backward

She sat silently in the coffee house, kept by her thoughts. In her usual seat, with her usual cup, she unknowingly waited for the past to return.

She looked down at the mug in her hands, and let out an unexpected laugh - 'Bold Tina'. Her friends used to call her that because she drank her coffee scalding and pitch black. She shyly glanced around to see if anyone noticed her oddly placed chuckle, but nobody seemed to. Her friends would have noticed, but they weren't with her. Tina quickly looked back down, confining her boldness to the cup.

They'd all gone to new places and new lives. Graduation set them free, and left her stranded - locked into a pattern that was once so right. She wondered if they were happier chasing their dreams, maybe there's more to the planning than doing. She wondered if they missed the times of sharing, the times of waiting, or the way that seeing each other smile made each of them smile a little wider. She wondered if they missed the feeling that they weren't alone.

She didn't know what tomorrow would bring - she wasn't looking forward... only backward, only into the cup. She looked deeper into the blackness contained within, searching its depths for something that resembled what was, searching its surface for her own reflection. Nothing was to be found - all had already settled to the bottom.