Köstlich

Köstlich was a small German coffee shop that was a five minute walk away from the Bats’ training facility.  Laura stepped in slowly, looking around the space for a spot to sit down.  For being so small, she was surprised by the amount of traffic that was currently going through.  It’s just a rush hour for them, that’s all.  She found an open table and quickly made her way to it.  Sitting down, she took out her notepad and phone.  She quickly wrote down some of the questions she wanted to ask Carmilla, ones that she would have to ask for the article and ones that she personally wanted to find out about the star soccer player.

She was surprised by herself.  She hadn’t expected to find Carmilla as attractive as she had, and it made her stomach do twists and turns just thinking about how Carmilla’s mood seemed to change in just the little time they spoke.  She had gone from a hardened individual, someone who didn’t seem to give two cares about the world or people around her, to someone entirely different, a shyness or fear of letting someone like her in too close.  It almost reminded Laura of herself when she was in college.  She had been in that same place at one time before her friend S. LaFontaine helped bring her out from her misery.

She and LaFontaine had met during a writing class, one that was mandatory for all freshmen at Silas University.  Laura didn’t have any friends at the university, choosing to stick to herself in her classes and back at her apartment.  It wasn’t until this nerdy biology major and her political science major friend Perry reached out to her one day before class.  Laura didn’t know what would have happened to her if LaFontaine and Perry hadn’t offered to be her friends, her first real friends in university, and honestly, she was glad she didn’t have to know.

Laura looked down at her watch before returning to the notepad.  She tapped the back of her pen against her cheek as she looked over the questions.  They were simple questions, but they were enough to warrant a conversation at least.  Laura remained lost in her thoughts, the world around her becoming a blur, until she heard the chair in front of her slide out.  She looked up to find Carmilla taking a seat in the chair, her hair hanging over her shoulders.  By the look of things, she had taken a quick shower before making her way to the coffee shop.

“I hope I didn’t keep you waiting too long,” Carmilla apologized.

Laura shook her head. “It’s alright; I wasn’t waiting long.”

A waitress came over, two menus in his hands.  He smiled at them both, setting the menus in front of them, before turning his attention to Carmilla.  Laura didn’t catch what he was saying, their conversation was being spoken in German by the sounds of their accents, but she had a feeling that the conversation was about her as he kept trying to sneak looks at her while he spoke with Carmilla.  It didn’t help that with each sneaked look, Carmilla would smile this tiny smile that Laura found adorable, though she promised herself that she would never admit it out loud.

Looking as if he got his answers, he turned to Laura with a bright smile. “What can I get you?  If you need a couple more minutes to look over the menu, I can come back,” he said, the smile never wavering.

Looking down at the menu, Laura took a minute to study it before returning her gaze to the waitress. “Just a black coffee with some cream and sugar please.”

The waitress wrote down Laura’s order before returning his attention back to Carmilla. “Same as usual?”  Carmilla nodded. “Alright; I’ll have both orders out in a few minutes.”  Just before he left, the waitress said one more thing in German to Carmilla, causing her blush red and bite her lower lip.

Once he was out of earshot, Laura looked at the soccer player in confusion. “Is everything ok?”

Carmilla smiled. “Yeah, sorry.  That’s J.P.  He’s a history nerd who I met at one of the poetry nights here a few years back.  He’s from Berlin, and I have family in Austria, so we just kind of clicked after meeting.”

Laura nodded, watching as J.P. interacted with his coworkers as he made their orders. “So what exactly was he saying?”

“Just that I haven’t stopped by in a while and was catching up on things that had happened in the past couple weeks.”

Laura turned her attention back to Carmilla. “Funny because he would keep sneaking glances at me and you would smile a little more with every look.”

If Laura could, she would’ve taken a picture of Carmilla’s reaction; it was too damn cute to not want to.  Carmilla looked down at her hands, clearly flustered at the comment. “Um…how about we get to those interview questions?...”

Laura smiled, moving the notepad in front of her. “Alright then.  How about an easy one?  What’s it like to be the star player of the Silas Bats at the young age of twenty-four?”

Carmilla leaned back in her seat. “Difficult at times, I guess.  I’ve been playing since I was three, so it’s always been a part of my life.  I did a lot of traveling club teams, starting every game when I was in high school.  Now, it’s just a job mixing in with a pleasure.”

Laura listened intently, writing down notes as Carmilla spoke. “The talent’s natural by far, but how is it to be considered a leader?”

Carmilla leaned her head back slightly. “Confusing sometimes.  Often than not, it’s more of a chore.  I enjoy the sport, I enjoy being around my teammates, but sometimes it feels better to just be a player rather than be in the spotlight all the time.  I love being a role model for the younger players, but I also love being a regular Jane with them as well.”

Laura nodded, finishing her notes as J.P. brought them their orders.  He sat them down in front of them along with two dishes, one of creamer and one of sugar.  Laura looked up at him and smiled. “Thank you.”

He waved off the compliment before leaving the table to attend to others.  By now, the rush of traffic flow had slowed, allowing for a quieter flow of conversation to fill the coffee shop.  In truth, Laura felt more comfortable with this type of atmosphere.  She could see why Carmilla had chosen the location for after her practices.  It was a relaxing climate to collect your thoughts in.

