I got in to work a few minutes early, which was great as I was able to set up shop before customers started to barge their way in, demanding to be served before the lights were even on. This didn't apply to John, though, my little ray of Scottish sunshine in a retired gentleman form. He always managed to know who was on which shift, which meant that when I was on the early shift, he would always sit there in the morning after his daily workout, patiently waiting for me to set up before asking for his latte. He was a comfort of mine.

Drew got in about ten minutes after me, looking more tired than usual.

"Did Ronnie keep you awake again, Mr Gallagher?" John spoke without lifting his eyes from his latest crossword. He always called us by our last names when he suspected us of something. He was a retired teacher, so it was second nature to him, and made us feel like we were getting told off, which pleased him even more.

"He wouldn't come out with me last night, said he was tired... Looks like something else kept him up all night..." I retorted, waggling my eyebrows jokingly towards Drew, as he was straightening his tie and fixing his hair in the reflection of the mirrored wall behind the bar.

"I was tired, and still am tired. I just couldn't sleep, that's all. Nothing juicy to discuss I'm afraid you two." Drew said flatly to John and I, who were by now both pouting at the lack of information.

"Fine..." I groaned as I continued to chop up some lemons and placed the segments in a tray of soda water for later. "But since we are on the early shift today, you can at least get an early night tonight. I'll make sure of it." I insisted, whilst beginning to make the coffees for us all.

It was a dull day outside, with rain lazily dropping from the grey clouds and landing on the glass patio doors, dragging their way down to the bottom. The lights within the restaurant were all on and shone a warm tone, which gave the room an amber hue and a cosy atmosphere, even though it was just the beginning of the morning shift.

Everything was now up and ready for the day, John was sipping at his freshly made latte and both Drew and I were drinking our coffee alongside John, peacefully content in the empty bar. The soft sound of the radio was coming through the speakers, and filled the silence delicately.

"Bit quiet today for you two, isn't it? Who scared all the customers off?" John spoke up just as I finished the last sip of my coffee.

"James, probably. You met him yet?" I asked, not hiding the dislike for James in my voice.

"Unfortunately. He seems like a nice guy, but I can see through that act. Just remember us regulars will always defend you two." John said sincerely, as he finally lifted his gaze away from his crossword and looked at us both and smiled. Drew and I both smiled in return without even thinking about it.

As we all carried on, there was the sound of footsteps entering the restaurant. Finally, a customer I thought to myself. It had already been an hour of the day and no one new had come in, and as much as I love the company I had, it was a bit boring.

As we all looked up to greet the customer, we realised this person really was new. I had never seen him before, and I knew practically everyone around here, even if I just knew the face.

This face though... Was different.

He was tall, with dark hair and dark features, and a beautiful olive coloured complexion. He wore a long, dark navy coat over a seamless white shirt, which was tucked neatly into his perfectly fitting black trousers. He looked good, but still... Different. He waltzed in seemingly not phased by the fact we were all staring at him, as he came over to the bar without batting an eyelid and spoke directly towards Drew as he ordered.

"Good morning, can I have a large black coffee, please? No sugar. I'm sweet enough as it is." The man said this confidently, and finished his sentence with a glance over in my direction. I could already feel the bile rising in my chest. I'm no stranger to being hit on at work, especially when the men get drunk during an event. But this time in the morning?

"Oh I'm sure you are." I scoffed as I rolled my eyes. My dry humour was known to most, and I rarely had to hide it. This however, just slipped out before I could even think that he may be offended by my words. Drew looked at me in horror at my customer service, and simply nodded politely and began to make the gentleman's coffee.

"She doesn't mean it." John chipped in, as he centred his attention on the new customer. "She has only had one coffee this morning. She doesn't tend to interact with the outside world until she's had around two or three." He added with a chuckle, trying to lighten the mood around the still very quiet customer.

The air seemed thick around us all as we waited patiently for the new customer to respond. It was like we were waiting to hear a pin drop... And then it finally did. The new customer simply smiled, but his smile was coy. There was something behind it which made me feel slightly uneasy.

"It's a good thing I'm not from the outside world then, isn't it?" He said, as he aimed his dark, endless eyes in my direction, looking straight into my mind and soul.

I could feel it.