Brook groaned into her pillow as her phone's chipper alert chimed, then realized it was still too early for her alarm to be sounding and lifted her head. Squinting through her darkly lit room with blackout curtains, she reached in the direction of its glow and quickly found it to be a call. After turning her head to the other side, she latched onto her light remote on her other bedside table and clicked on her LED lights that trailed the borders of her room. Hitting the receiver icon, she set it on her ear and let it balance there as she laid her head back down.
"Yel...low...?"
"I-I'm sorry... Did... Di-Did I wake y-you?" A sheepish voice spoke from beyond her phone and she swiftly sat up, cupping the back of her phone.
Brook knew those dulcet, timid tones. She'd replayed them in her mind over and over again when it strayed to one person in particular. Brook brought the phone down from her ear and cupped her mouth with a soft gasp as she read the name Gwen Murray. When she programmed her number into her phone and left her a message over the weekend, she never anticipated such a skittish person would actually reply, yet here she was first thing Tuesday morning. The day of her scheduled therapy session her psychologist had asked to occur in Brook's very own cafe and bookstore.
She brought the phone back to her ear and found silence coming from the other end. "I'm so sorry. I just woke up and figured you were one of my family members or friends without even looking at the screen. They're the only people who actually call me this early in the morning. Um, how are you? I mean, what can I do for you? Is it about your visit to my shops later? Do you need to reschedule a preferred meal, or something? I can cook whatever you'd--"
"W-Wait, Miss Bluestone. Please, slow down." Gwen finally interjected and Brook face-palmed.
"Sorry, I was just a bit caught off guard."
"I think...maybe I should be the one apologizing...?"
Stunned, Brook flicked the brightness of her LEDs up as she jerked her head back with confusion. "Why would you need to be sorry? No, there's no need for that. How about we both just move on to what you wanted to discuss, so I won't be so frazzled."
"Frazzled? You...get frazzled wh-when talking w-with me?" Something shifted on Gwen's side of the phone and Brook hesitated to answer as she chewed on her inner cheek.
Eventually, her willpower dwindled and she spoke her mind. "You...are very memorable and the second I think about you, I'm just surprised by the effect on me. Sorry if that's odd."
There were a handful of quiet moments until Gwen spoke in an even softer voice, though finally without her habitual stutter, "I have an effect on you? Wait, did you just say you think about me?"
"About your face. More specifically--"
"My scars. I know, they're hard to get around." Gwen let out a long winded sigh before she began breathing rather thick and Brook thought for a moment through a furrowed brow.
"Your scars? Oh, right! On your cheek? No, I don't mean that." The heavy breathing stopped altogether and Brook realized she was awaiting further explanation. "It's your eyes. I've never seen such ocean blue eyes, so they made an impression."
"You... You don't really have a buffer, do you, Miss Bluestone?"
"Not really, no." Brook got up and wedged her phone between her shoulder and ear as she rifled through her clothing in her dresser for some trousers and a button up top. She knew most people kept their clothing in closets, but something that always helped Brook to think was folding her laundry on her bed several times a week. On top of that, her closet was full of things for donation, items she needed to move into a storage unit and other bits and pieces she wasn't sure she wanted to keep. It was packed to the brim and she wasn't about to address it any time soon with how busy she'd been with work. As she rifled through her drawers, she finally noticed something Gwen had repeated at least twice, growing a bit wary of what it meant. "You know, you can call me Brook, right? Everyone does."
Silence met her again and she worried she may have been a bit too forward, yet just as she opened her mouth, Gwen beat her to the punch. "W-Well, I just...wanted to call about my visit today and make sure it was still alright."
"Of course, it is." Putting her phone on speaker as she decided on a pair of plaid pants, Brook got them onto her bottom half and found a solid, short sleeved button up that was reminiscent of the blue in Gwen's eyes. "I wouldn't have agreed with your therapist if it wasn't. In fact, she said you live close by, so feel free to come any time."
