Simon finished packing his things, feeling utterly defeated, unsure how he would pay his bills now.
But something else was troubling him.
He knew his dreams weren't normal. He always felt strangely aware in them.
He had even met a girl who, like him, seemed to know it was all a dream.
It was supposed to be a fantasy, something fake, a nightly escape and a way to visit a place he could never go to otherwise.
And yet…
'Why is this here?' Simon wondered, holding the black brooch in his hand, its cold edge burning his skin.
He left the café, bidding Jenny farewell with a slight nod, trying to keep her from noticing the worry on his face.
Outside, the icy air of the big city hit him, and the clamor of traffic filled the streets. He came across Katherine, still smoking, sitting on the curb by the entrance, her coat pulled tight against the cold.
She watched him for a few seconds, noticing his conflicted expression.
"Did she fire you?" Katherine asked, exhaling a cloud of smoke that mingled with the frigid air.
Simon tucked the brooch into his pocket and sat beside her, watching the cars pass under the glow of the city lights.
"Yeah… Sorry," he apologized, holding out a hand toward her. "Can I have one of those? I think I need it."
Katherine let out a small laugh, handing him a cigarette.
"I thought you didn't smoke," she said, tucking a strand of hair, disheveled by the cold wind, behind her ear.
"And I thought I was a responsible person," Simon replied, lighting the cigarette. "But because of some damn dreams, I can't even get to work on time anymore."
Katherine looked at him oddly, furrowing her brow.
"You're still having those dreams?" she asked.
Simon coughed, choked by the smoke he wasn't used to.
"Ugh…" he complained, before answering. "Yeah, obviously I am."
Katherine then noticed Simon's deep dark circles, his exhausted face. It had been so long that she'd forgotten, but he had always looked this worn out.
"I guess you're right, it's obvious," Katherine murmured, sighing, her breath forming a mist in the cold air.
They sat in silence for a few minutes, the hum of the city enveloping them.
For Simon, that was enough. Being next to Katherine, just millimeters from closing the distance between them, calmed him, at least for a moment.
Then Katherine stood up, having finished her cigarette.
"You need to take a vacation. Use your last paycheck for that."
Simon let out a dry laugh, the cold biting at his hands.
"You think whatever Jenny gives me will be enough for a vacation?"
Katherine smiled, placing a hand on her hip. Her glasses reflected the streetlights, hiding a determined look.
"Doesn't matter how much she gives you. With both our pay, we can have fun for a couple of weeks," she explained, before turning toward the café.
Simon stopped her before she went inside.
"Have fun? Both of us?" he asked, frowning. "You have to work."
Katherine brushed off his comment with a wave of her hand.
"You wait here," she said, walking in with a firm step.
Simon stayed outside, finishing the cigarette Katherine had given him, the cold seeping into his bones.
He pulled the brooch from his pocket and examined it closely, turning it between his fingers.
'Is it really the same…? It shouldn't be possible,' he thought, as the echo of the redhead's voice reverberated in his head.
Her words, that offer to help with his money troubles, haunted him.
'It's impossible. We've only met in dreams. I never told her where I live,' he reasoned, though doubts gnawed at him.
A sharp scream from inside the café snapped him out of his thoughts.
"Come back here, Katherine! You can't do this! Who's going to run the café today?" Jenny shouted, her voice breaking, as if she knew there was nothing she could do.
Katherine emerged from the café, bowing theatrically, as if she'd just finished a performance.
"Thank you very much and good luck!" she called back with a mischievous smile, shutting the glass door before turning to Simon.
"So, got a cigarette to spare?" she asked, while he stared at her, completely stunned.
"You know I don't have any… You gave me one," Simon tried to reason, but he got a light tap on the forehead.
"I mean you owe me one. We'll use both our paychecks for a proper vacation," Katherine said, a playful glint in her eyes.
Simon's eyes widened, an incredulous smile forming on his face.
"What did you do?" he asked, his voice trembling, worried for her.
"What else was I gonna do?" Katherine replied, tugging his arm to pull him up. "Working here without you would be boring, so I quit."
Simon stared at her, searching for any hint of a joke in her expression or voice.
But she seemed too certain, and Simon realized instantly that she wasn't kidding.
"Did you do it for me?" he asked, feeling a strange warmth in his chest, despite the cold.
Katherine looked away, crossing her arms.
"Nah, it wasn't for you," she said, a slight nervousness in her voice. "I was just fed up with this job, got it?"
Simon let out a laugh that, for a moment, swept away all his doubts. Then he looked at the brooch in his hand and, without thinking too much, offered it to Katherine.
"I don't have a cigarette, but I hope this works as a thank you."
He took Katherine's hand and placed the brooch in her palm, hesitating for a moment, as if by giving it to her he was handing over a piece of the dream that tormented him.
For a second, Katherine stood still, looking at it with curiosity. Then, with a quick motion, she pinned it in her hair.
She adjusted her hairstyle, the brooch glinting under the city lights, and looked at Simon with a radiant smile.
"How do I look?"
Simon smiled, but a shiver ran through him. The brooch fit perfectly, but seeing it there brought back the echo of the redhead, her words still insistently resonating in his head.
"Great… like it was made for you," he said, hiding the doubts that gnawed at him.
At that moment, as Katherine turned her head, Simon swore that, for an instant, her eyes gleamed with the same strange glint as the woman in the dream.