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The night sky was starlit and bright outside of the windows and I rubbed a hand over my chin, wondering if it was too late in the day to make some coffee. It would certainly help my case with Sadie, and I knew a hot coffee would make her feel better. I pulled a new bag of Maureen’s grounds from the cabinet and I heard Sadie perk up behind me, shifting on the couch and making it squeak softly. I smiled while I filled the coffee pot and then dumped it into the water reservoir, taking my time scooping out perfect portions of the dark coffee grounds. I was getting better at making coffee when I had really not even cared to have it before. I needed it now, just like I needed her. Sadie’s coffee maker began to percolate, mingling with the low sound of the TV, and she was definitely looking at me now, though I pretended not to notice, scrolling through my phone casually as I leaned against the counter. Once the coffee was well and truly going, I stood up straight by the counter. I lit a few pumpkin candles that I knew Sadie liked, putting them on the coffee table and then the counter and enjoying the soft ambiance as they flickered over the walls of the apartment. Sadie looked at them suspiciously and I just shrugged, moving back to the kitchen to watch the coffee finish brewing in the pot. I pulled two mugs from the cabinet, poured both of us a hearty helping, and brought one to Sadie, standing in front of her to let her take it. She stared up at me and reached out slowly to grab the cup, her shoulders tensed under my shirt. She squeezed her hands around the mug, letting out a breath like I knew she would. Coffee would always be a good way to diffuse a situation and I decided that I should keep that fact in mind for future situations where it might come in handy.
“Thank you,” Sadie told me curtly without looking up, taking a sip of her coffee.
I nodded, shoving my hands into my pockets, and left her alone on the couch with her mug of coffee. She was still upset with me, and I supposed that she most likely had every right to be.
The doorbell rang shrilly, and Sadie jumped, looking suspiciously over at me for the first time in an hour. I grinned at her, waggling my eyebrows, and made my way to the door, opening it with my wallet in my hand. A delivery boy stood there, waiting patiently with a paper bag full of cardboard takeout boxes. I handed him a twenty, nodding at him to keep the change of whatever was left from the order. The kid grinned widely at me, passing the boxes over and then heading back down the hallway with a skip in his step.
“Who was it?” Sadie called from the couch. I could tell that she was trying her best to sound disinterested.
Without answering, which I knew probably wouldn’t help, I turned around with the boxes in my hands and put them down on the table in front of her. She stared at the bags warily, as if the takeout boxes were going to spontaneously combust right in front of her.
I sat down on the couch beside her with a huff of laughter and pulled the boxes out.
“Bacon cheeseburger with pepper wedges and a side of chicken noodle soup,” I told her brightly, watching as her face lit up with surprise and then pure joy.
“Connor, thank you, I was basically starving after everything,” Sadie exclaimed, smiling beatifically as she dug into her food. I was so glad to hear her speak and to have her looking at me that nothing else seemed to matter. Sadie stuffed a pepper wedge into her mouth. “How did you know?”
“I just assumed with all of that anger, there might be some hunger in there somewhere too,” I replied playfully, bumping my shoulder gently into hers.
When her brows knitted together in a soft frown, I cleared my throat. “And also, I’m sorry that I scared you, Sadie, really.”
Because that was the whole thing, wasn’t it? She had been terrified and that was why she was upset. I would like to have thought that I understood Sadie well enough then to realize that she had been worried about me and that was exactly why she was angry with me. It was all about her fear and how close I had been to the bad end of a gun. I still almost couldn't even believe that we had almost been mugged and nearly fulfilled a whole slew of New York City stereotypes. I didn’t want to be the reason that Sadie was afraid to step out of her door or to let anyone close to her again.
