Glancing down the street Carrie crossed the road. Out of habit she stopped to look back and make sure her front door was closed. Her door was so old it had a problem clicking shut but it wouldn’t pop back open right away. There were enough mornings when she turned back to find her door open to warrant the daily double check.
Self-consciously she smiled at herself when she saw that her door was still closed before she shrugged and continued her walk to campus. As always she stopped in at Trish’s corner bakery to grab her daily dose of sugar in the form of her favorite lemon streusel muffin and an extra creamy hot chocolate.
“Good morning Carrie!” called Trish, who was coming in from the kitchen.
“Hey Trish! Busy morning?” Carrie tried to push her way through the crowd waiting for their orders. After a few bumps and nudges accompanied by an apologetic smile and ‘sorry’ she made it to the front. Faintly behind her she heard someone cry out ‘Wait!’ followed by lots of grumblings and ‘excuses me’s’ but didn’t think anything of it.
Carrie quickly ordered her usual muffin and leaned against the counter to wait. As she stood there she pulled her purse up on the counter. Panic settled across her shoulders as she dug through her purse. Her phone wasn’t there. Before she could look through it again to be sure, she was plowed into the counter from behind. She gasped hard as she struggled to recover from the sudden painful lack of oxygen. It definitely wasn’t helping her panicked thoughts stop skittering off into space.
“Oh sorry. Sorry.” The man blushed as he held her trapped against the counter. He took a step back that allowed her to turn but not far enough for her to be able to ignore the tingle she felt where his hand softly rested on her arm, as if he were attempting to steady her. He didn’t seem to realize how close he was. Her skin heated at his nearness and she didn’t know whether to lean into him or push him away. After a few seconds of staring up into his eyes he looked down at his hands. “You dropped this.”
“My phone!” Carrie exclaimed, grabbing it quickly, doing her best to not notice the sizzle that leapt between her fingers and his when they brushed.
His shy smile combined with the persistent blush was incredibly endearing. Yet they seemed to both realize at the same time how close they were still standing to each other. Her blush bloomed to match his as he quickly stumbled back a pace into another customer which brought him rushing back toward her in a hurry. “Sorry…again.”
Carrie laughed. “With the morning rush, I am not going to be blaming you for how crowded it is in here. I blame Trish for that.”
She heard a ‘hey’ call out from behind the counter.
“I’m surprised you saw my phone drop at all with all these people.” She continued.
He quickly shook his head. “I saw it fall out of your bag down the street back there. But I couldn’t catch your attention so I figured I’d have to catch you instead.” His smile lit his face like a halo, blush and all.
Carrie debated for a quick few seconds on if she wanted to figure out a way to keep him talking or if she should say thank you and be done. After all she was in the midst of classes with midterms just a week away. She was going to be busy. However, she discovered that a part of her really didn’t want this to be the last time she saw him and found herself saying, “Well I don’t know if a simple thank you is enough. I am determined to figure out a better way to show you just how grateful I am. My name is Carrie.”
“Oh. There’s no need to thank me. I’m just glad I was able to reach you. And I’m Ben.” He gave her a small nod before he stared down at his feet. “I guess I should have said that first.”
Carrie couldn’t help but smile. This sweet guy had gone to such lengths to help her. She could use more sweetness in her life and he seemed to be a wonderful and welcome, albeit surprising, addition to her morning routine. “Ben please, let me thank you in some way. After all that effort you made.”
He stammered. For a minute she almost thought he was going to flee the bakery without replying at all. She eased back against the counter a bit to give him space to pull himself together and think. As she waited she looked closer at the image this man in front of her presented. Definitely well put together. Casual suit, tie, non-scuffed black shoes, wind tossed golden brown hair, yum. His boyish sincerity made him stand out far more than amped up arms or over confident swaggering would have.
“Would you be able to do lunch?” He blurted, quickly alternating between looking down at his feet and glancing around the small crowded bakery.
She waited a few seconds until his gaze landed on her to see why she wasn’t answering before nodding. “Yes. I’d love to.” She tried to not sound overly eager.
Immediately his face dissolved from anxiously hopeful to happily pleased. “Do you know the sandwich place down the street towards Chaune Street?”
With another short nod Carrie glanced over to see if her order was ready.
Ben gave a smile, “Tomorrow at 2?”
Carrie’s heart fluttered. “Can’t wait.” Trish came up with her large muffin and a beaming grin. “See you tomorrow.”
She watched him leave, trying to keep sight of him for as long as possible. When she turned to grab her muffin, Trish was standing there with the same grin on, despite the line of waiting customers.
“Carrie! Did I just see you meet someone? He’s cute!”
Trish was always harping on her for not putting herself out there and getting too caught up in her schedule and routine. And maybe there was something to it. If he had been a few seconds later they would have missed meeting. Usually she was out the door with muffin in hand mere minutes after going in. Of course he had had her phone too. So maybe they really were just meant to meet. She giggled inside.
“His name is Ben.” Carrie leaned over the counter so that Trish would be able to hear her. “And I have a date tomorrow!”
Trish’s whoop caught everyone’s attention and Carrie blushed as she ducked away from the limelight and out the door.
