The cafe was nondescript, to say the least - on another day, she might've missed it entirely. Two wide glass windows in a modern style, mismatched against a heavy, rococo-esque wooden door nestled in the alcove between them; a few empty tables and chairs sat askew against the rust-colored stucco walls. The quaint independent bookstore to its left would've drawn her attention far sooner.
But today, Chi needed caffeine. Needed it like the cafe's fading sign needed a fresh coat of paint, needed it like the car parked extending half-way into the driveway next to it needed a parking ticket.
She had just finished teaching a particularly difficult 8AM lab section, some university administrator wanted to talk with her about budget cuts and her teaching stipend, and in an hour, she'd be interviewing with a world-renowned researcher about joining his lab group. A certain psychoactive alkaloid would not fix her problems - but it would go a long way towards making things feel much less grim.