"I'll keep that in mind. I do love coffee and hot chocolate. Um... May I ask an odd question, Miss... I mean, Brook?" A door opened and closed from her side of the call and Brook heard rain follow, walking over to her window. She grunted as she peeked outside and saw a slight drizzle falling from the skies. "Your accent, where is it from?"
"Israel. I moved here when I was young, but still have a bit of the accent." She got her shirt on and began buttoning it as she waited for her reply.
"Really? Well, it's...v-very...pretty." Gwen's voice grew softer the longer she spoke and Brook turned her head toward her phone, smiling from ear to ear.
It wasn't as if others hadn't complimented her voice, but hearing it from her felt different and in a very, very good way. "Thank you, Gwen."
"I should let you go. Um... Thank you, too." With that and before she could reply, Gwen hung up the call, but Brook didn't drop her grin.
Today seemed quite promising and she hurriedly dressed, exhilarated to venture down into her two shops with a skip in her step.
* * *
Gwen stood outside of The Hollow Leg and squinted up at its sign as the sun broke through the clouds, cascading light over the edge of the two-story building. Although she'd arrived fifteen minutes early so that she would have enough time to goad herself into venturing inside, she only had five spare minutes left after shifting in place for a good ten and knew she needed to make a move before Fiona arrived. Rather than needing to take that daring step, she wanted it. She yearned to have this normal experience and thought of possible outcomes of entering the establishment.
She may receive stares from average patrons. Then again, it was the lull of the morning and from what she could see there was hardly anyone inside. She couldn't even see Brook there. Just the man with whom she shared the double shop leaning over the clerk's counter in the bookstore part of it all. He was so engrossed in his novel that she was pretty sure he wouldn't even notice her walking inside, yet that didn't really help her in the long run. She could be wrong and he may have been more attentive than she surmised. Regardless, there was no one in the cafe and the food in the display case was making her mouth water. Her stomach growled at just the sight of the aesthetically presented pastries and sandwiches.
In preparation for eating and drinking while here, she hadn't made herself breakfast and she felt herself starving as she glanced down at her stomach. Maybe pops is right and I should put on a few pounds. Gwen sighed and thought of the possibility of someone coming in just after her, being rude to her if she happened to be in their way. She always felt like she was in the way no matter where she traipsed. It wasn't as if that very instance hadn't happened in the past, resulting in them hurling insults at her appearance, yet as she thought of the owner, those dastardly machinations were tossed away.
Although they hardly knew each other, Brook didn't seem to have a mean bone in her body and Gwen couldn't imagine her allowing people to mistreat anyone in her shop. Not after the fond way she spoke to her earlier that morning. Their conversation played nonstop in her mind and she tilted her head to the side as she surveyed the interior of the coffee shop through a furrowed brow. Nibbling on her bottom lip, Gwen began tapping her finger along her wristwatch until she spotted something out of the corner of her eye. Glancing toward it, she jolted with a yelp as she recognized Brook with a brown bag of groceries in her arm as she slightly bent and peered in the same direction Gwen had been gazing only moments prior.
Brook jumped with wide eyes before she panned her view toward her and brightly smiled. She threw her head back and put her free hand on her chest as she released the most haughty laugh Gwen had heard outside of her brother and father. She found herself hypnotized as she looked over her giddy features and felt a blush rushing across her cheeks. Once her giggles died down, Brook rubbed the tears from her eyes and beamed toward her as she shifted her bag into her other arm.
"Sorry about that. I just wanted to see what had you staring so hard." She gestured toward the cafe entrance and tilted her head to better catch Gwen's gaze. "Care to come in with me? It may help."
Uncontrollably arching her brow, Gwen looked at her hand with a gulp, then back into her eyes. "Yes... Th-Thank you..."
