Cocoa Remix

Chapter Eight: Squirrels

Avery withdrew her hand as James fumbled around in his pocket for his phone.

“Hello?” James said, looking vaguely irritated as he answered, though he was doing his best not to sound it. “Yes, that’s right. We’ll be there at 7:30. Yep. Thank you.”

Avery glanced down at her phone, and saw that it was nearly seven.

“Why don’t we finish these drinks? I don’t want to be late.” she said before taking a gulp of the champagne. Though a little dripped from the corner of her lips, she managed not to spill the bubbly down her shirt. She was happy to take small victories where she could get them.

She set the glass down on the counter after draining it, and her eyes fell on the box of chocolates that she’d set there when passing through to her bedroom.

“Think we have time for a quick dessert first?” Avery asked, pulling the box over and sliding a nail under the sticker that was holding it shut. She hated being late, but in a battle between her punctuality and her sweet tooth, the sweet tooth would win every time.

“Not the dessert I was hoping for…” James muttered just loud enough for her to hear, though whether he wanted her to hear what he’d said she wasn’t quite sure. He looked a bit flustered, and cleared his throat before pronouncing in his usual strong, clear voice, “I don’t see why not. Show me what you got.”

As if that phrasing wasn’t suggestive, Avery thought as she popped the lid open and selected a praline dream. 

“Pecans and caramel with chocolate.” said, holding the delicate confection out to him. It rested in the palm of her hand, still swathed on the bottom by a fluted brown paper wrapper.

James took the confection carefully between two fingers and smiled. “Great choice. I love pecans. My grandparents had a tree in their yard when I was a kid, though it wreaked havoc on the garden when squirrels would come around in search of nuts.”

“Really? We didn’t even have a porch garden when I was a kid. I’m not actually sure I’ve seen a squirrel in the flesh before.” Avery said, trying to think back. Were there squirrels in the park?

Avery selected a praline dream for herself as well. After debating whether or not to try and stuff it whole into her mouth, or take delicate ladylike nibbles, she remembered once again that James already knew what she was like. If she started behaving differently now, it would just make things weird. So, she opened wide and stuffed the slightly too large confection into her mouth whole. The wondrous, rich flavors swirled in her mouth, and Avery could briefly see shimmering motes of yellow light swirling around her.

As she chewed, her cheeks puffed up, and James snorted - distracting her from the sight of flavor dancing across her vision. It probably would have been more captivating had she not been so accustomed to seeing what she was tasted.

“You sure you’ve never seen a squirrel before? You look just like one.” James said, puffing his own cheeks out and rolling his eyes a bit in an unflattering imitation of her.

Avery nearly choked on the candy as she swallowed it down, and laughed a little as he patted her back. It felt good; maybe not as good as the press of his lips against her hand, but still - it was good.

“I can see why you wanted to go to that shop,” James said as he licked his fingers.

Avery nearly choked again at the way he lapped the remaining sugar from his fingertips, and tried to pass it off as just a continuation of her earlier fit. Damn him and his long, thick digits. 

“They’re pretty good, huh?” Avery said, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand.

“Incredible, actually. I wonder how hard it would be to make something like that at home.” James mused.

“James, you are a terrible cook, and I doubt you’d be any better at confectionary arts. Don’t you remember the company barbecue?” Avery said, shivering a bit at the recollection. She’d prefer never to smell such badly charred food again if she could help it. “You set the hot dogs on fire.”

“Ah, but isn’t that why we’re such great partners? You make up for the ways in which I lack.” James said, smiling winsomely at her.

“Is that a roundabout way of asking me to make you sweets?” Avery asked, her tone skeptical. “Buying them for you wasn’t good enough?”

“Store bought isn’t the same. I’d like to see what kind of twist you put on them.” James said knowingly.  He was pushing just the right buttons to get his way; Avery had always been a sucker for flattery. He headed toward the door, not wanting to push further lest he blow it.

“I’ll think about it.” Avery replied, her tone slightly distracted - though her wandering thoughts didn’t keep her from following along after him. Being a sucker, she was already thinking about what she could add to the praline dream to kick it up a notch, flavor wise. Maybe chili?

“Where exactly are we going?” Avery asked as he led her down a sidewalk, one hand over her eyes and the other on her shoulder to steer. She sounded slightly irritated.

They’d gotten off the train somewhere near Three Corners, a neighborhood well known for its trendy upscale bars and quirky restaurants. It used to be a working class neighborhood, full of small factories that produced everything from glass and ceramics to clothes and home goods, before production took a downturn and the gentrification really set in.

It was an area Avery knew well, being the foodie that she was. James must have been determined to surprise her with a reservation somewhere new, as he’d wound her around enough that even she didn’t know exactly where they were. She used to think she could tell where she was by the feel of the manhole covers that passed under her feet - each neighborhood having its own distinct design - but that was when she was younger, and before she’d started wearing heels all the time. Now, what she felt with her feet was mostly mild soreness. 

Currently, she felt like she’d been walking around the same block in circles, though she was pretty sure that hadn’t been the case. James had probably just spun her around a few times in an attempt to confuse her. It had been fun at first, but now the gag had been going on just a touch too long.

“Sorry,” James said quietly, so close that she could feel the humidity of his breath against the sensitive skin of her ear as he spoke. “Is it getting old? Don’t worry; we’re almost there.”

Even though she couldn’t see them, she knew that her ears had started burning. Was he trying to drive her crazy? If he was, he was succeeding on two different fronts. She swallowed, and decided not to complain any further.

They finally came to a stop, and James pulled his hand away from her eyes. She blinked in the dim light, and saw that they were standing in an alleyway, maybe a block from the busy triangular intersection that made three corners famous. In front of them was a nondescript, blacked out window next to a rusty looking metal door that had a small sliding shutter in it; currently the shutter was closed. There was an black industrial lamp fixture above the door; a red light  confined inside of a black metal cage, the light reflecting eerily against the flaking metal of the door.

Aside from the red light, which was just a bit odd, the only indication that this door was anything other than a backdoor to an industrial production space, or retrofitted hipster office, was the sign just below the sliding door. In a flowing, delicate script that clashed with the rough industrial design of the door, it read: Truly’s Place.