C-JIM-009
Barista: Sahir Bali
Date: Jan-1-2020
Receipt: C-JIM-009
Subject: Missing
Jean-Marc is keeping things from me. That much is obvious. But it’s not the silence that unsettles me—it’s the weight behind it. Like he’s standing on the edge of a blade, teetering between revelation and restraint.
I’ve seen him walk through fire. I’ve seen him break through the coldest grief. And through it all, he’s always had a plan. Always had an answer.
But now?
Now, he stands at the precipice of something even he does not fully understand—or accept. And that troubles me.
He knows something about Julia. Something important. And yet, he won’t say it outright. Maybe it’s not his secret to share?
[The Cafe’s penthouse rooftop—cold air sweeping over the city. Jean-Marc stood near the edge, a cigarette burning between his fingers. Sahir approached, footsteps careful, measured.]
Sahir: She’s gone again.
Jean-Marc: I know.
Sahir: And? Are we letting her go? No chase? No fire?
Jean-Marc: Oui. For now.
Sahir: That’s not like you.
Jean-Marc: No. It’s not. But… I have no plan for this. I never—
[Jean-Marc laughed, rubbing his fingers across his forehead.]
Jean-Marc: I couldn’t have.
Sahir: What happened? Where did you go? …What did you see?
Jean-Marc: I’m surprised, Sahir. You, of all people, never made the connection?
Sahir: What connection?
[Jean-Marc took a slow drag of his cigarette, exhaling through his nose.]
Jean-Marc: Adathan and Ariel Wandsun.
Sahir: Julia’s parents.
Jean-Marc: Yeah. Her parents. Interesting names, both of them.
Sahir: Adathan is…
Jean-Marc: Archaic? Ha. A bit. Or maybe… ████████.
Sahir: Adathan. ███ █████ ██… ███ ████ ██ ████?
Jean-Marc: ███ ████ ██ ████. ███ █████—███ ██ ███’█ ███████. ███ ███ ███ ████████ ███ ███████████ █████ ███ ████.
Sahir: ██ ███’██ ██████—█████’█ ███████ ████ ██████?
[Jean-Marc shook his head and stamped out his cigarette.]
Jean-Marc: What difference does it make, Sahir? She joined the Cafe. And that makes her family.
Decaffeinate Receipt
“Adathan and Ariel Wandsun.”
Connection Trivia | 1 Word