"Any time." In silence, they both walked into the coffee shop after Brook opened the door and Gwen helped her to prop the sign in front of it to keep it open when she saw her struggling with one free hand. Once it was settled, Brook gazed into her eyes with slightly parted lips and Gwen was given a moment longer to really look at her. She had such thick, long eyelashes and what she hadn't noticed before was a small nose ring in her septum. It was deep, cobalt blue and slightly shimmered underneath the natural lighting flooding into the room, dazzling Gwen until she lifted her eyes back into hers. Brook's mouth slowly curved up into a grin of admiration and she rubbed the back of her head with a blush. "So, you really did come. That's great, Gwen. You should be proud of yourself."
She gulped, unable to form words before Brook spun around and marched herself toward the bar where she deposited her groceries. Someone popped into view to Gwen's left, drawing her attention away from the woman who kept leaving her so enthralled and found her doctor and friend coming into the shop.
"Hey, you. How are you doing this morning?" Fiona hugged her shoulders and rubbed her hand along one of her biceps as she directed her toward a table she only just realized had a reserved sign on it. Peeking back over her shoulder, Gwen found Brook unpacking her groceries until she raised her eyes toward them, still wearing that bolstering grin. She hurriedly cast her gaze back toward the table and spotted something else that was different about its set-up. Unlike the rest of the chairs in the coffee shop, the chairs bore pillows on their seats and she felt the corner of her mouth twitch as her enthusiasm grew ever so slightly. "I'm sorry I'm a bit late. The main elevator was broken in the office building and the second was way too full, so I had to take the stairs. You ready to have our session?"
"Yes." Gwen walked with Fiona over to the table and sat down, sensing someone approaching from the left.
It was Brook and she had a pen and pad in her hands, a chipper grin plastered across her face. "So what can I get you both?"
"I'll take a chamomile... No, an Earl Grey tea with some almond milk and another one of those apple turnovers from the other day." Doctor Kokkinos immediately replied as she settled her purse along the back of her chair.
"Preferably a fresh pastry, though. Right?" Brook joked and Fiona sent her that dazzling smile that only appeared to be brightening the closer she drew to her wedding date.
"Yes, thank you." She turned her eyes toward Gwen, making her gulp as she realized Brook had done the same. "What would you like, Gwen? It's on me."
"Don't worry about the check. The first visit's on the house." Brook interjected just as she'd opened her mouth to reply.
Gwen shuddered as their eyes met and she fought to clear her throat at the intensity of her stare that was so unlike any other's she'd ever experienced. "U-Um... Just a regular coffee and a chicken salad sandwich. Thank you...B-Brook."
Tilting her head again and brightly glimmering with evident excitement, Brook sent her a nod before she began writing down their order. "Perfect. I'll have that right out."
With that, Brook walked away and made her way back behind the counter once more. No matter her determination, Gwen couldn't tear her eyes from her as she watched her beginning to fix their order. She knew she shouldn't be staring, but she just couldn't help herself with this woman. She'd never met someone so very captivating and thought of the way she said her name earlier. Her accent could definitely silence a room as any within Brook's vicinity would cease their words in lieu of hearing her lovely tones instead. On top of that, the way she looked at Gwen was what truly set her apart.
Although she enjoyed her accent very much, the fact that Brook always gazed right into Gwen's eyes made more of an impression. It wasn't as if she did so as if she was forcing herself not to look at her scars. This was more than obvious by her lack of nervousness and strain to not lower her gaze, but also by their phone call that morning. When Gwen first saw that she'd texted her, she'd left it for the morning and hadn't gotten much sleep. Not when her mind reeled at just what she might have sent her. As soon as she woke and read the caring text, she'd hit the call button without even thinking and been fondly surprised by Brook's lack of recollecting her scars.
Now as she sat in the cafe, she recalled the times they gazed at one another and how intrinsic her looking into her eyes came across. It was like all Brook desired seeing was her eyes. As if she really was hypnotized by her ocean eyes, as she described her iris. Gwen touched her cheek and kept up her stare, jolting when Brook glanced up. She nonchalantly shifted her eyes around her shop, eventually resting them on Gwen as if that was precisely where she desired gazing all along.
Brook's eyes widened like a cat caught in the act of nearly pouncing on its human friend from behind and her eyebrows creeped up her forehead. Eventually relaxing her stare, she softly grinned with the dip of her head and turned away as she got busy with their order again. She began placing their items on a circular tray as Gwen finally noticed an odd beckoning from her right.
