That coffee from Boulevard 66 ruined me. I couldn't enjoy any other coffee since I have tasted that. Every other flavor seemed so underwhelming to the aroma and taste of that brew I acquired from that creepy old house on Boulevard 66.
And what about that solitary bean that mysteriously appeared on my table after Mr. Canephora Reynolds passed away! As days passed by and the more I thought about the incidents of the night before, I was sure that indeed I had left no single coffee bean.
So, nearly 3 months after Mr. Reynolds passed, I decided to take another stroll down Boulevard 66, mostly to solve the mystery of Mr. Reynolds, partly to see if I could get a good supply of those coffee beans from that old lady. But this time I wasn't going after dark. I was going to go in broad daylight. Because even though I am not much of a believer in supernatural hocus pocus, that street was creepy as F***!
But to my surprise, after I took that left turn into that alley, no door with Boulevard 66 opened up. 2nd day, 3rd day, 4th day....I repeatedly kept getting shut out. No luck. Maybe it only opens after dark. So I went back in the evenings, at midnights....the wall stayed sealed. Nearly a year passed and I had given up trying to find a missing street.
October 31st, 2023
Exactly 1 year had passed. I was sitting on my sofa about to sip into a cup of cinnamon cappuccino when something hit me like a jolt of thunderbolt! What if......?
Without thinking heads or tails I took the small jar where I kept that solitary coffee bean and set off to walker street. It was nearly midnight as I took the left turn. And then....there it was - the door, Boulevard 66!
I stepped in and the creepy old house was still there. I went up to it and knocked. No one answered. I waited for about half an hour and a grandfather clock somewhere far away struck 12....Ding-dong!...... Ding-dong!
Suddenly with a swirl of smoke the house began to vanish into the a forest that was growing out of nowhere. It was engulfing the entire house and was quickly closing in on me. I tried to run out through the door but that door was nowhere to be seen anymore. It was all thick trees, half broken, half bent out like old witches. And so I ran in the opposite direction and before long I realized I was running through the thick woods....the swirling smoke had settled into a dense foggy mist. I slowed down as the chilly November breeze brushed through my hair.
I was too worried about how to get back to my own realm that I forgot how long, or which direction I walked when a very familiar whiff of aroma hit my nose....could it be....? It most certainly was.....that unmistakable aroma of the coffee beans I had acquired from Boulevard 66 exactly 1 year ago.
I followed the smell and beyond the thinning wood I could see the swirl of smoke again, but this time it was much more gentle...seemed like it was coming out from a chimney. I followed the smoke and the aroma and what I witnessed in front of my eyes left me bewildered! I stood in front of a house castle made out of coffee beans!
The doors were open and the fresh aroma of the most delicious coffee pulled me immediately towards the entrance. It looked like the grandest sort of cafeteria possible and there was so much chatter all around.
But I could see no one, not one single human inside the cafe. Coffee was being poured into cups all around automatically....and they were automatically getting drunk. I was craving for a cuppa but I saw no one to pour me a some coffee when suddenly that single coffee bean in my jar started to whizz out of control.
I opened it up and the bean jumped out...."Oh Doc, what have you done?"
It was the very familiar voice of Mr. Reynolds and I jumped to look around for him. He wasn't there. And then the voice spoke again, "I am the coffee bean doc! Don't you remember what coffee beans become when they die?" I looked at the coffee bean and I could swear it smiled back at me. I rubbed my eyes. The bean poured me a cup of coffee. "Drink doc, I understand it's the best you've had eh!" And it winked at me!
As I sipped into the heavenly aroma and the creamiest steamed milk of the latte, the bean Mr Reynolds asked, "How did you get stuck here doc?"
"Stuck? What do you mean stuck? I came here looking for answers about you Mr. Reynolds. I've been looking for one year, but the door to Boulevard 66 wouldn't show itself." I paused a bit, "....and I also wanted to taste this coffee again."
He smiled affectionately. "The door opens only on the eve of 31st October, and only a true coffe-freak can find the door. But one must leave before it is midnight or you will be stuck here for one year."
Looking at the horror on my face, he said slowly, "There however are two ways you can get back immediately doc. You pay your soul to the the "Village of Canephora" and become a coffee bean..." He paused and slowly added, ".....like me."
"What's the other option?"
"The village wipes out your memory of the existence of Boulevard 66 and you never taste our coffee again.....even though you are truly a real coffee-freak."
Sadness doomed down on both our faces as we both realized which option I was going to choose.
But for now, we sat there in silence. Two friends, drinking one last cup of coffee together.
Read Part 1 here.