Autumn Hues

She first met him 5 years ago.

"Shanti, you should take a break," Ilithyia, Shanti's roommate and friend, pursed her lips as she stared at Shanti, who had promptly ignored her.

The two had become fast friends after their initial meeting, and ended up renting an apartment near campus together. While Ilithyia planned to have somewhat a relaxing time during college, Shanti spent every spare second she had furiously studying.

Ilithyia sighed, and called her name once more, "Shanti? Are you even listening? C'mon, just go to the coffee shop with me, please?"

Shanti rolled her blue eyes - a beautiful shade of azure, prettier than even the clear afternoon sky outdoors, and groaned, "Fine, fine…Just stop pestering me afterwards, will you?"

"Deal," Ilithyia grinned, and proceeded to drag a very exasperated Shanti out of the apartment.

The weather was perfect, a gentle breeze blowing past the two girls, the sun shining in all its glory. The streets weren't too crowded, so Shanti and Ilithyia could slowly make their way to the coffee shop, which was about a 20 minute walk from their apartment.

"Are we there yet?" Shanti asked, quite impatient to be back with her beloved textbook and notes.

Ilithyia giggled, "Pfft, of course not. We literally just left the apartment!"

Shanti let out a small sigh, already regretting her decision to follow her friend out of the apartment.

As far as Shanti was aware, a 20 minute walk to the coffee shop was the equivalent of a death sentence. She cannot afford to fail the exams, or even get a low score. She has to pass with flying colours, and if not…

Shanti shook her head vigorously. She must pass; no other outcomes were acceptable.

"Ah, look, we've arrived!" After what seemed like an eternity, 42 centuries and 13 decades, the two finally arrived at the coffee shop.

Shanti halted in her tracks, and took in the building in front of her. The coffee shop looked pleasant, with its clear, unstained windows glistening when rays of sunlight seep through it. The building itself was white, and the door was made of a light coloured wood. Overall, it gave off a pleasing, gentle vibe that could calm down even the most hyper.

Ilithyia pushed open the door and stepped in, beckoning Shanti to follow. The moment they entered, Shanti was hit with the scent of a faint aroma of coffee.

"Hello! I'd like to order a vanilla milkshake, please!" Ilithyia greeted the barista, who smiled back.

"You came to a coffee shop to order a milkshake," Shanti stated flatly.

"I did indeed, deal with it," Ilithyia confirmed Shanti's previous statement, then added, "What do you want? All of their drinks are pretty good, so just pick whatever you want."

Shanti stared thoughtfully at the menu. "Hmm…The caramel frappuccino, please."

"Alright!" The barista nodded cheerfully, "Please, have a seat anywhere you like. Your orders will be finished in about 10 minutes."

After he left, Ilithyia gave Shanti a small smirk, "Heyy, he's pretty cute, don't you think?"

"I mean, sure, but I have no time for romantic relationships. I need to focus on my classes," Shanti sighed, exasperated.

"Oh come on, when are you gonna get a boyfriend? Seriously, you're so boring!" Ilithyia cried out.

Shanti rolled her eyes, amused at her friend's outburst, "And you have dated way too many times for your own good."

"Fine, fine. Well, how about my brother?" Ilithyia offered.

Shanti stared pointedly at Ilithyia, "Your brother. Izar. Who I despise from the very bottom of my soul. You think that he's my type?"

"You never know…" Ilithyia shrugged.

Just then, a tall figure entered the shop. Tiny gasps emitted from the people surrounding Shanti, and she turned around to get a better look, wondering what all their awes were for.

"Oh," Shanti blinked a few times, somewhat mesmerised.

The male who entered possessed a somewhat authoritative aura, with dark brown hair and stormy grey eyes. Certainly, he was attractive. But that's about it? What the hell were all these people staring at him for…

"Shanti? Hello, earth to Shanti? Are you done staring at him?" Ilithyia had gestured wildly in front of Shanti's face, desperately trying to catch her attention.

"...I wasn't staring…" Shanti replied feebly.

Ilithyia gave her a disbelieving glance, "Mhm, sure, you weren't. Anyway, our drinks are here."

"Oh, alright. Thanks," Shanti smiled, still slightly embarrassed to be caught openly staring at the male.

What she had not known then was that he was staring right back.

A week later, Shanti took Ilithyia's advice, and agreed that she really did need a break before burning herself out from all the studying.

Once more, Shanti headed to the coffee shop, but this time without Ilithyia's company.

"Why hello again! A caramel frappuccino like last time, or something new?" the barista gave Shanti a cheerful grin, and Shanti could not help but smile back.

"Hmm, what do you recommend?" Shanti asked.

The barista's toffee brown eyes twinkled, "Well~ If you're down for something sweet, our affogato is absolutely delicious."

Shanti nodded, "Then that's what I'll get then!"

"Again, please wait for around 10 minutes, and feel free to take a seat wherever you like. Oh, and I'm Keith!" he smiled once more.

Feeling that it would definitely be rude to not respond, and that Keith's ebullient personality was infectious, Shanti replied with an exuberant tone, "I'm Shanti."