"...en! Gwen, are you alright?" Fiona asked as she rested her hand on hers atop the table.
Gwen shook her head clear from her inner pondering and swallowed the lump in her throat. "Yes, I'm fine. Sorry, but what were you saying?"
"I was asking how you're feeling about being here today? Did you have any issues sleeping last night?" Fiona looked from her over to Brook as she rounded the bar with a knowing glint in her eyes and a confident smirk.
"Here's your order. And I didn't want to put too much almond milk in your tea, so I brought you a little cup of it." She explained as she began setting their food and drinks in front of them. Brook placed Gwen's sandwich in front of her and peered up into her eyes as she continued grabbing the items from her tray as if out of muscle memory. Tempting fate, she slightly smiled up at her and Brook fell entirely still, then sent that beam she bore so well back at her. "Enjoy your food."
With a nod toward Fiona, she left and Gwen was entranced all over again as she looked at her attire. Brook knew how to dress. She wore plaid printed trousers with a pair of leather suspenders and a short sleeved, blousey button up shirt that was the color of the sea. Unable to stop the smile still lingering along her lips, Gwen nibbled on her bottom lip and ran her eyes down toward Brook's ankles. Her pant legs were rolled up at their ends and she wore a pair of brown, leather boat shoes that matched her suspenders.
A throat cleared from in front of herself and Gwen shifted her gaze toward Fiona who was staring at her still wearing that smirk. "You know, that's the second time I've had to pull your focus from her. Is there something I'm missing?"
"I..." Gwen grabbed the sugar dispenser close to her hand and began fixing her coffee as she fought to keep her eyes focused on the task. "I may have...called her this morning."
"Really? And here I thought you coming was already a huge win. That's amazing, Gwen. You don't usually call people you don't know." The doctor finished getting her tea ready and blew on the top for a few moments before taking a sip. She hummed, then set it down as she began tearing off a piece of her apple turnover. "So what brought this on?"
"She left me a text yesterday and said she was looking forward to reserving the seat for me if it really helped so much. She told me a bit about herself so that I'd feel more...comfortable staying here for our sessions. Lastly, she asked me about possibly doing a bit of accounting for her." Gwen chanced looking up at Fiona and found thrill dictating her features.
"Wow... And what did you tell her?"
"I just called and made sure me coming here was alright, then we hung up." Fiona narrowed her gaze at her with a single lifted eyebrow and Gwen chuckled under her breath at her typical perceptiveness. "Alright, I may have...complimented her accent."
After briefly looking at Brook who appeared busy behind the display counter, the doctor leaned over the table and softly said, "I'm guessing that's why I keep seeing her sneaking glances of you. Have you considered maybe trying to make a new friend, Gwen?"
"I'm not very good at that." She ducked her head in shame for a moment, then sat back in her chair, bringing her coffee with her. Gwen took several calming sips from it as she thought of the care lacing all of Brook's gestures and peered back up toward Fiona. "As nice as that would be, I tend to scare people away rather than continuously interest them."
"And you think Brook is the same?" Fiona shook her head and sat up straight, tossing the corner of her apple turnover into her mouth with a long sigh through her nostrils as she chewed. She seemed to mull over Gwen's words before swallowing with another glance toward Brook. Following her gaze, she noticed her looking up toward her before she rapidly swung herself around and marched into her office. Hearing Fiona snort, Gwen turned her stare toward her, blinking a few times through her confused brow. "I don't think she is. The other day when my friends and I came here to scope the place out, she'd remembered your name. Think of all the patrons she has, yet she recalled your name, Gwen. She also can't stop looking at you and I don't see it as her being curious about your scars, or anything like that. From how her eyes soften, I'd say it's something else entirely."
