A Case of Mistaken Identity || Tiger Fairy
@tink-bell
Shere sat there a bit awkwardly, waiting for her to say something.
The silence was not necessarily unpleasant, don’t mistake him for that, as there was no real silence around him, but it was a bit odd. He vaguely knew she wasn’t a threat, despite the Tiger’s initial hackles being raised at the stranger approaching the table, but the staring was a tad, uh, interesting.
No one had stared at him like that in a great while. Or, at the very least, that he knew about. ( His students, men and women both, stared, but Shere didn’t recall the action or had blocked it from his memory long ago. ) Finally, she splattered to life, and Shere’s grin grin a fractional inch, amused though not willing to make her feel poorly about it. “A tea, then,” he agreed, and stood, the movement smooth but careful.
He gripped the head of his cane firmly in hand before turning and moving at an easy pace toward the counter. Thankfully, he did not have to wait long, and he already knew what he would be drinking. He told the batista to “surprise him,” as the blonde had put it, for his other tea and the woman smiled at him and nodded her head as he thumbed a few bills onto the counter and shoved a few more into the tip jaw for good measure.
Shere knew from hearing Tiegan talk about her various jobs that tips were sometimes some of the best money she could get in an evening. Even if it wasn’t much, he had tried ever since to tip well. His name was called a few minutes later and he took both beverages, balancing one easily in the same hand as his cane, and maneuvered back to the table.
“One surprise tea, per your request.”
As soon as the man moved away, Tink let out a deep breath. She needed to pull herself together. What kind of first impression was she making? Especially considering she knew she came across as witty online and through text. Hell, she’d carried on an entire flirtationship while in rehab and that was completely through text. Not consummated until well after she’d gotten back home and even then she’d not been as flustered as she was at this moment in time. Where the hell was that Tink Bell at?
Short answer? Lost.
It’d been so long since she’d been single and willing to mingle with anyone. Sophie had... certainly done a number on her. But she was over that! She was ready to get back to the fun-loving Tink that she’d been before. Looking for love in all the wrong places and having fun while doing it. This date was going to be the first of many. She was convinced.
At least it would be if she could remove the shoe she’d inserted into her mouth at the start of it.
When he returned with her surprise tea, she took it with a grin before taking an experimental taste. It tasted like fall. Warm and crisp though the flavor changed slightly into something just a bit spicy as it made it’s way down her throat. Delicious in a way a pumpkin spiced anything could never be. “Perfect. I have no idea how they do it every time but I swear. They always know. Always.” She grinned as she set her cup down on the table.
“You didn’t tell me you were a teacher in all of our texts. Which is understandable considering how focused we both were on other things.”