Allyn shuffles past the bulletin board. The island may be just starting to wake, but he has been up for hours. His teeth are furry with coffee and smoke, and even as he makes his way down the picturesque main drag, he pulls a crumpled, handrolled cigarette from behind his ear and lights it with a cheap Bic. (He doesn't remember putting it there, but a surprise smoke is one of the few things in life he doesn't question.)

He takes a long drag, steadily eyeing the "No Smoking Within 25 Feet" sign plastered on the pub's front window from about ten feet away. Right now the expression is more tired than annoyed; a tenth cup of coffee is going to be prerequisite to his usual levels of disdain for signs, regulations, and directives of all kinds. He could have it at the little studio apartment he has here in town, but he has it in his head that a change of scenery is just the thing to get his punch-drunk brain working again.

He doesn't have to wait long; after a minute, the [color=blue][[/color][color=red]OPEN[/color][color=blue]][/color] sign in the window flickers to life. Allyn pinches the cherry onto the sidewalk, rubs it out with the toe of his boot, and puts the half-smoked cigarette back behind his ear before he heads inside.

The bells chime as he walks in the door. He has already staked out his preferred spot, and engages in the age-old ritual of dibs, using a bag half-bursting with loose papers as his implement and token. To the waitstaff, he makes a series of noises that they have learned to interpret as an order for coffee--cream, no sugar--then crumples into the seat.

His eyes are bloodshot, but tired as he is they still bounce from point to point in the little dining room, as if it would take yet more effort to keep them still. His brain is the same way. 

[color=d1653a][i]Someone took one of the slips on the flyer.[/i][/color] The realization comes belatedly. [color=d1653a][i]Maybe someone here is finally willing to talk to me.[/i][/color] The dark, roasty smell of brewing coffee hits his nose, and he unlimbers in his seat, spine popping. [color=d1653a][i]Or maybe some of the kids are getting bored.[/i][/color]