Gwen took a bite of her chicken salad sandwich as she thought of her reply, needing the extra time it afforded quite desperately. Fiona wasn't wrong. Not only had Brook been incredibly open with her, but she was actively trying to make her feel comfortable. There was no way she did this for just any customer and while she could possibly deduce it was just because she knew of her therapy, from the glint in her eyes it was apparent there was something else there. Something stirring, remaining rather intense with its fervent glare. Could that flicker be what she was thinking, or was this just another mishap on Gwen's part...? She just couldn't be sure.
"We don't even know each other..." She trailed off and shifted her eyes out of the nearby window, watching a slight sprinkle of rain drizzling down its exterior.
"And that can't change?" Gwen whipped her head back toward Fiona at this and took several long pulls from her coffee. "I'll just say this once, then we can talk about something else, Gwen. just hear me out, okay?" Tentatively, she nodded and scooted near the edge of her seat with anticipation. "That woman seems to want to get to know you. Now I understand you struggle with letting people in and given your history, that is totally understandable. However, you chanced getting to know me. Now not only are you and I close, in fact I consider you a friend, but you also enjoy the company of my fiance. You are capable of forming ties of significance, Gwen, and deserve it. Why not go for it when it's this obviously easy?"
Upon her last word, Fiona motioned with one hand toward Brook as she came out of the office with the arrival of new guests. She began taking their order and as she nodded her head and wrote it down, she peeked through the corner of her eyes toward their table. Gwen gulped as their eyes met once more and Brook quickly looked back toward her latest patrons. It almost felt like she was beckoning Gwen with each passing glance and she didn't look away until she felt Doctor Kokkinos' hand on hers.
"It's worth a try, right? Tell me, when she texted did you program her number into your phone?"
"I already had."Gwen took another bite out of her sandwich as the new group of customers broke apart.
Some went to a table while the others branched off toward the bookstore Gwen still wanted to traipse in search of a new novel as Fiona inquired, "And I'm guessing her name is saved as Miss Bluestone?" Upon Gwen's nod, she giggled and let go of her hand to tear off another bite of her pastry. "What is mine?"
"Fiona."
"So, maybe try changing hers to something less formal as well. Couldn't hurt, right? And we'll be coming here more often, so it's not like you both won't see more of one another."
Gwen dipped her hand into her blazer pocket and rolled her phone over in it several times. She knew that if she did so, it would be easier for her to talk to Brook on a first name basis, which always helped her to connect with people in the long run. Still, could she really bring herself to know this woman? Was she actually ready for that, or was she just getting ahead of herself?
"Just food for thought, Gwen. Food for thought." Fiona tapped the side of her head a few times, then took several sips from her tea before changing the topic. "So back to what we were discussing when our session first started... Did you sleep well, or were you too anxious for today?"
She was too anxious, but not for the reasons Fiona was most definitely thinking and Gwen was sure to keep them to herself for now. Lifting her eyes toward something moving past the arch of the bookstore partition, she watched how easily Brook smiled at her customers as she carried on a conversation with them. She peered back over her shoulder and that grin never left her face as she met Gwen's gaze. Ever so slightly dipping her head, she fondly looked at her only a moment longer before her attention was sent back toward her other patrons.
Gwen had a lot to think about, but there was one thing she needed to do before anything else. "I slept...a bit, but it wasn't because of what you're thinking. I can't explain now. Can that wait?"
As Fiona replied, Gwen carefully pulled her phone out of her pocket just far enough to be able to see its screen as she listened. "Sure. Whatever you'd prefer? Anyways, why don't we discuss something different? How is your brother's music going?"
Gwen softly exhaled as she changed Brook's contact name to her nickname, then triumphantly met Fiona's eyes. "It's going great. He's going to be a rockstar."
He wouldn't be the only one feeling as such, as the longer Gwen stared at her phone screen bearing Brook's name, the longer she felt at peace. Maybe the doctor was right. Perhaps, if Gwen was lucky, this was what she described passing between them and Brook was just as genuine as she appeared. Feeling a sense of resolve she hadn't experienced in so long, Gwen nodded her head and looked back up at Fiona.
"And I think I'm close behind..."