JUST A QUARTER

JUST A QUARTER
by Melody E. McIntyre

Adam shivered and shoved his hands into his pockets as a harsh wind sliced through his hoodie. He would have worn something warmer but wanted to look good in case that cute girl was at the park again today with her golden retriever. The sun had been shining when he left his house, but now grey clouds coated the skies. He was almost there when the delicious scent of coffee invaded his thoughts, promising warmth and caffeine. It led him down a side street he’d never been on before, to a small log cabin with a sign over the door that read “Calla Lily Cafe.” Red and gold flowers lined its cobbled stone path, and Adam wondered how they could still be growing in October.

He stepped inside the café and sighed as heat seeped into his bones. A fireplace crackled in the corner, and the room was dotted with mismatched chairs and tiny tables. Beautiful people sat in every chair sipping coffee and chatting. Despite knowing that he was far from ugly himself, Adam felt out of place, but the smell of coffee was overwhelming, and he made his way to the checkout where he could study the menu.

Bells chimed, signalling that someone else had entered the café. Adam turned to look, and his mouth went dry. The most beautiful woman he had ever seen was standing in the doorway. Long, auburn hair curled around her face and contrasted well with her ethereally pale skin. Her eyes were the startling green of leaves in May, and when they flashed over him, Adam’s heart raced. At the sight of her, all thoughts of the girl in the park disappeared from Adam’s mind.

She strode forward, and Adam took a step back to let her go ahead. After ordering her drink, she dumped a collection of coins out on the counter. He watched her count them with long red fingernails. Then she started digging around in her purse and apologizing to the cashier because she was a little bit short.

“Here, I’ve got an extra quarter,” he said and placed it on the counter.

“Thank you,” she said. “I owe you one.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Adam said and smiled what he hoped was his most charming smile. She moved to the side to wait for her drink, and he quickly ordered a black coffee, so he could join her.

“Hi,” he said.

“Hello again. I will repay you the next time you come here, agreed?”

“You really don’t have to. It’s only a quarter.”

“Is it now?” she said and stared at him. Adam resisted the urge to squirm under her scrutiny.

“Adam?” called the barista. He accepted his drink and took a sip, then sighed at the delicious taste.

“Is Adam your real name,” the woman asked. The barista leaned over and handed the woman her coffee without calling out anything. She must be a regular here, Adam thought.

“Adam Leonardo Foster,” he said and then scolded himself. He had no idea what compelled him to say his full name.

“Leonardo?” She said. And when she flashed him a wicked grin, he knew precisely what had compelled him.

“After my uncle, not the turtle if that’s what you’re thinking. What’s your name?”

A hush fell over the café. Adam could feel every eye in the place fixed on them, but when he glanced around, no one was looking their way.

“You can call me Shyla,” she said with another heart-skipping grin on her lips. The bustle of the coffee shop returned to normal. Adam watched her pour an alarming amount of sugar into her cappuccino and tried to think of something else to talk to her about. Then he felt a hand on his arm. It was the barista. She was petite with dark skin and even darker hair. Adam thought that normally he would have found her attractive, but next to the gorgeous clientele and Shyla, she looked ordinary.

“You forgot your card at the cash register,” she said and led him away from Shyla towards the counter.

“I paid in cash,” he protested, but as soon as they were a few feet away from Shyla, the barista’s grip tightened.

“You did pay in cash, but I needed to talk to you.”

“Adam?” called Shyla, and he yanked his arm away from the barista. She held tight, but her hand was tiny, and her grip snapped like a dry twig.

“Wait, please.”

“What is it,” he said and glanced over his shoulder at Shyla. She was watching them, and the barista lowered her voice.

“I just wanted to tell you to be careful with her. She’s the worst one.”

Worst one what? Is this barista crazy? Adam frowned at her. All he wanted to do was go back over to Shyla. He didn’t want to have to deal with cryptic riddles when a beautiful woman was calling his name. The barista looked like she wanted to say something more, but then her manager came over and scolded her for harassing the customers. Adam made his exit and rejoined Shyla just as she was about to leave the café.

“Everything all right?” Shyla asked.

“Everything is just fine.”

“Good, I was hoping we could go for a stroll and discuss whether or not I owe you a quarter.”

Adam had good luck with women, but he could not believe that someone as gorgeous as Shyla was making up excuses to spend time with him. They headed out the back door of the café. Adam froze when he stepped outside.

