Page 5 of Status Undefined
The mall is huge and easy to get lost in. There are three Starbucks branches, but I guessed an Instagram influencer would choose the fancier one further in. I walked past the first Starbucks and through an area of high-end stores that I never go into. I took the escalator up a level to another Starbucks. I was right. There he was, finger on his iPhone, probably watchingreels on Instagram. Time spent with Keren had given me a bit of a clue as to what the app is for.
He got up to greet me – with a hug it turned out. I heard him sniff above my head. “You showered? Your hair smells nice.”
“Umm… thanks, I guess.” Two seconds and I was already blushing. He was dressed in black – head to toe. Not a common look in sunny Phuket.
“Want to go order?”
We joined the line at the counter. The guy in front of us ordered a latte. My standard order at Starbucks was a caramel Frappuccino – sweet, cold, better than any of their weird coffees. When it was our turn, Daniel ordered a red macaron and something else that started with “hot” that I didn’t catch because I was focused on his cute accent with the elongated vowels that I was used to hearing in the movies. The barista turned to me and I refocused. I hadn’t noticed she was finished with his order.
I blurted a dumb “hot Frappuccino,” and Daniel burst out laughing. The barista’s look said, “are you for real, dude?” I quickly corrected to my usual order, trying to ignore Daniel’s laughter.
“345 baht,” said the barista and I realized Daniel hadn’t paid for his coffee. I handed her four 100 baht notes and Daniel didn’t seem to notice. He wasn’t through making fun of me.
”Did you see her face?” he asked when we sat down, mimicking her expression. After the child calmed down he looked at my cup and I could see he was wondering how to pronounce the name written on it.
“Your name is Liam?”
“Uh, my name is Amit, but this is my Starbucks name.”
Daniel laughed again.
“A Starbucks name? That’s a new one for me.”
“I don’t come here often. The baristas always spell my name wrong. I saw they didn’t have a problem with Liam’s name, so Istarted using it. That way I know I’m getting the right drink and don’t have to worry there’s some Thai called AMITZ waiting for his Frappuccino.”
“Genius. The world outside America has to go through so much to enjoy the best… I never thought about it before.”
I wanted to toss something at his head but made do with rolling my eyes.
“Was Liam your friend?”
“Liam is my adopted little brother. I mean, physically, he’s my big adopted brother, but still.”
“You adopted a brother?”
“Yeah. Not officially, of course. An Israeli family lives across the hall, and I decided to become one of them. But Liam went back to Israel to do his army service.”
“Bummer. Miss him?”
“Yeah. But I’ve gotten used to video chatting.”
“I get that. It’s like that for me all the time.”
It was my turn to check out Daniel’s drink. It looked good – light brown with foam. I wondered how it tasted. He noticed.
“Want a taste?”
“Just wondering what it is. Latte?”
“It’s called Caffe Misto, but in the inferior non-Starbucks world it’s a café au lait. Try it. It’s good!”
“Why do you know it’s non-Starbucks name? Don’t tell me you’ve had coffee somewhere other than Starbucks?!”
“Well sometimes life is rough, and you have to make hard choices. Low points. I’d prefer not to talk about them if it’s ok with you. C’mon, try it.”
My eyes lingered on the drink cautiously, as if it might be poisoned. He pushed it toward me. I picked it up and took a sip.
He looked me in the eye.
