what...who knows. Needless to say, she wasn't paying attention to where she was walking, stepping right onto a thick piece of ice covering the sidewalk.

Kayla gasped in shock, both her phone and her drink falling from her hands as she fells backwards, her butt landing painfully onto the cold cement. A small scowl came to her face as she looked at her two belongings, one in tact still, but the other spilled out across the sidewalk.

"Oh my god," A voice said from behind her, followed by hurried footsteps. "Are you alright?"

The brunette girl nodded without looking up, letting out a soft sigh as she nodded, brushing off her leggings. "Yeah, never better."

"Can't say the same about your coffee."

She giggled softly, shaking her head and glancing upwards, squinting due to the bright sun. At seeing who it is, her smile widened slightly. "How come whenever I fall down, you're the one to help me back up."

It was the boy from the ski resort yesterday. Today, however, he wasn't wearing a snow hat, leaving his untamed red hair on display. He simply shrugged and held out his hand with a soft chuckle. "Maybe stop being so clumsy and I wouldn't have to."

Typically, the girl would've been offended by that, but hearing the teasing tone he had in his voice made her not. Not to mention, she didn't want to be rude to someone she had just met. Instead, she took his hand and allowed him to lift her back onto her feet.

Her feet were planted firmly on the cement when he bent back down, picking up her smart phone and wiping it free of any snow with the sleeve of the hoodie he wore. "Hopefully it still works." He mumbled softly as he handed it to her.

"Thanks." Kayla said sheepishly, grabbing it before tucking it away, her best friend's message long forgotten.

For a moment, neither said anything. The brunette girl watched as the boy bent down and picked up her now empty coffee cup. He wasn't familiar, which wasn't uncommon due to Denver being a tourist spot, but she was sure she would've seen him around sooner than yesterday.

"Sorry about the coffee," He said awkwardly as he rose back up straight, looking at the plastic cup with a sorry look. As if he had a sudden thought, he shot his head up towards her. "Lemme buy you a new one."

"Oh, you don't have to."

"No, I insist."

Seeing that the boy wasn't going to give in easily, the girl slowed nodded her head. "Ok, fine. One coffee."

At her words, the boy's face lit up into a bright smile as he nodded his head. "Of course." He said. "One coffee." Before either could take a step, the boy thrust his hand out towards her in a greeting gesture. "I'm Sky, by the way. "Sky Flaherty."

A smile came to the brunette's face that matched his as she clasped her hand in his and shook it gently, ignoring the warmth that his touch provided. "Kayla Monroe."

The two didn't realize how long they were standing there, shaking each other's hand until the redhead finally cleared his throat and released her. "So, that coffee..."

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