Anything else?I asked her.
She pursed her lips and looked at the long display case in front of us. Then, with a gleam in her eyes, she flattened a hand, palm up, and shaped her other one as an upside-down C before touching it to the open palm in a sign to say,Cupcake.
I grinned.You got it, I told her, and then turned to Suman. “Two coffees, no sugar, and two chocolate cupcakes.”
She nodded, her eyes wide.
“Do you have sugar free cupcakes?”
She nodded again.
“Perfect.” I faced Annabeth.Your order will be ready soon, I signed.
She smiled.Thank you.
“What’s your order, Reyes?” Suman asked me.
“Uh…” I glanced at the growing line. “I–”
“Listen up, everyone!” Suman hollered at the customers. “This man just helped someone in this line, so he gets his order first as compensation. If any of you have a problem with that, then you can go find yourself another café.”
A couple of baristas working the coffee stations laughed, and the customers mumbled briefly before going back to waiting patiently.
I looked at Suman. “Thanks,” I told her. “I’ll take a chocolate Frap with extra drizzle, and a hazelnut coffee, one sugar. Both to-go, please.”
“You got it.” She passed on both Annabeth and I’s orders to the baristas. “Wait period: six minutes.”
“Gotcha.” I looked at Annabeth.Can I get you a table?
She nodded, and let me walk her to an empty table-for-two near a closed window on the left.
As she settled down, she gestured for me to take a seat opposite her.
I obeyed.
You are very handsome, she signed.Are you married?
I chuckled.Thank you. No, not married yet.
She briefly placed an elegant hand under her chin, then moved her right thumb down her cheek once, followed by clasping the index fingers of both her hands together in one direction, and repeated the motion again, but in the opposite direction to say,Girlfriend.
I grinned.Yes, I signed, then slowly spelled out Rina’s name. I was still learning to shape the alphabets properly, so it usually took me a while to even think of their forms before I could actually Sign them.
That is a lovely name, Annabeth signed.
I smiled effortlessly.Yes.
Photo?she asked.
I nodded, and unlocked my phone before showing her my homescreen. It was a selfie of Rina and I. The sides of our heads were touching, and we were smiling at the camera like complete idiots because we were just so damn happy.
It wasn’t specifically a unique photo or anything; just one of the many we’d clicked together. But I simply loved this one because it was unfiltered and warm, and it made my heart thud a little faster when I looked at it.
Annabeth placed a hand on the center of her chest, and her eyes crinkled at the sides as she glanced at my phone first, and then at me.
You two are beautiful together, she signed.
Thank you, I told her.
