Coffee Shop Singer (TehnemesisxRose Swan)

Allie sat behind the counter at the coffee shop making coffee for their latest customer. It was Soul Night again, and the coffee shop was bustling with hipsters and eccentrics listening to music. The band that was up right now was doing a cover of Maroon 5's "Wake Up Call" song, and to be honest, they weren't all that good. But it didn't take away the fun and excitement of a Soul Night, and it was just fine in life.

Allie wrapped up making the person's coffee and handed it to them, and they sat down at a table, leaving Allie alone at the counter to just listen until it was her turn for the mike. She loved singing, and the boss was okay with her taking a five or ten minute break to sing a song or two, since she was still bringing in money. In fact, the boss pays her to sing. Everyone loved her singing, but she didn't care. She didn't really like all the attention. She was just doing it for the money for college, since her dad was bugging her about it and she wsa running low on the college account.

The coffee shop's Soul Nights were hosted every Saturday evening from 5pm to 11pm, and it drew in people from nearby towns, with the occasional talent scout. If Allie saw one in the audience, however, she would always make sure to give them the best service and not perform as to ensure the others had a fair shot and to avoid the potential of being super famous. It wasn't what she wanted.

Allie closed her eyes now, and hummed to the music happily with not a care in the world until another customer came up for another coffee.

A coffee shop, The thoughts flowed through Asa Ralston's head. Another friggin' coffee shop. A slight look of disappointment was etched into the blond's features as his blue-green eyes scanned the exterior of the shop. It was definitely not the bar he always hoped to step out in front of. "Gonna be a dry night," He muttered to himself as the sleek deep silver door closed behind him, the BMW emitting a slight beep sound as the alarm was set.

It was a typical SoCal night, warm, dry, and what most mentally stable humans liked. Southern California sure beat the Jersey town he grew up in. It never snowed, and it rarely got cold enough for a sweater. And Asa was about to spend it in a wanna-be Starbucks. It wasn't that he had anything against coffee shops, he simply preferred to scout in bars. At least then, if all the acts blew, he could get tanked, scam on some metal heads in mini skirts, and have a nice night.

Asa smoothed a hand over his blond waves, before straightening the t-shirt and dropping his keys into his pocket. His typical tailored suit had been swapped for a dark green t-shirt, allowing his inked arms to be exposed, with a pair of dark jeans and heavy black boots. Pausing outside the door, the cashed cigarette hit the ground, black boot moving to crush it into the cement before stepping through the door.

Asa glanced over, eyes scanning the band playing a Maroon Five song, drawing towards the end. Eyes moving across the room, he found the counter and sauntered towards it, light eyes scanning across the cute, young red head who was humming along. Eyes closed, a tune fluttering, Asa almost felt bad to interrupt the girl's obvious enjoyment. After all, it wasn't that long ago he was in her shoes, slinging booze in a crappy bar, enjoying the down time when he could listen to the bands.

"Sorry to interrupt," He offered with a slight smile. "Please tell me this is not one of those coffee joints where it's impossible to get a simple cup of black." He joked as he fished the black leather wallet from the pocket of his jeans. "Large and preferably with no caffeine," He added.

Allie opened her eyes at the guy who walked in, and smiled at the simple order. "Coming right up." she said, and pulled out a cup from under the counter. She set about making the coffee, although it was basic to begin with, she still tried to make sure everyone liked their coffee.

She looked at him when she handed it to him. She hadn't seen you around here before. Was he new in town or something? Or was he just here for the show? she wondered. She was curious about the new guy. He looked like any other hipster, but all hipsters were interesting to her, especially since she saw them so often here.

Before she could ask him anything though, the Maroon 5 band was done, and it was her turn for a song. "Leave the money on the counter under the napkin dispenser, please." she said, and picked up her guitar from the floor. "It's my turn." As the band got off stage and her friend Mallory, who usually acted as a stage hand, dragged a stool on to it, Allie made sure that the guitar was in tune, and walked on stage, taking her place sitting comfortably on the stool with the mike in front of her.

She quickly thought of a new song to sing that she hadn't done before on stage, one by her favorite band: You Are the Moon by The Hush Sound. While it was mostly a piano song, she had figured out how to make it into a guitar song, and after months of practice she had it down pat.

