penguin, coconut, kiwi, pdf, mango, zip, tiff, bashful, banana, ostrich, gif, emu, grumpy, happy, pineapple, doc
A bar, on a beach, rough wood tables, sand crunching underfoot. The tent above had bands that emulated Tiffany glass, the sun stabbing blue and green shafts through it.
Af ordered a drink called the grumpy ostrich, which featured pineapple and mango. Ko toasted them with a bashful penguin, a coconut, kiwi, and banana concoction.
Af took a sip of theirs. “Mm. Zippy!” They closed their eyes, savoring the flavor, the moment, the weight of Ko’s gaze. They couldn’t document everything in bits and bytes, but they could chose what to remember.
Ko took a gulp of their drink, and their eyes bulged. “Gif!” they spluttered. They turned away and spat onto the sand. “Pdf!” They pushed the drink to the far side of the table.
“Not zippy?” Af asked, amused. “Try mine?”
Ko did, and scowled. “Just as bad,” they pronounced. But they sipped again. “It’s better when you know what to expect, though.” They retrieved their own beverage, and took a more cautious slurp. “All right, all right, it’s growing on me.”
Af sighed in contentment, perfectly happy.