rippled caffeine

She stirred her latte – endlessly, it seemed – with the spiralled paper straw sticking out the top of an up-cycled jam jar. Like water draining down a sink, she watched as the ice went round in circles, occasionally stealing an impatient glance at her watch. The evening had ripened into twilight, painting the sky deep shades of burning amber that bounced off the rippling water. Impatience had stolen her appetite, so she tore up the last of her raisin brioche and lethargically lobbed the pieces into the lake, teasing the ducks as they quacked about, fighting for their second dinner.

They used to come here every night as teens, crack open a cheeky tinny or two and chat shit for as long as curfew would allow. A long stretch of grass dotted with brightly striped parasols led onto a wooden deck that expanded out over the lakeshore. It was the best spot along the lake – family run – where the chips were crispiest and the ice cream was creamiest. The coffee was shit, but it was the ambiance she ventured down here for nowadays. Somehow, the sense of tranquillity and nostalgia never seemed to fade.

She briefly pondered whether it was too late to be quaffing caffeine, but quickly discarded the thought as she knew she wouldn’t be getting much sleep before the big day here tomorrow, anyway. Then, a jingle: her phone. Eager to see who it was, she rummaged around in her pockets to fish it out. It was him. “Jesus Christ, babe, what’s taking you so long? We said at dusk, where the fuck are ya?!” Her language had always been appalling, but she somehow managed to get away with it with a sly smirk and a faint kiss of her teeth; she was very tongue-in-cheek like that. “Alrighty, calm down, I’m on my way now. Got held up doing, errr, stuff. You’ll see.” His voice sounded out of breath as it bellowed down the phone. She had always been immensely attracted to its deepness, a kind of soothing hum that vibrates through the walls like your neighbours’ bass line – only sexy, not vexatious.

The sun was about to drop into the lake, forcing the day to hold its breath once more until dawn, and a brusque breeze brushed through the evening. She was slurping the last of her crappy coffee when she heard his familiar gait ambling down the stairs, looking as though he hadn’t a care in the world, hair in the wind and all. Still slightly salty about his lack of punctuality, she attempted to keep a fractious face. Of course, once their eyes and lips met, she could hardly resist his carnal touch. “I brought you something”, he whispered into her ear as he tucked a lock behind it. It felt cold and metallic as he pressed it into her hand. Surely not, she thought to herself, trying to mask her excitement as she rushed up the stairs to the parking lot. “Are you shitting me this is fucking incredible!” Hearing her joyful screaming echo down the stairs, he went up to join her, but she was already sat behind the wheel of the 1963 yellow Chevy pickup she’d dreamt of her whole life, waiting to peel off.