We turn left and cross a short bridge. There’s a man sheltered against the railing on the lefthand side, a banner stating he’s in the middle of a seven-day hunger strike.
“Someone is always doing something here, some of it legit and some not. Best to avoid making eye contact and keep walking. Otherwise, they suck you in or start following you.”
We cross the street at the end of the bridge. Niall stops just past a Starbucks at a donut shop called The Rolling Donut. Through the window I can see a display of, what looks like, two dozen different flavors of donuts. My stomach growls as I lean in to study them closer.
“You’re more than welcome to get coffee next door at Starbucks, but they make pretty decent coffee here. I make it a point to come here at least once a week for the donuts.”
We walk in and join the queue. The sheer number of delicious options is almost overwhelming. Lemon & Poppy. Kinder Bueno. Hell, even the Raspberry Jam looks better than anything I’ve seen at home. “Since you’re the expert, what do you recommend?”
Niall glances at the case. “Since I remember you don’t have any allergies, or that you haven’t mentioned them.” I nod in agreement. “How about I’ll order a few and we can share them?”
I watch Niall talk to the cashier, pointing at various donuts in the case, also ordering two caramel iced lattes. He didn’t ask what I wanted for coffee, and thank God he went cold because I’m through and through an iced coffee drinker year-round.
They call Niall’s name, so he goes to collects the donuts while I grab the coffees. Just as we step out the door a couple gets up from the closest table, which Niall immediately snags. I pass him one of the coffees while he sets about cutting into a few of the donuts.
“I got a few of my favorites to try,” Niall says, spinning the box my way. He selected a total of four donuts, with some having their innards spilling into the box. “I got the AppleCrumble because it’s delicious. I also think it’s like the most American flavor on the menu.”
“Rude,” I say, which Niall chuckles at.
He points to the second donut. “It probably seems basic, but I’ve never had a better raspberry filled donut than what they have here. Then you have the two on the right, the Lemon & Poppy and the Pistachio Vanilla. I’m not going to tell you which, but two of these are vegan donuts. I can almost guarantee you won’t be able to tell which are which.”
“Shockingly, these aren’t the first vegan donuts I’ve had. There’s a place in San Diego, Donut Bar, that has a gluten-free, vegan crème brûlée donut. On paper it makes no sense, but it’s still the best donut I’ve ever had.” I pick up one half of the Lemon & Poppy and, upon taking a bite, let out an audible moan.
“Good, right?” Niall grabs the other half and finishes it in one bite.
“Practicallyorgasmic.Lemon poppyseed muffins are one of our go-to items at—” And, like most days, the weight of grief out of nowhere envelopes me.
I can feel the tears coming. I look away from Niall, trying to direct my attention on the river. A few seagulls are flying low, just a few feet above the water. I always found it odd to see seagulls when not at the beach. Which, in hindsight, is a weird observation because seagulls really are everywhere.
“You can talk about him with me, you know,” Niall says, reaching across the table and placing his hand on mine. “I’m not going to break, and it might help to talk about it.”
“I know,” I say, grabbing the Pistachio Vanilla. I place it on the napkin in front of me, tearing it into smaller pieces. “I just haven’t been able to really talk about it to anyone.”
“It’s—”
“Wait,” I say, looking up from the now crumbled donut. “I never apologized for how I acted. Niall, I’m so sorry I ghostedyou. I know it doesn’t make it right, but know it wasn’t just you.” I pick up a piece of the donut crumb and toss it inside my mouth, the frosting melting on my tongue. “I literally shut down and barely left the condo up until coming here. Michael was my best friend, and these past few months I felt I had no one left.”
“You know that’s not true, right?” Niall says, gesturing towards himself. “I’m not going to leave you to fend for yourself in a new country. I also hope you realize how brave it is that you still decided to go through with all this.”
I laugh, wiping the tears from my eyes. “I’m not sure we can go with brave. I think we’ll go with I didn’t want to get fired.”
“Fair.” Niall takes a sip of his coffee, leaning back in his chair. “But I think we both know the universities would have been understanding.”
“Wait, aren’t you tea people here? Why are you drinking an iced latte?”
Niall rolls his eyes. “Stereotype much? We aren’t the Brits.” I look over at the two tables next to us, where almost everyone is drinking tea. Niall throws his hands up in the air. “Fine, we’re tea people. I just got a coffee because you needed one. This thing is fucking terrible.”
16
One tea later and the rest of the donuts in a bag to go, we’re now strolling back on the other side of the river. It always amazes me the sheer number of people that are out at any hour in a city. Well, I guess any real city. Sorry Hartford.
We pass a street sign for Fleet Street. I take a peek down, the name ringing a bell from when I did some research months ago. There’s a pub a bit down on the right, where a few people are sitting outside drinking a beer.
I look down at my watch, noticing it’s barely after nine. “Are the pubs really open this early? I’m not trying to stereotype again or anything, but c’mon.”
Niall looks over, waving in the direction of the pub. The two guys at the furthest table wave back. “Erm no, the Palace Bar is not open. Not yet, but should be in about an hour or so. Looks like those two may have picked up some beer from that Tesco and are getting a head start.”
“So, wait…you don’t know them?”
