The phone buzzed against Alina's pillow, dragging her from a half-dream. Sunlight falling into her face. She groaned, fumbling for it, expecting some spam message. Instead, it was...Maya calling.
"Alina," Maya's voice carried that sharp no-nonsense tone, the one Alina had learned never to ignore, "come to the cafe. Now." more like an order.r
Alina sat up, blinking in shock. "What? Why? Did something happen?"
"Just come," Maya said, softer this time but still with suspense in her tone. "I'll explain to you when you're here." Just a sentence was enough for her to be worried.
The line went dead with a beep! Leading Alina in shock, like, what exactly happened with her? Is everything okay with her? Wait! ... Is that guy taking revenge against me? Kai....? It's him! Exactly, I got it! He can't deal with me, so he is now using my friend to threaten me. I knew it. Fine, you want this, right? That's great, I'm coming over.
Then you got me!
When Alina arrived, the cafe looked a little bit different in the afternoon sunlight. The big windows let golden light pool across the wooden floors, and the faint hum of conversation filled the air. Couples leaned close over lattes, students typed furiously on laptops, and the smell of freshly brewed espresso mixed with the sweet trace of vanilla wrapped around her like a blanket.
She looks around, trying to find him. Even after multiple head turns, she couldn't find him. Maya stood behind the counter, sleeves rolled up, hair pinned back with a pencil, looking like she was running a small kingdom. She looked up the second Alina entered and gestured her closer.
"There you are," Maya sighed, while looking at Alina's face, relief flickering across her face. "Sit," she said while pointing towards the specific stool.
Alina slid onto a stool at the counter, glancing around. "Okay, I'm here. What's this about?" She was expecting to say something about Kai and what He has done with her, blackmail her?
Maya placed the pen down with a thud and leaned forward. "I want you to join me here. In the café."
Alina blinked. This was not something that she expected to be so sudden, like a booExploredred "As… what? A barista?" Thank god it's not about that ice king, she murmured
"As my manager."
The words landed so heavily that Alina actually laughed. "Maya, I can't even work a coffee machine without it hissing at me like it wants me dead. You remember last time, Rishi almost disowned me for throwing away his precious Americano."
"Rishi isn't here," Maya said simply, wiping her hands on a cloth.
Alina frowned. "What do you mean?"
"He had to go back home. Family thing. He'll be gone at least a month." Maya's tone was casual, but her eyes weren't. They carried that weight she always had when she was serious. "Which means it's just me. And you.''
"Me?" Alina's voice cracked on the word. She looked around, at the couples, at the students, at the cafe itself, humming with life. "Maya, I don't know how to do this. I don't know the first thing about managing a place like this."
Maya leaned forward, resting her chin on her hand, her gaze soft but firm. "Nobody does until they try. You'll learn." She will try to give confidence in her
Alina shook her head, overwhelmed. "And if I mess it up? If I drive customers away?"
"Then you'll fix it," Maya said without hesitation. "But Alina, listen, this cafe isn't just a shop. Cafe is a place where stories are written and shared, one cup of coffee at a time.
The words made Alina's throat tighten unexpectedly.
She wanted to say something. She wanted to list every fear, every reason she wasn't capable. But deep down, she knew Maya wasn't just offering her a job. She was offering her an anchor.
Maya's hand found hers across the counter, squeezing lightly. "All I ask is one promise: you'll never do anything that risks losing a customer. Mistakes are fine. Carelessness isn't. Can you promise me that?"
Alina hesitated, her heart pounding. And then....slowly....she nodded.
"I promise."
The next day, the brass bell above the cafe door gave a soft jingle as Alina pushed it open in the morning. She paused, inhaling the warm blend of roasted beans, vanilla syrup, and something faintly citrus that clung to the wooden walls. This was not the smell of home, but it wasn't entirely foreign either. It felt like the smell of something waiting to begin. Maybe a new beginning?
Maya stood behind the counter, tying her apron in a practiced motion. She looked up immediately, her lips curling into a smile that almost reached her eyes. Almost.
"You came," she said simply, as though she had been waiting for Alina to back out.
Alina shifted her bag higher on her shoulder. "Of course I came. You basically blackmailed me last night."
Maya laughed lightly. "Correction....I encouraged you. You need this. And I need you. Win-win, she said this with a slight wink.
"Except, I don't know how to make coffee," Alina muttered.
"Then you'll learn. People don't wake up knowing how to hold a pen either, and look at you, you've written worlds."
The compliment made Alina's chest tighten, but she quickly masked it with a small shrug. She wasn't here for compliments. She was here because she needed something to do, something that would keep her hands busy when her mind was threatening to spiral back into self-doubt and memories she couldn't afford to linger on. And Alina needs Maya just the way Maya needs her. vice versa
Maya tossed an apron toward her. Alina caught it clumsily, staring at the beige fabric with its deep pockets. It looked simple enough, but when she tried to tie it around her waist, the strings tangled in a mess behind her back. She twisted, turned, and nearly lost her balance.
