Alex should've never drank that hot chocolate

Jill motions Alex to a seat next to a window, a perfect spot to watch the snowflakes fall down, “Have a seat”, she says.

Alex pushes the chair to sit down on, “So any reason to why you called me?”. 

Jill smiles crookedly, “Can’t a friend just see another good friend and just catch up?”

Alex crosses his arms and looks at her intently, “Since when am I your good friend?”. 

Jill laughs like a frog as she lends her head back, slamming her hands onto the wooden table, “Oh Alex! Aren’t you a funny one?”. She says as she wipes a tear away. 

“Uhh… right? But seriously, why did you call me here at this coffee shop? 

“Well, why did you come?”. 

Alex sat there for a moment. Why did he come? It has been years since he saw Jill, before she unexpectedly moved across the country without a word. Not even her closest friends or family knew where she went. Alex only knew Jill for about 6 months, only meeting through a mutual friend of theirs. Which was why it was strange that Jill randomly called him up on a Tuesday afternoon asking him for a cup of hot chocolate together.

“I guess I’m not sure… maybe just to see how you been?”. 

Jill lends back on her chair, “Really? Well, I guess that makes sense. I did just unexpectedly leave”. 

Alex shrugs, “Yeah, where did you even go?”. 

“Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch”

“What?”

“I said I went to Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch”. 

Alex raises his eyebrow and snickers. Jill narrows her eyes, “I’m serious, it’s a real place, search it up”. 

Alex rolls his eyes, “Right… okay? Well why are you back?”. 

“Jeez, aren’t you asking a lot of questions?”. This time it was Jill who was snickering. 

Alex scrunched his eyebrows, “Well? What do you expect? You just leave and now you’re back. You know you really worri-“. 

Jill gets up as her chair squeaks under her weight, “I’m going to get some hot chocolate, I’ll get you some, yeah?”. Before Alex could respond back, Jill leaves and goes to the front counter. 

Well, that was rude. Alex watches Jill laughing with the lady at the front counter. They seem like they were having a grand old time, while Alex just sat there. Why did I even bother? I barely even know this girl. 

Alex watches Jill take her time with the lady at the counter, both were whispering loudly but not loud enough for Alex to hear. 

At the same time they both turn their heads at Alex then back to each other to whisper some more. Well that was weird. Maybe I should just leave. 

Alex scans the room for possible exits. Obviously he couldn’t leave at the front since Jill will see him, he had to be discreet as possible. He looks to the right to find an older couple staring directly at him. Like they wanted something from him. They stare intensely at him, as if they were in a staring contest. Alex quickly looks away but then looks back at the older couple to find that they were still staring at them. 

He quickly looks to the left to find more people staring at him closely. 

Maybe they know I’m trying to leave? Alex looks back at the window he was sitting beside, watching the snow flutter around. 

He looks straight across him to find a little boy cold, black eyes also piercing into his soul. Alex could feel the entire cafe eyeing him down, the pressure of their eyes slowly building on top of his shoulders. 

Alex’s body felt heavy. What was taking Jill so long? Does everyone know I’m trying to leave? Or is this just in my head? Alex anxiously tugs on his sleeves and quickly looks back to the older couple, to find that they were not there anymore. He scans the entire room to find that everyone was just doing their own thing, people drinking their hot chocolate, laughing with one another, the little boy playing with a little airplane. 

The feeling of pressure on his shoulders lifts up. It was only in my head. He looks back at Jill who was still talking to the lady at the front counter. How long does it take for someone to order hot chocolate? 

Alex looks back at the front door. He lifts his arms, “Alright I'm just going to go”. He gets up and heads towards the front. 

“Woah there!”. 

Alex turns around to find Jill standing there with two hot chocolates in her hands, “Where are you going?”. 

Alex scratches his head, “Oh… well, you were taking a while so I just thought-” 

Jill motions him back to the table, “Oh come on, I didn’t take that long. Come, let's enjoy some hot coco”. 

Alex moves stiffly back to his chair as Jill places his cup in front of him, “Uhh, thanks Jill?”

She winks at him, “I added some mint in your cup, you know to get that minty flavour”. 

Alex scrunches his nose at the foul smell of mint . He signs and picks up the drink, “So… you gonna tell me why you called me here?”. 

She takes a sip, “Like I told you, I’m here for my friend”. 

“Right…”, Alex takes a sip of the hot chocolate, an unfamiliar taste enters his mouth, “What kinda mint did you put in here?”. 

Jill smiles, “The good kind”. Alex looks around the room to find everyone staring at him again, “Hey, Jill is it me or is everyone looking at us?”He nervously clears his throat. In his peripheral vision he could see the little boy rubbing his hands together towards him. 

Jill responds, “No, everyone is just looking at you”. 

“What are you talking about-”. Alex drops his cup onto the floor and starts coughing. He could feel his throat closing up. He begins to gag as he claps his hands on his head, “Ji- Jill what's hap-happen-ing?”. 

Alex's vision fades to black. As everyone cheers, “We finally got him!”.