in the back of a quiet corner cafe, a man sat with several books spread on the table, a grid-lined notebook directly in front of him, and a number two pencil in his hand. he removed his horn-rimmed glasses, rubbed his eyes, and took a sip of his coffee--black--before returning the spectacles to their throne on his perfect nose. he leaned hard into the back of his chair and looked out the floor-to-ceiling window. it was perfectly overcast; not unusual for this time of year.
a city bus pushed through the intersection. it stopped and the doors flipped open releasing passengers to the fresh air. people got off and people got on. and although he was sitting right there, watching, each person passed through his eyes without being seen. one woman struggled with a number of parcels. another pulled her tiny dog from her tacky faux leather designer copy handbag, dropped the dog to the ground and attached a rhinestone leash to the rhinestone collar. off they scrambled. the last passenger to exit was also a woman--cute. it was clear her mind was in another world as she skipped off the bus in her gray patent leather flats. her long brown hair was tied back in a loose braid with a thin navy blue ribbon. her sunglasses nearly covered her entire face except for her button nose and petal pink stained lips that turned up into a smile the moment her feet hit the pavement.
