The Sentimental Café, The Famous Stranger

It’s finally winter!

She wanted to travel to a cold and rainy city. The first suggestion that came to her mind was London, the perfect city for her mood. She landed there. She smelled the rain; it went right through her veins and nourished her soul.

She requested a car to drive her to the hotel. She reached there, put all of her bags and luggage inside the room, then she went outside again. No need for having a rest. She was longing for London’s atmosphere since forever, and here she is in the city itself.

She started walking and even running sometimes with her heavy coat on, a massive smile on her face, and tears surrounding her cheeks. It was a mix of feelings. Neither her smile showed happiness nor her tears showed sadness. It was just something that she dreamt of doing.

She checked her smartwatch. It said 7km. She wandered around the city on foot for 7 Kilometers long. They were fast and enjoyable enough that she did not feel how long the distance was.

A cafe was near where she stood, she decided to enter, sit on one of the tables that is beside the glass wall of the cafe and order a cup of tea. It will be a nice hot drink in contrast with the cold and rainy weather. Dreamy atmosphere.

The waiter met her with a wide smile and made her sit.

“Thank You,” She said.

“You are welcome, what would you like to have?” The waiter asked.

“A cup of green tea, Please,” She Answered.

The cafe has a simple design with a minimalistic touch. It was all glass that sees the street perfectly. There were many cars, pedestrians, bikers, and pets as well.

She started contemplating everything, making a story out of whatever she looked at, wondering about that old lady who was walking on her own, the little child who could not stop crying, the man in a suit who was always on his phone, and the drops of rain on the cafe’s glass wall, There were millions of them, she wondered about each one and why they took different paths!

“Your Tea, Miss. Would you love to order anything along with it?” The waiter asked.

“No thank you, all good for now,” She replied.

The cafe was empty. She began to look around. Just two to three people were sitting away from her, one of them looked familiar, and many empty Tables.

A sip of the tea was too hot that it almost burnt her tongue. It was a good idea to let it cool down a bit. She opened her bag and grabbed the earphones.

Cold, Rainy weather, Tea, and music. It could not get any better.

She rested her head on the cafe’s glass wall, closed her eyes. Lost in her imagination.

Powerful goosebumps traveled all over her body. One tear fell from her left eyes, as lyrics combined with guitar riffs touched her soul.

I’m sick, and I’m tired too
I can admit, I am not fireproof
I feel it burning me
I feel it burning you
I hope I don’t murder me
I hope I don’t burden you
If I do, if I do. 

The NBHD: The Beach.

After a few songs, someone tapped lightly with his fingertips on her left shoulder, she opened her eyes, removed her earphones and looked at him in a surprise.

“Are you okay?” He asked.

She rubbed away any tears that are trapped inside her eyes.

“Yes, I am,” She replied.

“I am sorry, but I was watching you and then saw you crying, so I thought to check on you,” He said.

He was one of the two to three people she observed earlier. He was the familiar one.

“No, I am feeling good. Thank you for your concern,” She said.

They smiled back at each other. Her mind went to think for a second about what if a stranger comes, sits, and just talks with her about the philosophy of life?

“Hey, could I go and get my cup of coffee and sit with you? It is okay if you don’t want to. It is understandable,” He said with a brief smile.

She never wished for something and came to a reality that fast. She hesitated, but she did not want to let him down. Nothing to lose.

“Okay, no problem,” She said.

Her eyes made their way to the cup of tea, It started to be cool enough for her to drink. He came, sat down in front of her, and put his cup of coffee on the table. Regarding Coffee, though she did not like the taste of it, she always liked its smell.

“Smells Good, your coffee,” She told him.

“Yeah, I guess,” He smiled.

She smiled back then look at the street, back to wondering again. He interrupted her thoughts.

“Do you like this atmosphere?” He asked.

“Yes I do, it is my favorite,” She replied.

They sat in silence as they were taking a sip of their hot drinks.

“This life…” She said.

“What about it?” He asked.

“I don’t know,” She paused.

They started to talk further about life, the conversation they had was flowy, they did not even have to force it in a certain direction, no hidden intentions, no fake smiles, no pretending to be someone rather than who they truly are.

They were not afraid to talk about their fears and insecurities. They did not feel awkward when a moment of silence breaks their conversation. In fact, it is rare to meet this kind of stranger. They both understood this. So they just were living and enjoying these moments to the maximum.

Sadly, some moments are way too good to last. They got to end somewhere. The only concern is how they end!

She wanted the end to be good enough to be remembered. Especially with this kind of stranger that looked familiar to her. He is a well-known person that decided to talk to a girl whom he knew nothing about.

She checked the time on her phone.

“I have to go now,” She said.

As she was opening her wallet, he immediately stopped her.

“You don’t have to pay for anything, I will take care of the check,” He winked.

She loved winks; she loved them so much. She stood up, check hands with him, he did the same.

“It was nice meeting you,” She said.

“It was a great pleasure, but wait. I just realized that we have not told each other our names. My name is…”

“I know you, I know your name,” She interrupted him.

He was amazed.

“I know you are famous, a public figure if you will. I did not want to tell you that in the beginning, because I wanted you to feel comfortable. Knowing that you can talk to a complete stranger who might not know you. I don’t even know if this was the right thing to do but that what my mind came up with, I am sorry for not telling the truth,” She said.

“No, this did not bother me at all, I enjoyed your company a lot. Thank you for this,” He said.

With a smile on her face, she waved goodbye and made her way to exit the cafe. He looked at her through the glass wall, then went outside to follow her.

“HEY!” He shouted.

She turned around to meet his green eyes for one last time. Her heartbeats accelerated all of a sudden.

No, she was not running. No, she was not walking so fast. Why did her heart start to beat so fast by the time she heard his voice again?

“Yes, hi again,” She smiled.

“I was thinking, If there could be any way to stay in touch with you,” He wondered.

Her eyes become wet along with a smile on her face.

“This Life is better when you keep it nice and short with people, The more you let them in, the more the possibilities of hurts, so let’s just keep it nice and temporary,” She told him.

They stood in front of each other in silence for an entire minute, but just a little closer as they took the last glance at each other.

“Goodbye Famous Stranger,” She said.

He wiped away her tears, kissed her forehead and let her go.

Disclaimer: This story is not based on true events.