Brewed For You

Chapter 11

The knock came just then startling Aria, causing her to step on a shard of glass by mistake. She hissed, lifting her leg up to inspect the injury. For a second, she thought she’d imagined it. The apartment was quiet except for the distant hum of her air con and the soft dripping from the showerhead in the bathroom. Just as she was still pondering over whether she gained it or not another knock came, firmer this time.

“Aria?” Mila’s voice filtered through the door, muffled but tinged with worry. “I heard something. Are you okay?”

Aria exhaled slowly, relief washing over her at the realization that it was just her roommate. She thought, Maybe she came in when I was in the bathroom...

“Yeah,” she called out, trying to steady her voice. “I’m fine. Just… dropped something.”

Mila lingered on the other side. “You sure? It sounded like glass.”

“Yeah...I got some water earlier. The wind must have knocked the empty glass over. I'm fine, really.”

There was a pause before Mila finally said, “Alright. Just checking. You scared me for a second there,” and her footsteps faded down the hall.

Aria waited until she heard the sound of Mila’s door closing before she let her shoulders drop. She waddled over to her bed and sat down. Taking her foot up to inspect the injury some more. She opened her drawers by her night stand placing the note in and taking out the mini first aid kit to clean the wound, hissing everyone in a while as she disinfected it and added ointment. It didn't seem serious so she decided a bandaid will do.

She got back up again and tidied up her room, making sure to be extra careful so she does not get anymore glass to pierce her skin. After trashing the last of the glass pieces, she went back to bed, curling herself up in a fetal position.

Her hands itched to call Damian. He had insisted they exchanged numbers earlier. She even picked up her phone, thumb hovering over his name. But she didn’t. She couldn’t. He didn’t need all this baggage. He probably has enough on his plate, she finally dismissed the idea.

She tossed and turned all night, but sometime in the early hours of the morning, sleep came.

Morning came faster, and Aria did what she always did, she worked. She cleaned up the glass before sunrise, double-checked her locks twice, and made her way to the café before the city’s noise grew too loud to think. She mad a mental note to close early and call a repairman to get the windows fixed before Mila came back. She didn't want to have to explain to her roommate why there was a huge hole in her window.

The bell above the door jingled, its familiar chime grounding her. She switched on the lights, the machines, the playlist she always played when she wanted to keep her mind busy.

By noon, the café was full. A steady stream of customers... students, office workers, tourists...buzzed around, and Aria felt something she hadn’t in a while: relief. Busy meant distracted. Busy meant safe. Just what she needed.

When the door opened again, she didn’t even look up until a familiar voice said, “Well, look who’s got the city hooked on caffeine.”

Damian.

He wasn’t alone, Cole was with him, wearing that smug grin that could charm or irritate depending on the day.

Aria blinked, taken aback for a heartbeat before her face softened into a smile. “You brought a friend? I didn't think you were capable of having those”

“A beautiful lady with a sense of humor,” Cole said, scanning the pastry display. “My name's Cole...I’m basically the love of his life, can't go anywhere without me. He literally begged me to come with him.”

Cole extended a handshake to Aria which she gladly took, spotting a smile to match Cole's.

"Aria" she said as she shook his hand.

"Oh, I know your name sweetie"

"Really..."

Damian cut in, wanting to be part of the conversation.

“He’s lying. He’s here because he lost our match.”Damian smirked.

Aria arched an eyebrow. “Match?”

Cole groaned. “You weren’t supposed to tell her that.”

“Too late,” Damian said, already walking toward his favorite corner seat. “Two coffees, Aria. Your pick. Surprise us.”

She nodded, grateful for the normalcy of it all. “You’ll regret saying that,” she teased, grabbing her apron.

They settled into the back corner, the chatter of the café folding around them.

Cole leaned forward with a grin. “She’s something else, man. You sure you'll be able to stick to being 'just friends'?”

Damian shot him a look. “You done?”

Cole raised both hands in mock surrender. “Hey, just saying. I can see why you keep showing up for ‘coffee’.”

Damian didn’t answer. He just glanced toward the counter, watching Aria move, almost automated...focused, efficient, but a little too tense for someone doing something so familiar. Her smile was so wide but it didn't seem to reach her eyes.

It took a while before she finally came over with their drinks. “Sorry for the wait,” she said, breathless but polite. “Rush hour.”

“No problem,” Damian said.

As she leaned forward to place their cups on the table, something slipped from the front pocket of her apron. A small, folded piece of paper. It hit the floor without a sound, unnoticed by her.

Before Damian could call out, she was already halfway back to the counter.

He reached down automatically, intending to set it aside for her but when he picked it up, something fell out from the fold.

A photo.

His fingers froze midair.

It was of him and Aria that was taken just a few days ago inside the café, when he’d been laughing over something he can't even remember now. He hadn’t even known anyone was there to take it.

Frowning, he unfolded the note.

The handwriting was sharp, deliberate. His eyes skimmed the words before he even realized he was reading them.

You're mine. Always have, always will. Running away only makes me want to chase. You know I love a good chase.

Damian’s jaw tightened. His hand gripping the note a little, causing it to crease as a cold wave crept up his spine.

He was still staring at the words when Aria returned with a warm smile. “Here you go...”

She froze mid-sentence when she saw what was in his hand.

Their eyes met. Hers widened, her face turning white like she had seen a ghost..

“How did you...” she started, voice breaking slightly.

“It fell from your apron,” Damian said, his tone steady but laced with concern. He laid the note on the table, the photo beside it. “What’s this, Aria?”

The café’s chatter seemed to fade into the background. For a second, all she could hear was the beating of her own heart.

Her lips parted, but no sound came out. Cole looked from one to the other, sensing the tension but saying nothing.

“Aria?” Damian asked again, softer this time. “What’s going on?”

"I think I forgot something in the car. Let me go get it." Cole excuses himself, sensing they might need some space for whatever this is.

Aria stared down at the photo on the table, at the note, at the mess of truths she’d tried so hard to keep sealed away. Her breath trembled, and for a heartbeat, she looked like she might bolt.

Instead, she took a slow, shaky breath and met his eyes.

“I can explain,” she whispered.