Black coffee

It was a busy Tuesday for me. I had back to back meetings along with a deliverable. I absolutely had no time for breakfast, lunch, or even coffee break. In the evening around 4:30 I felt that I needed a short mental break so that I can start functioning again. While I was thinking about my choices a colleague Nisha came near my desk.

"Are you coming for the coffee break?" She asked me.

" I need a break but I do not have time to go to the cafeteria. I guess I will grab coffee from the pantry," I was direct with her.

Nisha looked at my face and said, " you do look tired. You definitely need coffee. I will go with you".

Nisha and I both grabbed our coffee mugs and headed to the pantry. From the vending machine Nisha took latte. I took a shot of espresso and made myself Americano without sugar. While I was preparing my coffee Nisha was staring at me with wide eyes. She finally asked me, "are you okay?"

I was surprised with her question, " I am fine just a little tired. This is exactly what I need to charge up," I responded.

" I mean why are you having black coffee? Are you sad? Do you want to talk about anything? If you do I just want to let you know that I am here for you. We can talk about anything," I saw concern in Nisha's eyes.

" No I am not sad I am completely fine. I am overwhelmed with work but that is all. I took black coffee because I like it. Also I do not trust the pantry staff with how they handle milk here. So whenever I take coffee from here I always take black coffee. There is no other reason. But why did you think I was sad?" I reply to Nisha but I also wanted some answers from her.

" I had read somewhere that people who are sad or depressed they drink black coffee. It has something to do with the bitter taste and the brain chemistry. That is why I asked you. Please do not misunderstand me," Nisha told me politely. Now it had become very clear why she had asked me those questions. It was really sweet of her to consider the situation and tackle it accordingly.

" I really appreciate your concern. Let me reassure you that I am not depressed. I know there is some connection between black coffee and brain chemistry. I had read somewhere that people who drink black coffee are creative. That holds true for me. What do you say?" I inserted that to make the conversation simple and casual again.

" Yes I do agree to that. You definitely are creative and this could be a boost for you," finally Nisha smiled and she did look genuinely relieved. We walked back to our desks. That moment I really felt that I have really good friends who care a lot about me. I silently expressed my gratitude.

This entire conversation made me realise that how one can make assumption about the other person purely based on what they are consuming. Though the assumptions may not always be correct. But if they ask you questions based on your choices, they may be your wellwishers.