“Oh yeah, it would be good for one of them, you're right.” Aubrey took the offered cup from the coffee lady. It was in a little white ceramic mug. The top of the coffee was covered in some kind of foamy stuff, something he had never seen before. He stuck his pinky finger in it and tasted it. Wow, it was sweet alright. He brought the little cup to his lips and sipped it carefully, making sure it wasn't too hot.
He nodded his head. “Yeah, you're right. It's really nice here.” He was going to add something about it being too nice, that he was starting to twitch from being in such a calm, laid-back atmosphere. But he didn't, and instead just finished his coffee in a few more greedy mouthfuls. Even Levi seemed to have gotten bored with it. Aubrey returned her wave as she left. When Jax asked if he wanted to go after the others with her, his whole face smiled. “I thought you'd never ask! I can't stay still this long, it's making me crazy.”
He passed his mug back to the counter-lady and thanked her. The lady waited for Jax to hand in her cup, and then Aubrey led his friend back out of the little cafe. Once more, the little bell jingled softly. For some reason, he really liked that bell.
“Okay, do you know which way the were going?” He asked, turning to look at Jax. “Taran said something about some fancy place...” He looked up, peering through the smog. In the distance, he could barely see the top of a large building. It's baby blue walls stood out amounts the rest of the rusty, brownish buildings. “That looks promising. Let's head that way.”
The streets were not particularly crowded anymore. The sun had long since disappeared, and a sickly yellow glow was cast by the old lights lining the streets. The city was definitely worse at night. They walked for a few minutes through the shady place, only passing a few people here and there. “I wonder where everyone went.” He said, partly to himself, turning to walk backwards for a second so he could look back to see how far they'd gone. “You'd think that-”
Aubrey was cut off when felt a hand grasp the back of his neck. Immediately, he struck back with his elbow, but he missed his assailant, his arm grazing harmlessly across their side. The person pulled Aubrey against them, wrapping a think arm around his neck as the boy squirmed. Based on the strength of the person, Aubrey identified them as male. It felt like the world was moving in slow motion, but the whole exchange happened in about two seconds.
He stopped squirming when he felt a blade agaisnt the skin of his neck. He froze, his hands still gripping the arm that was around his neck. “Little girls shouldn't be out at this hour.” Someone said. From the shadows of the ally next to them another man appeared, addressing Jax. Aubrey would have kicked him for referring to him as a girl had the circumstances been different.
“Now, we don't want any trouble.” The man said, “But see, we're sort of running low on cash. I'll make you a deal; hand over your wallets, and we won't hurt your little friend. Unless, of course, you have
other services to offer...” The sly way he said it made Aubrey's blood boil, and he gave Jax a look that said
'You better kick his ass'.