𝐬𝐨𝐮𝐥 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞 | 𝐧𝐨𝐞𝐥 𝐟𝐢𝐞𝐥𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠

0:4

I walked down the sidewalk feeling the high sun hitting against my skin. Noel had sent me the location some time ago; it was a cafe that I had yet to venture into, but was relatively close to my home.

I looked down at my phone to check the time: 2:25. I decided that since I was already close to the cafe, I could check it out for myself before he arrived. As I approached the front of the building I heard a familiar voice shouting from behind me, "Oi Doc Martens! Wait up!" I didn't even have to turn around to know who it was.

I peered over my shoulder and was greeted with the sight of Noel walking fast towards me in a pair of cuban heeled shoes. He was not hard to spot. The sound of his heels quickly hitting against the concrete pavement made me laugh a bit, but I mainly laughed at the fact that he was attempting to fast walk while in them. I turned to watch him with a grin on my face, his hair flopping up and down with each stride he took. When he caught up to me he was slightly out of breath but I found it amusing.

"Are you alright there, Snakeskins? I imagine now would be the perfect time for a drink." I gestured towards the entrance and he lifted his eyebrows at me in agreement.

"You got that right," he said, pushing back some of the hair from his face as his chest noticeably heaved up and down.

We both walked into the cafe and I was immediately hit with the aroma of fresh coffee brewing and homemade pastries. It was a scent that reminded me of home, which provided me with a small sense of comfort. Mellow classic rock hits played softly in the background. Walking towards the counter, I already knew what I wanted: a single black coffee along with a slice of coffee cake. However, it seemed like Noel knew what he wanted to order too.

A barista behind the counter smiled brightly at Noel and his entire face practically lit up. "Noel! What's happenin', mate? Can I get you the usual?"

Noel smiled at him as well and I assumed they were friends or something. "Yeah, thanks! And then whatever the lady wants to order."

Both Noel and the barista looked over in my direction expectantly and I took it as my cue. "I'll just have a black coffee and some cake, if you're still serving."

The barista nodded his head coolly. "Of course! I'll have that out to you guys in a bit." He then flashed some sort of look at Noel, as if he was impressed by me.

Noel and I went to sit down at a table for two near a big floor to ceiling window. I took notice of his outfit earlier and gathered that his style coincided with his personality. Although I didn't know much about him, I knew he had to be the confident type to wear the things he did. Today, he was sporting a KISS band tee, skin tight blue jeans, a denim jacket lined with brown faux fur, and some definitely vintage cuban shoes. He managed to pull it all off regardless and I couldn't help but admire how he didn't seem to care what other people thought of him.

Our eyes met from across the table and for the first time I was able to finally see his face in broad daylight. Looking into his blue eyes, it seemed as though he had so much to say. His porcelain like skin already had a slight stubble beginning to form along his jawline and on his upper lip. His jet black hair contrasted against his features and made them pop out more. He was certainly pleasant on the eyes.

Noel leaned back in his wooden chair, his hands resting in his lap. "Right, so I know for a fact that your real name is not Doc Martens..." his sentence trailed off.

I chuckled slightly and shook my head. "No I have a real name, actually. It's Emma."

"Emma! Of course." He narrowed his arctic blue eyes at me and nodded his head slowly as if he was agreeing with me. "You look like an Emma."

"And you certainly look like a Noel, if there ever was one," I teased.

"That's good then, I'm pleased to know that I have some type of influence in the world." He gave me a playful smile and perked his head up. I noticed that one of his top teeth was slightly protruding. It was the only less than perfect feature I could find on him. "I know I couldn't hear you all that well over the music last night, but now that I can hear your voice in a slightly less crazy environment, I'm certain that you're not from 'round here."

I smiled and appreciated the fact that he still remembered last night so clearly. "You would be completely right. I'm from the States actually, or the upper regions of California to be more exact. I'm here studying abroad." It was partly true. Half of the reason I even left home was to have a new beginning and focus on the future. The other half was due to me wanting to prove to myself that I was independent enough. My attempt to forget about my ex Jake wasn't going as smoothly as I had envisioned though.

"Amazing. How are you finding it so far?" He asked, gazing over at me with a curious expression. He was twirling around a strand of his hair in one of his fingers and his eyes never once strayed away from me.

"It's lovely, I've always wanted to live here. My cousin Gracie has been a lifesaver, showing me around and introducing me to the customs here." I could tell that he was attentively observing my face and I would be lying if I said it didn't make my cheeks burn.

He cocked his head to the side and ruffled up his hair, making a small beam of sunlight hit him, encircling his handsome face. His sheer beauty was unnerving and all I could think about was how much I needed to know more about him. "Enough about me, tell me what you do for a living, Mr. Snakeskins."

He uttered out a slight chuckle, looking down at his lap and playing with a loose thread from the hem of his jacket. "You really must be an American, then," I could hear him mutter quietly under his breath. He cleared his throat and began fidgeting around in his chair. "Uh I do a bit of comedy, art, acting here and there, singing... nothing too crazy."

Nothing too crazy? Was he joking? I figured he must be into the arts but I wouldn't have guessed he was so skilled at so many things. I was about to ask him to expand on it when the same barista arrived with our orders and placed them in front of us on the table.

"A black coffee with a slice of cake for the lady, and a cuppa for Vince Noir himself." He took a few steps back, looked at both of us, and spoke with a smug smile on his face. "Enjoy you two." He then walked away and left us to ourselves once again.

I furrowed my eyebrows and proceeded to take a sip from my hot coffee. "Vince Noir? Is that like one of your nicknames or something?" I asked, looking at him waiting and curious.

Noel had taken a sip from his hot tea when his eyes widened, nearly choking on his drink from my words.