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Seattle rain felt colder than New York rain, or maybe it just felt that way. Her marriage had fallen apart, and her divorce from Derek had been finalized quickly. She supposed him being in love with Mark was the catalyst that sparked her own reevaluation of her sexuality and made her realize that she wasn’t as straight as she thought. She’d never thought about it much. They’d been married 11 years, and she’d been content. But now, her contentment came from being free from the constraints of heteronormativity.
She left him the house in New York but kept the house in the Hamptons. Richard had offered her a job in Seattle, and she’d taken it without a second thought. She needed to get out of New York, needed the change of scenery. Derek hadn’t stopped her. She supposed that was to be expected.
She’d been in Seattle less than a week. Getting settled into her new house wasn’t that difficult, and Richard had graciously given her the week off to get adjusted. The time change was one of the things she needed to get adjusted to. Three hours of difference didn’t sound that drastic, but it was. She’d been awake at 2 am every day this week, and it was getting exhausting. She’d read up on a few cases, hoping it would put her to sleep, but at 5 am, she’d given up.
When she couldn’t sleep, she walked. She lived fairly close to the hospital, and even though she wasn’t starting work until next week, she walked in that direction. She was just hoping there was a coffee shop or something open this early. If this early waking was her life now, or at least for the time being, she needed coffee.
Grey’s Coffee stared down at her with a bright yellow glow. It was almost blinding this early, but to her, it was the best sight. The rain was starting to come down quicker now, and she stepped inside for refuge. It was quiet outside of the soft music that played. This early, she was the only patron here.
She stepped up to the counter, taking in the menu. With an amused smile, she couldn’t help but note the amount of surgical references in the names. Glancing at the sign that read Ring bell for service, she dinged the bell in front of her.
“Just a sec!” A voice called from further in the back.
The moment the barista stepped out from the back, Addison knew she was screwed.
She cleared her throat softly, “Good morning.”
A friendly smile greeted her, “Morning. Welcome to Grey’s Coffee. What can I get you?”
“First time here. What would you recommend?”
“Hmmm. Well, how do you take your coffee?”
“It depends. Some days, I like it black with a lot of sugar. Other days, I need a couple shots of espresso with a darker roast blend.”
“Do you like flavors? Vanilla? Caramel?” The woman turned towards the collection of machines behind her.
With a soft laugh, she repeated, “It really does depend. Honestly, I’m tired and have been up since two. I just moved here a couple days ago. I don’t start my job until next week.”
“Surgeon?”
“How’d you know?” She asked, curious.
The woman shrugged, continuing to work as she talked, “You didn’t question the names of the coffee. A lot of people do. Surgeons don’t.”
“Were your parents surgeons?” She couldn’t help but ask, “Regular people don’t know how to spell anastomosis.”
“Yeah, my mom was,” Came the reply, “She passed a while ago. I named the place after her.”
“I’m sorry for your loss.”
The woman waved her off, “I’m over it,” The blonde turned to her again, holding out a medium coffee, “This is the Surgeon’s Special.” As she moved to grab her wallet, the blonde spoke again, “First one’s on the house. Welcome to Seattle.”
“Are you sure?”
“Of course. You’re more than welcome to sit for a while, until the rain dies down.”
“Thank you, uh…”
“Meredith.” The blonde put her hand out in greeting.
Taking her hand, she smiled, “I’ll try to remember that. I’m Addison.”
“It’s good to meet you. I hope you’ll be a frequent customer.”
“I hope so too.”