2,139 words, 11 minutes reading time.
Have you ever heard of a cafe that moves mysteriously with the rain? A cafe that only appears when night has fallen, and when most are sound asleep. It waits for the Grey storm clouds to clutter the sky. It waits for the roaring thunder to make its low and rumbling sounds. It waits for the water droplets to fall heavily from the sky. But most of all, it waits for you.
Yes, you! When you’re down and troubled, and you need some loving care, and nothin’… nothin’ is going the right way- wait no that’s a song lyric. Forgive me.
What I mean to say is that during your times of hardship, just when you think all hope is lost, Cafe Rain will always appear just when you need it. Not when you want it, but definitely when you need it. It appears in any place as long as the circumstances remain the same. Night. Rain. Thunder. And a hopeless somebody.
You might be walking the streets of your old town when it appears to you, in the place that another shop had once occupied. You might be sitting in your house when it suddenly appears in your backyard, out in the rain with the warm light from its signage, illuminating the cold and cruel night. Or you might be standing at the edge of a 57 story tower, on the verge of committing a life ending decision, when suddenly the cafe might appear to you.
Just like Evan over here.
Evan is a 47 year old man with two children. He just found out his wife cheating with his best friend. He wants to die.
Evan stands at the edge of his work place building. The rain has just started to lightly drizzle. The heavy storm is yet to be seen, but the early signs of it begin to show. he looks down the terrifying edge and the height seems to have an effect on him. His heart, once filled with emptiness, sadness and hatred is now filled with fear. The city below him seems tiny now. The people walking look like ants crawling around a concrete jungle and the cars seem to blur into insignificant shapes. His pulse seems to race in pure anxiety and now he seems to think again. The howling of the wind doesn’t seem to give him any consolation.
But then a thought occurs: this will never end will it? This hatred and unhappiness will only continue. His wife and him didn’t have a prenup, and she will take the kids, the house and probably even the dog. Poor old fucking Toto who’s blind, dying and old. Elizabeth doesn’t even like Toto!
The rain begins to pour even heavier, while the strength of the wind picks up even faster. Evan takes a deep breath taking in the smell of wet concrete. He moves his left foot to hover over the ledge, he closes his eyes, listening to the rain and the wind. The thunder begins to rumble and his body leans slightly forward. The feeling of his clothes, soaking wet and cold brings him a final shiver, but something makes him pause. This time its not the fear of dying.
On the back of his neck there’s a warm brush of air. He takes a step back.
He isn’t sure what he’s doing but his head swivels to look behind him. And there it is! A cafe on the rooftop of his building. It definitely wasn’t there when he had arrived. Had he gone insane? Its impossible for a cafe to be just sitting on a rooftop like this!
The small coffee shop looks warm and cozy in the rain. It had wide glass windows that revealed its comfy interior with mahogany tables and chairs. The shop had a fire place in its corner that lit the shop beautifully. There was a white and elegant counter top with a cash register and a completely white fluffy cat that had made itself comfortable sleeping there. The door had a ‘now open’ sign and the roof of the shop had a big light sign that shined brightly, showcasing its name. “Cafe rain,” Evan read out loud in complete disbelief. “what in the…”
Evan could see a young woman inside the shop, making her way toward the door. She was a brown skinned woman with loose curls that bounced freely as she moved. She had an umbrella in one hand and a notebook in the other, as she opened the door of the cafe. “Mr Evan Black?” She called out to the man. “Is that your name?”
Evan, who was still in disbelief, blinked as if he hadn’t quite heard her properly. “Mr Black?” She repeated.
“Ah… yes, that’s… that’s me alright,” he said sounding unsure. “how do you know my name?”
She opens her umbrella and slowly steps out of the shop and making her way to Evan. He can hear the echo of her boots tapping against the concrete as she walks, she wears a yellow raincoat and long black leggings. “Its a long story that should be discussed inside,” she says simply as she stops next to Evan, holding her umbrella up to shelter the both of them. Now that she stands next to him, he notices the very bright shade of green that her eyes have. “For now my name is Riv. I am the owner and barista of Cafe Rain. Shall we make our way in?”
Riv gestures politely for Evan to walk with her to the cafe. They make their way slowly to the cafe, with Evan far too shocked to say a word. Questions completely swirl his mind, but not one seems to leave his lips.
They approach the door and Riv smiles as she pushes the door open for Evan. “Welcome to Cafe Rain! Please make yourself at home,” she says warmly. Evan takes a step into the cafe. He looks down expecting to see his shoe prints on the ground but there’s nothing. No muddy stain at all.
He is soaked from head to toe and yet somehow, no water drips to the floor. In fact, he doesn’t seem to feel the moistness in the clothes that had clung to his body. He feels completely dry from head to toe. He runs a hand on his buttoned up shirt, than along his neck tie. It feels warm on him now. It feel as if he’s worn them straight out of the dryer. He runs a hand through his hair and its also completely dry.
