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Today was a beautiful Wednesday morning, warm enough to wear short-sleeved shirts. Spring was finally here, and Nico couldn't be happier.
Nico was on campus early and almost ready for classes. All he needed now was coffee.
He headed towards the campus's new café to get a chai tea latte and sit in their outside area to enjoy the weather.
He walked into the café and was instantly hit with the delightful coffee smell. He noticed there were only a couple of people in line, which was amazing considering it was usually full.
Nico got in line and couldn't help but notice the girl right in front of him. A brunette wearing a leaf-print sage green sundress that had a slit on the side. The dress clung to her delicate curves in a way that made her look glorious. On top of that, he could smell a hint of vanilla perfume coming from her.
This was definitely turning out to be a great day. He made a mental note to get her number after he ordered.
The line moved, and the girl in front of him started ordering, "Hi, can I get a caramel macchiato in a to-go cup? Thanks."
That voice was too familiar, but it couldn't be her, right? In that dress?
"That'll be $4.68." the girl working the counter informed her.
She swiped her card and the machine made an error sound. She swiped two more times, and it kept refusing loudly.
"I swear I have money in it. I don't know why it's not reading it..." Nico could clearly recognize the panic creeping into her voice. That girl was definitely Libby, the day had just started and she was already anxious.
She started to look through her coin purse and Nico moved to be right behind her.
"Can you please add an iced chai tea latte to her order? " he interjected.
Libby protested while turning around, "Hey! What is wrong with you?"
She saw Nico and furrowed her brows. "Varona! Even if I wasn't having problems with my card right now, what makes you think I would pay for your coffee?"
"Relax, Rhodes. I'm paying." Nico said while taking out his card and brandishing it to her.
"Oh.... Thanks." she uttered hesitantly.
Nico payed the order while Libby apologized to the cashier.
"I am so sorry about the card issues. Have a great day."
Nico walked to the outside area to find a good spot, and Libby followed.
"Gosh that was so embarrassing. Did it really have to be in front of him?" He heard her mutter behind him.
Nico chuckled. It was out of character for her to feel embarrased in front of him. Part of him hoped she was starting to see him as more than just annoying.
He found a great table that had enough sunlight and shade to be comfortable and sat down. Libby sat beside him and kept looking towards the barista.
"Hey, don't worry. They will bring our drinks here." Nico informed her.
"I know." She groaned.
"Then why do you keep staring, Rhodes?"
"Shut up, Varona! I am not staring."
The barista was on his way to the table when he noticed Libby sat up straighter. He set our coffees, "One iced chai tea latte and a caramel macchiato in a to-go cup."
"Thanks, Alex." She replied sweetly.
Nico turned to look at her. He had never heard her talk to anybody like that.
"You're welcome, Libs. Hey, everything ok with your card?" Alex asked concerned.
Nico felt his body tense at the interaction.
Libs? Does he even know her enough to call her that?
Libby's eyes widened, her cheeks turned red and she smiled sheepishly. "Yeah, I think I need to replace it already. The chip doesn't work sometimes."
Nico could not believe his eyes. She was not like this. Where was the headstrong Libby he knew?
"Next time, let me know." Alex winked at her and took his leave.
Libby's flush deepened and Nico's jaw dropped.
The barista was so brazen, saying that like Nico wasn't even there. He was the one that helped her, where had Alex been two minutes ago?
She watched as the boring-looking barista, who was slightly shorter than him, went back to his station.
"Rhodes!" He called for her attention.
"What?" She huffed.
"The barista? Really? Why don't you ever level up on the guys you date?"
She looked at him, furious at the comment. Well good, because he was angry himself for some reason.
"First, Varona, we are not dating and I don't even like him like that. Second, who gave you permission to comment on the guys that I talk to?"
"Talk to? Come on, Rhodes. You were so obviously flirting with him."
"Whatever, Varona. I can flirt with whomever I want to. I don't need to explain myself to you."
The coffee was starting to do some strange things to his insides. His face felt hot, and his stomach twisted. He needed to calm down.
"You're right. I think it may be too early for me to drink coffee. It's making me feel irritable."
"Isn't that your usual state?" She said with a proud half-grin on her face. She took her to-go cup and stood up.
Nico looked at Libby from head-to-toe, finally being able to see the front of the dress. It really was beautiful. It could make anyone look exquisite.
"I'll pay you back for the coffee some other time, Varona."
Nico leaned forward with his elbows on the table, a smug grin on his face.
"How about you take me out to dinner to pay me back for my generosity?"
She laughed a bit too loudly and leaned forward on the table using her hands as support.
"Very funny, Varona. It was just a coffee. I won't let you use me for a free fancy dinner."
"Don't you want to know what a good date looks like? You're a researcher, consider me your control group¹." He could show her a good time, and maybe she would finally raise her standards.
She rolled her eyes, straightened up and turned to leave.
"I'll see you in class, Varona." She said as she left.
He really loved seeing her riled up. He couldn't help feeling colder without their heated banter. Nico took a sip of his coffee to warm up while his gaze lingered on Libby. This was the first time he saw her in a sundress and he couldn't deny how well it suited her.
¹In science, a control group is a group of individuals or objects in an experiment that is used as a comparison to the experimental group. The control group is used as a baseline to measure the effects of the experimental treatment.