text: In a city full of color, there lived the man in black. He always wore a black trench coat over his black button up matching his black pants bonded by his black belt. Needless to say, he wore black dress shoes with black socks. He wasn’t the most sociable person in the world but if you got to know him, he wasn’t a bad person. Every Sunday morning when the clocktower struck 10 times, he would run to the local café and enjoy a black coffee. He would escape the troubles of his week by reading the Sunday paper in as other customers passed by him. They overlooked him as a lonely old man though he was in his early 30’s. Whenever the clock tower nearby struck 13 times: he looked at his black watch, paid his tab, and left without a word. On one rainy Sunday, the man in black entered the café to find it completely deserted. The man in black walked over to his usual spot and ordered his black coffee. About half an hour or so later, the café’s door swung open and in came a woman who was soaked from head to toe. She ripped off her rain jacket revealing a simple white dress matching her white shoes. She walked over and sat at the booth across from the man in black. The man in black lowered his paper to take a quick glance at the rain’s refugee. She had long silky white hair as if she was an old woman, but the pitch of her voice as she ordered a latte told him she was around his age. The man in black went back to reading his paper. After a few minutes, of complete silence, the woman in white looked out across from her booth to the man in black. Though the newspaper blocked her view of the man in black’s face, she could see his smooth combed back hair poking out from the top. The rain was relentless and she had no desire to become a drenched cotton ball. She decided to sit around a bit and tap her figures against the cup in a rhythmic pattern. They sat like this for nearly an hour. “Do you come here often?” asked the woman in white as the man in black set down his paper for a moment to sip his coffee. He looked around to see if she was addressing someone around her, before realizing the two of them were the only ones in the room. “Every Sunday when I can,” replied the man in black as he set down his cup, “Never seem you around, are you new here?” “I just moved into town yesterday,” replied the woman in white, “I just finished school and plan to get a job here in the city color bursts around,” “I wish you the best then,” said the man in black curtly as he went back to his paper. The woman in white wasn’t done with him yet though. She picked up her belongings and moved over to the man in black’s booth. The man black looked up for a moment before continuing to read his paper. The woman in white sighed and pulled out a paper and pencil. When the clock tower rung 14 times, the man in black got up, paid his tab and left without a word. After a week passes, the man in black walks back to his usual café for his usual cup of coffee. But as he slid into his usual booth, his leg touched something beneath the table. “I see that you’ve become accustomed to sitting here,” laughed a familiar voice. The man in black looked up to see the woman in white sitting across from him. In front of her was a pencil and a sketch of the other side of the café. The man in black slowly got up. “I don’t mind sharing the booth,” she said grabbing his hand. The waiter came over with a latte and a black coffee and set them by the table. The man in black sighed, took out his paper and started to read. The woman in white smiled and continued to work on her drawing. After an hour or so, the woman in white looked at the man in black as he sipped his coffee. Like everything he wore, his eyes were also black. He caught her staring and went back to reading. “So, what do you do for a living?” she asked trying to ease the awkwardness. “An office job,” replied the man in black as he flipped to another page. “Well, I can tell that much by the way you dress,” she laughed lowering down the paper, “But what do you do specifically?” “Talk to people about buying things and selling them,” he said before pulling back up his newspaper. “So, you’re a salesman? For what company?” asked the woman in white. “Palette Corp,” he replied still staring into his paper. “The biggest conglomerate in the entire city?! I heard it was started up a few years ago by a wonderkid fresh out of college. What’s he like?” pressed the woman in white. The man in black lowered his paper and shook his head. “He’s not that great,” he said before looking at his watch. The clock tower then rung 16 times and the man in black started to get up to leave. “It’s my dream to speak to him one day and ask for funding for my art studio,” said the woman in white getting up to join him, she showed the man in black her finished drawing. It was a detailed picture of the café booths which sat across from them. For a moment the man in black thought it was a black and white photo. “Maybe,” he said before paying his tab and walking out the door. The next week, the man in black walked into the café to find it packed with people. He found that his usual booth was taken up by an old couple talking about the weather. As he was about to turn around and go home, there sat the woman in white in another booth waving at him; two cups sat in front of her. Reluctantly he sat down and took a sip of his coffee. The woman in white pulled out a binder from her bag and opened it for the man in black to look at. Inside were detailed plans for a building alongside some art piece examples. There were portraits of people in the park, animals in the forest, sailors on a boat, and so much more. The man in black quietly adored the drawings as he flipped through them. If it wasn’t for seeing her draw last week, he would’ve