Coffee time! [for not_a_savage]

[scienceoffaith]

The weather outside was dismal much like the mixed feelings within himself. The early afternoon was gray with clouds but the air was thick with smog and the city life. Once Sayid stepped into the coffee shop he could feel a slight sense of relief underneath the lighting and the welcoming smell of the brewing beans

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[not_a_savage]

Jack gave the barista a nod as she slid his coffee toward him on a saucer after running his credit card. The cup and saucer felt good and warm in his hands, which was a good start. Jack had been feeling steady waves of unhappiness ever since he had returned to LA. He didn't want or expect Sayid to answer all his problems, but he hoped that today could at least alleviate the pain somewhat.

Noticing Sayid sitting at a small, two person table, Jack made his way to him and set the coffee down. "Excuse me, sir, but is anyone sitting here?" he asked, a bit too dryly for the intended effect of a joke. Knowing that the spot was indeed saved for him, Jack took the liberty of seating himself, giving Sayid a small, uneasy smile. "It's good to see you, Sayid."

[scienceoffaith]

He was somewhere in the middle of reading about the United Nations and a story on a local police officer when the inquiry came. He started to look up and found himself smiling just slightly before he had seen the face. "You almost had me," he replied quietly, but in good humor.

"It's nice to see you too, Jack." He had seen the man look better even after a plane crash, catastrophes, deaths and nights without sleep. Somehow he seemed worse. "How have you been?"

That was a decent place to start.

[not_a_savage]

A quick frown passed across Jack's face. He knitted his eyebrows at the thought of actually answering the question honestly. He had become so used to saying the automatic "fine", then going about his business. Most people expected as much, extending the question as simple courtesy.

"I'm..." he had to pause again. "I don't know." The answer felt stupid to Jack's ears, but he wasn't sure what else to say. "I'm glad to be away, don't think for a second that I'm complaining about air conditioning and stores that carry something other than the Dharma brand." He looked down, tapping a finger against the cup's handle. "But I'm unhappy. I have this feeling of guilt that I can't shake no matter what I do."

[scienceoffaith]

Perhaps it had been an unintentionally cruel method of questioning, but how he hated dodging the issue when something was so clearly written on someones face. Slowly he nodded, staring down into his coffee thoughtfully. He couldn't even imagine taking a sip of it right now.

"For how long?"

[scienceoffaith]

Jack without plans...that certainly was new.

"We could take a walk," he suggested. Coffee shops had not been the same refuge they had been a while back. What was? Despite his chance to sit down with his friend and catch up on life, Sayid couldn't help but feel a little restless. LA certainly had more than enough sights to offer.

[not_a_savage]

"A walk would be good. Yeah." Jack pushed aside the cup and saucer, clearing his place in a sign of finality. "Did you want to go somewhere inside or outside?" He gave a small smile and decided to give telling a joke another try. "I'd try to be a good tour guide and tell you that there's a lot of shopping around, but somehow I doubt that spending a whole day paying $200 for a pair of sunglasses isn't really your thing."