Cold Brew

Boston | October 1st

Lucy handed the tattooed barista a small stack of cash in exchange for a large pumpkin spiced cold brew and two apple cider donuts. The bag was warm to the touch and the fresh aroma of hot cinnamon and pumpkin invaded her nostrils.

She scoured the cafe for a spot to sit and enjoy her first autumn breakfast of her favorite season, but the place was packed. There were no open seats.

Exiting with haste, Lucy jogged across the street, dodging a food delivery driver on a moped, and claimed one of the leaf-covered benches in the park.

Leaving the leaves on the bench, taking great pleasure in the rustled crunching, she slowly sat down. She placed the precious bag of donuts down beside her and used both hands to intimately take the first sip from the recyclable straw.

The sweet pumpkin cold foam melted into the chilled coffee, instantly releasing dopamine throughout Lucy’s entire body. Inhaling the crisp, wood-burnt breeze, she savored nearly a quarter of the coffee before securing it between her knees.

With her thirst quenched, she gently placed the bag of donuts, which was still warm, onto her lap and delicately opened the folded flap. A delicious haze of spiced steam escaped the bag and enveloped Lucy’s smiling face. She could no longer wait, nor hold back her manners. She plunged her right hand deep into the bag and removed one of the bronzed, sparkling donuts.

Offering her respects by smelling it first, she sank her teeth into the donut’s moist flesh and tore half of it away. As she chewed, cinnamon sugar particles spread across her lips, chin and fingers. That was her favorite part. With the first half safely secured in her stomach, she devoured the second half.

Using her tongue, she dragged and prodded it in circles until all of the sticky residue on her lips was soaked up. She followed up by licking the residue off of each finger and finished her ritual by taking two more large sips of coffee.

A soft buzz tickled her upper thigh. She balanced the cup of coffee back between her knees and plucked her cell phone from her pocket. Reading the screen, her heart fluttered. Her new boyfriend had just parked and paid the meter and was heading into the park.

She awkwardly flicked her hair from her shoulder, loosened the scarf around her neck and rubbed her lips together to make sure they weren’t too sticky.

Looking around the park, she spotted Joey walking towards her from the eastern quadrant. The park had four quadrants, with four entrances at each corner, which all surrounded a large iron fountain that spewed vertical streams of water. It was the perfect centerpiece for an autumn park filled with orange, red, yellow and green leaves. Plus, watching a pair of red golden retriever puppies splashing through the water added an additional level of heart-throbbing cuteness to the already serene setting.

Going into their fourth month of dating, Lucy still got nervous every time she saw him. His long dark hair swayed in the October breeze and his smile was just as warm as the bag of donuts, which she was guarding with her life.

The second donut, as much as it tempted her, was for Joey.

As he got closer, and she could see the wrinkles in his flannel shirt, and the sparkle in his deep mahogany eyes, a man in black coveralls stepped in front of him. The stranger’s hand moved with impossible speed and before Lucy could blink, the man was walking away from Joey.

Lucy’s smile broke and faded as she watched a dark red orb pool and grow in Joey’s lower abdomen. She then watched him collapse to his knees as his hands slowly cupped the stab wound.

Jumping to her feet, she screamed at the top of her lungs as she watched the love of her life fall face down onto the pavement - spilling her pumpkin spiced cold brew coffee onto the crinkling leaves.