Afternoon in a Coffee Shop
Sunset sat at the coffee shop waiting for her blind date. They met through a new website that lets you chat with someone you’re interested in, but you can’t look at them until you both agree to actually meet. They had been messaging back and forth for a couple of months and Sunset loved how sweet this girl was. She sipped her coffee and glanced at the door as it opened. It wasn’t her.
She was looking for a redhead with really light highlights, kind of like her own hair. She laughed when her date gave her that piece of information. It was kind of uncanny. She glanced at the opening door again, and then back down at her coffee. She was looking for a red cardigan with an orange scarf. The cooling weather necessitated such clothing, but Sunset shivered a bit in her regular jeans and regular leather jacket. When she looked through her closet for something warm to wear, she discovered that all she had was a red cardigan.
Sunset finished her coffee and checked the time on her phone. It was one minute past their agreed-upon time. She knew that things happened, especially in this town, and reasoned that her date had just been slightly delayed and would arrive shortly. She leaned back in her seat and let her eyes wander around the coffee shop. So many people were here on a Saturday afternoon and they all added their own energy to the cacophony.
There were the high school girls in the corner laughing and taking selfies. The wall was lined with the earbud-wearing workers clacking away at their laptops. There was a family, kids screaming while the parents attempted to relax with their lattes. The hiss and clatter of coffee being made behind the counter resounded across the space tying it all together with the jingle of the door topping it all each time it opened.
Sunset checked the door as she heard it again. She slumped down farther in her seat one more time when it turned out to be a boy meeting his girlfriend. Sunset checked her watch again. Her date was now 5 minutes late. She grunted and got up to get in line for another coffee. It had grown since she got there, with it reaching almost to the door. She took her place at the end with a huff and crossed her arms. She watched nearly everyone in the shop meeting up with friends, which only reminded her that she was still alone.
The wait for her black coffee took longer than the latte she had ordered earlier. The shop was getting really busy and Sunset glanced at the table she had been sitting at. It was still empty, but she didn't really expect it to stay that way for long.
Her name was called and she grabbed her cup and made her way back to her table which was thankfully still empty. She sat down and checked her phone for the time one more time. Twenty minutes past their agreed time. Sunset sighed and put her face in her hands.
She began wondering if she should bother waiting any more at this point. Surely there was no good reason to be that late. She opened her web browser to see if she had any messages on the site, but her inbox was empty. She drew in a shuddering breath and stared at her cup of coffee. Her mind went blank as she gazedat the swirling steam. She didn't know how long she looked at the swirling surface before she made up her mind.
Sunset got up from her table and threw her second cup away. Her chest was heavy and it was hard to breathe. She tried to keep herself under control but a single tear opened her flood gates. She wiped her eyes as she opened the door and stepped out into the cool autumn air. She was glad she was cold now. Maybe the cold would soothe the pain of yet another person deciding that she wasn’t worth it. She was just gonna go home and delete all of her accounts. She was done with trying if it always ended up not working. As she was walking away from the coffee shop she heard a voice all out from behind her.
“Hey, I think I’m supposed to be meeting you! I’m so sorry about being late! I was working on a project and lost--”
She was cut off as Sunset turned around and locked eyes with her. Her emotions evaporated as confusion filled her mind. She had the exact same cardigan. She had the exact same hair. She was exactly the same height and Sunset was willing to bet that she was exactly the same weight. Sunset completed her turn to fully face her late date and walked back to meet her. She folded her arms across her chest and looked the woman up and down.
“Are you SunnyBunny437?”
She nodded and replied, “Are you ShimmeringLight53?”
Sunset gave her a single nod and continued to stare at the other woman. She began getting more nervous, shifting her weight from leg to leg. Her gaze traversed the entirety of the scene landing only for brief moments as Sunset stood there, studying her. Finally she gathered her nerves and made eye contact with Sunset once more.
“Um...Why do you look like me?”
Sunset lost it completely, her cackles drawing the attention of others, even the patrons inside the coffee shop. She reached her hand out and grabbed the arm of the woman standing there with a worried look on her face. Finally, after a few minutes, Sunset was able to compose herself enough to stand up straight and address the other girl once more.
As she wiped tears from her eyes, she said, “Let me guess. Your name is Sunset Shimmer.”
The other red head nodded again. Sunset checked her phone and then tugged on the cardigan. “Come on. Coffee isn’t strong enough for this. There’s a bar just a block over that’s about to open. I have a long story to tell you.”
“Oh. Okay” the other Sunset smiled and started walking with this oh-so-familiar face. Little did she know how interesting her evening was about to become.
Author's Note
This was fun to write and a fitting end to my Sunset series.
Thank you to all who enjoyed! 