From the counter, Maya watched, lips twitching.
"Do you need… help?"
"No," Alina said stubbornly, but her fingers were betraying her. The knot kept slipping.
"Okay, Inkheart," Maya teased. "If tying aprons were part of an exam, you just failed."
Alina glared at her. "I can tie a knot! Just...''
The strings slipped again, and she sighed, giving up. Maya walked around the counter and fixed it in two swift motions.
"There. Cafe-ready." She stepped back with a satisfied smile.
Alina rolled her eyes. "You enjoy making me feel like a child, don't you?"
"Only because you look adorable when you pout."
Alina huffed, but couldn't stop the tiny curve that tugged at her lips.
The cafe wasn't crowded in the mornings, which gave Maya the perfect chance to train her. She walked Alina through the coffee machine first.
"This is the espresso handle. Don't call it 'that thingy,' or I'll throw a sugar packet at you. Lock it here, press this, and boom... espresso shot. Taste? Strong enough to wake the dead."
Alina tried. She nearly dropped the handle the first time because it was heavier than she expected. Coffee grounds spilled on the counter.
"Oops."
Maya shook her head but chuckled. "You're lucky this isn't a Michelin-star kitchen. Clean and try again."
By the fourth attempt, Alina managed to lock it properly. The hiss of hot water against coffee startled her, but then dark, rich liquid dripped into the tiny cup.
She stared at it like it was a miracle. "I did that?"
"Congratulations. You've just made the world's tiniest cup of bitterness," Maya said dryly, then pushed sugar toward her. "Now taste it."
Alina took a cautious sip and immediately winced. "This is awful. Why do people drink this willingly?"
Maya burst out laughing. "Welcome to adulthood, babe."
The bell above the door rang, sharp enough to silence the warm hum of the espresso machine. Alina stiffened. Her hand froze halfway through wiping the corner. A man in his mid-thirties walked in, his shirt wrinkled, hair sticking up at odd angles like he had lost his battle with his pillow. He dragged his feet towards the counter.
"One black coffee, no sugar," he muttered, and then collapsed into the chair.
Maya nudged Alina. "Your first customer. Go." grinning like this was the most entertaining thing she'd seen all week.
Alina froze. "Go? Alone?!" Panic flared in Alina's chest ''May, I don't even remember which button is for water and which one is for the coffee''
"You think I'll hold your hand every time?" Maya whispered back. ''You don't learn by hiding. You learn by doing''
''I'll spill it'' Alina hissed
''Then you'll clean it. Go''
Alina swallowed hard, grabbing the espresso handle like it was a weapon she wasn't trained to use. Her palms were trembling. She fumbled with the coffee grounds, spilling some onto the counter.
Maya arched a brow but didn't interfere.
"Okay… lock it in, press the button…" Alina muttered under her breath, narrating to herself. The machine hissed violently, steam shooting up like it was laughing at her.
The dark liquid began to drip into the cup. Alina exhaled shakily. She had survived the hardest part...at least that's what she thought.
Balancing the cup on a saucer, she carried it across the cafe like she was walking a tightrope. Her fingers trembled.
Halfway there, the hot surface burned her palm. She jerked slightly, sloshing coffee over the rim. A brown streak ran across the saucer, threatening to spill onto her apron.
"Oh no...'' she whispered, teeth gritted, tightening her grip.
At last, she reached the man's table and set the cup down carefully, as if placing a bomb.
"Here's your… um, coffee," she said, voice too high-pitched.
The man glanced up briefly, grunted a vague "Thanks," and went back to scrolling his phone.
Alina blinked. That was it? No complaint? No storm? Just… thanks?
Her knees wobbled with relief. She managed a small nod and turned back toward the counter, trying not to visibly sag with exhaustion. When she walked back, her shoulders loosened in relief.
"See? No casualties," Maya said with mock pride.
As hours passed, Alina found herself slowly picking up a rhythm. Pour, serve, clean, repeat. Her clumsy movements smoothed out bit by bit. She learned how to foam milk without splattering it all over her arm (after two burns and Maya's teasing). She learned how to balance a tray without wobbling like a newborn deer.
It wasn't perfect...far from it... But every tiny success gave her a flicker of satisfaction she hadn't felt in years.
Somewhere between wiping a table and writing down an order, Alina realized her mind was strangely quiet. No spirals. No self-reproach. Just the hum of the coffee machine, the murmur of conversations, and Maya's occasional laughter drifting through the air.
For the first time in a long time, she wasn't lost in her head. She was simply… present.
Maya watched her closely from behind the counter, her chin resting in her palm. She had dragged Alina into this not just for help but because she wanted her friend to breathe again. Alina had been drowning silently for too long, and if making lattes and wiping tables could be the rope to pull her out, then so be it. She wanted to distract her from all that hell, from all those sleepless nights, where the nights just seemed like the twists and turns on her bed.