Coffee . . . with strings attached.

[B.D. Adams]

(While the post technically is not closed - you may have your character come into the shop if you like - this does not mean that my character will pay your character attention. If it doesn't catch his eye, or seem worth his effort, he will ignore it. With that being said.... on with the post.)

Things were as busy as anyone would expect them to be on a Thursday evening at one of the many Rhy’din Starbucks locations in the area. He hardly came here but, when he did, the scene was nearly always the same. Business type patrons, adorned in their suits with brief cases equipped, occupied the tables and seating along the wall. That is the central location of the merchant’s outlets and those very outlets were filled with laptop plugs. The glow from the screens radiated off of their faces and even illuminating their beverage containers.

There was a line at the counter that was ten people deep and nearly all of them were displaying a guise of suedo patience. Some constantly shifted from one foot to the other, some had their arms crossed and took deep, aggregated breaths in their attempt to stay still. From time to time someone would look at their watch, pager, cell phone, checking the time only to be disgruntled by the fact that minutes had passed and they were still standing in the exact same spot as the last time they checked.

The cause for the increasing annoyance of those waiting in line was due to the poor customer service being delivered by the staff. Behind the counter the four members of staff Were doing anything but tending to the customers. One was obsessively cleaning a pitcher, another was stocking and un-stocking the dessert counter, one was counting the money, and the last was sweeping the floor. Each one of them appeared totally oblivious to anything else that was going on.

The ones who had already been served would cast a glance to the commotion - for those waiting in line were now starting to express their aggravation in verbal terms - but otherwise went back to whatever it was they were doing. What did it matter to them if suddenly there was a delay in service, they had their orders and no one was breathing down their neck wondering when they would relinquish their spot.

Everything had been going smoothly until the man wearing blackout shades, dressed in baggy denim and a thin cotton tee was served a grandé Mint Mocha Chip Frappuccino blended coffee with Chocolate Whipped Cream. When the man had taken a seat at one of the few available tables left; that is when service had been interrupted.

One hand on his drink the man settled back in his chair and had begun to trace circles on the table. It was a simple trick of creating an anchor at one point for the puppets that were on the other end. The puppets being, of course, the four staff members behind the counter.

He ensnared those four – quiet easily at that – simply because he wanted to see how the people in the shop responded to the delay and, he also wanted to test out this particular ‘gift’ he had been given. He had tested it on a single person before and, even though he wasn’t one for crowds, he wanted to test its strength when in a group. So far it was working like a charm.

The man with the blackout shades was of a mind to stay here, in the coffee shop, for a few hours. One of the people in the line was starting to get violently aggressive with words, it would be interesting to see what would happen if a fight broke out, or what people would do about the non responsive staff. Could he ensnare more than just these four?

A ‘gift’ that had to be explored and, once he was satisfied, he would put this gift to good use.

There was someone who would be dying to see him.