“Where are we?”

A street made only for pedestrians lay before him. Market stalls and potted flowers lined the sides. Adam could hear a cacophony of vendors hawking their wares. There was no hint of the autumn cold here. Streetlamps filled the neighborhood with a warm glow. Small branches sprouted on their sides as though the lamps had sprung up through the earth.

“Welcome to Seelie Avenue.”

“I’ve lived in this city for almost seven years now, and I’ve never heard of this place. Is it new?”

“It’s one of the oldest neighborhoods in the area.”

They strolled along, drinking their coffees, and Adam searched his mind for witty things to say. Shyla immediately headed for a stall selling fruit, but a different vendor called to Adam.

“Fresh flowers. The perfect gift for a beautiful lady.”

“I’ll take some.”

“Are you shopping for yourself?”

“No, they are for a beautiful lady.”

“Ah,” the vendor winked knowingly. He was a short, chubby man with a black beard and sun-bronzed skin. His clothes were a dusty brown, but his hat was a deep crimson. The flowers he selected were a mix of red and yellow, and even Adam had to admire their beauty and scent. He paid for the bouquet and met back up with Shyla.

“What is this?” She asked when he thrust the flowers towards her.

“A gift for you.”

“You wish to give me a second gift when I still have not paid you back for the first?” Her eyes flashed fire, and Adam took an unconscious step backwards. From the corner of his eye, he could see the vendor studying them. Adam shook his head to clear it and told himself that the flames he saw in Shyla’s eyes were just the reflection of the red and yellow flowers.

“Yes,” he said, not sure what the right answer was.

“Gifts come with obligations. I do not enjoy obligations.” Adam cringed, and for a moment, she seemed to loom over him.

“Relax, it’s a compliment. Beautiful flowers for a beautiful girl. No obligation intended.” This is a disaster. He thought back to what the barista had said to him, and he wondered if he’d made the wrong move coming out here with her.

Be careful with her.

She’s the worst one.

Adam shuddered. Maybe it’s not the barista who is crazy. “I’m sorry. I’m gonna go.”

“You can’t leave now. You just got here. Why don’t we get something to eat? My treat,” she said, and with a giggle, his fear was gone. The beautiful girl from the café was back.

She brought him around a corner to a small outdoor place called Anthos Bistro. Usually, Adam would hold out his date’s chair, but he wasn’t sure how she would react, so he just sat down at a small patio table. As soon as Shyla joined him, a waiter appeared and whisked away their coffee cups. He returned with two glasses of red wine, a vase for the flowers and two pieces of yellow cake. Adam did not have much of a sweet tooth, but he still felt his mouth begin to water. The cake was drizzled in honey and dotted with pomegranate seeds.

“Do they normally serve people before they order?” Adam asked.

“This is the bistro’s specialty.”

As soon as he lifted his fork and cut into the cake, his skin began to itch. Once again, it felt as though every eye in the place were tracking him. He dropped his fork. It hit the plate, and the sound ricocheted around them. Shyla fixed her eyes on him.

“Are you not going to eat it?” Shyla asked.

“I was just wondering what kind of cake it was.”

“It’s a honey cake, and this is pomegranate wine.”

The waiter appeared at their table. “Is the dish not to your liking, Sir?”

“Uh…” The waiter leaned in. His face was only a few inches from Adam’s. Adam gagged on the sickly-sweet stench of baked goods and honey that emanated from the waiter. Again, he thought about the barista’s warning and realized that he did not want to eat that cake. Yet the air around him was crackling with so much tension that Adam could almost see it. He didn’t know how to get out of this situation without angering Shyla further, so he picked up his fork and shoved some cake into his mouth.

The coffee had been delicious, but this cake was divine. The moist crumbs dissolved in his mouth, leaving behind a gentle honey-tinged pomegranate flavor. He groaned and devoured the rest of the cake. Then he drank the wine until the glass was empty.

“Delicious, isn’t it?” asked Shyla, who was eating hers in dainty little bites. The cake was so good that Adam didn’t even feel embarrassed that he wolfed it down.

“I’ve never tasted anything like it.”

Shyla nodded and waved for the waiter to bring them more wine and cake. As he ate, Adam felt his apprehension ease away. Shyla asked him questions about his life, and he was flattered by her interest. He found himself telling her everything about himself. Eventually, Adam forgot all about her offer to pay and his earlier transgressions. When the waiter placed the bill on the table, Adam’s hand shot out and grabbed it.

