Coffee with You

Every day, at 1115pm, I get online, I get in line, and prepare myself for disappointment all over again. My characters don't look, or feel like the common hetero-normative characters in required reading. They reflect the community I represent. The requirements are 300 words and follow the prompt. So, is it that I'm not good enough? I clutch my pearls, at the thought. So, here it is, 1115 pm, and the winner is... someone other than me. I look at the camera on my computer, snap a picture, and proceed to write on another day. But today is different. I this morning feels different.

8:15am ready to write.

Walking down the street, a stranger walked past me, we catch eyes, "Good Morning."

"Good Morning to you also," I replied, trying to reach the coffee shop before the line got too long.

Suddenly, I hear someone running toward me, as I turn to the slightly average, petite guy running up to me.

"I hope I'm not wrong, but I think you will be fine with this proposition either way," he says, cheeks flushed, catching his breath.

"What might that be?" I replied, clearly unentertained after once again being rejected.

"Would you like to grab coffee sometime? My name is Ward," he says, holding out his soft unworked hands.

"Nice to meet you Ward, however, what makes you think that I am gay?"

"That's the great part about this, I am a transman. So, you get the best of both worlds," he continues, as a smirk comes across his face, still blushing.

I stood there for a moment, and said absolutely nothing. I know the silence probably concerned him. Then I spoke, "What are you doing right now?"

"I guess, I'm about to grab a cup of coffee with you."

"Cool."