Chapter 24:

Coffee Date

The Lonely Lovers Club


“Is this really necessary?” asked Jaime

Willie, Maria, and Lee all sat with Jaime in a local coffee shop. The sweet smell of coffee filled the air as the employees poured cups and grinded beans behind the counter. In the middle of the afternoon, it was not crowded, but a few adults sat around on laptops, clicking away.

“Yes,” said Willie. “If you break up with someone, you have to do it the right way.”

“But we’re in a coffee shop,” said Jaime. “There’s people everywhere. They’re going to see.”

“I suppose you could take her out for a walk afterwards, but this is proper,” said Willie. “Buy her a drink. Sit down. Have a conversation.”

Jaime protested, “But, Willie, she’s going to totally freak out in the middle of the store.”

This was something Willie expected. From the way Jaime had described his relationship, Rose was strongly attached to Jaime. She clung to Jaime tightly. A bond like that does not break easily.

“Indeed,” agreed Willie. “But that is all part of the process. All romantic endings will result in tears shed. Probably shouting and screaming. It is the calming coffee house atmosphere that will soothe the breakup. It will make everything more pleasant.”

Maria said, “Wait, is that why you want to do the breakup here?”

“We don’t even drink coffee,” said Jaime.

Willie rolled his eyes. “It's not about the coffee. Besides, you shouldn't drink coffee anyways. Apparently it makes you really hyper.”

Willie did not drink coffee and knew nothing about the stuff, but he knew adults drank it to get huge boosts of energy. And the last thing Willie wanted was for Rose to have any extra spirit during a breakup.

However, Willie did know the coffee house setting was perfect. It was quiet with adults working and reading newspapers. The smooth jazz playing over the radio was relaxing. Overall it was a perfect setup for a calm breakup. And Willie expected to utilize every calming method he could today. In addition to her strong attachment to Jaime, Jaime told Willie Rose was extremely high energy. She was constantly bouncing off the walls. Flipping the conversation from one subject to the next. Sandra had told Willie the same thing.

Sandra… Willie still needed a plan to get Lee together with Sandra. Lee sat with them all at the coffee shop table, but did not say much. He was still down in the dumps. Willie had trouble imagining what Sandra was thinking at a time like this. Willie did not think Lee and Sandra could grow apart. Yet here he was with Jaime, getting ready for a breakup with Rose.

Willie shook off the thought. Now was not the time to think of that. Not yet. They still had this breakup to worry about. With all of Rose’s energy plus her attachment to Jaime, this was going to be an explosive breakup. That’s why they were in the relaxing coffee house.

“Well you don't have to worry about the coffee,” said Jaime. “But I am nervous.”

“Take a deep breath,” said Maria. “Slow breaths are good for nerves and anxiety.”

“What about all your tricks and Shenanigans.”

MAY WHAT? ……. Like I said. This is a breakup, not some dance proposal where you have to impress someone. Instead you have to be honest.

“Just remember to speak firmly and clearly,” said Willie. “Let's get set up.”

Willie, Maria, and Lee hid themselves in the corner of the coffee shop just before Rose arrived. They arranged the perfect seats. The Lonely Lovers Club would be tucked into the corner, so they could not be seen by Rose, but they would still be close enough to listen in. That way they could help Jaime if he needed any support.

Rose came in with jeans and a light jacket. The fall air was already cool. The leaves outside were yellow and red. A few blew in the door after her. Once Rose arrived, she and Jaime went to the counter. It was only proper to grab a drink.

“Coffee please,” said Rose to the barista behind the counter when she was asked for her order.

Willie immediately buried his face in his palm. This was exactly what he did not want. If Rose was hyper during the breakup, it could only be worse.

The barista asked, “Is that for here or to go?”

“To go.”

“You’re getting a coffee?” asked Jaime, just as concerned as Willie. “I thought you didn’t drink coffee?”

“No I don’t,” said Rose. “I thought it might be good to try new things.”

Jaime turned to the Barista. “Make that two please.”

