Morning Routine
12 Days of Fiction 2019, Bonus Day
“What a night…”
Viva let the water run for a moment, then got in the shower and allowed herself a sigh of relief. What a night, indeed. She couldn’t keep like that much longer, that was for sure. She picked her favourite gel soap and her sponge and cleaned herself. She didn’t hurry, not this morning.
She looked at herself in the mirror. Wrapped in a towel, her face still looked tired. Her golden eyes smirked at her.
“Oh well.”
She brushed her hair and went to dress up. She chose a pair of jeans and a blue blouse with white swallow silhouettes. She put on comfortable sneakers without socks, grabbed her small backpack and left.
It was a lovely morning. She could hear the birds singing in tree after tree, the first sunbeams caressed her skin, and even the first three cars she saw were electric and made no sound.
Perfect, perhaps?
Viva could already smell the coffee from two blocks away. Erek’s Café attracted her like a flame summoned a moth. She smiled at the image. Would moths bath in a coffee? Because she would.
The bells above the door jingled when Viva entered.
Moon meowed and Evan Erek shouted from the kitchen, “Mornin’ Ms Quyen! Breakfast is coming!” Viva smiled. After all these months, she hadn’t managed to convince Evan to drop the ‘Ms’. Also, he always knew it was her.
“Morning, Evan,” she said, took her usual seat at the bar, and placed her backpack beside her. She found she was salivating already. A little paw appeared out of nowhere, reaching for her backpack.
“Hello, Moon!” she said. Moon meowed back. “Yes, I did bring you something.” Viva pulled out a small bag and gave the cat a treat. Moon purred as it ate it, sat in the stool next to Viva.
Evan appeared, bringing a platter for Viva.
“Here you are, Ms Quyen. I hope you like it today!”
“Evan, you don’t have to do this. I have enough with a coffee and a donut, you know.”
“Don’t be silly, Ms Quyen. It’s the least I can do, after what you did for me. What you do for all of us.”
“At least let me pay, please.”
“No way. Remember what I said? A free healthy breakfast for you, for as long as I am working here. And it was a promise I’m not going to break, I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for you.”
Viva had to admit she was starving, and the scrambled eggs and toast looked and smelled delicious. She took a forkful.
“This is so good, Evan. Thank you.”
“My pleasure. Here, have some coffee.”
“Thanks.”
Moon meowed and asked for another treat, when they heard it. Sirens in the distance, approaching quickly. One, two, three police cars rushed past the front window.
Viva’s heart sank.
“Oh no.”
Another car. And another. And a fire truck.
“Go. I’ll take care of your bag. And I’ll keep your breakfast warm for you. Save the world again, Ms Quyen.”
In a flash, she was gone.
So, when I started releasing the prompts for my 12 Days of Fiction 2019 on Twitter, I didn’t realize I had started one day early (well, you know the 12 Days are really those between Christmas and the Epiphany, but anyway…). In the end I decided to add a bonus day, and here it is. I hope you’ve liked the stories this year!
