I found a greenhouse and nursery nestled in the woods, on a side road I had never seen before. Strange, since I passed that spot hundreds of times...
They had many exotic plants, all unfamiliar to me. Not wanting to bring something home that I couldn't take care of, I strolled over to the seeds.
They were just as unfamiliar as the plants. Except for the coffee seeds. Eagerly I took a packet, and sought out someone to pay (although there weren't prices on anything).
"How much for the coffee seeds?" I asked the ancient woman.
She grinned, and waved me towards the door.
"Thank you, Ma'am," I said, as I left.
After I planted them, I went to bed. When I got up, I remembered that I had accidentally left a bag of plastic shopping bags in the living room the other night. I had brought them out to put one under each pot, before watering the new seeds.
"Might as well take them with me while I get my coffee," I thought as I yawned. Then I got the shock of my life!
Normal coffee plants grow very slowly. They take years to reach six feet, and begin to bear fruit. They also happen to be trees.
These plants were neither slow growing nor trees! The seeds, which I had placed in individual pots, had each grown a huge vine.
Those vines were entangled, forming a thick curtain which was blocking me from entering the kitchen, to get my morning coffee.
The plants had the same leaf shape as the arabica plants. They also had the familiar white flowers. "These are amazing! I wonder how long it'll be before I get any fruit," I thought, as I moved the plants aside carefully.
It seemed like the more foliage I moved, the more I was confronted with. "This is impossible. I closed the door last night, and it was right here," I said, becoming a little worried.
Looking back, I saw that my exit had closed behind me. "I'm being ridiculous," I said, forcing a little laugh.
Knowing that the door had to be less than an inch away, I pushed onward. Several minutes later, I emerged into a beautiful clearing, surrounded by the strangest looking coffee plants.
I looked down. I was no longer standing on my old tan carpet, but rich, dark brown soil.
The vast array of coffee plants overwhelmed me. And they weren't limited to trees.
One species of tree had purple bark and leaves, and the fruit was almost violet. There were more of the vines I had planted - they were bearing normal looking fruit. And there was a massive shrubbery type bush, it was baby blue. Its fruit was a darker blue, with baby blue spots.
I remembered my bags, and began to fill them. One for each variety. With my arms sagging under the weight, I returned to the curtain of vines yet to bear fruit.
Several minutes later, I was back in my living room. I had to go out of the front door, and around back to access my kitchen. "That's a small price to pay for so much coffee!" I thought happily.
First, I made myself a cup of normal coffee, to start my day. Then I put the ripe fruits in the fridge, except for a small amount from each to save for seed. I would roast some on Friday night.
On Friday night, I processed all of my exotic coffee. Unable to wait for morning, I decided to start with the blue species. It was delicious!
As I gazed fondly at my favorite mug, I noticed that something was different. The mug seemed to be suspended in midair! I was holding it, but my hand and arm were invisible.
I carefully placed the mug on the table, then checked my reflection in the window - to discover that I was indeed invisible!
I'll admit that I was worried, but also excited over the possibilities. Thankfully the effects only lasted for a few hours, then I was back to normal.
The next morning, I tried the beans from the vine, the ones that looked normal. They tasted like a perfect chocolate mocha.
I began to feel light, and soon found myself pushing off from the ceiling. With a little trial and error, I discovered that I could control my flight by concentrating on where I wanted to be. I could even land, and move about normally!
I was genuinely sorry to find out that those effects wore off after a few hours as well. Unable to wait until evening to find out what the violet coffee had to offer, I eagerly tried it.
At first, I thought it hadn't done anything special, other than tasting like a delicious, fruity coffee. Then I checked my hand, in case this one also made me invisible.
I gasped in horror. My hand (and as it turned out, the rest of me as well) was violet! "Oh well, I'll just have to wait for it to wear off," I thought glumly.
It did not wear off. Feeling extremely foolish for trying these strange plants out on myself, I felt resigned to a lifetime of stares and snickers.
After a full day of hiding out indoors, I took a shower. And the color came off, the second it came in contact with the soap!
I was so relieved that I went for an evening drive, just to get out of the house. Curiosity led me back to where I had found the little road leading to the greenhouse.
The road was gone, but there was a single packet of coffee seeds there, not far from the main road.
This was originally written for the spill the beans prompt but unfortunately I didn't finish it in time. Thanks so much for the fun prompt 馃檶
Cover image made in Canva using their gallery