Of Mochas and Macchiatos

Part 25

This chapter is dedicated to IAmYourZemblanity for being the most darling and supportive person - and friend - ever. Thank you a million for your relentless kindness. ♡

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There is the gentle tinkle of a brass bell and then Rafe is outside in the cold with me.

"Hey, I thought I saw you out here! Coming in?"

"I, uh, I actually wasn't feeling very well... I was gonna text you to tell you not to wait up for me." I gesture helplessly at my phone. It's true. I suddenly feel very queasy, for some reason.

"It's alright. Come on. There's nothing Pellegrini's can't fix." He steps behind me, arms on my shoulders and steers me into the warmth, into the light. I blink for a few seconds, adjusting to the bright atmosphere and then I'm sitting in the red booth by Rafe, opposite Lara and Gareth. The leather behind me isn't cold in the least and there are those heaters that cast a warm light upon us, interspersed by indoor plants, and yet I still shiver. I fumble over my words, still trying to make excuses.

"I'm actually so tired-"

"I thought you said you felt sick?"

"Both! But especially tired; I haven't been sleeping every well at all and-"

Lara winked at me, "We know whose fault that is though, don't we, Rafe?" She and Gareth both turned to Rafe, smirking. Rafe raised his eyes heavenwards but he looked concerned.

I shook my head at him. "No. Just nightmares mostly." Oh. It sounded so pathetic in the bright light of the restaurant. A girl my age, still haunted by nightmares. Should I tell them they aren't mere dreams, per se, but rather memories? No. Better not worsen my embarrassment. "Anyways, I'm sooo sleep deprived. I really just want to crash, like right now."

"Dude." Gareth unwrapped his arm around Lara as a waiter came by with the menus. "Eat first! This place is the best."

I persisted, recalling some of the persuasive techniques I'd been studying with Madeleine and Lucas an hour prior. The Aristotelian mode of persuasion logos: an appeal to logos. Maybe heightened with an authoritative tone.

"Yeah, but I read a study in Nature Communications that discussed the recent discovery that sleep repairs the broken DNA that builds up in brain cells during the daytime. I'm suffering- my DNA's probably a mess, what with all these sleepless nights."

Lara stared. "You said you were studying history and anthropology, right?"

"Yeah." I frowned slightly. Seriously, everybody nowadays was making me question my life choices. Lara threw Rafe a fleeting glance.

"And do you enjoy? I mean, I'm sure there's a scholarship that would allow you to transfer to a science degree?" I felt a small glimmer of hope ignite within me.

"You think so?"

"Yeah, I do." Lara smiled at me, her eyes shining. And Rafe turned to me.

"You'd really like that?" He asked, and I let myself relax against him slightly.

"Yes. I would adore that." Rafe entwined one of his hands in my own as he flipped through his menu.

"We'll have a look then. Although I'll miss our history dates."

"I suck at dates! I never remember when anything happened." Gareth chuckled as Lara hid her smile behind her menu.

Rafe leaned over and kissed my temple, "These kind of dates." Oh. Embarrassing. I force a small giggle, but suddenly I feel so out of it again. Lara flipped through the menu murmuring quietly to Gareth and we are silent for a few seconds, scanning the meal selections before Gareth suddenly perked up.