It was only when Hali stepped back inside her home that she felt safe. She entered through the side entrance that connected to the apartment above. There was also a door to the Cafe to the left of the stairs, but could only be opened by a key the tenants had.  

The door latched behind her with a click, and the sound of the wind chimes hanging on the door made a beautiful sound when it closed. Little charms hung from them, something that Conan had hung in all entrances, calling them family heirlooms.

There was a loud sound of someone coming down the stairs. When she looked up at the stairwell, Hali saw Ryan coming down with a big duffle bag and his bass. “Do you have a gig tonight?” Hali asked.

“Our singer got us a slot at a music festival in Guelph,” Ryan explained.

Hali pushed her body against the wall, letting him walk past her, but she still tried to hold the door open for him. “Is it a paid gig?”

He flashed her a smile, “Yes!”

That was a relief to her. Ryan had a habit of taking gigs for exposure and took days off work, making him late for rent. “All right, well stay safe, and don’t party too hard.”

He gave her a wave over his shoulder and went out the door, jingling the chimes again. With that, she continued up the stairs, turning left at the top to step into her bedroom. She dropped the heavy bags on her bed, and with great relief, rubbed her sore shoulder.

Hali walked over to the large window with its arched top and closed the curtains to give herself privacy as she changed. She tossed her clothes into the hamper beside her dresser across from her bed, then pulled out a clean pair of dress pants and her black button-up shirt. Taking her name tag from on top of the dresser, she adjusted it to her apron strap.

Hali grabbed a brush and dragged it through her thick hair, using a big scrunchy --one of the only things that would hold it all-- to tie it back. She then braided her ponytail and used a smaller, thick elastic to tie off the ends. She looked at herself in the mirror and nodded in approval. It was Tuesday night which meant two things in the cafe: It was live performance night, and it was one of two shifts she got to work with Anthony, the guy she was crushing on. 

Anthony was as charming as he was handsome, and a complete sweetheart to boot. Hali remembered when she first started at the cafe, she caught a cold and had to stay in bed, and he showed up with homemade chicken noodle soup. A gesture no other romantic partner ever topped for her. Anthony just had this amazing calming effect on her, and no matter what, she always felt like he was listening to her and that she could tell him just about anything. Not that she did share too much, “A young lady should have her secrets” as her mother had told her growing up. That being said, he was easily the biggest flirt she knew, but she never saw him flirt with anyone but her; this only intensified her feelings for him. 

 Hali wanted to ask him out, but with school being as hectic and insane as it was, it was better that she spent time on her school work and her job instead. She was just getting by as it was! Better that she waited until she graduated before she got serious with anyone.

When she walked down the stairs, she used her personal key to open the side door to the cafe, and was greeted by Anthony who flashed her his gorgeous smile. He had honey blonde hair and brown eyes. His jawline was sharp, and made him look so mature for his young age. Already she was swooning. “Hey there, Hali, how are you doing this evening?”

“I’m just perfect,” she beamed “And you?”

“Even better now that my Tuesday buddy is here,” he replied. “And doesn’t she just look beautiful.”

‘Oh, God, this flirt,’ Hali thought. ‘What a damn pity.’

“Why thank you. I’ll see you in a second, gotta clock in,” she stated.

She pushed open the swinging door to the back and entered the kitchen, heading over to the office, where Conan did all the paperwork. There was an ancient clock-in machine that was used to automatically stamp a worker’s time sheet. She grabbed the card with her name on it and slipped it into the machine. Once it punched her time down, she placed it back in the holding slot.

Conan was by the ovens taking out what smelt like fresh banana muffins. He looked over to her after placing them on the baking table. “I told Anthony that you two will have to help with the few dishes in the sink, plus, take the garbage out. Also, it’s Tuesday, so I have the sandwiches for the performers in the staff fridge. Don’t forget to get them for the musicians.”

“Of course,” Hali stated “Typical Tuesday with just a few extra duties at closing.”

“Good. You are the most experienced, so you’re the shift manager tonight. I will have my cellphone on me, but I have to run out,” Conan explained, motioning to the old styled flip phone hooked onto his pants. Hali got a good chuckle out of it whenever she saw it but she tried to bite her tongue. She must have given herself away, because Conan let out an exasperated sigh.

This was going to set off a classic “Conan acts too old” conversation. Though Hali didn’t know how old Conan was since he kept to himself, he looked no more than twenty-five. He always dressed in black slacks, pairing it with a long sleeved, pale coloured, casual button up. His sleeves were usually rolled up, and he wore the black uniform apron over top. His style was aged, and he acted like it; Sometimes even acting older than her grandfather!

“Yeah, yeah, you all think I need to upgrade, but this is all I need,” he stated.

“Oh, come on, just imagine, you could get an actual keyboard to type text messages instead of using the number pad,” she giggled “That phone is half my age.”

“It still works,” he countered. “And I never text, anyway.”

“One of these days, I swear I will teach you how to use an Android or iPhone,” she explained.

“Maybe in another twenty-one years,” he said, mentioning this because of her own age. He removed his apron, hung it on a nearby hook, and grabbed his jacket. “If you need anything, call and don’t you dare try to text me like you and Anthony did last week.”

“Yes, sir,” Hali said, heading out into the cafe.

Anthony had no customers, but he must have heard her playing with Conan because he chuckled, “Messing with him again?”

“I can’t help it, he acts so old,” Hali said. “He does the books by hand, the old clock-in machine, the egg timer. Even his kitchen tools are so old… I haven’t even seen him use a computer, or the television. He just listens to the radio in his room. Only early jazz and very early rock.”

Anthony shrugged. “Conan’s an old soul, as my grandfather would say.”

Despite the fact Hali teased Conan, he was a decent guy. She wouldn’t have thought she would end up living with a guy like him, or any of her other roommates aside from Ryan. He seemed like a typical young man, just entering his career after college and was a total slacker. He only lived with them because it was a favour Amy granted to her grandmother, the building owner —he was Amy's cousin on her mom’s side, and Conan only really ate and slept upstairs. The space he leased for his cafe was really his home. He was often up to open the cafe by 6AM, and worked it until 10:30PM; doing the baking in the kitchen until he went upstairs to sleep. And with Hali as a student, they were a strange group of people who just happened to make it all work. 

“He said no texting him tonight,” Hali replied.

“But did he say anything about video calls?” Anthony asked.

Hali snickered, “I don’t think his phone even has a crappy built-in camera.”

The front door to the cafe also had a chime, and it’s jingling broke up their joking. They greeted the customer, and their shift began. The musicians came on and played while more people came in to enjoy the music and the atmosphere while eating sandwiches and drinking coffee. Tuesdays always went by fast as they enjoyed the music between customers. Once the clock struck 10PM, they were able to close up. The work had been mostly completed, and all that they had left was taking the garbage out. Anthony had to catch his bus, so Hali volunteered to take it out for him.

“Just go home,” Hali insisted “I got this.”

“As a gentleman, I should do that for you,” Anthony offered.

“Women have come a long way. Besides, the garbage bin is outside the door. I don’t even need to leave the doorway to dump it. Go catch your bus!” Hali waved him away.

Anthony wished her a good night and left through the back door. Hali finished gathering the garbage into a neat little pile, picked up one bag, and headed to the door. She pushed it open just a few inches when she heard a loud growl just on the other side of the door.