Hot Chocolate, Muffins, and a Fresh Start

 It was about time to close up for the night. Carly knew James was going to swing by on his way back to Vanessa’s to grab some coffee. She got it ready to go before she started closing everything down for the night. She knew a lot had been going on with them, but didn’t know exactly what. Vanessa loved her coffee, but she’d been in, or sent James in, way more often for the last couple weeks. She wasn’t going to let him pay for this batch. If it were solely up to her, they wouldn’t pay for any of their orders. They had both helped her sister, Kara, out of a tough spot. Carly knew she could never repay them, even if they said there was no debt to pay.

It had taken a few visits to get used to how Vanessa was. She’d liked James immediately. It was his bond with Vanessa that made Carly give her a second look. They’d become friends. She had a lot of regulars, but somehow… those two had become a lot more like family. Even before they helped Kara.

Carly gathered up all the trash from the bins in the dining area and swept the floor. Mopping sounded like a job for another night. The floors didn’t look bad anyway. It could wait. She hauled the bags to the back door and pushed it open with her hip. Her father wasn’t thrilled she did this. He was afraid something would happen to her. Her father still couldn’t understand why she wanted the coffee shop at all, not with all the coin they had in the vaults.

She barely noticed the boy in time to avoid hitting him with the garbage bags. His eyes widened as he tried to scramble away from her, his back colliding with the dumpster. Carly didn’t think he was any older than 10.

“Hey, it’s ok,” Carly said, setting the other bag down. “Were you looking for… food?”

He looked around, still panicked. The only way out of the dumpster was to get closer to her since it was set in an alcove. He started breathing heavy as he realized he was trapped.

“Listen, I have muffins in there,” she said. “Would you like some?”

She held her hand out for him, and he stared at it for a minute. He clasped his hands together tightly as his eyes darted around again. He hesitantly nodded, and accepted Carly’s outstretched hand. She helped him climb back out of the dumpster and led him inside. Under the lights in the dining room, he was thinner than she thought. His skin was coated in grime and his hair was greasy and stuck together.

“Let’s get your hands cleaned up before you eat,” she said.

He just nodded. She wasn’t sure if he was able to talk or if he was afraid to. She got the water started and had him wait until it was warm before he used it. The water ran so dark it was almost black. She handed him some soap and he used it happily. His hands were starting to come clean.

“My name’s Carly,” she said. “I own this place. What’s your name?”

“Oliver,” he said softly, voice cracking.

“Well, Oliver, let’s get you a couple muffins and a hot chocolate.”

He nodded hesitantly, but she could see the excitement and hunger burning in his eyes. Carly took him behind the counter and pulled her stool up to it for him to sit on. She grabbed a couple of muffins and set them down in front of him before getting his hot chocolate going. She heard the bell for the door and as she turned around, Oliver dropped to the floor, pressing his back into the cabinet, pulling his knees to his chest.

“Hey, Carly,” James said as he walked up to the counter. “Sorry if I’m holding you up! It took longer to get away than I thought it would.”

“No, you’re not holding me up,” she said glancing down at Oliver. “I was getting the cleaning done for the night.”

“I won’t keep you,” James said. “Thank you for the late coffee. You’re the best!”

“Do you have a minute?” she asked.

“Yea, what’s up?”

Carly held up her finger and squatted down in front of Oliver. He was squeezing his legs tightly and rocking slightly. She wasn’t sure if he was afraid of people in general or if he was expecting someone else to be looking for them.

“This is my friend, James,” she whispered quietly to Oliver. “Did you think someone else was coming?” Oliver nodded. “I think you should meet my friend if you’re up to it.”

“Is he nice?” he asked softly.

“He is,” Carly said with a soft smile. “And one of his jobs is helping people when they are hurt or scared.”

“It is?” he asked, eyes wide again.

Carly nodded before standing and offering her hand to him. He hesitated, but took it. As he climbed to his feet. His eyes were still wide as he turned to face James.

“Well, hi!” James said with a bright smile. “I’m James.”

“Oliver,” he mumbled.

“I found him looking for food out back, so I brought him in.”

His eyes shifted to hers and he nodded slightly. James extended his hand to him. Oliver looked down at the state of his clothes and the grime still covering his arms and took a step back. James was in one of his signature 3 piece suits, tailored perfectly, and didn’t have a speck of dust anywhere on him.

“It’s ok, you don’t have to shake my hand if you don’t want to,” James said, his charming smile spread across his face. “It was very nice to meet you.”

“Oliver hid behind the counter when you came in because he was expecting someone else to come looking for him,” Carly said.

Oliver looked to the floor and didn’t see the darkness cross over James’s face. Carly didn’t know the whole story, but she did know he and Vanessa had a very hard start to life. If anyone could help get through to Oliver, James could.

“Is that so?” James asked. Oliver nodded, still looking at the floor. “Well, I happen to know a lot of really awesome people that don’t care much for bullies. My best friend, Vanessa, isn’t afraid of anything.”

“Really?” Oliver said in awe. “She isn’t even afraid of Larry Smalls?”

“She isn’t. And, because you are friends with Carly, I’m sure Vanessa would love to have a talk with Larry Smalls and tell him he isn’t to say a single word to you.”

“No way!” he said. “She could do that?”

“I’m on my way to see her now,” he said. “I’ll tell her all about it. Are you going to be around here a while? I’m sure Vanessa would love to meet you after she talks to him.”

“If he’ll let me,” Carly said. “I’m going to take him home with me, get him a shower, a hot meal, and a bed.”

Oliver whipped around to look at her. His mouth dropped open before he snapped it shut.

“You don’t need to do that,” he said softly. “I’m ok. If Larry Smalls is gunna leave me alone, then I’m ok.”

“I want to. We’re going to get you healthy and then I’ll help you figure out what to do from there,” Carly said. “Why don’t you go into the back and see if I have more muffins in there?”

Carly waited until he’d slipped through the door before turning back to James.

“Thank you,” she said. “He was petrified in that dumpster. I know I don’t have the time to spend with him to keep him with me, but I’ll find a family for him. They’ll be paid well to make sure he is happy and taken care of.”

“I’ll talk to Vanessa. I’m sure she will be down here soon to meet him,” he said. “Are you bringing him in here every day for now?”

“Yea,” Carley said, propping her hip on the counter. “I’m sure he’d love to meet her. She’s definitely better with kids than with adults.”

James chuckled and said his goodbyes as Oliver came back out. The rest of the cleaning could happen in the morning. She wanted to get Oliver a proper meal and a nice hot shower. She held her hand out for him and he followed her out the back door.