She went through the song, the audience silent as her voice enveloped the room. She let her emotion flow through the piece, and for the three minutes the song lasted, she was in heaven, doing what she loved most. It was three minutes of peace for her, and anyone in the audience knew she loved it, and she was sad when it stopped. And it seemed everyone else was too. Unfortunately, while the audience loved the music, it was against the rules to demand an encore, just applause. She bowed, and walked off the stage, blushing from all the attention, and returned to her place behind the counter.

The girl moved to get the coffee, much to Asa's relief that he wasn't going to have to sip on some "maple nut crunch" bullshit. The moment she placed the sup on the counter, she jumped up, explaining that it was her turn on stage and requesting he leave some cash under the napkin holder. Asa watched, bemused as the girl skittered off behind the stage. Following her request, a tenner was placed beneath the napkin holder.

Moving to an empty table, Ace took a seat and kicked back before pulling a notepad out from his pocket to jot down names and notes. The ginger barista emerged after a moment, taking a seat on the stage, before her fingers began dancing across the strings. And, for a young girl, she could play. Asa was impressed by her playing, something that was rather hard to impress him with. And her voice was lovely, bluesy, emotional. Well, if nothing else, she made it worth coming out that night.

Asa remained seated for a while after the girl returned to her post. Several acts followed, none as impressive as that one little soloist. Most of them were your average terrible garage bands playing either today's top 40s or just terrible, terrible, edgy "indie" bands. Either way, it was far from impressive. And most of them were well under age, which was likely why they were playing at a coffee shop.

Soon, the Soul Night came to a close and the coffee shop began clearing out for close. Slipping from his seat, Asa waited for a majority of the crowd to move out before heading to the counter. "So, you were pretty good." Asa offered the girl. A hand reaching into his pocket, he fetched out a card. "Ever dreamed of hearing yourself on the radio?" He asked, holding the card out. "I'm Asa Ralston with Maxwell Music Industries. You were good, I'd like to hear a bit more."

Allie found the money right where she had requested that he leave it. He way overpaid though. She stuck the bill in the register, deciding she would catch him later to give him the change. She listened to the rest of the bands happily, retreiving coffee for those who requested it then resuming her place along the counter.

When everyone wrapped up and the crowd began to leave, she started to clean up the shop for closing time when the guy came back. She opened her mouth to tell him about the change when he started to speak.

The guy was a talent scout. Why hadn't she seen that earlier? She internally facepalmed herself for being stupid and not seeing through the disguise. When he finished, she looked at him with her wide eyes. "Um..." she plucked the card out of his hand, and looked at it. It looked legitimate, but it could easily be a scam. "I'm not sure." she said, not sure what she should say. Most people would be thrilled. "This isn't normal, I never sing for talent scouts, I want to give the others a chance. This was really a mistake." Allie laughed nervously.

"I really don't know what to say. I've never had this happen before." Allie rubbed the back of her head, smiling.

The look on the girl's face wasn't quite what Asa was used to. Typically, she would be gaping in awe for seconds, before an ear-piercing screech any banshee would be proud of would emit through the air. This girl looked, well, nearly guilty or disappointed. It was strange.

She moved on to say that things like this never happened, and she wasn't supposed to perform. It was a mistake. At that, Ace's brow went up. So, she didn't want to be famous? Well, no skin off his back, really. There were millions of kids out there who would sell their soul to the devil to get a chance for even a one-hit-wonder filled with autotune and synth music. If this girl wanted to pass it by, that was purely her decision.

She continued to look astonished, muttering that she didn't really know what to say. Ace shrugged. "Well, I'm in town until tomorrow morning at eleven when I have to check out of the hotel. My offer expires at that time." Asa offered. He wasn't about to sit and beg some kid to let him sign her. "The ball's in your court," With that, he turned and headed outside, plucking the box of smokes from his pocket.

Allie stood, watching him go. She had no idea what to do. Did she want this? A hand appeared from nowhere on her shoulder, and she turned around. Her boss smiled at her. "Take it. You deserve it, so much more than this place. You always try to play fair, and I think you should do something for yourself." he said.

"I don't know..." she trailed off.

"Just do it. Or I'll do it for you." he grinned evilly.

Allie couldn't help but laugh. "I'll talk to my parents." she said, and grabbed her jacket, then ran out the door and continued running all the way home.