scarf-wearing stalkers in sight, so she left the iron sword in the backseat. If the faerie did show his face, the small knife she carried in her right combat boot could at least hold him off.
Jina crossed her fingers, walked past the fragrant display of spring flowers out front, and stepped into the store. She made a scan of the front checkout stands. And there he was. The Mystery Man.
A little cuter than she'd remembered. He wore the traditional Trader Joe's uniform: a Hawaiian shirt and khakis. He rung up bottles of fire roasted bell peppers and hand-crafted ale for a woman who looked to be getting ready for a Sunday afternoon BBQ. He placed her items in a paper bag, as she laid a plastic card on a stand originally intended for writing paper checks, decorated in metal coin currency from around the world.
Jina grabbed a bottle of Charles Shaw red wine and stood in his line.
" Hey," she said when it was her turn.
" Did you find everything you n... Oh, it's you. Hi."
He had trouble making eye contact and seemed embarrassed.
" I found everything I was looking for. Two-buck-chuck," she said as she handed him the bottle, "and you. Where did you run off to?"
" Well, after everyone laughed, I didn't want to stay... and I was late for an appointment." The register beeped as he scanned the bottle.
Jina wondered if they were talking about the same thing. "No one laughed."
" They did, after I told my story." He seemed avoidant as he placed the bottle in a narrow paper bag.
Jina gave him a puzzled expression. This was not how she'd envisioned this going at all.
" Are you sure?"
" Quite."
" Well, I would never laugh at you. I was quite interested in what you said, and disappointed you ran out without even leaving your name."
Trey shook his head. "I doubt that. This faerie stuff, it's just make-believe bullshit, right?"
"' fraid not. We're serious about pixies."
He laughed. She'd finally broken the ice. "Are you in the habit of stalking your support group attendees? Is that part of making them feel safe?" His voice had grown casual, joking.
" You caught me. I actually have two bottles of chuck at home already. This was just an excuse to chat with you."
" Well this bottle will be $3.26."
" Remember when two-buck-chuck was actually two bucks?" she asked, handing him a five-dollar bill.
" Yeah. Tastes like it should cost ten times as much."
" Would you like to share this bottle with me sometime?"
" Maybe. Lynne, right?"
" Actually, it's Jina. I give my middle name in those meetings."
His eyes grew wide. "What, you don't trust them either?"
" No, especially not the weird ones."
He chuckled. "What happened to respect?"
" Even I have my limits." He seemed to take this personally, and she clarified, "You are not one of the weird ones. I believe you, I really do... Trey." She made a point of looking at his nametag so he didn't get spooked by her sudden knowledge of his name. "You have questions about what you see, and maybe I can answer them."
Trey glanced at the clock, and thought about it for a minute. "Okay. I get off work in an hour," he said. "How about coffee instead of wine? There's a good place a couple of blocks around the corner. El Diablo Coffee."
" Yeah, I think I've been there before. See you in an hour."
She collected her bag and dropped it off in her car before heading down the street. She hoped he'd actually show. She was looking forward to going out to a nice Broadway restaurant for dinner with Sandy, and didn't want to wait around all afternoon.
As she walked, she thought she caught a glimpse of a man wearing a striped scarf, but when she turned her head there was no one.
At El Diablo, red devils glared down from bright yellow walls. In the murals, demons tormented sinful coffee drinkers by offering them more coffee.
Jina waited near the door. When Trey showed up, she ordered a Cortadito, two shots of espresso with caramelized sugar, milk, and foam. Trey ordered a Mexican hot chocolate. Most
Jina crossed her fingers, walked past the fragrant display of spring flowers out front, and stepped into the store. She made a scan of the front checkout stands. And there he was. The Mystery Man.
A little cuter than she'd remembered. He wore the traditional Trader Joe's uniform: a Hawaiian shirt and khakis. He rung up bottles of fire roasted bell peppers and hand-crafted ale for a woman who looked to be getting ready for a Sunday afternoon BBQ. He placed her items in a paper bag, as she laid a plastic card on a stand originally intended for writing paper checks, decorated in metal coin currency from around the world.
Jina grabbed a bottle of Charles Shaw red wine and stood in his line.
" Hey," she said when it was her turn.
" Did you find everything you n... Oh, it's you. Hi."
He had trouble making eye contact and seemed embarrassed.
" I found everything I was looking for. Two-buck-chuck," she said as she handed him the bottle, "and you. Where did you run off to?"
" Well, after everyone laughed, I didn't want to stay... and I was late for an appointment." The register beeped as he scanned the bottle.
Jina wondered if they were talking about the same thing. "No one laughed."
" They did, after I told my story." He seemed avoidant as he placed the bottle in a narrow paper bag.
Jina gave him a puzzled expression. This was not how she'd envisioned this going at all.
" Are you sure?"
" Quite."
" Well, I would never laugh at you. I was quite interested in what you said, and disappointed you ran out without even leaving your name."
Trey shook his head. "I doubt that. This faerie stuff, it's just make-believe bullshit, right?"
"' fraid not. We're serious about pixies."
He laughed. She'd finally broken the ice. "Are you in the habit of stalking your support group attendees? Is that part of making them feel safe?" His voice had grown casual, joking.
" You caught me. I actually have two bottles of chuck at home already. This was just an excuse to chat with you."
" Well this bottle will be $3.26."
" Remember when two-buck-chuck was actually two bucks?" she asked, handing him a five-dollar bill.
" Yeah. Tastes like it should cost ten times as much."
" Would you like to share this bottle with me sometime?"
" Maybe. Lynne, right?"
" Actually, it's Jina. I give my middle name in those meetings."
His eyes grew wide. "What, you don't trust them either?"
" No, especially not the weird ones."
He chuckled. "What happened to respect?"
" Even I have my limits." He seemed to take this personally, and she clarified, "You are not one of the weird ones. I believe you, I really do... Trey." She made a point of looking at his nametag so he didn't get spooked by her sudden knowledge of his name. "You have questions about what you see, and maybe I can answer them."
Trey glanced at the clock, and thought about it for a minute. "Okay. I get off work in an hour," he said. "How about coffee instead of wine? There's a good place a couple of blocks around the corner. El Diablo Coffee."
" Yeah, I think I've been there before. See you in an hour."
She collected her bag and dropped it off in her car before heading down the street. She hoped he'd actually show. She was looking forward to going out to a nice Broadway restaurant for dinner with Sandy, and didn't want to wait around all afternoon.
As she walked, she thought she caught a glimpse of a man wearing a striped scarf, but when she turned her head there was no one.
At El Diablo, red devils glared down from bright yellow walls. In the murals, demons tormented sinful coffee drinkers by offering them more coffee.
Jina waited near the door. When Trey showed up, she ordered a Cortadito, two shots of espresso with caramelized sugar, milk, and foam. Trey ordered a Mexican hot chocolate. Most
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