Chapter 40 Departure and a New Beginning
Before boarding the plane, I received a text message from Maverick.
“I’ll wait for you to see me, Stephie.”
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I didn’t reply. With a blank expression, I removed the SIM card from my phone, snapped it clean in half, and tossed it into the nearest trash bin.
Then I dragged my suitcase and boarded the plane.
You willbewaitingforeverthen, Maverick.
Becausel’mnevercomingback.
A year later, I’d settled back in my hometown.
JA
I fixed up my parents‘ house and bought another one nearby. It was a cozy place with a yard, also where I opened my coffee shop.
The coffee shop sits between two long stretches of wheat fields. When the wind blew, the wheat would roll in waves, like a golden sea drifting with the breeze.
In summer, the air is thick with the fresh scent of
grass.
My coffee shop has tall glass windows that stretch to the floor, and wide–open side panels that let the cool breeze in. There’s also a long veranda, where most customers love spending their afternoons.
Initially, I thought business would be slow here, given that it’s in a less populated area. But surprisingly, word got out and people from nearby towns started driving over to see this place, and have a cup of freshly brewed coffee. They’d sit for hours here, reading or chatting away.
In the past year, I haven’t heard anything from Yrian or Maverick.
However, Mabel reconnected with me a while back. She would send me photos pretty often, snapshots from all corners of the world.
She looked genuinely happy. Even her smile felt unburdened. And I was truly happy for her.
She heard that I opened a coffee shop, and that it’s doing pretty well. She kept teasing me, calling me ‘Miss Moneybags‘, joking that when she gets back, she’s going to cling to my leg and never let go.
What she didn’t know was that even coffee shops like mine suffer from slow days.
Take today, for example. The rainy season had arrived in the town, and the downpour was relentless outside the windows. Sheets of rain blurred the floor–to–ceiling glass, making it hard to see the scenery outside.
Days like this usually meant zero customers.
But I didn’t mind. There was something peaceful about a quiet cafe in the rain. I could finally sit down, breathe, and let my mind drift.
I was tucked behind the bar, nose–deep in a book, when I heard the soft jingle of the bell above the door.
“Welcome!”
1/2
10:12 PM
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Chapter 40 Departure and a New Beginning
The words slipped out of habit, and when I looked up, I saw a man stepping in from the storm, wrapped in a
raincoat.
I was silently surprised that I could still get a customer in this weather.
Setting my book aside, I quickly walked over to greet him.
“Hi! What can I get for you?”
“A Blue Mountain coffee, please.”
He had his rainhood pulled up and wore a cap underneath. After placing his order, he folded his umbrella and placed it in the wooden bucket at the corner, before making his way to the seat by the window.
Not once did I get the chance to see his face.
But his voice, low and calm, was eerily familiar.
مر
And I remember the coffee he ordered–the Blue Mountain coffee–was Maverick’s favourite.
I returned to the counter, preparing his coffee while stealing glances at the man by the window.
I wasn’t sure if he was really Maverick. It had been so long, and the memory of his face had blurred over time. Soon, the coffee was ready. I steadied my hands and carried it over to him.
“Your Blue Mountain coffee, Sir.”
I leaned down slightly as I placed the cup on the table.
And in that exact moment, he looked up. His face slowly came into focus, piece by piece, familiar and yet changed.
I stared, forgetting even how to breathe.
I’d imagined running into him again. Maybe years from now, or maybe by chance in a city that neither of us calls home.
But I never thought our reunion would happen here. That he would come looking for me.
It felt like a lifetime passed in that pause before he spoke.
“It’s been a while, Stephie.”
I looked at him. And a small smile graced my lips.
“It’s been a while, Maverick.”
