A Late Love Story

Since I missed writing something about love on valentines day this year, here's a something to make up for it! It's just a little short story abut a couple on their first date. I hope you enjoy it! Let me know what you think.

The rain pattered against the window of the coffee shop. The room smelled like every single other café on the planet, like pastries and coffee beans with a dash of tea.I had hoped that coming here and getting a latte would help me stay awake in order to finish my paper that I had to write for work. But my eyes kept wandering away from my laptop and papers to observe the other customers.

At the table next to me, a man sat across from his date,fiddling with his hands and picking at his nails. The woman sitting across from him swirled her drink around in the mug in her hands, and watched as it sloshed back and forth, back and forth. He sighed.

I knew I shouldn't be intruding on their privacy, but they were so much more interesting than my work that lay on the round table in front of me.

She glanced up and I could tell he tried to smile, but it didn't reach his eyes.
"So..." I over heard her try to prompt.
"Soo..." He mimicked back, causing her to grin. He got the hint. "Tell me a little more about yourself." He said.
"No chance! I've been talking about myself and what I like to do and my job and blah blah blah who knows what for the past hour! It's your turn"

He paused and stared at her face, then at the coffee that was still swirling around in the cup, then back at her face again. "If you hadn't realized it already," He started, "I'm not the best at this, I, well I just don't know how to start. It's not as if you want to know my whole life story, and I just can't leave out the bad parts. You seem great and I know we just met but I honestly want you to know the real me. Not just some speech that I wrote in my head and prepared for every first date I've ever gone on." He stopped to take a breath.

Without knowing what to say next, she just looked at him and he looked back, studying each other's faces. Then she brushed her thick hair out of her face and tucked it behind her ear, and smiled. "Well then, let's see... Tell me something that annoys you."
"That annoys me?" He asked, incredulous.
"Yea, I don't know, just something that bugs you." She replied while laughing and trying to lift the mood. He just looked at her, and thought.
"People smacking their gum."
"Come on, be original!"
"I wasn't done yet!" He jokingly protested, "Aaand when people chew with their mouth open, when they take things for granted, and when people give up before they try something, I guess just stuff like that." He paused, "Is that better?"
"Much! Thank you."
"Not a problem, how about you? What bugs you?"

That made her stop and think, and he laughed. She obviously hadn't thought it the whole way through.
"Fake people. Those annoy me the most I think. And! This is just something I realized the other day, you know how in movies and shows, someone tries to find their 'true love' and it is usually seen as the main character looking for just one person who fits them perfectly, but they never talk about the fact that finding your true love could just be finding someone who will love you truly for as long as they live? There could be so many people out there who can love you for who you are, truly! I don't know, now that annoys me."

It was clear that he did not know what to say to that. He started fiddling his fingers again and looked down at his hands for a few seconds before interrupting the awkward silence with a clearing of his throat.

"Sorry, I guess that was too deep for a first date." She said quietly.
He looked up. "It's ok, I've just never talked about true love on a first date before. But yea, I agree, that is a bit annoying. I never thought about that before."

I sighed and forced myself to wrench my attention away from the couple. However interesting they were, I knew I needed to get back to work. They continued to talk as I put on my headphones, opened my computer back up, and started to write.