Riv enters the cafe from behind him. “Please, have a seat.” she insists. “The quicker you feel at home, the easier my job will be,”
Evan gazes at her, confusion etched on his features. Before he speaks, he realises the Riv’s yellow raincoat has vanished, leaving her wearing a black long sleeved shirt. “your… job?” Evan asks, in which Riv doesn’t respond. She cracks a small but knowing smile. She waves her hand around the shop, gesturing for Evan to choose a place to sit. Clearly understanding, Evan looks around the cozy shop’s layout. He decides to sit down at the table right next to the window. He sits with his back facing the window as he faces toward the white counter.
Riv places her floral notebook in front of Evan and begins walking toward the counter. Behind it stands coffee equipment and a menu board that is hung right on the wall. “Mr. Black, Is it safe to assume you’d like a black coffee?” she asks behind the counter, as she places an apron on.
“well, um, thank you but no,” Evan replies. “I don’t have any of my money on me right now,”
“Oh no please, its free.”
Evan frowns at this. He presses his fingers to his temple and sighs deeply. “I get it, I get it!” he mutters in frustration. “I was about to commit suicide and now you’re throwing me a pity party,”
Riv seems to pause slightly, as if thinking of what to say. Her mouth slightly opens as she’s about to say something, but is quickly cut off. “She ain’t throwin’ you a pity party!” The cat chimes in with a deeply heavy male Scottish accent. Evans eyes burst open in shock and his jaw drops wide open. “Its the policy of this damned place! Everythin’s for free ya hear me! There ain’t nothin’ special ’bout you, you big ol’-“
Riv swats at him before he can even respond. The cat, quick and nimble, jumps off the counter before Riv can even touch him. He lands gracefully on the floor before hissing at Riv. “Stop it!” She demands, and Evan is sure he catches a glimpse of the cat poking its tongue out at her. “No really, just stop it! Stop it and apologize,”
Riv and the Scottish cat stare each other down for a moment. Finally the cat resigns with a momentary sigh and turns to Evan with the most wicked stink eye a cat could even muster. Now that the cat faces him, Evan realizes that the cat has blue eyes. Not in the way that its pupils are blue, but in the way that both its pupil and whites, are blue. His pupil holds a darker shade of blue, whereas the place where his whites should be, is replaced by a lighter shade of blue.
“I’m sorry,” he replies as he sits on the floor. “You are special. Everyone’s special. I’m special. You’re special. She’s special. We’re all special. Special in ar’ own ways I tell ya lad! Very special. Even the English! Their special too I guess, even if-“
“Okay that’s enough,” Riv says cutting him off.
Evan, feeling slightly overwhelmed with the fact that he’s sitting in a cafe that has services are free, wearing dry clothes that were completely soaked just a moment ago and listening to a talking cat… A talking cat with a Scottish accent, might I add, decided that maybe politeness was somehow important. “Erm. well… thank you for apologizing… cat. I appreciate it-“
“name’s David!” He hisses threateningly. “D-A-V-I-D. David!”
Riv rolls her eyes, clearly too aspirated to say anything. “So black coffee, yes?” Riv asks Evan for confirmation.
“Uh, yeah. That’d… that’d be great thank you,”
Riv turns around, making herself busy as she makes Evan his cup of coffee. Evan the cat moves from his spot on the floor to lay right next to the fire place. Evan glances down at the notebook that Riv had placed in front of him. His finger traces the golden floral design on its cover. Its beautiful and Evan can’t help but admire it.
“You know you can open it right?” Riv says softly from where she stands, back turned towards Evan as she concentrates on making his drink. His fingers gently open the notebook to find his full name written on the first page in a neat cursive. ‘Evan Nicholas Black’ it reads, and right under it is written his date of birth, 27th February 1978. Right next to that reads ‘date of death’ and what’s written there is covered by a black highlighter.
His frown deepens as he notices the hidden information. Does this book really know his date of death?
His eyes trail down to the bottom. There at the bottom was written in small print letters. ‘Date of being saved’, 3rd of April, 2025. Today’s date. Right under his personal information is written ‘problem?’ and after that, the rest of the page is blank.
He glances up at Riv who’s just finished making the cup of coffee. Its placed in a simple white ceramic cup and saucer. The strong aroma of good coffee wafts to his nostrils, and he takes a deep inhale, savoring the powerful smell. The steam billowing from the cup seems to have a shimmery tinge to it as it rises. Perhaps its how tired he is, but as he glances at the steam he’s sure he sees something in it. No, not something. Someone. Someone talking.
Riv carefully brings his cup of coffee and sets it on the table, in front of Evan. Evan glances down and into the cup of dark coffee. Something in it seems to swirl around. Its not an insect, and truth be told, there’s nothing physically floating in the cup. But he knows something is it it. As if sensing his thoughts Riv decides to open her mouth to speak. “its memories,” she tells him.
“Memories?”
Riv nods solemnly. “It holds your memories. Good and bad.” she explains. “To help you remember,”
“why would I need help remembering my memories? Their my memories,” Evan retorts, clearly not understanding, nor wanting to understand.
“Because,” Riv says softly. “if you had kept them in mind, you wouldn’t be here,”
Evan glances between Riv and the coffee. The thunder rumbles accompanied by a flash and a deafening bang. His fingers move to gently clasp it in his hands before bringing it to his lips to drink.
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-Marissa Wong.
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