“You came!”
The Flamebearer was rather easy to spot as he approached the small cafe. Waiting for him was Phovos, with a bottle of water and two glasses.
“Of course I came,” Retvik blinked as he sat down. “Did you think I would not come?”
Phovos hesitated, then shrugged, pouring some water for Retvik. “I don’t know. Just thought… maybe you’d get stuck in traffic or something.”
“I guess…” Retvik sipped his drink. “Thank you for the water. What made you pick this little cafe?”
Phovos glanced over her shoulder. Inside, tables and chairs were being moved around inside, and a table had been laid out in an odd L shape.
“I thought it’d be quiet. Or quieter, at least. Guess I was wrong though.”
“Something is going on?”
“Yeah, some sort of book signing. We can go somewhere else if you prefer.”
Retvik shrugged and sipped more water. “No, thank you. Here is fine. They do not seem at all busy anyway.”
“Might change though.”
“This is fine, Phovos. It really is.”
Phovos hesitated some more, then relaxed slightly. She knew Retvik was right. Instead of worrying about the commotion behind her, Phovos turned her attention back to Retvik.
“So, how’s things?”
“Boring, if I am honest. Very little to do, what with the new staff. Means I have plenty of time for gaming.”
“Oh, you too?” Phovos grinned. “Are you playing anything new?”
“No, just Fate 2, but Novem is going to be a boring month with nothing new.”
“I’ve been playing that too, need to catch up though. Still some stuff I need to learn…”
“If you need any help, you can ask me.”
“Oh that’d be cool!”
The conversation continued on, mostly talking about video games. Phovos was genuinely enjoying herself. They had covered a ton of different games for at least an hour and a half. As time passed though, Phovos realised she couldn’t really stay there forever. That and the sound of people testing microphones in the cafe was starting to get a bit grating.
“They are not doing a good job with that microphone…” Retvik tutted.
“Yeah. Maybe we should head out for a walk. Let me just pay for this water. Didn’t get coffee or anything.”
Retvik nodded and got up. Phovos got up too and peeked inside, where the cafe bar was. A clearly annoyed waitress turned up and Phovos paid them, before heading back outside with Retvik. Once they were back together, they started walking, and returned to their gaming discussion. However, a small electric scooter rushed by, and Retvik quickly noted how dangerous those things were.
“They should be illegal. Zooming in and out of traffic.”
“Yeah. Or at least have the same laws and stuff as a bike,” Phovos added. “Maybe car insurance too.”
Retvik nodded in agreement. “The number of times I have seen a smug kid riding one of those, darting in between cars…”
“Speaking of which… there’s my car!” Phovos exclaimed. “Huh, didn’t realise what time it was either.”
“Time flies when you are having fun.”
“Do you want me to drop you off to where you parked?”
Retvik shook his head. “It is fine. Full of one-way streets anyway.”
“You sure?”
“Indeed, Phovos.”
The Rethan and the Ksithan both fell silent for a moment. Behind them, traffic at least seemed a bit quieter.
“Hey, can I have a hug before you go?” Phovos sheepishly asked, breaking the quick silence.
“A hug?”
“Yeah.”
Retvik smiled, then opened his arms. “Sure, you can have a hug.”
Phovos put her arms around Retvik, despite him being much taller than her.
“Are you sure you don’t want me to drop you off by your vehicle?” Phovos asked again. “Because I’m happy to-”
“It is fine, Phovos. I could do with a walk anyway.”
Phovos smiled again. “Okay. Have a great evening, Retvik!”
“You too, see you soon, Phovos!”