where: Cafe du Monde
Who: @emberroze
The scent of sugar and fried dough hit him before he even reached the awning. Beignets. The smell used to mean Sunday mornings after Mass, laughter spilling over café tables, the way powdered sugar always seemed to find its way onto his cassock no matter how careful he’d been. Now, it mostly meant temptation of a different sort. One he didn’t give in to, but which clung to him just the same.
Jude adjusted his sunglasses and stepped under the green-and-white canopy of Café du Monde, moving easily through the crowd until he spotted her. Ember. Same easy poise, same spark that made the air around her seem alive. The late-morning sun caught in her hair, and for a moment, he could almost pretend that everything in his life had stayed the way it once was. "Thank you for indulging me and coming to the most tourist-infested spot in the Quarter." Jude said as he reached the table, the faintest smile curving his mouth.
He slipped into the seat across from her, the chair legs creaking against the tiled floor. A server passed by with a tray of coffee and powdered sugar storms in their wake. Jude pretended not to mind the smell, pretended not to remember what coffee used to taste like.
“We need to make these meet ups a monthly thing.” he said, voice low and warm, the faint lilt of the South softening his words. “That way we don't feel like we're always playing catch up.” He glanced down at the untouched plate of beignets on the table a small, wry grin tugging at his lips. “You know I can’t eat this, right?”
He looked back up at her, expression gentler now. “It’s… good to see you, Ember. Really. Tell me what's new in your world.”