#also went to a coffee shop today to get a pumpkin spice latte (iced)

[ahauntedcowboy]

a very cute queer person complimented my pumpkin titty shirt earlier today <3

[bree4]

I know Who Killed me Chapter 4

"Charlie!" shouts my mother i have been in bed all morning it's summer vacation i can't believe my first year at Anoka Middle has gone by this quickly. this fall i will officially be a eighth grader, holy shit. i go downstairs where my mom and sisters are waiting in the kitchen. 

"Happy Birthday!" all three shout at once. today i turn fourteen. 

they have a breakfast spread all over the dinner table and i am suddenly feeling i'll, not on a empty stomach but because i want to maintain my empty feeling. they sit me down and i put a fake smile on. i'll eat it, i just need to puke it up later than i will go for a long walk. maybe i can even start running?

i take a bite and i make sure to really chew each bite.

to others this would be heaven but for me it's awful, i can feel the fat latching onto my body i need to get rid of it now. 

i go upstairs put on a grey oversized sweater and gym shorts grab my Nike runners and leave the house. it's the morning but the heat of summer is very much present on this walk, maybe i should have worn a t-shirt? i do a few laps around our neighbourhood and make my way to downtown i look at the shops and decide i want a coffee, which seems to be the only thing i find safe to eat. sparky's cafe is my go to spot, i like to get a iced coffee or a pumpkin spice latte in the fall. i would kill for a Pumpkin Spice Latte right now. it's also closes to the river side park, the walk i like to take when i clear my head.

the walk home is peaceful i feel better, i just need to get back to 110 i'm at 120 and once i'm back i'll be okay. i turn the corner at 2nd ave to walk the path at Akin river side park, i will walk up towards river ave it's a far walk but i need it right now.

Saturday June 30, 2018

today would have been Charlie's 15th birthday i can see it now, we would have had a nightmare before Christmas or a twilight theme but specially the first movie for the 'cold vibes' and he would have dressed up like Edward Cullen or even Bella Swan. the Cake would be chocolate with chocolate icing because he loved chocolate. i know him so well, i think i knew him better than his family did. 

i walk down to the Akin river path because it's where Charlie spent most his time, he loved to walk the path. sometimes he would be here for hours, if his mom couldn't find him i knew he was always here. i spent that first week after he went missing down here, hoping it was all some joke or misunderstanding and that he would be by the docs or resting in the trees. i would be able to find my boy, but that day never came. i didn't leave my bedroom for weeks, my parents were scared that i might flunk out of the seventh grade.

god i wish he were just missing. how can you be dead Charlie? and why can't i remember that night, i've tried so hard to remember details, were we followed? did you get chased by some high school kids and a prank go too far, did one of us do something? and why can't this fucking town find who killed you? 

Friday June 30, 2017

by the time i get home it's almost noon, my mom is sitting at the dining room table with a coffee i pour myself a cup and sit with her. she's reading her wellness book and i look at the title it's a diet book, she doesn't need that i do. i look at the book with interest, she catches me so i look away. 

"you're so lucky" she tells although i have no idea what i'm 'lucky' for.

"for what?" i ask because i must know now. 

"you're so skinny and you don't need to try..."but i do have to try, what does she mean skinny? i'm huge. there's a small bump in my lower belly that was never there before, and i can't see the ribcage anymore. i'm anything but 'skinny', i need to work out more shes clearly making fun of me.

i don't talk anymore i just sit, i don't wanna make a scene or cry or something. she slips a small wrapped gift to me. 

"happy birthday "

"what is it?" i ask.

"open it." i start to unwrap the paper and i see a small iPhone box. i look up and smile, all that anger i just had slipping away, i'm now excited it's my first iPhone. my older sisters got one when they turned fourteen so i was hoping i'd get mine this year.

"i know it's not the newest model, but your cousin Riley didn't use it anymore a-" 

"it's perfect!" i scream. 

i rush to my room and get it set up, i used to use a iPod  touch but this is the real deal i cannot believe it. after setting it up i DM my friends that i got a phone and to send me their numbers. the party is tonight and i told everyone it's going to be a villain from a horror movie. the party starts at seven so i need to get to setting up. 