"Time to make your drink then, see you in a bit," Keith laughed, and was off.

"Shanti? That's a pretty name," Shanti whipped around to see who had spoken.

It was the same man she had seen last time she came to this coffee shop, but this time, he was dressed in a more professional outfit. His eyes gazed intently at Shanti, who, feeling a bit unnerved, looked away, flustered.

Trying to maintain a polite demeanour though, Shanti said, "Is there anything you need?"

He laughed, "Well, no…But I'm Aster, if you were curious."

"Uhh, that's cool and all, but if we're done talking, can I go?" Shanti asked, unsure what she should say. While Aster gave off a rather intimidating feel, he also seemed nice. Another thing to note, Shanti was not the best at socializing with random strangers who approach them looking like some mafia member who also happened to be hot. Actually, Shanti was pretty sure no one was good at socializing with strangers like these. But whatever.

"Mhmm, you don't need to ask me for permission though, now, do you?" Aster smirked.

Shanti let out a tiny sigh. After only approximately a minute and 40 seconds of talking, she was already very much done with socializing for the rest of the day. Well, except with Keith who seemed so nice and cheerful.

"..." Unsure what to respond with, Shanti felt that the best response was no response. And with that final remark, or lack of remark, Shanti left, sitting herself down on a seat by the window.

As she waited for her order to finish, Shanti stared aimlessly out the window, thinking. Wishing, or dreaming, even. A dream where her mother was still alive, her father wasn't an abusive piece of shit, and she was able to save her brother from their cruel father.

Was it selfish of her to wish to leave the house the moment she turned 18, and abandon her younger brother? Perhaps, but it was a suffocating experience, constantly living under the fear and pressure that their dad might take out his uncontrollable anger on them, at any given time.

Shanti tried her best to protect Simeon, she really did, but…What could she have done? She was terrified and barely understood how to take care of her younger brother, let alone protect him from the abusive actions their father gave.

All she could do was attempt to shield Simeon, to let their father take his anger out on her instead. And while Simeon wasn't much younger, she still didn't want him to be injured…

Shanti immediately left for college the moment she could, and it was somewhat refreshing to instead be focusing on her studies, not whether she would get beaten for no reason the moment she stepped foot into their home.

A glistening tear rolled down her cheeks as she continued daydreaming of a world better than this…

Shanti slowly turned around, and prevented herself from letting out an annoyed sigh when discovering that Aster just so happened to decide to sit next to her.

"Hello there," Aster tipped his head a bit, letting a few strands of mocha brown hair fall in front of his eyes.

"Yes..?" Shanti gave Aster a look that clearly said, "Please, stop talking to me" but either he was as dense as an iron wall or really just didn't care. Probably the latter. Probably.

Aster allowed his lips to purse into a small smile, "I saw that you looked pretty upset, are you alright?"

"...Yeah, sure, totally," Shanti responded indifferently. "I would be, if you stopped talking to me," was what she wanted to say, but Shanti had not possessed the courage to do so.

"You sure didn't look like it. Are you that suspicious of me?" he asked.

Shanti just stared back, pausing for a brief second before saying, "Well, do strangers usually go around asking why other strangers seem down for no reason, unless of malicious intent?"

"Haha, touche, but I'm genuinely concerned. No intentions to harm you, I promise," Aster gave her a look.

"Riight…Oh, look, here's my drink. Sorry, can't talk anymore," Shanti flashed Keith a grateful smile, and proceeded to shove the entire affogato drink down her throat, in an attempt to escape conversing with the attractive stranger.

Aster continued looking at Shanti. After an awkward moment of intense affogato drinking and staring, Aster finally broke the silence and said, "I'll leave you alone later, alright? But can't we get to know each other a bit better?"

Shanti exhaled deeply, "...Fine. You ask me one question, and I'll ask you one. That's it, though, okay?"

"Yeah, that's fine by me. So, tell me, what were you thinking of before? And don't make up random excuses, I can literally see that you were crying before."

"..." Shanti stared back at him in silence, then replied quietly, "My family."

"Mind going into specifics?" Aster arched an eyebrow.

"Nope. That's your one question…" Shanti thought for a brief moment, and finally just said dumbly, "Uh, since I dunno what to ask…Just, how about your favourite season?"

"Hmm, Autumn, definitely," Aster replied.

Shanti cocked her head, "Mine is Spring, because it symbolizes regrowth, and life…But why Autumn?"

Aster answered her second question mercifully, though his stormy grey eyes flashed with an unreadable look, unnerving Shanti, "Autumn possesses some beautiful colours. Orange, yellow, gold, warm brown, red… Crimson is such an alluring shade, don't you agree?"

And after that one conversation, Shanti never saw Aster ever again, despite her repeated visits to the coffee shop. During that time, she became closer friends with Keith, and the two often hung out, with an Ilithyia failing miserably trying to smother her giggles, much to the annoyance of Shanti and amusement of Keith.

Eventually, after all the work from college, and just spending time with her friends, Shanti began to forget the mysterious stranger she met in the coffee shop.

But the mysterious stranger never forgot her.