Coffee Shop Meetings

As Danny stood in front of me, talking about who knows what, my heart raced. I ached for him to realize he loved me, pull me closer, and lay the most passionate kiss on my lips that anyone had ever experienced in their life.

My hands were buried deep in my pockets, one clenching a note exposing everything that I was never able to tell him. God, how I wished I wasn’t so scared. We could’ve been together already, but every time I want to say something meaningful, nothing comes out of my mouth.

“And that’s how we ended up meeting Paul McCartney.” He tells me.

Shit. Who’s ‘we’?

“Wow, that’s awesome!” I respond, completely unaware of anything he told me.

“It was a really fun time. He was super cool too. Maybe someday you and I will end up on our own crazy adventure.”

“Maybe.” I chuckle awkwardly.

“Anyway, I’ve got to get going. I’ll catch you later.”

“Bye.”

Just like that he was gone, without the note in my pocket. I stood there, watching him walk away, studying every inch of his body. He was perfect – tall and built. He had deep blue eyes and a smile that made me melt every single time I saw him. On top of the looks, he was smart and funny plus he was an actually nice guy. The sad part was that he was the guy that every single girl wanted.

I didn’t stand out at all, quite the opposite actually. I did my best to blend into the crowd of background characters roaming the school hallways. The ones with earbuds and hoodies helping them to deliberately disappear into the sea of students. Standing at average height with dark brown hair and brown eyes to match, with a slightly overweight body - I was lucky that I could normally get away with not participating in the activities of the outside world.

Danny liked to talk to everyone, yet it always surprised me when he would pick me out in the hallway and start a conversation. Ever since we met, I liked him. It was sophomore year when he was on a mission to make a new friend every day. I happened to be walking to class and he was nearby, walking the same direction. I was wearing a Beatles shirt and he decided to comment on how much he loved The Beatles. So, we talked about their music until we reached our classes, which turned out to be right next to each other. After that day, it became a routine that we would always walk to class together. We really didn’t see each other outside of that, but I desperately wanted to.

I had a hard time expressing my emotions, especially towards guys. I’d never had a boyfriend before, and I had no clue what to do to even try to get one. I didn’t like talking to people because if I said something wrong it would be really hard to fix. Written communication was much easier for me. I could take my time to perfectly compose myself and figure out exactly what I wanted to say in exactly the way I wanted to say it.

After watching Danny walk away, I stood in silence for a moment, staring off into space. Who is ‘we’? I asked myself again. I did my best to erase the image of him in front of me and instead search my brain for the words he actually said to me. He was at a coffee shop before he went to see a Paul McCartney show. He was in line ordering and when he turned around to bring his girlfriend her drink, there he was in line behind him. Girlfriend. Girlfriend! That was ‘we’. He was a girlfriend, of course he does. I felt my heart shatter right then and there in front of the school, where Danny had found me to tell me this crazy story after it had happened the night before.

What did he mean by “maybe someday you and I will end up on our own crazy adventure?” He shouldn’t be hanging out with other girls if he has a girlfriend. I wondered who she was. Did she go to school with us? Maybe she was in one of my classes and I had no idea.

I pulled the note out of my pocket. It was crinkled from my clenching it in a fit of nerves from talking to Danny. I reread the words I had so eloquently written to him.

“Danny, you are the reason I go to school every day. Since the moment we met, my life was changed for the better. I’m in love with you. Your friend, Marcie.”

I ripped the note to shreds and angrily threw it into the trash can next to me. I started to cry and ran away. I wasn’t sure where I was going, but I knew I’d be happier when I was far away from that wretched place.

I found myself at a local café, squished into a booth in the back corner. I just wanted to hide, but I didn’t want to go home and deal with all of the annoying motherly questions that I would’ve been bombarded with when I got there, and she saw my tear streaked face. So, I sat with my knees pressed to my chest and my hood up, doing my best to hide, but realizing I had to order something or get out.

So, I got up to get a coffee and of all the people in the world that could’ve been the barista, it had to be Danny. I’d been there a billion times and never knew he worked there, he must’ve been new.

“Hey, what’s wrong?” He asked me.

“I really don’t want to talk about it.”

“Well, if you change your mind, you know you can talk to me.”

“Thanks.”

I sat back down for a while, composing myself and thinking about everything. I decided I didn’t want to be afraid anymore and whether or not Danny had a girlfriend, I should tell him how I feel so I could let go of all this anxiety I get when he’s around me. So, after building up my courage for quite some time, I finally went back up to him.

“I think I’m ready to talk now.”

“Alright, I’ll be there in a minute.” He gave me a warm smile and I remembered why I loved him so much.

A few moments later, Danny came over and sat down across from me, staring at me intensely.

“So, what’s up?” He asked.

“Um… well… I had this note… and I was going to… I was going to give it to you, but you told me that story about meeting Paul McCartney… and your girlfriend was there… so I didn’t give it to you… and then I got really upset… and then I came here.”

“Why were you so upset? What did the note say?”

There was a long pause, me just looking down at the table, trying to pretend this conversation was not happening, but eventually I told him.

“It said that I’m in love with you.”

“Really? I feel the same way.”

“But what about your girlfriend?”

“You must not have listened to my story. You missed the part where I told you that she and I broke up after the show because I told her that there was only one girl I should’ve been at that show with and it was you.”

“That’s not much of a reason to break up with someone.” I respond, my heart ready to explode from joy in my chest.

“But it was so much more than that. The whole night all I could think about was how much fun we would’ve had, but not just there. You’re beautiful and I love talking to you. She always made making conversation impossible, but with you it just feels right.”

“You must be confusing me with someone else. I’m not some skinny blonde who’s going to be your number one fan and agree with everything you say because it’s easier than thinking for herself.”

“But I don’t want that… I want you.”

Danny and I just sat there for a few more minutes, staring at each other in pure joy. As he was getting ready to go back to work, he did the unthinkable. He just leaned down and kissed me, then he walked away like it was a normal thing, then for all the time after that, it was. And to think, we wouldn’t have even known each other if it weren’t for The Beatles.