Saturday June 30, 2018

the walk to the train is freezing it's pouring rain today. i'm cold and i can just use a warm coffee, i'll go uptown near Anoka station i know sparky's is a few blocks down i'll catch the bus to main street and walk the rest of the way. i realize now i just made an entire circle around the city and somehow ended up back near the riverside path.

Friday June 30, 2017

the party starts and the three are showing up, they dressed up as their favourite horror movie villains: Ethan is Freddy from Nightmare on Elm St, Liam went as Jason from Friday the 13, Olivia decided on Annabelle from the conjuring, i went as the best villain in my opinion: GhostFace from the Scream Franchise, the best horror franchise in my humble opinion. 

the lights are blinking orange and green the kitchen has neon purple light bulbs and all the snacks are in the dining room including the cake. i invited a few others from our grade but i never got a RSVP so as usual it's the core four, mom and my older sisters, they dressed up as the twins from the shinning and my mom decided on Winifred from Hocus Pocus. we play uno which always starts an argument between everyone and people get accused of Cheating ( not sure how they can cheat.)

"Uno!" Olivia shouts, but from the mischievous look Liam has i guarantee he's going to make her pick up four cards, he also has one card left.

he slams the 4+ card down in front of Olivia.

"Nope, now you gotta pick up four cards Liv." he is so proud of himself. 

"ugh, Liam!" she's mad now.

"Not fair!" she whines.

"You're just not fast enough, nice try though." 

the next round is almost done and Liam only has his single card, i'm waiting for him to put it down. "do it, i dare you" i say in my mind.

he puts it down and i shout "UNO!"

he glares at me and i keep his stare, i smirk and he gives me one right back. this game is getting heated.

"will you two stop flirting?" Ethan tells us breaking the silence.

"shut up Ethan." Liam says. okay we are clearly done with Uno, i need to switch the Activity soon or all three will literally murder each other.

"cake?" i ask. Ethan is already rushing to the dinner table where all the snacks and my birthday cake is. 

"Mrs.Summers Charlie wants to do the cake!" Ethan screams.

"it's Carol weirdo." my mom says coming out of the kitchen with a fresh cup of coffee. we laugh because it's true my mom hates being called mrs.summers or ms summers or miss summers, just call her Carol. she says calling her by her last name makes her feel old. 

"Sorry..." Ethan says but he's only teasing. 

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR CHARLIE, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU" everyone is singing.

as i watch them all sing i wish we can sit here for a few moments longer, because little do they know, i will be murdered on Halloween night. i blow out my candles. everyone claps in celebration here's to Fourteen, and the last five months i have to live.....

Wednesday October 31,2018

the sheriff is in the principals office and everyone is in the hallway watching with confusion. why are they here? 

"Can the Following Students report to the principals office immediately: Liam Green and Olivia Bennington, thank you." i'm frozen again, it's just like last year. i am met with everyone staring at me i look down the hall at Olivia who's already look back at me, she's just as confused.

the office feels cold when we walk in, the sheriff is already in the office with the principal. we walk in together.

"Hi?" Olivia says.

the sherif turns around and looks at us both, i don't say anything but i'm very cautious.

"Ethan Lowry is missing." he flatly says.

i look over at Olivia and back at the sheriff. 

Fuck.

[chelleztjs18]

Lost in Assistance - Ch. 3

Elizabeth Olsen x Fem!Reader

GIF: I do not own this GIF. Found it on gifimage.net

Summary: Y/n is a professional celebrity's personal assistant in Hollywood got hired with two years contract to be the assistant of the famous and talented Elizabeth Olsen / Lizzie by her manager. Both Y/n and Lizzie hate each other since day one, and they have mutual friend. One is as stubborn as the other, will Y/n stay when Lizzie gives attitudes and tries her best to make her quit before the contract ends?

Warning: fluff, angst, smut (in future chapters), swearing words ( +18 only)

All chapters

It's the day before the meeting between Y/n, Mitchel with Jane Vernon and Lizzie. Lizzie has to come by to her manager's office. She's wondering why can't they just discuss it through the phone but it's her day off anyway so she doesn't mind having a quick meeting that she actually already has an idea what this meeting is about. After she parked her car at her special spot that's not easily found or noticeable by the paparazzi, she got into the elevator and went up to floor 48 where Jane's office is.

