Faithless and Fertile

It all started in my favorite coffee shop downtown next to the mall. I was hunched over my laptop occasionally sipping my latte, fingers flying across the keys. The late afternoon sun caught in my hair, turning the red strands into a cascade of copper waves. I didn't notice him at first—I was too absorbed in the story I was writing. My mug of coffee was nearly empty, steam curling lazily from its surface.

Then a shadow fell across my laptop screen. I glanced up, expecting to see the barista checking in. Instead, I saw alex— my breath catches slightly as I notice he is very cute. his hands resting on the back of the chair opposite me, eyes flickering between my face and the screen.

"I hope I'm not interrupting." he says with a smile.

i sit up straight slightly puzzled "um.. no i guess not i say sitting back in my chair. something I should have done hours ago since my back is acting like hunched over my laptop is the new normal and the rigidity of sitting correctly is wrong.

he leans forward slightly, his fingers nervously drumming against the chair back as he studys me with quiet intensity. The way his gaze settles on my face tells me this isn't just casual curiosity—there's a purpose behind this approach. but unlike all the other guys who hit on me he was nervous, shy even...and i found that made him even cuter

"I noticed you've been writing for a while," he continues, his voice carrying a nervous timbre that pulls me out of my own thoughts. "Is it something you do often?" His question hangs in the air between us, charged with possibility. The coffee shop hums around us—chatter from nearby tables, the hiss of steam wands, the clatter of dishes being cleared.

I clear my throat and smile " um yeah actually I'm a writer...well I've only written two books so far but there are more on the way." i gesture to the empty chair he nervously leans on.

"I recognized the look," he says, resting your arms on the table. "That deep focus. It's how I get when I'm in the middle of something that really matters to me." his bright nervous eyes flick down to my laptop screen briefly before returning to my face. "What are you working on right now? Another book?"

The question hangs between us with such casual sincerity that I don't immediately register the intimacy of sharing work-in-progress details with a stranger.

I don't immediately tell him what I'm writing. first because its such a personal matter to me and second i would be embarrassed sharing the erotic books I write in such a public place. If i read out loud the chapter I'm working on I would probably be arrested. Instead I conversation elsewhere.

We talk so long and are so immersed in our own world we don't even realize how late it is. That is until a barista walks up to us clearing her throat "Um sorry you two were are closing in like 2 minutes.." she says clearly not a fan of confrontation. we walk out together and Alex walks me to my car. we exchange numbers and within a week we are changing our relationship status on social media to "Seeing someone".

Two years later on a late fall afternoon we walk into the same coffee shop we met arm in arm. The leaves outside the window falling from the trees in a beautiful cascade of brown, orange, and yellow. its surprisingly quiet no machines humming loudly, no hiss of steam wands whirring in the background. I notice everyone looking at us and I check my jeans and sweater trying to see if something is wrong. Alex says how much he loves me and gets on one knee my heart racing hands moving to my mouth in shock, tears welling in my eyes then he says the words.

"Katyln Ann Marie" Alex says sweat forming on the top of his forehead, a ball of nervous energy that I've loved since we met. "Will you marry me?". I say yes with tears in my eyes as he puts on my modest engagement ring. The entire coffee shop cheers and claps as we embrace in a hug and kiss.

Now a year later to the day today its time. The wedding planned meticulously by me, my mother and despite my mothers objections, Alex. Both of us had good and fun bachelor/bachelorette parties. While I told him I didn't mind if the guys took him to the strip club an I meant it. I've never really been that threatened about Alex looking at other women. Even on our one year anniversary I was standing in the kitchen of our small two bedroom apartment wearing lingerie and heels when he got home. After dinner I put in a porn movie that i had bought us to watch. We tried some of the things in the video and even have recorded ourselves a few times, those videos hidden away on our laptops. I still don't know what they did but I know he had fun and that's all that matters. My own bachelorette party was fun as well but no time to remanence on that for now (Though I definitely will later). For now I had a wedding to get to...mine!