After pulling an amazing number of levers on various machines behind the counter, the barista handed them their drinks. Jaime and Rose sat down and took a sip of their drinks in silence.

After a deep breath, Jaime got right to the point. “Listen. I… I want to break up.”

Rose was taking a sip of her drink and Willie expected her to spit it out into Jaime’s face. That was horrible timing for that question. Instead, Rose calmly put down her drink.

“I know.” She said

“You know?” asked Jaime.

“Yeah,” said Rose. “You said ‘we need to talk.’ Everyone knows what that means.”

“Oh,” said Jaime. “I didn't mean to…”

His voice faded off, searching for the words to say.

“Its okay,” said Rose. “I feel like it's been pretty hard. Dating, you know.”

“Yeah,” said Jaime softly. Then, finally processing what Rose said, he asked “Yeah?”

“We like different things. I always try to show you the things I like, but you never seem very interested. We’re just different.”

Jaime forced a small smirk. “Everything you’re saying, these were the kinds of things I was rehearsing to say myself.”

Rose let out a small smile too.

“I understand,” she said. “I just think it wasn’t meant to be.”

“I think so too. It just didn’t work out,” said Jaime.

A moment of silence passed between the two. The soft saxophone on the smooth jazz radio echoed between the split couple. At this point, they were broken up. Neither had much more to say.

“Well we don't need to let this linger,” said Rose. “I think I’m gonna go.”

“Yeah. okay,” said Jaime.

“Bye Jaime. I’ll see you around,” said Rose.

She stood up and walked to the door. Before exiting, Rose stopped at the trashcan and turned back to Jaime.

“By the way,” Rose said. “Coffee. Not all that good.” She threw her half full cup of coffee into the trashcan and walked out the door. The cool autumn air swept into the coffee shop as Jaime watched his ex-girlfriend walk away.

“I don't get it,” said Willie. “Is she angry?”

“No. She was really calm,” said Jaime. “I guess you were right about the coffee shop.”

“Are you sure?” asked Willie. “She’s not going to throw eggs at your house or anything, is she?”

“What are you talking about?” asked Jaime.

“I don't know,” replied Willie. “People do crazy things after breakups.”

“No, it's not like that. She was understanding,” said Jaime. “I guess she thought it wasn’t working out between us also.”

Willie did not expect Rose had trouble with the relationship. The way Jaime described it, Rose couldn't get enough of Jaime. She always wanted to be with him. It sounded like Rose wished they were stuck together like glue. Even that was not true. She still felt the same way as Jaime.

“Thank you Willie,” said Jaime. “I know you’d like Rose and I to stay together forever, but I really appreciate you helping. It helps to have someone on your side, even if I do have to take care of things myself.”

“Right…” said Willie, completely dumbfounded.

“You did well, Jaime,” said Maria.

“Thanks. You all gave good advice.” said Jaime. “I think I’m going to head out too. It’s a relief to know Rose felt the same way, but I still need to blow off some steam.”

“Bye Jaime,” said Maria.

The cool autumn air swept into the coffee shop as Willie watched Jaime walk away.







///// Hi there! I have an author's note to add here. If you've read this far... Wow! I'm amazed. It's been a long time since I last published a chapter here. Well over a year since the last chapter. Funny enough, this chapter was written back then too. In fact. I finished the whole novel (there's only a few chapters left :0). I never got around to posting them because the writing contest was over by the time I finished writing the story. But now that I am looking back here, I realize the least I could do is copy and paste the final chapters.

You'll notice that I did not edit or revise this at all. I'm sure there are many errors. Honestly, I didn't even reread this before I posted. It felt too cringey. lol. I'm hoping to post a new story soon, so hopefully my writing has developed at least a little bit. But I digress.

If you've read this far, thank you so much. I hope you enjoy the final parts of this story as we wrap it up. There's a few more twists and turns coming up, but I'll leave that for you to see for yourself.

Sincerely,

A guy who calls himself Kelp.

The Lonely Lovers Club


KelpRings
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