The alarm clock blared. I pried my eyes open.

Another day.

Sitting up, I rubbed my face, which had weird lines on it. It kind of hurt a little…but that’s what I get for falling asleep with my face on the laptop keyboard.

I looked around the room to make sure I was truly alone.

No weird shadows lurked in my closet. Just normal ones. I could tell the difference. The weird shadows always had odd points of lights as eyes.

No strange, lanky beings without faces hovered on the ceiling.

No legless women crawled on the floor.

No masked figures sat in my chair.

I sighed. Well, that was good. The Others seemed to not like this apartment, for whatever reason. It was a blessing, really. The creepy ones were the ones that had always given me the most trouble.

“Oops.” I mumbled, shutting the computer and setting it on my bedside table as I got up to start my day.

Immediately, a ten-pound shadow leapt from beneath the bed, tackling my legs.

“Stroopwafel, no!” I shook my leg, trying to detach my grey tabby menace.

Hopefully the only creature that bothered me today would be my goblin of a cat.

I managed to untangle Stroopwafel from my feet, and scooped her up into my arms, smothering her little mischievous face with kisses. “You are such a menace!" A pause for more kisses on her furry little forehead, "I love you!”

Putting her down, I went down the hallway, where I saw Sidhe, my other cat, waiting for me. Everyone else saw a lovely void with green eyes whenever they looked at my handsome little boy, but I saw a mostly solid black cat with a spot of white right on his chest. I’d always just assumed it was some weird coloring that only I could see. Maybe the Others could see it as well, but that didn’t really matter, all things considered.

After turning the coffee maker on, I went back to my room to change into my work clothes and brush my teeth, keeping an eye on the time.

Going into the bathroom, I ran a brush through my hair, staring in the mirror as I did. My plain face stared back. Plain brown eyes. A too-big nose. At least my hair was kind of pretty, in color anyways. It was auburn, and had a mind of its own. It was kind of annoying sometimes, really. It just wouldn't make up its mind how exactly it wanted to curl most of the time, which made it difficult to work with.

Ah well, I wasn’t trying to impress anyone. I’d given that up before I’d even finished high school.

That had been eight years ago? Had I really been out of college for four years?

Wow.

After fighting with Stroopwafel for one of my socks, I scurried back down the hallway, poured coffee into a to-go cup, then shoved my feet into shoes.

I’d have to eat at the cafe. But that was alright, we got a discount on anything we ordered.

I glanced at the clock, then hurried from the apartment, knowing I needed to get my butt to the bus stop as soon as I could.

There was an Other standing at the end of the hallway.

It was one of the human-like figures with masks. This one I was a little familiar with, as it was often in the hallway. It never took notice of me because I never let myself take notice of it, not outwardly, anyways. And at least it wasn’t frightening to look at, like some were. It looked mostly like a normal human, just wearing a paper mask over its face.

But I’d seen enough Others to know that if a person walked at it, they’d walk right through it without noticing.

I’d gotten very good at training myself to not react to the Others popping up here and there. That had taken some practice. Sometimes I even had to walk through them, just like everyone else. Doing so still scared me, but it hadn’t seemed to hurt me yet, thankfully.

Sighing, I adjusted my purse, and continued on my way, taking the stairs as quickly as I could, and leaving the apartment complex building just in time to see the bus pulling to a stop at my usual stop. Breaking into a sprint, I slipped through the doors before they closed.

“Oh good.” I panted, out of breath.

I swiped my bus card, then took a seat and watched the streets blur as the bus continued on its route.

There were two Others on the bus today. One was a blob of...something. It was grey and had two eyes that looked like the google-y eyes you used in crafts during elementary school. I knew from experience that it was a pretty sedentary Other, and wouldn't move unless something forced it to.

The second Other was one with an outward physical appearance. They looked like normal humans to everyone else, and I could see what everyone else saw, but it was like a sort of haze around them. To everyone else, this Other had long blonde hair, crystal blue eyes, and pale skin, much like mine. But through the translucent facade that everyone else saw, I could see that her hair was actually a light, spring-y green, her skin was pale blue, and her eyes were bright yellow. She had a long tail, like a lion’s, little sparkling sapphire scales on the outside edges of her eyes, and short white horns rising up from her green hair.

One thing I’d noticed about the Others with actual outward physical appearances, was that they were all drop-dead gorgeous. And the lady on the bus with me was no exception. She was stunning, even with her green hair and blue skin and the other, even more strange features.

I had a feeling they could see one another the way I did, as they did seem to congregate more with each other than normal humans.

There were a few of these actually visible Others that came regularly to the cafe I worked at, the Thistle and Thorn, and I’d interacted with them. I’d never let any of them know that they looked totally different to me, though, and I didn’t plan on ever revealing that. Letting Others know that I could see them had never resulted in anything good, ever. Dealing with the repercussions from the apparently invisible-to-everyone-but-me Others had caused me enough trauma throughout my life already, and I wasn’t eager to deal with anymore of it.

