“You could just say thank you.”
“Thank you,” he repeated dutifully.
Leon took exactly five very long sips of coffee before he noticed me watching him. “What?”
“Nothing, sorry.” This must be why Jake only wanted to catch Leon between certain hours of the day. “It’s just that—”
“I’m the chill member? The laid-back, easygoing one?” He took another very long sip of coffee, draining it down to half a cup. How on earth did hedothat? Wasn’t his mouth on fire? “The live-and-let-live guy throwing up peace signs and chakra hand gestures?”
“Yeah,” I said. “That.”
“I will have you know I can beverychill,” he said, allprim-like. “It just takes prep work and concentration, that’s all. So much effort goes into being easygoing,” he continued, gravely serious. “Do you know how hard it is to practice mindfulness when there’s a toddler constantly kicking the back of your seat?”
“I’m going to go with super hard.”
“Yeah, super hard. Like their kicks.”
“Well, thank you for coming, anyway,” I told him sincerely.
“After I actually called Jake, he told me about how your café needed help. He doesn’t really ask any of us for favors, you know? It got me curious.” Leon frowned. “I can’t think of any other reason why I’d agree to leave for a flight at five in the morning.”
“Because you love your friend?”
“Yeah, probably.” He took another long sip of coffee. His eyes were starting to look more alert. Less serial killer Bambi and more adorable, makes-friends-with-bunnies Bambi. “You’re not supposed to pick a favorite bandmate, but Jake’s mine. Can’t communicate like a normal human being, but he’ll sneak out past security to buy me coffee even when our manager bans us from going out while we’re on tour, so I’m taking it as a sign he’d die for me. I wouldn’t want to be in the band without him... even if it meant being dragged out of bed less.”
The bell above the café door chimed. Too focused on guzzling his coffee, Leon didn’t even bother turning around, but I looked up to see Jake barreling inside.
“Lucy,” Jake said in a rush as he gripped his phone, “I got here as fast as I could. I just got a text and apparently Leon is—”
I motioned to the boy at the table.
“Already here,” Jake finished. “Okay then.”
“Late to meet up as per usual, Moody,” Leon announced with no real heat, and raised his cup to toast him.
Jake ignored this. Instead, he took in Leon’s wrinkled trench coat with a scrunch of his nose. “Why are you dressed like that old detective in that show my mom watches reruns of?”
“Columbo,” I laughed, while Leon groaned in protest. “I know, right? Although, personally, I went with Inspector Gadget.”
“Yeah, I can see that.” Jake nodded. “But I definitely would not trust him with gadgets. He almost took out my eye with a can opener on a tour bus.”
“Hey,” Leon protested, glaring at Jake over the rim of his cup. “Imissed.”
“And now my life flashes in front of my eyes every time I need to open a can,” Jake replied, dragging a chair over between Leon and me. He took a seat in it backwards, his arms casually draped over the back of the chair. “But, really, what’s with the trench?”
“You said to come in disguise.”
“Yeah, not in costume.”
“I thought it’d be funny,” Leon moaned, draining the last of his coffee. “I had a whole bit planned out where I was going to knock on your motel door and pretend to be an inspector. And as you were peering through the peephole, I was going to announce you were under arrest.”
Jake nodded seriously. “For being criminally handsome.”
“No, something believable,” Leon grumbled, making Jake laugh. “I packed a fake badge and everything. Unfortunately, that was before I woke up early and realized the prank would takefarmore effort than I wanted to make at this hour. Now I’m regretting every life choice I’ve ever made.”
I glanced at Jake. “Is he always this dramatic?”
“Give Leon a minute for the coffee to kick in,” Jake advised. “He transforms from a cranky gremlin to a docile little lamb.”
