Day thirteen of the Coup D'é-Tea

Cora didn't think it was possible to feel more exhausted than normal, but she supposed she was full of surprises. It didn't help that her earlier shift felt like it took forever to end, complete with Darlene running off to the main office and leaving Cora to close up on her own. The mall's quiet grocery store, with its soft background music and cool air conditioning, was the perfect place for a nap, and the empty shelves would make excellent cubbies for her to curl up in. Unfortunately, they probably couldn't support the weight of a twenty-eight-year-old woman. Cora just had to make do with leaning on her shopping cart instead, although simply passing out on the floor was an equally tempting option.

With no one else around, Cora freely yawned as she walked, only pausing when movement beside her caught her eye. In the middle of the aisle she was passing, Farron was examining the shelves with her shopping basket in one hand and a cup of instant noodles in the other.

Farron turned towards Cora; Cora clamped her mouth shut mid-yawn.

For a few moments, neither of them moved. After their strange "conversation" at the bus stop the night before, the day's shift had been awkwardly uneventful, at least for Cora. She had tried her best to not be distracted from her work, whether it be by Farron's challenges or the recollections of their recent interaction, but it wasn't easy. Instead, every time she remembered Farron's hushed, husky voice amidst the quiet night, or the taste of creamy apple cinnamon coating her tongue, she was tempted to peek across the food court just to make sure Farron couldn't hear her thoughts.

Those same memories raced through her mind at the sight of the other woman, and this time, Cora couldn't hide.

But did she want to? Farron's words from the night before resonated in Cora's ears, and nothing could distract Cora's mind from them. Was hiding really what she wanted?

She knew the first answer that came to her exhausted mind was probably the truth. Cora just had to follow it.

Before she could rethink her decision, Cora continued down the aisle and away from Farron, picking up her pace ever so slightly. With a plan in mind, she suddenly felt more alert, and she pushed herself upright with her newfound energy. Farron wanted a challenge? She was going to get one she would never expect.

As Cora neared her destination, her brisk walk turned into a light jog, then almost a run when she rounded the corner and approached the finish line: the last remaining bread loaf. Just as she grabbed the package, rushed footsteps followed her path. Behind her, Farron appeared with narrowed eyes, and she shifted the look from Cora, to the carbs, then back.

For a moment, Cora wondered if she made the wrong move. Then, Farron grinned.

"Looks like you're the undefeated breadwinner, coffee cake," she said.

When Farron winked, Cora couldn't help but smile as well.

They parted ways after that, and Cora hurried through the rest of her shopping list, running off the adrenaline that fueled her race to the bread. She didn't see Farron again during her speedrun through the grocery store, nor as she checked out at the sole open register, but that didn't faze her. She could complete the rest of her plan the next day.

As soon as Cora stepped out in the parking lot, she froze in her tracks. Not only was Farron there, but it looked like she had been waiting. She was leaning on the seat of a glossy black motorcycle, grinning wide. Her crossed arms made her toned muscles somehow more prominent, and with one of her feet propped on the footrest, her thighs looked—

Cora's gaze snapped to Farron's face.

"Long time no see, coffee cake," Farron said, her voice like the rumble of the motorcycle she pushed off of.

"Is...that yours?" Cora asked as she forcefully averted her eyes to the motorcycle, hoping her voice didn't waver as much as her thoughts were doing. "Or are you just going to give a death glare to the actual owner if they happen to show up?"

Farron chuckled—another low rumble. "It's mine."

Cora made a point to dramatically roll her eyes as she sighed. "Why am I not surprised?"

Farron's eyebrows raised, but her smile remained. "What's that supposed to mean? Do I really seem like the motorcycle type?"

Absolutely, Cora wanted to say. But if Farron asked any follow-up questions, she wouldn't be able to answer them—not honestly at least.

Of course, Farron seemed to know exactly what Cora was thinking, judging by how her grin shifted to something mischievous. "Does it have anything to do with my tattoos? Or maybe my muscles? Or maybe...my sexy voice?"

"You are so full of yourself," Cora snapped, though her face grew warm with each of Farron's chuckles. "Why did I even—nevermind, see you tomorrow."

"Wait, I'm sorry," Farron said, rushing alongside Cora as she headed for the bus stop. "It's just... You always have this personality that doesn't seem...you. Now, sure, I don't know what the real you is, but that's what I'm trying to find out. If you'd let me."

Cora pursed her lips, but she couldn't refute Farron's words. That didn't mean she wanted to hear them either, and she quickly picked up her pace across the dark parking lot.

"Wow, really?" Farron asked with a breathless laugh from a few steps behind. "I may be in decent shape, but my legs are still a hell of a lot shorter than yours are."

A few seconds before they reached the bus stop, Cora sighed. Sure, Farron was persistent, but she wasn't necessarily a bad person. On the contrary, she had been kind and thoughtful on multiple occasions, even if Cora hadn't done anything to deserve it.

So Cora stopped. A beat later, Farron bumped into her back with a soft "ow," and Cora turned around.

As Farron looked up at her, gently rubbing her nose, Cora felt the edges of her lips curl up against her will. Even when she noticed the shift, she didn't bother to hide it.

"Thanks," Cora said, her soft voice sounding loud in the small distance between them. "For...waiting with me last night. And for the drink. I...I really needed that."

For a moment, Farron watched her quietly before nodding. "No problem."

"There's...something..." Cora began.

But when she couldn't find the rest of her words, and Farron was waiting for her expectantly, Cora rummaged through her reusable shopping bag instead. Before she could think twice, she pulled out the bread loaf and held it out to Farron.