thought they were all black and white photos. “I’ve made an appointment to meet with them in two weeks’ time,” she said watching him stare at the pages. “So, I was wondering, could give me any tips about my presentation to the board of investors?” The man in black thought for a moment and closed the binder. “I wouldn’t recommend seeing them,” he said before taking a sip of his coffee. “It isn’t a place for someone like you,” “Please, this is my dream!” begged said the woman in white caressing her binder. “Are my drawings not good enough to be sold?” “No that’s not it,” he said placing down his cup. “I just think that all this effort won’t get you anywhere there,” “Then help me!” said the woman in white picking up his hand. He saw the flare of passion in her eyes; something he hasn’t had for a long time. The man in black freed his hand from her grasp and leaned back into his chair silently. “I see... if you don’t want to help me, I’ll just figure it out myself...” said the woman in white before gathering her things back into her bag. “You’re missing a business plan,” said the man in black softly as she left the booth. She turned around, smiled at him, and sat back down. The man in black took out a pen from his coat pocket and started to write out plans on a napkin. When the clock tower rung 17 times, they left the café agreed to meet next week. That next Sunday, the man in black went to the café almost empty. Alone in his favorite booth sat the woman in white with two cups and a binder. The man in black sat down and looked over her plans. He was impressed by how much of his advice she took and how professional it all looked. Once he was done looking at the plan details for himself, the woman in white practiced her presentation on him. They went at it for hours, with the man in black stopping her at times to ask practice questions and give input on her presentation. When the clocktower rung 18 times, they were both sure that the woman in white’s presentation would land her the deal. As they went out the door of the man in black wished her luck and started to walk back home. The woman in white stopped him and pulled out a small box from her bag and gave it to him. “I wanted to give you this for all your help. I’ll be back at the café after my meeting next Sunday, I want you to be the first to hear about the results,” she said before waving goodbye and walking off. When the man in black got home, he opened the box to find a drawing of him reading his newspaper at the café. If any normal person were to see the drawing, they would just be a photograph of the man in black on any normal Sunday. He placed the picture on his mural and saw that there was something else in the box.The day of the meeting the woman in white walked into the meeting room of Palette Corp. to find various men in women seated around a large circular table. They all dressed the same way the man in black did, but in different bright shades of color which almost looked like a rainbow. She felt nervous but knew this was her chance to prove the world what she could do. When she walked to the front of the room, the room fell silent and she began to present... The man in black as usual went to the café like he normally did. When he was seated in his usual booth, the waiter brought over his black coffee and hesitated for a moment. The man in black has been a loyal patron to the café for years so all the staff knew who he was. But in all years which he came, he always wore the same thing. But to the waiter’s surprise: there below his neck was a white tie... When the clock struck 20 times, the man in black walked out of the café and looked to the sky. This was the first time for him to ever see the night sky from the café’s front door. He wondered how the woman in white did with her presentation. The next Sunday, to his surprise the man in black found the woman in white waiting by the front door of the café. She greeted him quietly before they entered together and sat at his usual spot. They sat in silence for a few moments before she cleared her throat, “First I’m sorry for not meeting with you like I promised after the meeting. They liked the presentation and made me an offer,” smiled the woman in white. A single tear rolled down her cheeks, then another. The man in black said nothing and waited patiently as the woman in white looked down to the ground. “I-I had to turn them down. They wanted me to add all these things to make it seem more marketable and I couldn’t accept it! I’m sorry for wasting your time, but I can’t let them paint all over me!” she cried before looking back up. She saw that the man in black was wearing the tie she had got for him. The man in black ordered her a latte and a black coffee for himself and they sat in silence until the clock tower rung 13 times. When the woman in white walked to the café the next week, she was surprised to see the man in black was already in his booth reading the paper. Beside him was a suitcase and two cups on the table. When she sat down, the man in black put down his paper and opened the suitcase onto the table inside was a copy of the woman in white’s plans and all the money she asked for. She was completely speechless. “I’ve been looking for a reason to sell all my shares of the company to those greedy board members,” he said before closing the case. The woman in white was speechless. The man in black went back to reading his paper. 10 years later, the man in black stopped by the café like always on a Sunday. When he walked over to his booth, there sat the women in white drawing for another commission with 3 cups on the table. The man in black sat down and felt something touch is leg. He looked under to find a little girl wearing a grey dress pulling at his leg. The girl in grey.