Who: Justin Taylor and Kate Bishop When: Recently Where: Coffee Shop What: It’s a small world Rating/Warnings: Low/None Status: Complete
Kate was in the cafe, waiting in line for a cup of coffee. She had her smart phone in her hand, and kept checking the time to make sure that she didn’t run out of time before her next class over at the Archery Range. She sighed gently, waiting while the person in front of her ordered several drinks in one go.
“Oh, come on.” She said under her breath, shifting her weight from one hip to the other. Maybe she was just grumpy because she needed the caffeine.
Justin hadn’t been having the best couple of weeks. He still wasn’t happy about the break with Billy and missed him more than he could even say. He hated sleeping alone and as a result hadn’t been sleeping well. He’d gotten used to having Billy there next to him over the last year and a half so he instinctively reached out for him in his sleep only to wake up and remember that he was staying at Clary’s. Not sleeping well meant that he was exhausted most of the time and had been drinking more coffee than usual to stay awake at work.
It was his lunch break and instead of getting lunch in the studios cafeteria, he had decided to stop by a near by coffee shop to grab a cup of coffee there. Not only was the coffee at the studios cafeteria not very good, but staying at the studio meant that he was likely to go looking for Billy and he didn’t want to seem like he was trying to keep tabs on him.
Of course when he walked into the coffee shop there was a line and a person at the counter ordering a bunch of coffees. “Must be a runner.” He said as he stepped into line behind a brunette.
“I wish there was a way to like, automate this sort of thing. Email in your order so you don’t have to stand there like an idiot reading off twelve different drink orders to the poor Barista who has a line out the door.” Kate said, grumpily. “I just want my fucking cuppa Jooeeee.” ...now she was whining a little.
“But that’d make people’s lives easier and who the fuck wants that?” Justin smirked a little then glanced up at the front to see if the possible runner was finished. He wasn’t. “We might be here for awhile. Hope you don’t have someplace to be for the next couple of hours.” He felt a yawn coming on then and covered his mouth, excusing himself when it was over, “Of course, I might fall asleep while waiting.”
“Oh, maaaaaan,” with a groan she rolled her eyes and shifted her weight from one hip to the other. “Damn. I thought coming in at slightly an off time would mean I wouldn’t have to wait. I didn’t think that an off time meant only one employee, so it’s more easily backed up…”
“You can lean on me.” Kate said, turning to grin playfully at him over her shoulder. “I won’t tell. Just don’t drool on my jacket. I just had the leather conditioned.”
“That’s the problem with going into any coffee shop near a TV studio.” Justin said, gesturing in the direction of the studio, “Means runners usually go to the closest one on their coffee runs.” He returned that grin and nodded, “Thanks, but I can’t make any promises. I’m just that tired.” He was lucky that despite how little sleep he’d been getting, he barely had any dark circles or bags under his eyes. There was an obvious look of fatigue, but it wasn’t too bad that many people had noticed.
“Damn. I’m in the completely wrong neighborhood today.” She turned a bit more. “I’m Kate.” ...she knew this guy. How did she know this guy again? Did she know this guy??
Justin laughed and nodded, “It sure does sound like it. I’m Justin.” Kate was a fairly common name and his brain wasn’t all there from the sleep deprivation so he didn’t automatically think that he’d heard the name before from Billy.
“It’s nice to meet you, Justin.” Kate said, nodding. He was a cute guy. Far too young for her tastes, but pleasant on the eyes none the less. And he seemed friendly enough. “At least we have a comrade in arms in this whole coffee shop debacle.”
“It’s nice to meet you too.” Somehow even when he was feeling less than friendly, Justin still came off nice and friendly and that was mostly due to his bright smile and of course he wasn’t going to be rude, “So, do you come to this particular coffee shop often?” Since the cafe was close to the studio it was the one that Justin went to most when he was at work and he couldn’t recall if he’d ever seen her in there before.
Kate laughed. “Do I come here often? Not the most original pick-up line, my man. But it’s a classic. I like your style.” She teased, giving him a grin.
Justin laughed and shook his head, “I didn’t mean it like that. Honest.” He hadn’t realized how it would come off until he’d said it, but he wasn’t embarrassed. It took a lot to embarrass Justin, “I’m gay, so I meant it in a completely non pick up line sort of way.” He would say he had a boyfriend, but then he’d have to explain the break and that would just get complicated since they had just met.
“Oh my God. Shut the front door.” She reached over and smacked his arm, playfully. “What is it with gay guys coming on to me, but not really because they’re gay?” She laughed again. “Really. My friend Billy did the same thing.”
Justin had not expected that and he couldn’t help but stare at Kate for a moment. Now that she’d mentioned having a gay friend named Billy, he couldn’t deny that she must have been Billy’s friend Kate, “Billy Kaplan?”
“Yeah.” Kate said, grinning cheekily. She was really fond of her friend Billy. Actually, he was more of her crime-fighting partner. A lot of things, really. Though, she wondered about his sanity sometimes. (And her own.) “You know Billy?”
Justin nodded and ran a hand through his hair, scratching the back of his neck, “Yeah. I’m his boyfriend….well...we’re kind of on a break, but usually I’m his boyfriend.” Justin didn’t like talking about the break, because it just made him miss Billy even more.
Kate’s grin fell and her eyes went wide. “Oh my God. You’re Justin.” She said, then cleared her throat. “This is a really, really, fucking small world. Sorry, I should have recognized you.”
Once again Justin nodded, “I am and it really is.” He wondered briefly how she could have recognized him, but then he remembered that if she was Billy’s friend Kate then she was also on Valarnet and it was also possible that she had seen a picture from Billy. “Well, there are an awful lot of hot blonds around here. It is California after all. We’re very common.”
“You are dime a dozen,” Kate said, nudging her elbow playfully into his arm. She forced a smile until it came a bit more genuinely. “But that’s okay. I’m sure you’ve got something really special.” She was teasing a little. “Oh, the guy’s finished ordering. You wanna go first?”
Justin nodded, smirking, “Yeah, I’ve got a few things that make me special. Just ask Billy.” He hadn’t intended to add on that last part, but it came so naturally that he hadn’t even thought about it first, “How about we both go. It’s on me.”
Kate laughed. “Oh, I know. He’s told me.” She grinned, then moved forward with him to order. It was nice to hang out with Justin and talk to him for a few minutes, anyway. “Sounds good. I’ll have a black coffee. Medium.”
Justin was tempted to ask Kate if she knew Teddy and find out what she thought of him, but in the end he decided that that probably wouldn't be the best idea. Plus, he didn’t want to make things awkward when they had just met and so far had been getting along well, “I think that he exaggerates sometimes.” Justin smirked and waited for Kate to order before placing his own and handing the barista the money for them.
“No, I don’t think he does,” Kate said, giving a little flattery where it was due. Honestly, she and Billy hadn’t talked all that much about his romantic situation, but Billy had only good things to say about his boyfriend. Or, about Justin? They were still together, right? Just on a break. In any case… “Here,” she pulled a couple dollars out of her pocket to pay for the coffee.
Justin shook his head, “No. I said it was on me. Any friend of Billy’s is a friend of mine.” Well, most of Billy’s friends anyway. When the barista called their names, Justin reached over and grabbed both cups, handing Kate hers, “It was really nice to meet you. It’s nice being able to put a face with a name.”
“You sure?” Kate asked, though she didn’t need to be told twice. She tucked a bill into the tip jar and gave him a nod and a smile. “Thanks for the coffee,” she added, moving with him over to pick up the cups. “It was great to meet you, too.” She accepted the cup. “Same here. Text me whenever. Any friend of Billy’s is a friend of mine.”