This was written for the Two for Tuesday Challenge #25. Prompt: House Blend.

Linda, you’re looking pretty enthusiastic for a Monday morning. …Wait a minute. That’s not a low-fat
muffin. Or a skinny latte. Have you given up on your third diet already?
Oh, and here comes Jonny. What’s that, you’re getting something different today? Oh, wow, you finally
asked Cynthia out. Congratulations!
Is Lily still not here? She’s going to be late for work again if she doesn’t show up soon. Ah, I see
her, she’s coming in now-
Wait a minute. That doesn’t seem right. Is she crying? And who’s that man pushing her along? Why does
she have such a big coat? Is she hiding bruises?
No, not bruises-

*

‘Would you like any pastries with your latt—agh!’
‘Are you alright, Sam?’
‘Yeah, I’m fine, I just tripped. Although I’m not sure what I could have tripped on.’
‘I told you, this place is haunted. Here, let me help you up—ah!’
‘Sorry, didn’t mean to pull you down with me. I think my foot is stuck. I’m so sorry, we’ll be serving
you soon! Just had a minor accident, not that you can see over the counter—’

*

‘Just twenty minutes ago, this small coffee house was serving its customers, just like every other
Monday morning, when an explosion shook the foundations of the shop. While no official statements have
been made, only four survivors have been found so far, including the two baristas, who claim that ‘the
coffee shop itself saved them’. In other news…’

—

This was also written for Eccentric Chai’s Weekly Challenge, but I didn’t want to say that until after the story because it might spoil things a little. The prompt was: Write a short story in which the coffee shop is the main character.

Word count: 248