Again, the world stopped, only instead of feeling everyone’s eyes on him, he felt only Shyla’s. They had gone from green to solid black with a flicker of flame in the centre.

“What are you doing?” Each word, a gunshot.

“I got this, don’t worry about it.”

“Once again, you attempt to trap me with an obligation. You do not know what forces you are meddling with. And yet, you made this choice.”

All Adam wanted now was to leave, so he and dug out money as fast as he could. Twice, he almost dropped the bills because his hands were shaking so much.

“I’m sorry if I offended you. I promise you can get the next one.” But he had no intention of ever seeing her again. “Uh, it’s getting kind of late. I think I should go.”

He stood up, knocking over his chair, and started back towards the café. As he went, Seelie Avenue transformed around him. Vendors closed their shops as the streets emptied. Gone were the flowers and the warmth of the streetlamps. Cold, bright light stung his eyes. But it was nothing compared to Shyla’s harsh, fiery glare.

Adam broke into a run. The café was just ahead. Its doors were shut, and no light shone through its windows, but he could see a path leading around the side. If he could just get away from here and back into the city, he’d be safe. Then he could go home, transfer offices and move far away.

“Adam Leonardo Foster,” Shyla’s voice boomed down the avenue. She pronounced it exactly as he had with an inflection so perfect that it was almost as if he were calling himself. His body whirled around to face her, and his feet began to rise and fall as they walked him back to her.

“I want to go home,” he whimpered.

“You cannot leave. You are beholden to me. Not only have you eaten the food of the Seelie Court, but you have insulted me three times over. Debts are not to be trifled with, and I am not one to be trapped by them.”

“Please, I didn’t mean…”

“to offend, yes, I know. Irrelevant.” He tried to say more, but his tongue felt tied up in knots.

“I will pay you back, and you will no longer resist me. Let’s begin with the meal you insisted on paying for.”

Shyla raised her arms, and coins came hurtling at him from all sides, biting into his flesh. Adam flashed back to when he was a boy and thought it would be a good idea to poke a hornet’s nest with a long stick. The insects swarmed him, stinging him all over as he ran for the safety of his home, but that awful memory paled in comparison to the agony of today.

“Second were the flowers.”

The torrent of coins slowed to a trickle and then stopped altogether. But Adam’s relief was short-lived because vines had begun to twist their way around him. Thorns tore at his already ragged flesh, and Adam wept. The plants squeezed, and his lungs burned. Just when he thought he would pass out, the vines relaxed.

Shyla towered over him with eyes of fire. Laughter bubbled around him, and he had just enough mobility to twist his head around and see that the streets were no longer deserted. Dark figures watched him, and at last, he was allowed to speak.

“What is this place? Who are you?”

“This is Seelie Avenue, and I am its Lady. You have trespassed and dishonored our sacred customs. I have repaid your money and your flowers, but one debt remains. The one that started it all. The one where you tried to trap me first.”

“I was just being polite.”

Laughter echoed around him again. “You were not being polite. You paid for that coffee because I was beautiful, and you were hoping for something in return. I offered a fair trade, and thrice you denied me. With this final repayment, I declare that we will be even, and I will be free of any obligation to you. Do you agree to my terms, Adam?”

Adam nodded. What else can I do?

Scalding coffee poured down on him in a waterfall of pain. When he opened his mouth to scream, the black liquid scorched his throat. Gagging, he fought against the vines, but they held him tighter than any chain. There was no escape. His skin began to crackle and sizzle as it burned. Then the coffee flooded his eyes, and everything went dark.

#

The next day, a young woman was walking through the park with her golden retriever. The dog broke free of its leash and charged off the path and into the trees. She followed him, calling his name, but when she caught up to him, she started to scream. Someone was thrashing around in a pile of red and gold leaves. He was screaming out apologies and something about coffee. Deep gashes and third-degree burns rendered the man unrecognizable, but there was something familiar about that voice. With shaky hands, she grabbed her dog’s leash and dialled 911. As she waited for the paramedics to arrive, she huddled tight against the trees as a sudden gust of wind sliced through her thin sweater.

Fiction © Copyright Melody E. McIntyre
Image by martinahavlikova84 from Pixabay