A Sample from "Something Real" by Ashley Thompson Davis

The line of people outside appeared as if it was never-ending. After lunch on a windy day in Manhattan, Ashley and Errol took the train from midtown to 81st Street. They were hoping to visit the American Museum of Natural History this time, but it seemed as if the entire world had the same idea.

“Let’s just get coffee instead,” Ashley suggested, not realizing that Errol didn’t drink coffee at all. Still, he agreed, and they went to find the nearest coffee shop. Finding coffee one block away wasn't hard in a city of millions of sleep-deprived New Yorkers. However, finding a shop that wasn’t already full of New Yorkers proved challenging.

The Starbucks off of Columbus Avenue was packed to the brim. The same went for a bagel shop further down the street. And as the skies grew grayer and the wind got stronger, using Google Maps on their phones didn’t help as they approached a shop called About Coffee, which was already closed.

After walking some more, the search was finally over. A restaurant with the word café in the name would have to do.

She ordered her coffee. He ordered his hot chocolate. And after enjoying the warmth of their drinks and the restaurant, they decided to find their way back to the subway to catch their trains home.

In the subway, it was clear that the crisp weather had not extended to the station’s subterranean level. The air was hot and full of odors that could best be described as…interesting. A unique combination of scents, including garbage, body odor, and unmentionables, danced together in the air. The scene of a thick crowd on the platform observing two rats strolling across the tracks (let’s call them Oscar and Gladys) was pretty standard for a New York subway. What wasn’t ordinary for Ashley was being amid this delightful scene with a guy she had decided she liked.

It was the third date, and Errol decided to take a chance. But as he moved his face closer to hers, he didn’t realize that a sequence of thoughts was racing through Ashley’s mind:

Wait, if he kisses me here, that would be our first kiss. Our very first kiss. And sure, maybe this won’t work out. But what if it does? What if he’s actually The Guy? What if this is it? And what if this is the first kiss I have to tell my kids and grandkids about?

As pleased as Ashley was to see Errol making his big move, she also saw Gladys and Oscar on the tracks. And somehow, she didn’t think this was the story she wanted to tell anyone’s children.

“Nope,” she said, turning her face from his gaze. She explained to a confused Errol, “Not in the subway.”

“Oh, so you don’t want to?” Errol asked.

“I do. Just not here,” she said.

“Then where?” he asked.

“Well, we could have gone to the park across the street and, you know, kissed somewhere more romantic,” Ashley answered back, realizing she was giving him very clear hints.

“Right. But we’re in the subway.”

“Well then, I guess that means we’re going into the park.” She grabbed his hand, marched past a disappointed Oscar and Gladys, emerged from the steamy subway, and entered Central Park.

And then it happened. And here we are.