"For you," Cora said, shaking the bread for emphasis. "As thanks."

When Farron stared at the bread for a few seconds, then looked up at Cora, Cora grew self-conscious about the absurdity of the situation: two women standing in an empty mall parking lot in the middle of the night discussing a loaf of bread.

"I didn't pay for that drink," Farron said, still not taking the peace offering. "Not with money, at least. It was one of my free drinks for my shift."

"But you waited with me," Cora insisted, her arm already getting tired. Surely Farron's toned arms wouldn't have the same issue.

"Those rowdy creeps were in the area. I wouldn't want to be on the road with them anyway."

"You paid with your time."

"It wasn't that long."

"Just take the darn bread already."

Farron grinned, and after a moment of confusion, Cora replayed the conversation in her head. Had that been Farron's intention all along? To get Cora to say what she truly thought?

"That wasn't so hard, was it, coffee cake?" Farron said, easily accepting the gift. "And thanks for this. I'll be sure to savor every last bite."

Cora frowned, but there wasn't much heat behind it. In fact, it was probably more of a pout, and before Farron could tease her for it, Cora turned and headed for the bus stop bench. And when Farron followed her, Cora had no intention of telling her otherwise.

"So what's on your lunch menu then?" Farron asked, easily keeping up with Cora's slowed strides. "Do you still have your trophy loaf from your first win? Or are you tired of salad sandwiches already?"

There was no way Cora could admit she had been tired of the meal for years, but her alternative answer wasn't much better. "I had something else planned. Something with rice, and..." stop talking, stop talking, "well, more rice."

Nice. Even the rice porridge she was planning on making was smoother than that.

"You can't go wrong with rice on rice," Farron said. "Was that what you were eating the other day? The day you were getting really familiar with your spoon?"

As much as Cora's face burned at the memory, she hoped the darkness would hide her flushed cheeks as she spun towards Farron, who immediately lifted the limp loaf of bread like a shield.

"I thought we agreed to never speak of that ever again," Cora hissed.

Even though Farron only peeked over the bread, the crinkled ends of her eyes revealed her mischievous grin. "Is that a yes?"

Cora frowned, sighed, then continued towards the bus stop. "Maybe."

"There's nothing wrong with that," Farron said, jogging to catch up. "That was congee, yeah? My parents used to make that for me all the time when I was sick—and sometimes when I was just craving it. The flavor possibilities are endless."

While the mention of Farron's family made Cora's mind skip a beat, the rest of her remained steady, and she thankfully didn't tumble onto the sidewalk when her stiff legs lowered her onto the bus stop bench. "It...was, yeah. Congee, I mean."

Wow. She could ramble to customers about coffee and tea recommendations all day, but when it came to having a civilized conversation unrelated to work? It was like her thoughts were espresso grounds clogging a portafilter.

"So..." Cora said, extending the word as long as she could without being obvious—or running out of breath. "What are you going to do with that? The bread."

Farron sighed as she lounged on the bench beside Cora, setting the loaf gently on her lap. "I'm not sure anymore. I was originally just going to use it for toast, but after I joked with you about peanut butter and jelly sandwiches yesterday, I kind of started craving them." She grinned at Cora. "And since I'm a mature adult, I can cut off the crusts, and no one can stop me."

Cora couldn't help but smile along. "How rebellious of you. No wonder I caught you hanging around in the parking lot, in view of at least a dozen 'no loitering' signs."

While Farron's wink was expected, her words were not. "The security guards would've had a tough time getting me to do anything besides wait for you."

Before Cora could reply, let alone find the right words to say, the echo of an engine filled the quiet street, and Farron's gaze shifted behind Cora. "Looks like the wait is over."

As the bus's headlights illuminated the darkness, Cora hesitated to meet it at the curb. It wasn't like she was having the time of her life sitting on a solid bench that definitely wasn't chiropractor-approved. But even though her back ached and the rest of her body yearned for sleep, Cora couldn't deny that her wait with Farron had been almost relaxing—maybe even enjoyable.

And perhaps a little shorter than she thought.

"At last," Farron said, leaning back on one hand while raising the bread loaf with the other, as if she was sending Cora off with a waving handkerchief. "Well, princess. Your carriage awaits."

Cora scoffed as she got to her feet, but she didn't mind that it was muffled by a hiss from the braking bus. "Are you trying to make me take back that bread?"

Farron lowered the loaf with a smirk. "I'd like to see you try."

For a split second, Cora's eyes widened and her jaw dropped before she spun around and hurried for the door, the squeaking hinges doing nothing to drown out Farron's low chuckles behind her. Even though Cora was desperate to scramble aboard and hide under any of the seats, regardless of the discarded gum she might find there, she only took one step before pausing, then turning.

"Thanks," she said, hoping Farron could hear her voice over the rumbling engine. "For waiting with me. Again."

Farron's mischievous smirk slipped into a warm smile, and she nodded. "No problem, coffee cake. Same time tomorrow?"

Cora wasn't sure why her face began to warm again, but she wasn't going to hang around in the middle of the doorway to find out. "Tomorrow? I mean, yeah. Sounds good. Very good. Yeah."

Before Farron, or even Cora, could say anything else, Cora scrambled aboard, almost forgetting to pay her fare before shuffling to her seat, furiously keeping her gaze focused on the dirty gray floors. Even after the doors squeaked shut and the bus pulled away from the curb with a groan, Farron's low chuckles continued to thrum in Cora's ears.

Tomorrow couldn't come soon enough.