When Strangers Meet | Sophie & Alana

    It's a cold morning in Ocean Grove, the air smelling of low tide. Sophie wore her black wool coat to keep warm, but could feel her hard n*****s pushing against her bra. She liked it. Her light brown hair descends from a grey beanie. Green eyes shine through red backdrops induced by her morning cannabis ritual. The coat hides her curves, but even so, you can tell Sophie takes care of her body. Her high-waisted jeans reveal enough without being restrictive.     She's up a little later than usual, walking to the local deli supermarket to pick up a few groceries. Sophie had her 27th birthday recently. Although she has some leftover cake, she prefers something fresher for breakfast.     She pushed open the market door, bells on the handle announcing her arrival. To the right of her is the deli counter, with ready-made foods you'd expect to find at any deli. To the left is the supermarket section, where one could pick up the basics to take back home with you. The space between had a long table with benches, where patrons could sit together and eat. It was that odd time between late breakfast and early lunch, and the market wasn't very full. Sophie could smell a hint of roast beef cooking in anticipation of the lunch rush.     "Good morning, Sophie!" the shop owner, Franco, exclaims. "I hope you had a great birthday weekend." Franco is middle-aged with balding black hair, and a body that candidly displays his love of food. Sophie could never quite place his accent.     "'Morning, Franco!" Sophie says back. "Thanks, it was...well, it was, I can say that much. I'm a little over birthday cake for breakfast, thought I'd stop by for a bite."     "And I'm so glad you did!" Franco replied. "Let me cook you a real breakfast. It can be my birthday present to you, yeah? Yeah. Sit down and I'll bring it out."     There was a small back-and-forth of "Oh, you don't have to do that." and "No, I insist!" before Sophie would sit down.     Sophie took off her coat and placed it next to her on the bench. She removed her beanie and shook out her long, wavy brown hair, letting it rest in a waterfall down her back. Her pastel yellow shirt hugged her curves in appreciation.     Franco dropped off some coffee, cream, and sugar, and said that breakfast would be up soon. Sophie thanked him for his generosity, the smell of coffee waking her up a bit. She fixed her cup then took the first sip.     You know that first sip, don't you? The one that passes your lips, caresses your tongue, the warmth of it spreading across your chest. Well, Sophie's first sip was like that. It gave her goosebumps along her arms and collar bone before reaching up the back of her neck. She took another sip then held the coffee between her hands, it's warmth calming her skin. She could feel the pressure on her n*****s fade as she warmed up, and wished that the feeling would linger.     As though in answer to her wish, the market door opened and brought a gust of cold air that made Sophie shiver. Her n*****s, hard again, pressed into her bra.     Sophie looked over her shoulder at a woman with long black hair standing in the doorway. Sophie's eyes made contact with the woman's own, and she smiled despite herself. Feeling a heat build in her cheeks and ears, Sophie snapped back to face forward. Sure, the woman is attractive, but she doesn't usually blush like that.     At that moment, Franco was coming round with Sophie's breakfast. He proudly placed a platter of bacon, sausage, toast, eggs, waffles, berries with whipped cream, and home-style potatoes in front of her exclaiming "Happy Birthday, Sophie!"     "Wow, Franco! This looks amazing, you've outdone yourself." The tantalizing smell of bacon and waffles filled Sophie's senses. "There's no way I could finish this!"     "You eat to your heart's content, Sophie. Let me know if you need anything, yeah?" and Franco was off.     Distracted by the feast, Sophie forgot about blushing entirely. It came as a surprise when she heard a woman's voice say, "Hey, would it be alright if I sit here?"     Sophie looked to her left and saw the woman that brought a gust of cold air in with her. She held a bag of coffee beans in one hand, and had a dark brown leather jacket over her arm. White pants hugged honest hips. Her chestnut skin seemed to glow against the royal blue of her blouse.     Realizing that she was staring at the woman's chest, Sophie tore her eyes away and met the woman's gaze for the second time. Those large, dark eyes rimmed with long, thick lashes seemed to drink in the light around them.     "Please do!" Sophie replied, remembering the question. "I was just mentioning to Franco that I couldn't possibly finish this by myself. Franco, do you mind if I share my present?"     "It's yours, Sophie, feel free!" Franco responded.     "Thanks." the woman replied with a smile. She placed her coat and bag of beans on the table before taking a seat to Sophie's left. As she sat down, a wave of perfumed air washed over Sophie, bringing orange, bergamot, and spice her way. "My name's Alana."     "Nice to meet you. I'm Sophie." Sophie said.     "I heard you ask if you could share your present. What's the occasion?" Alana asked.     "Oh, it was my birthday recently. This is my birthday present." Sophie said, gesturing to the platter of food. "Definitely toward the top of the list of presents this year."     "It was your birthday?!" Alana started, arching an eyebrow. "Well, then, happy birthday! And I'm honored to share your present with you."     Sophie could feel the heat rising in her cheeks, again, and tried to hide it behind a large drought of coffee. She pushed the platter between them as she did so and said, "Let's tuck in, then.     "Are you visiting or do you live here?" Sophie asked. Ocean Grove is a quiet little town, but since it's on the coast, it has a pull of tourism.     "Visiting," Alana replied. "My aunt and uncle live here. It's a nice change of scenery from what I'm used to. And my aunt and uncle are getting older, so visiting them allows me to help them out a little. I stopped here to grab them some coffee." She patted the bag of beans on the table when she mentioned them, like they were a loyal pet.     "That's nice of you. I work at Lee's bookshop a few streets over." Sophie says, gesturing in the direction of the shop with her fork. "Between my plants, my cat, Benson, reading and stopping here, Lee's is like my second home." Sophie had to stop herself from saying more. She wasn't trying to give Alana her daily routine, and the one she ended up sharing was pretty lame. What was wrong with her this morning?     "I thought you might be a cat person," Alana said with a smile. "I like cats too."     As the two shared the meal between them, the market began to fill with the beginnings of lunch rush. Sharing the meal had a natural feel to it. As they were finishing up with berries and whipped cream, the space between them grew less. They started to bump elbows while sharing the last of the whipped cream.     Sophie looked up at Alana and noticed some whipped cream on the tip of her nose.     "You've got some whipped cream...um...right here," Sophie said, gesturing to her own face.     Alana looked at her skeptically. "Where?" she asked?     "On your nose, like, right on it," Sophie said with a giggle.     "Right here?" Alana asked, wiping her finger to the left of it.     "No, still there," Sophie reported.     "How about now?" Alana wiped just to the right of the whipped cream.     "Dude, you literally just missed it." Sophie relayed.     Alana grinned. "Like, up here?" Alana brought her finger to the bridge of her nose, right above the whipped cream.     "How can you miss it, it's right here." Sophie couldn't help herself. Reaching out with her finger, she wiped the whipped cream off Alana's nose. Alana caught Sophie's hand and stared at the whipped cream on the outstretched fingertip incredulously.     "That was on my nose, huh?" Alana asked, one eyebrow raised above the other.     "Y-Yes, that's what I was trying to help you with," Sophie replied.     Alana regarded the whipped cream on Sophie's fingertip. Sophie watched Alana consider the whipped cream there, as though she was going to bring it to her mouth for a taste.     Sophie's heart started pounding in her chest. The pressure on her n*****s was back, but this time she wasn't cold.     "How did I miss that much whipped cream on my face?" Alana broke the silence, and her hold on Sophie's hand. Sophie was surprised at her disappointment. She withdrew her whipped cream covered finger and licked it clean herself.     The market was really filling now. The press of people changed the air, now a mix of colognes, perfumes, bodies, and deli food. Sophie and Alana had to sit pretty close now among the throng. Through it all, Sophie could still make out the scent of oranges and bergamot.     Alana looked around a bit. "Would you be up for taking a walk or something? It's getting pretty crowded in here."     Yes, Sophie thinks, so much yes. Absolutely, yes. So why hadn't she said it yet? She was so nervous around Alana, palms sweaty kind of nervous. Sophie realized she needed to take a breath and answer the question. "Yeah, I'd like that!" Sophie hoped she didn't sound too eager. "I'm going to visit the bathroom to freshen up really quick." Alana took one more look around the market and said, "Cool, I'll come with you."