I disembarked at my stop, and trudged to the cafe.

The Other growing on the wall, a sort of ivy with flowers that had eyes in the middle, gazed steadily out at the street. As far as I knew, it was a pretty harmless Other, given it seemed to be stuck in one place. I still didn’t let my eyes linger on it, just in case.

“Morning!” I called as I went in.

Carter, the manager, was already there. “Good morning, Mercy! How are you?” Carter was a good immediate supervisor.

My manager was a bit older than me, thirty two to my twenty six. He had brown hair that he kept cropped short, and wore slightly spiked, and an open, honest face, with gauges in his ears to go with his large quantities of tattoos. Sometimes he could be found wearing a beanie even if it wasn’t cold outside. In other words, a typical attractive coffee shop employee type. But an all-around nice enough guy.

“Oh, I’m alright. I made the mistake of falling asleep with my face on a keyboard last night though. I don’t suggest it.” I laughed at myself, “Not my finest moment.”

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“You were up late writing?”

“Attempting to write, more like.” I sighed as I clocked in at the computer.

“Is it coming along?”

“No, the writer’s block has been killing me lately.”

“Ah, the struggle of a creative.” He nodded knowingly. Carter played the guitar and wrote music, so he at least understood on some level. “If you ever need to bounce ideas off of me, I’d be game!”

“Thanks, Carter, but I don't think you’d like my ideas very much!” I snorted.

“I think you’d be surprised, I liked your book!”

I blinked. “You read it?”

“Of course I read it!” he smiled, “It’s not very often that someone you know gets published!”

“Well, thanks.” I mumbled, aware that my face had turned very red.

Getting a novel that I’d written published had been a dream. It hadn’t sold very well, but it had still been very special for me. Given that I wasn’t currently able to support myself on my writing alone, I had to keep working part-time jobs like this.

I really needed to come up with another idea for a story, and soon.

The bell jingled as the door opened, and a red-headed young woman, my friend and coworker Olive, ran in. “I’m here! I’m not late!” She was a few years younger than me, and was finishing up her last year of college in pre-law.

“Nope, you’ve got about two minutes though.” Carter laughed.

Olive scurried over to the computer and clocked in, just in the nick of time. “Phew.”

“You’re fine, relax.” Carter told her. “Even if you had been late, it wouldn't be a big deal. A couple minutes is fine.”

“I left on time.” Olive sighed, “I was even early, but there was an accident on the exit that took forever to get past.”

“It happens.” our manager shrugged.

The door jingled again, admitting our first customer of the day.

Soon, the cafe was bustling with the usual morning rush.

Since most of the invisible Others didn’t like large groups of people, none of them ever really entered the cafe. I would see them float by the front window every now and again, but that was about it.

By nine-thirty, the rush was slowing, and our usual, outwardly visible Other customer stopped by. This time he brought another Other with him. He’d brought this same friend with him several times now, enough for me to recognize them and remember the kind of things that he usually ordered.

Our regular was kind of short, if I was being honest. Probably not more than an inch or so taller than me, and I wasn’t quite five foot two. But that didn’t stop him from being hot as hell. It was a kind of dangerous sort of attractiveness, though, if I thought about it. His features were sharp and alert. The man had dark hair, both outwardly and in my eyes. It was styled in an undercut, and the bangs framed his eyes. Everyone else saw pale blue eyes, but I saw that they were really lilac. Like the Other woman from the bus, he had scales, but they started on his neck, traveling beneath the collar of his shirt. I could also see some on his arms whenever he took off his suit coat and rolled up his sleeves, but there also seemed to be some burns there as well. The burns started on his forearms, and ran up his arms, disappearing beneath his shirt (which of course I’d never seen him without). He always wore a perfectly fitted suit coat, a white button-up shirt, and black slacks. It was simple, but devastating, making his pale skin look almost paler. That was something that was the same too, he did look Caucasian. I also knew he had a pair of pristine, white fangs that were visible (to me) when he spoke.

I jokingly referred to him as the Vampire to myself, given his pale skin, dark hair, and fangs. Not that Vampires usually had scales, but it still worked.

The Other who wasn’t there as often, the Vampire's friend, was just as attractive. He had a strange, copper-y colored hair, and a warm, light orange skin tone, but everyone else seemed to see him as sandy-haired, and very tan. His eyes were green though, both in my vision and to everyone else, it seemed. And, much to my delight the first time I’d seen him, he had a pair of fluffy orange cat ears and a tail that looked a lot like a lion’s, which flicked lazily back and forth. I’d seen him use it once or twice to trip annoying customers, and had thanked him inwardly for doing what I wish I could do.

My personal nickname for him was the Lion, which seemed fitting.

As to how old these two Others were, it was hard to tell. It was hard to tell with any of the Others that had outward physical appearances, I’d noticed. They always seemed to be anywhere from their early twenties to their mid-thirties, and I couldn't narrow it down more than that.

