Summer had come to New Atlantis. Being a man-made island in the north Atlantic had some perks towards keeping the temperatures lower than they might have been elsewhere, but there was still a mild heat throughout the city. People were out and about the city, enjoying the clear skies and some taking advantage of their seasonal relief from studies and other things.
A man who was clearly overdressed for the weather stepped into The Brewer’s Cafe. Opting for a long jacket, a short top hat, and smart professional attire where others were wearing shorts and casual tee shirts, he looked toward the counter and saw a tray of drinks being set aside and presumed it was what he had ordered ahead. Charlie waved at him from behind the coffee bar.
“Right on schedule, Jack!” she called.
“I just finished putting together your order.”
“Appreciated as always, Charlie,” the man named Jack commented.
“I would like to grab a few pastries to add to it though.”
“Not a problem!” Charlie said.
“We have a batch that just came out if you’d like some of those. My brother is back there perfecting his recipe.”
Jack nodded with a smile.
“That sounds delightful.”
Charlie stepped away from the counter and disappeared through a nearby doorway. Jack leaned on the counter, patiently waiting. A few minutes later, the girl returned with a paper bag and set it next to Jack, along with a carrier tray with four disposable cups of different beverages.
“Two iced javas, one black tea with cream and sugar on the side, and a hot black coffee,” she listed.
“Plus four summer berry scones, which are on the house,” she added with a smile. “You being such a frequent customer and all.”
Jack tipped his hat in thanks.
“My complements to you and your family for keeping such a fine establishment to merit my frequency. My colleagues and I greatly appreciate it.”
Having prepaid for his order, he collected his items and left the building, heading towards the southern end of the sector.
Just as Jack had left, Adam came to the counter from the kitchen.
“Who was that?” he asked as he dried his hands.
“Jack. He comes in every other day with mostly the same order,” his sister replied.
“I think he owns a big business or something at the end of our sector.”
“Oh, I've seen the name on the queue a few times,” noted Adam.
“Though somehow I haven't seen him in person yet.”
Charlie glanced over at Adam with a mildly annoyed expression.
“Don't worry, I'm not interested in him… he is like, Cody's age,” she stated.
Adam grinned.
“Good, I wouldn't want to get Cody and I to have a chat with this Jack fellow anyway,” he said with an air of older brother mischief.
“Speaking of Cody,” Charlie interjected.
“Isn't he supposed to be dropping you off somewhere? Specifically somewhere away from me so you won't be so nosey?”
Before Adam could reply, Cody walked in through the front door in his full uniform. He promptly marched to the front counter. Without missing a beat or even moving from her spot, Charlie picked up a covered to-go cup and set it in front of her oldest brother just as he reached the bar top.
“Oh-nine hundred hours on the dot, bro,” Cody said firmly.
“Let's move.”
“Sounds like someone hasn't had their triple-shot espresso yet,” Adam said with a laugh.
Cody pulled the lid off of his cup, swirled the contents slightly, and tipped the cup back and drained it.
“Now I have,” he said as he handed the cup to Charlie.
“Let's go.”
Adam put his hands up in defense.
“OK, ok… no need to demonstrate your superiority over caffeine to us!” he said as he quickly untied the apron from around his waist.
Adam ran out the door after his brother, who had already gotten back into his car and almost sped off just as soon as Adam was in his seat.
“Where’s the fire?” Adam asked as he quickly buckled himself in.
“You’re in quite a rush this morning…”
“I need to get back to the station as soon as I can,” Cody said flatly.
“I have more work to do.”
Adam checked the date mentally in his head.
“It’s Thursday,” he stated.
“I thought you’d be off today.”
“Normally yes, but not today,” Cody said without giving any more information.
The rest of the ride went in silence. Cody dropped his brother off at the apartment complex where Lance lived.
“Hey, don’t work too hard…” Adam said, half joking as he exited the vehicle.
Cody gave a nod and drove away.
Adam shrugged and used his phone to open the door to the building, having been given access from Lance. He quickly climbed the flights of stairs to the appropriate floor to find Lance walking out of his door with what looked like a… microwave? Lance knocked on the door across from his and waited for a response. He gave a short nod to Adam just as an older woman opened the door.
“Oh! Hello, Lance,” she greeted.
“Is that mine?”
“Good as new, just as I promised,” Lance replied as he held out the appliance.
“It just needed some adjustments to the control board.”
“Thank you so much!” the woman said as she received the microwave.
“Oh, I’ve been meaning to ask: it seems to be quieter over there the last week or so… are you doing ok?”
Lance nodded.
“I just got a new place for a workshop, and have also been busy at work,” he replied.
“Everything is fine.”
The woman nodded.
“Just wanted to make sure,” she said.
“Wait right there. I have something for you.”
She entered back into her apartment and came back moments later with a small bag of cookies and what looked like a gift card.
“For your trouble! I made these myself this morning and I know you like your coffee!” she said.
Lance received the items and thanked her.
“Side-hustling a repair business for peoples broken stuff?” asked Adam once the lady had closed her door.
“Not entirely, but I can’t help it either,” Lance said.
“Can’t turn down the pay either, I’ve been smelling these cookies all morning!”
Adam laughed.
“Sounds more like a torture method if you ask me!” he commented.
“Is there anything else to move?” he added in a lower tone.
“I just took the last box of supplies down to my vehicle,” Lance said.
“I am keeping some of the old system relays here just in case.”
“Seems like a good idea,” Adam nodded.
“Shall we then?”
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