Alcohol In Coffee..What?

As Orion clambered down the ladder from his spaceship-turned-beach house to the sand below, he contemplated renting a more normal abode somewhere in the city. There was nothing particularly wrong with his current residence in and of itself. Looking up at it from the ground, he still liked the way it looked and still impressed with how he salvaged half of his ship into beachfront property. But the problem he ran into with it was that he could not share it without anyone, or too many people, like Faye. Somehow, he assumed that she would not handle it as well as the few other people who had been invited to see it.

He sighed to himself and cloaked his ship, hiding it from view even though he risked errant beach goers stubbing their toe against one of the invisible supports. His residence would be something he would consider some other time. He had a better place to be and a more important person on his mind.

Together with Faye, they would venture into the bohemian world of coffee shops. Orion was dressed for the weather and the occasion, sporting some nice casual pants and a shirt that resembled a t-shirt with a hood. It was odd, and perhaps a little pointless, to put a thin hood on a warm weather shirt. But it hugged his chest and arms nicely. He figured it would please both the cool kids at the coffee shop and Faye.

Finding Faye proved none-too-difficult thanks to her yellow sundress acting as waypoint for him. The closer he got to her, the more he noticed just how nice she looked in the simple dress. It was light and elegant, complementing her features and letting her experience the air too. When he spotted her head nodding to something and the headphones, he knew what he had to do.

As quietly as he could, Orion slipped into the bench and sat next to Faye. He tried picking up the song and singing along with her, even though he had no idea what the words were.

"Nice to see you too, Faye."

Her kiss was accepted graciously and he returned in the same. The little things like kisses on the cheek were a reminder of how good it felt to be in normal relationship with Faye. Some people might have misconstrued his feelings, and assumed he meant "boring" or "samey", but they would be wrong. He liked that Faye was without any particularly heavy baggage because of her history or her powers. Without much to weigh her down, she was free to enjoy her youth with Orion, and he was free to act normally with her.

Faye's concerns with the coffee shop garnered only a grin from Orion, and a dismissive wave from his hand before he put lowered it so he could hold her hand.

"I'm suuuuure. I bet they're the laid back kind of college place. So they'd have no problem with us walkin' in on their territory. And if they got a problem with us, they can deal with ME."

He made an intimidating fist to show what he was made of.

"Besides, we could totally pass ourselves off as college students! Don't you think?"

While standing up, he lightly tugged her to her feet too so that they could get going towards the shop.

There was something about the simple summer sundress that Orion found to be not only very cute and fashionable, but also subtly sexy. The sundress carried an air of innocence and youth, given off by the simple design and the often feminine colors it came in. Combine it with a pair of sandals and a good hate, and the sundress became the perfect piece to wear at the beach or outdoors in the sun in general. However, something about the dress hinted at something more sexy. Orion hypothesized that it was the unspoken notion that nothing could be worn underneath the thin material, like naughtiness hidden beneath innocence. Every tiny puff of wind that ruffled the dress reminded Orion of that.

Anyway, it was a very nice walk with Faye, hand in hand and side by side. The city was hoppin' with activity, roused from its winter slumber with the spring warmth. People seemed to join them in their energy and colorful clothing choices. It was the time of the year when everyone broke our their nicest outdoor clothes and showed them off to the world, creating a wonderfully colorful populace to walk through.

The coffee shop was equally hoppin'. Apparently the rise in temperatures did not deter the coffee-addicted among the college crowd. The place was obviously an independent affair, staffed by students for students using only the most fair-trade-est and un-corporate coffees they could fine.

"I say we get them now and then check out what that is all about?"

Orion pointed further into the shop, beyond the counter and tables to a large cleared area with easels, paints, messy tarps on the floor, and more than a few students whipping paint brushes around. That area was also the source of the indie rock playing through some speakers someone brought and put on a table.

"Whatchya feelin' like having? There's... a bunch of things I can't pronounce..."

He motioned towards the large chalkboards that served as the ordering menus, covered in a myriad of drinks with possibly-italian names.

"That's a good question. What DO I want?"

The chalkboard menus straddled the line between "readable" and "messy". Everything was handwritten, or hand drawn as was the case with the cute pictures and flourishes that decorated the empty space, and was thus subject to the inconsistencies of normal handwriting. It lent the menu a more personal feeling as Orion perused the many mixes, add-ins, flavors, amounts, descriptions, and their pithy names. More than a few purported to taste like this candy bar or that dessert, but Orion had a hard time believing that a rich flavor could be replicated in liquid form. Everything else was a mystery to him, including Faye's own order.

After she had put in her drink order, leaving only him to tilt his head curiously at the menu, he was pretty much put on a timer. He had to have a decision and he had to have it fast. But nothing came to him. Finally, he simply sighed and decided to wing it.

"Give me something chocolately. Rich. Strong. With as much caffeine as you are morally willing to give me. With cinnamon."

The barista looked at Orion, perplexed, but put in the order nonetheless. Soon afterward, they both had their drinks and Orion was pleasantly surprised to find that they had followed through with his requests. It was a rich, strong, and chocolately coffee with a hint of cinnamon. He could also feel the caffeine seeping into his gums.

When it seemed Faye was at a bit of a loss, he lead them both over to a small table near the art area. It was a cozy space with lived-in couches around the perimeter and student-made works along the wall.

"Well, you want to see what all that is about? It looks right up your--our alley."

"You okay?"

He caught Faye's flinch when she burned her mouth, and gave her a rub on the back to take her mind off of it. His own drink was being taken in small sips, so he had fortunately avoided the burning hazard for the time being.

Orion watched the students lose themselves in their art. It was nothing like when he or Faye painted. There was more dancing and moving in their painting, and they were even less concerned with making messes. The tarps were catching most everything that hit the ground and the staff did not seem to care about any other splotches that made it onto the walls in that area. In fact, some of the splatters looked far older than a day, as if they had been made a long time ago. Considering the arts that hunt along the walls, it could be safe to assume that it was a regular activity.

With his eyes too busy watching some woman spin around in circles to the music as she occasionally painted, Orion did not notice the additional "stuff" they were putting in their coffee until Faye pointed it out.

"I think it helps their creative processes, and it would explain some of these people and why they look like they don't have the best balance."

Imbibing a little alcohol, or other mind-altering substance, made more sense to Orion as he thought about it more. At least in the context of making art. It made him curious.

"Watch my drink, hon. I'll be right back."

Setting his drink on the table, Orion left to go talk to the barista again. When he returned shortly, he was carrying two large coffee mugs that had a variety of paintbrushes inside them.

"Guy at the counter says that we're welcome to start painting, and we can use these, as long as return them when we're done."