“Oh I’ve got these two.” Olive muttered to me, flushing pink as she spotted the two ridiculously attractive men approaching the counter.

“Sure.” I wiped my hands on my apron.

“What, don’t want to help the hot guys out?” Carter grinned at me.

My face warmed, and I shrugged, “Olive said she’d do it, and I don’t care. She knows that, given my choice, I’d rather not have to deal with people all that much.”

“I get it. I’m an introvert too.” he smiled knowingly.

“I know.”

“It’s okay, you know that right?" Our manager's tone was serious and his gaze sympathetic.

I blinked, then managed a weak smile back, “Yes, I know that too.”

My attention was drawn back to the counter as they placed their orders, although I pretended I wasn’t keeping tabs. Not that it mattered, they likely knew the effect they had on people.

The Lion ordered a sugary drink that was really more dessert than coffee, but I didn’t judge. You liked what you liked. And given his perfect physique, he could probably eat whatever he wanted. He also ordered a blueberry muffin, which I was currently re-stocking in the bakery display.

The Vampire stepped up next, placing his usual order for a pot of English Breakfast tea and a chocolate croissant. Then he surprised both me and Olive by saying, “But I want her to make it.” He nodded at me.

I blinked, dropping the facade that I wasn’t listening. “Me?” I pointed at myself. Not that there was anyone else that he could have been referring to. Carter wasn’t a ‘her’.

A look of mild annoyance crossed the Vampire’s face. “No, the other person standing there.” he snapped.

Olive looked as confused as I was. Her expression grew pinched with panic, and it crept into her voice as a nervous edge, “If you’re worried I won’t be able to make it quickly, sir, I promise that-”

The Vampire cut her off, saying mildly, “I’ve been coming here enough to know that she’s the only one here who makes tea properly.”

Oh, so he was a tea snob. That made a lot more sense. “It’s alright, Olive, I can do it.” I told her softly, smiling reassuringly at her. As sweet and smart as Olive was, she sometimes panicked when things didn't go the way she expected. Given this inclination, I hoped she wouldn't choose to be a trial lawyer, since trials and the courts could be kind of unpredictable, at times. There were plenty of other veins of law she could pursue that wouldn't involve setting foot in a court room or participating in a trial.

“Okay.” She shrugged, visibly relaxing, then went about making the Lion’s order while I stopped what I was doing to make the Vampire’s.

Once I was done, I carried the steeping pot of tea out to the table where the Vampire and Lion had sat themselves. “Here you go, sir.” I murmured, not wanting to make a nuisance of myself, as they’d already pulled out laptops and important looking papers.

The Vampire didn’t acknowledge me, but the Lion looked up and winked.

I couldn't keep myself from raising an eyebrow at him, but didn’t say anything else before turning and going back to the counter to resume stocking the bakery display. While it was nice to get attention from attractive men, I often questioned the motive behind it, given I wasn’t even pretty. Some people just liked to flirt with anyone, though, and the Lion did seem like a flirt. It wasn’t even the first time he’d winked at me, now that I thought about it.

Though to be fair, a wink was just a wink. He might not have even meant it flirtatiously, it’s just that he was so freaking attractive that maybe something inside me wished it had been flirtatious. Yes, that made more sense. He was probably just friendly, not flirtatious. I hadn’t thought of that before.

Even I had preconceived notions and inclinations that I had to work against, it seemed. Oh well, I was only human. A very odd human, given I saw such strange things, but a human nonetheless.

-

“Don't flirt with the staff here. They gawk enough.” Fen chided mildly, keeping his voice quiet.

“Oh the auburn one isn’t so bad, as far as gawking goes.” Aren grinned at him.

“She’s just older than the redhead.” Fen shook his head.

“She’s also an introvert, I think.” Aren said, now thoughtful. “She seems to gravitate towards any work that doesn't involve people. And no self-esteem to speak of. Although she is pretty, so I’m not sure why."

Fen stared at his friend, mildly irritated, “I don't give a rat’s ass about her self-esteem.”

“But surely you like her even a little, given she actually makes tea that you’ll drink. Is that why you always come here?”

“More or less.” Fen turned his gaze back to his laptop. “She herself is of little consequence, it’s the tea she makes that I like. Not her.”

“Fine, fine. You ought to live a little, though. That you’re not interested in flings is more scandalous than anything else about you, or any decision you’ve made thus far.”

“Leave it, Aren.” Fen snapped, letting his eyes flash.

“Fine.” his companion muttered, sulking a little.

“Now get back to work, I don’t pay you to chit-chat.” Fen muttered, once more returning to his own work.

Despite what he’d said, Fen let his mind dwell briefly on the petite auburn-haired young woman.

She seemed perpetually tired. And, as Aren had noticed, her bearing was that of someone with no confidence, stooped, shuffling, and meek.

Humans. Too stupid to see what they had before it was long gone. She’d look back in thirty years and see the pretty young thing she’d once been and sigh at having not taken advantage of it. That was just the way of the world. Well, the human world, anyways.