"Good morning Miss Olsen. Mrs. Vernon is in her office room. She's having a video conference but she said you can just go in and wait inside. Can I get you something to drink?" Jane’s assistant greeted her and his hand gestures gave Lizzie a sign to go in.

"Hi Aaron, yeah I have a quick meeting with Jane. I'll have a pumpkin spice latte from the coffee shop in the lobby please.Thanks." She smiled and went into the office room.

Lizzie walked in right on time as Jane just got done from the video conference.

"Lizzie! Good morning sweety! Thank you for coming by." The brown haired lady in her late 30's stood up and came to Lizzie to give her a hug. "Hi Jane. Morning. Yeah no problem." Lizzie answered as she hugged her back then both of them had a seat facing each other separated by a big mahogany colored office desk. Lizzie slid her sunglasses up and rested it on her head and put her purse aside on the other chair.

"So the reason I asked you to come here is to discuss getting you a personal assistant." Jane started the conversation but Lizzie pinched the bridge of her nose since she already knew this was the reason for the meeting.

"It was my mom wasn't it that asked you to talk to me again about this? I thought I already told you that I don't need one. I'm already comfortable with you. We work well together. You know me very well, and I know how you work too." Lizzie tries to explain her point again.

"Well, it wasn't really all your mom behind this meeting, I thought I needed to talk with you again in person about this. I love the way we work together too. I love to manage everything for you. I totally understand your point but.." 

A knock on the door interferes with the conversation. It's Aaron. "Excuse me, sorry but here's your coffee Miss Olsen, also your mom is here. She said she has an appointment with Mrs Vernon to join the meeting." Lizzie right away turns her head around in confusion and sees Jarnett come in. "Mom? What are you doing here?" Despite her confusion with why Jarnett is here, she still stands up to give her mom a hug.

"Hi honey, oh I'm just here to talk with you and Jane more about the personal assistant." Jarnett answered as she took a seat as soon as Lizzie moved her purse onto her lap from the other chair. "Mom, Jane, I already told you both I don't think I need one. I'm not comfortable adjusting with new people when we can actually solve the problem in different ways." Lizzie said with a little firm tone. 

"Liz, I understand but with your upcoming filmings for different movies in a row in the next few years and that means there'll be a lot more press, interviews, comic cons, shows and a lot more other stuff. It means I will be way busier than I am now with all the major stuff. If you have another personal assistant, all of your other minor needs and stuff will be handled, she can probably even help me so everything will go smoother and easier for you, for all of us." Jane explained her point enthusiastically that can be seen from her hand movements when she was talking. 

"Jane is right Liz. I mainly care about you getting everything you need when you are busy and help you manage/prepare the other minor things" Said Jarnett, helping Jane to prove her point.

"Let's say we don't get the new assistant, we can adapt it through online or phone. You can let me know way in advance whatever I need to know and vice versa. It's like how we have been doing but we do it way in advance. It's that simple. I meant, I'm an adult now, I can do this." Lizzie replied persistently. "I don't think it will work that way even though it does,it won't last that long." Jane said. 

"I think if you have your assistant that's only focused on you, it will help you. I know you don't feel comfortable and give you anxiety when you have to adapt or deal with new people but can you at least give it a try, hun? Trust me it will make your work and filming easier. At least if it works, this can add acquaintances or even maybe new friends in your circle. We never know until we try. Jane has a good friend who knows a professional assistant. She was even impressed when she briefly saw her resumé." Jarnett tries to persuade her daughter as smoothly as she possibly can , knowing it's the only way to handle her daughter's persistence. Jarnett knows how her daughter can sometimes be very pertinacious. 

"Yes Liz, please give it a try for some time. If it really doesn't work out then we'll go your way. I promise it will be only temporary." Jane pitched her last try to convince Lizzie.

