Leonard gave a kurt nod as the younger man gave in to his suggestion && decided on his usual order. He’s memorized it by now, probably would’ve made it before the other even made it to his counter if he wanted to but he’d decided to wait && see if that’s what he was going to order. As soon as the other pulled out his debit card, the older man raised his palm straight up in a stop. “Don’t bother. It’s on me.”
This was something he usually did at least once a day. Find a sad sap && pay for their drink. The expression on their faces were priceless. All the other employees had the option to do this, however Len was the only one who did it. Technically, he didn’t even need to work for money. His side job usually pays the bills. This was practically just a hobby to him. He loved making coffee && it kept him busy during the day. He’d be restless, otherwise.
“Wait, really?” Cisco paused, not about to say no to free coffee. He grabbed a few ones from his wallet and stuffed them in the tip jar. “Thanks, man. It means a lot.”
Cisco’s demeanor didn’t change at all. He was so upset that his friends didn’t show. “So what’s your name? I’d like to know yours if you know mine.”
He nodded lightly in confirmation. Not like he was lying. Wouldn’t that be amusing, though. The next second && there was a challenging glint in his eye the moment the kid gave his thanks. The couple of bills dropped into his tip jar was definately surprising but he gave an appreciative smile at the action. Not many people did that but there were a couple rays of sunshine who did. He supposes Cisco was one of them. Tilting his head slightly down, he quipped smartly, “I can imagine.”
A question then was made of him && it was going to be a long shift for him, so he obliged the younger man. At first he gave a slightly dumb expression. Then he looked down at the nametag on his shirt. Then looked back up at the kid who apparently wasn’t all that perceptive. Pointing at the metal nametag pinned to his shirt, he expressed, “Says right here. ‘Leonard.’ ”
“Oh right. Sorry. I totally didn’t see your name tag.” Cisco stated, his fingers absentmindedly playing with a string on his sweatshirt.
It seemed to be one thing after another for Cisco these days. College classmates hated him, parents didn’t seem to want him around, coworkers blew him off. He was beginning to lose what helped him roll out of bed each morning.
Cisco backup 