“So what else would you like to know?” Carmilla asked, breaking Laura from her thoughts.

Laura looked down at her questions, scratching out the one she had just asked.  Maybe…maybe she’ll answer a more personal one. “Ok.  This one’s a bit more on the personal side, but how much of an influence was your family in your decision to turn soccer from a hobby into a profession?”

Carmilla had just taken a drink of her coffee before she sat it back down in front of her, staring distantly into the warm brown liquid. “It was my dad really.  He used to play for the Austrian National Team, so it was always a big thing for him.  I have a couple siblings, but I was the only one to put a lot of interest into soccer.  It helped that I was natural at it, so he kind of honed in on that.  Every camp we could go to, we went to.  I was always on a traveling club team.  I started every game in high school, reaching the state finals three times and winning on two of those trips,” she explained, a pained expression coming over her face.

“What is it?” Laura asked, worried that her question hit too close to home.

Carmilla sighed. “It wasn’t until I turned pro, where I was making more money from my matches and the many endorsements, that I finally saw the true side of my father.  The controlling side, the abusive side, the demanding side.  All were present, and it carried over to my mother and a couple of my younger siblings.  I only talk to my sister, Mira, now because of it.  I had to cut everyone else out.”

Laura frowned, reaching her left hand out to take Carmilla’s right. “I’m so sorry, Carmilla.  That must have been awful.”

Carmilla chuckled softly. “Best part?  It’s been five years, and still my father blames me for the break up in the family.”

Laura could see the sadness, the hurt, behind Carmilla’s eyes.  She thought back to what Betty had said in regards to the incident.  She had already lost loved ones.  Maybe that’s why she’s so hard on the media.  They made her lose someone else that was close to her.  Laura waited for Carmilla to relax herself, watching as the young woman did several breathing techniques before lifting her head back up to meet Laura’s eyes.

“Sorry about that.”

Laura shook her head. “No need to be.  I’m sorry for going so personal.”

Laura was surprised to see Carmilla close her hand around her own. “It’s alright.  I did ask you what the next question was.”

They stayed like that for a moment before they both pulled their hands away, a light blush on both of their cheeks.  Laura cleared her throat, while Carmilla ran her hand through her hair.  Laura hoped that Carmilla didn’t catch her staring at the motion before she turned her gaze to her notepad.  It was still weird that the soccer star had actually agreed to do the interview with her; she didn’t need to be forming a crush on her, too.

“So…back to questions?” Carmilla suggested.

Laura nodded, a small smile on her lips as she looked down at her questions.  And…too late.

Carmilla didn’t return back to her apartment until around nine thirty that night.  She had spent nearly six hours at Köstlich with Laura, answering her questions.  Granted, they hadn’t spent all of their time on those questions.  After answering the last question, Laura had offered to answer any questions Carmilla wanted to ask about her in return for doing the interview.  That had thrown Carmilla for a loop, but she was curious to know a little more about this reporter. 

Setting her keys and wallet down on her kitchen counter, Carmilla smiled at the little things she had learned that day about the reporter.  She was an only child, having been raised by her father since the age of nine.  She had always wanted to do something writing related, having debated between Creative Writing and Journalism before deciding to go with the latter when she got accepted to Silas University.  She did a lot of volunteering during her time at Silas, her favorite time being spent at the local humane society to attend to their cats.

What surprised Carmilla the most was the young woman’s drive.  When asked about how she got a job at the Voice, Laura had laughed.  She had explained that after numerous failings at other reporting jobs, she had finally landed a job that had her actually enjoying her work as a journalist and a reporter.  She spoke of how she had jumped from job to job, trying to figure out her niche in the journalism world.  She hadn’t expected to land the job at the Voice, but she had explained it was one of the best experiences she had found since graduating.  Carmilla found herself enjoying how Laura described her experiences.  If she was being honest with herself, she was enjoying Laura’s company.

Carmilla rubbed her face as she made her way over to the fridge, contemplating what she was going to have for a quick dinner.  She had been too enthralled with the interview that she had forgotten about dinner until she returned to her apartment, stomach growling in protest.  She bit her lip as she looked about the many foods stashed away when her eyes fell onto the cupcakes on one of the shelves.  She smiled to herself, again thinking back to her conversation with Laura.

Carmilla watched as J.P. brought over two cupcakes, setting them in front of them.  She looked up at him confused, only to be given a wink before he walked away.  She rolled her eyes at her friend, understanding his intentions.  He thought that this was a date, and by how long they had already stayed at the coffee shop, she wasn’t surprised that he made the assumption.

Laura smiled and called her thanks to him, picking her cupcake up. “That was sweet of him.”

Carmilla shrugged. “I guess so,” she replied, picking hers up. “I assume that you like chocolate cupcakes then?”

Laura smiled, taking a small bite out of her cupcake.  By the look of joy on her face, Carmilla had already gotten her answer.  Laura swallowed, covering her mouth a little.

“I love cupcakes, but creampuffs are actually my favorite sweets,” she answered with a smile.

Carmilla found herself smiling at the thought, quickly shaking her head.  Get it together, Karnstein.  It was just one day, one coffee meeting.  That’s all.  You do not get to fall in love with a girl you barely know in one day.