Kane approached Kate's Café on the first Sunday of July, his heart beating faster in his chest. He was excited, yes, but also scared. This strange power would change everything, but he was still unsure of its limits. Mostly, because he was too scared to push them and possibly get in trouble. He walked through the door and found the small place rather crowded. The only free table was close to the toilet. He made his way through and passed Kate.

"Hey." Kane greeted her when she looked in his general direction, but she hadn't noticed him. Mildly embarrassed, he walked up to the table and sat down with a sigh.

He stared at Kate in hopes she would see him soon to take his order. She wore a form-fitting black top and blue jeans, her dark hair barely touched her shoulders. She had her hands full, but still managed to smile at every customer. Kane had a little crush on her, ever since he discovered the place a couple years back. He came here almost every Sunday since then, mostly just to look at Kate and fantasize about asking her out. Finally, Kate saw him and came over after taking orders from a couple that came in after him. Stuff like that always happened to him.

"Do you know what you want to drink?" she asked while putting the menu on the table.

"Ehrm just a coffee, please." Before he could add anything she was gone again.

He felt stupid. Whenever he was 'back in the real world' he started to doubt himself. Was this power really real? Did all that stuff actually happen or was he just going insane? What if it didn't work anymore? What if he'd embarrass himself? He thought about these things every time. And every time he found the courage to try it, he got laid in the end. He closed his eyes and reminded himself that he was all. fucking. powerful!  And there was always a way of trying it without making a fool of himself. He just had to go for it.

"Here's your coffee. Do you know what you want to eat?"

Kane gulped. "Ehm no, not yet." Kate was already turning around, and he blurted "No, wait!"

"Sit with me," he said with a shaky voice and pointed at the chair in front of him. To his great relief, Kate followed his instruction without hesitation. She swung herself on the chair and looked at him expectingly.

"Yes?" she looked at him, her expression polite, but there was an urgency, too. She had waiting customers, after all.

"Ehm. Well... I thought we could get to know each other," he mumbled.

"Sorry what?" There was impatience in her tone.

Kane took a deep breath. "I would like to get to know you better."

"I'm flattered, but I don't really have time for that right now. You understand that, right?"

“No, wait... Uhm… You have plenty of time to talk to me, and you really want to get to know me while I drink my coffee." He scanned her facial expression closely as he held his breath in fear. Kate blinked twice in a row and tilted her head slightly.

„You know, I don‘t even know your name. I must have seen you a hundred times.“

He smiled, feeling endlessly relieved. „I’m Kane. Nice to meet you.“

Kate smiled, too. „Yeah, it’s about time I guess.“ 

„So you did notice me after all?“

„Well, I’ve certainly seen your face every now and then. But you know, it’s really stressful sometimes, and I usually don’t have the time to actually spend it talking to my customers.“

„I’m glad that you have the time now. I’ve wanted to talk to you for a long time, to be honest.“

„You did? You never said anything, though.“

„I know... I don’t know... Anyway, I’m happy this is finally happening.“

„Well, okay then.“

„Oh, you too, I mean! I mean... You also wanted to get to know me for a long time.“

„I... Uh, of course. That’s why I’m so glad that I finally found some time now.“

„Right. So... uhm… tell me about yourself.“

„Oh well, you know... I’m 39 years old, was born and raised here, and fulfilled my dream of owning a Café. What else do you want to know?“

„39, really? You look so much younger. Do you work out a lot?“

„Thank you. I am actually also a yoga instructor. Started as a hobby, and now it's a side-business.“

„Interesting. I bet you are very flexible, then.“

„I’m also very engaged, so be careful now.“

„Oh no! You’re engaged?!“

„Usually, people say something like 'congratulations' as a reply to that.“

„I-I’m sorry. Congratulations.“

Kate was alert by his reaction. Kane wanted to do some damage control, but before he could say anything, a young woman with long curly red hair approached their table.

„Excuse me, I’ve been waiting to pay for a while now and I’m in a bit of a hurry, to be honest. So could you please bring me the bill? We sit over there, in the corner.“

Kane couldn’t help but stare at the ginger girl's heavy rack. They were huge and the fact that she was otherwise pretty slim just made them look even bigger. And yet it somehow all fit together very well.

„I’m so sorry," Kate said, visibly surprised and apologetic. "I completely forgot the time. I’m coming right away.“

She stood up and turned to Kane. „Sorry, seems like a bad time after all.“

It happened too fast for him to think straight. He was so disappointed over Kate‘s engagement that her words stung even more. Using his power at the ginger didn’t even cross his mind at that time. He just said, „It’s fine. Bring me my bill afterward, too, please.“

Kate went with the redhead and Kane was just bummed out. She was engaged. A boyfriend he would maybe consider a grey area. He could do some things without real consequences. But he couldn't use his mind control to mess with an engaged woman. He had principles, he told himself. He wasn't going to become some sort of villainous greedy asshole. What he could do however, was make his future visits a bit more pleasant, at least. Some harmless things... Yes!

He was ready for Kate when she came back to him with her purse.

„Well, that’s just two fifty for the coffee, then.“ Kate stood in front of the table and seemed as unfazed as usual, a bit colder actually. His reaction to her engagement clearly stuck with her. This time he was prepared though.

„Sit down for a moment, I want to tell you something.“ He saw her mouth twitch to a frown while quickly sitting down. He slowly fumbled in his pockets and pulled out a bill. He made sure to speak clearly this time, every sentence was perfectly prepared. „I’m giving you a big tip, as always. I know, you appreciate me for doing this and I want to tell you why I’m doing it. You are always super nice to me. You make me feel welcome here and you pay attention to me. How do I describe it? Like... You are always genuinely happy to see me. You know what I mean?“

Kate‘s expression shifted, transforming from annoyed to touched within moments. „Aww, that is so sweet of you, Kane! Of course, I’m happy to see you. Thank you so much for this. Hearing that means a lot to me!“

„Perfect!“ Kane said and gave her the bill. He peeked at her chest for a second and gulped. Before he could stop himself he added, „Dress sexy next Sunday.“

„Okay,” she said with a smile and a shrug. Then, she stood up again. „See you next time!“

Kane was relieved and still unsure if he did the right thing. „Sure. See you next Sunday.“

He got out and inhaled the fresh air. He barely did anything, and still there was this rush. He was curious what next week was going to be like...