it had been a long week. sophie may have adored her job and the children she worked with, but it would have been a lie to say that she didn’t find it quite draining at times. children, particularly first graders, had far more energy than she could ever hope to possess after thirty years of life, and it took every ounce of her own energy just to try to keep up. that being said, sophie knew she wouldn’t have traded her position at the elementary school for the world. it gave her life meaning, and she was proud of that.
but it did mean that come friday afternoon, she was greatly in need of a rejuvenation of sorts. that typically came in the form of a few hours spent at her favorite coffee shop. it was well within walking distance of her apartment, and had far better coffee than most of the mainstream coffee joints, in her humble opinion.
placing her usual order, sophie headed to the counter at the end to wait. as she did so, she pulled out the book that had been tucked under her arm and flipped it open, determined to read at least a page or two before she was served. only when the barista called her name ( and the name of one other, although she hadn’t paid much attention to that ) did she look up. with a smile, she took the last remaining cup on the counter and had just about taken a drink from it when she caught the cursive scrawled across the side: edward.
quickly, sophie glanced up, eyes searching for the person who had been called just before her. ❝ oh, excuse me! ❞ she called after the man, taking a step towards him. ❝ i’m sorry, i don’t mean to be a pest, but i think you might have grabbed my drink by mistake. ❞ she flashed a soft, sort of embarrassed smile, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. ❝ unless your name really is sophie, in which case i will happily eat my own words. ❞