Kitten

1. Hazel

A/N
I wanted to surprise y'all on my 30th birthday with a sneak peek of what I been cookin up 🙊 put one in the air wit me & enjoy the start of a new story 🤍🥹 So excited!🤭

Lex

Do you believe in love at first sight?

Yeah, me either. At least I didn't. Until I saw her, anyway.

As cliche as it sounds, the minute I laid eyes on her untainted chocolate skin, so dark I knew she was as sweet as she looked, I fell in love. 

She hadn't said a word to me, barely even gave me a second glance but I saw her and everything in me wanted to get up from my sketchbook and worship the ground she walked on.

Maybe I'm dramatic, or maybe I'm a simp. Call it what you want. But I'm in love.

In that split second I got lost in the richness of her ebony skin, and I forgot how to breathe. I placed my pencil on the table and leaned back in my seat, allowing my eyes to travel freely as she ordered from the menu with a smile.

She was well dressed in fancy heels and a cream-colored pencil skirt. The white button-up made her dark skin seem so much purer against the color and damn, with long black hair and perfectly arched eyebrows, this woman looked nothing short of a goddess.

I'd gladly kiss her feet as one deserves.

I shake my head and laugh at myself, always falling in love way too quickly when I see a beautiful older woman. Maybe it's an assumption, but from my small corner of the cafe, I can tell she's older than me. By more than a couple of years, if I'm right.

My stomach flutters when she turns and catches my eyes tearing into her like a $500 steak.

Quickly, I drop my gaze back onto the drawing I'd spent the last two hours creating. It isn't anything spectacular, just something to get my mind off of going home to an empty apartment now that I'm single again.

I smile at the beach house and shoreline I created on paper. The beach has always been the perfect escape for me so whenever I could, I would draw something beach-related even if it was something simple like a doodle or two.

My stomach almost falls completely to the ground when the smell of vanilla with a hint of...something I can't put my finger on wafts past my nose lazily. The perfume is so intoxicating, that I can't stop myself from looking up to see the goddess from before a few feet away from me, waiting for her food or coffee to be ready.

She was so close but still, so far away. I'd never seen legs so long and beautifully toned before, I was in a trance. And then I heard the faintest little giggle.

"Close your mouth, love. It isn't polite to stare." I wasn't prepared for the foreign accent to accompany a voice so soft and sweet.

I blush and close my mouth, embarrassed that I was caught red-handed staring like a stalker, again.

"Relax, I am only joking with you, sweetheart."

The longer I stare at her highness, the harder it is to form a sentence. I have never been struck silent like this but it only makes her laugh lightly.
She smiles again and then turns to walk away but I don't want her to leave yet. So I open my mouth and say the first thing that comes out.

"That's never happened before."
Thankfully, the woman turns to face me, giving me the perfect view of her rosy high cheekbones.

"You being caught staring or someone calling you out about it?" Her accent brings fire up and down my neck so quickly.

"You're so beautiful, I couldn't use my brain when I was staring at you." Wow, smooth one. I mentally facepalm myself and promise to rip my hair out later.

My insides start to tremble when I watch her smile go from curious to mischievous.

"Charming." She chuckles and looks back at the counter where her food and steaming cup are waiting for her.

I swallow hard and think of a reason to get this beautiful woman to stay just a minute longer. Up close, I can tell she's older than me. Easily in her thirties, maybe.

"You have nice cheekbones." I blurt out as she starts to back away awkwardly. That brings another melodious laugh out of her, covering my skin in goosebumps.

"You are quite charming and probably say that to all the girls, assuming that's what you're into."

I shrug and pray to God for half an ounce of confidence.

"I think I'd prefer a woman over a girl." I laugh nervously. "Plus, I've never seen a woman like you before."

My eyes travel over the curves I didn't see before. She isn't thin and isn't extremely tall but still, she's taller than me, with boobs twice as big as mine. I have to force myself with everything in me not to drool, the look so warm and inviting.

The confidence surrounding this mystery woman brings a relaxing smile to my face. I bite my lip and sigh sadly when I see the big rock sitting on her ring finger.

"Thank you, I needed that smile."

"I'm here most days of the week, come find me when you need another one." Oh my God!! I can't believe I just said that to her and without stuttering like a fool!

I almost miss the faint smirk on her face when she nods and walks off to get her food.

Sitting thoroughly surprised myself, I can't ignore the face-eating grin itching to escape as I watch the woman of my dreams leave the cafe. For a few minutes, I'm too stunned to move.

I inhale and get butterflies when I can still smell her perfume in the air. I've gotta get a grip on myself. Something like this, okay, maybe not as intense as I'm making it out to be, but I always get in these thirty-second relationships and then I'm left aching for more when I never see them again.

That's the kind of lover I am, nonexistent really. I fall for women from the background because it's easier that way. It hurts less getting my feelings involved when it's one-sided from the start.

Just like it does every time I'm alone with my thoughts, my brain brings me into a bad mood. Suddenly, I don't want to draw anymore, and laying in bed for the rest of the night sounds like a dream.

So I pack up my drawing bag, close my favorite sketchbook, and grab my phone. When I'm ready to go, I search in my bag for my keys and then scold myself as I remember that I walked to work this morning.
Midnight Bean is a popular cafe, one of only a few in the city that have a calm and friendly type of vibe mostly older people look for, and besides it being one of my favorite places to go, I've been working there for almost six months and I love it.
When I interviewed for the barista job, I was fresh out of college and needed something to pay the rent. I didn't expect to make as much money as I do but now I'm able to afford my one-bedroom apartment. And even though it isn't one of the many luxurious apartments and townhouses being built on what feels like every block, it's more than what I had growing up with.

I walk down the quiet city streets of downtown Cincinnati. Since it's close to two am, there aren't a lot of cars out but there's enough that I check my surroundings with every other step.

As many movies and crime shows that I watch from time to time, I'm paranoid that something will happen to me being in a city with no family. I'm scared someone will see a young black girl in her twenties, out in the world with no guidance and see easy prey.

So I stay to myself and refuse to let anyone in, even if it is extremely lonely like tonight...