"Wait wait wait! Her? So you guys actually already found someone even though I haven't agreed on anything yet about this matter? Did you hire her already?" Lizzie tilted her head, her eyes squinted and her mouth was slightly opened, making it clear that she is puzzled with what is going on.

"Weeeell, yes but not really. I meant, we will meet her tomorrow to finalize the contract and everything. I arranged your schedule and squeezed it in. I just want you to meet her to break the ice. My good friend who owns a Hollywood personal assistant agency said that she is the best one he got and you will love having her as your assistant. The meeting will take place here at 10 A.M. So, I'll see you tomorrow morning Liz?" 

Lizzie sighed in defeat knowing she won't get away with this. "How can I say no when you guys are ganging up on me like this? Alright, I guess I have no choice. I'll see you tomorrow. I gotta go now. Love you both." She pouted and stood up planning to leave for she has no other reason to stay longer in the meeting today. She gave Jarnett and Jane a hug goodbye.

Little do they know, in her mind, Lizzie is still trying to find a way to get what she wants.

"Hey, what are you up to? I need to talk with you. I need your help to figure out some stuff. Do you have time to meet me?" She texted her best friend as she left the office towards the elevator.

“ Yo, what’s up? Yeah sure. Tomorrow at noon? We can meet up for lunch. Everything okay?” Her best friend’s text popped up at the same time as the elevator’s ding.

“Yeah but not really. You don’t have time to meet me today?” She replied while she is in the elevator that sometimes makes weird machine noises.

“Sorry babe, I’m really drowning with my errands. Have to get a lot done today. I promise I’ll see you tomorrow.” Lizzie groans in irritation after reading the reply. “Okay then. See you tomorrow.” She replied then got into her car. 

She sighed, part of her is upset with the situation and another part of her is having the anxiety to adjust with new people. She is definitely not happy and not looking forward to attending the meeting tomorrow morning.

Ch. 4

[is0gild]

Ice Cream and Fire Oven Pizza - Chapter 16

Pairing: Elsa x Lea/Axel || Side Pairing: Riku x OC

Summary: Modern AU. She's an introvert ball of nerves who works at Ice Palace, a mall food court ice cream shop. He's the outgoing, sassy goofball who works at the Pizza Planet across the way. Hilarity, snark, and fluffy romcom hijinks ensue.

Word Count: 6,227

FIRST CHAPTER || PREVIOUS CHAPTER || NEXT CHAPTER

Credit for super friggin’ cute and super friggin’ amazing cover art goes to the super friggin’ talented ky-jane here on tumblr!

"No joke, you can for real get us the stuff?"

Rayne grinned over at Anna as the three of us walked side by side. "For real. I got a girl on the inside who can hook us up."

Her gaze narrowed dubiously, "Don't play me. I've been friggin' jonesing for a fix since March."

"You know I'm good for it, sweetpea," she slung an arm around her shoulders. "Trust me. My word is my bond, ya dig?"

Pinching the bridge of my nose, I puffed out a heavy sigh and grumbled, "You two are ridiculous."

A scoff from Rayne, "You'll be singing a different tune once that sweet, sweet ambrosia is warming your belly."

Rolling my eyes, I took another quick glance around the food court as we crossed it.

Still no Lea.

Boy couldn't get here fast enough.

Also, boy better hurry, seeing as how there was less than an hour left before my shift started.

My thumb absently rubbed the spot where his phone number still branded my palm as we finished crossing the sea of plastic tables and chairs, coming to a stop in front of the Lucky Cat. Working behind the register today was someone I hadn't seen before. A boy with a bandaid on one cheek and short, choppy brown hair sticking out from beneath the baseball cap he was wearing backwards.

Wait…

I squinted.

…or maybe he was actually a she. Hard to say. They were really quite androgynous, whoever they were.

Rayne smiled at us and held up a finger, indicating for us to just watch and wait. Then she stepped forward, approaching the counter. "Sup, Miharu! We're here to see…" she paused, looking around to make sure there were no eyes on her that shouldn't be, then she hunched forward and lowered her voice to a whisper, "...Spellweaver."

The coffee purveyor of indeterminate gender said nothing for several seconds, just fixed her with a dull stare. "...she's in the back, just a sec," they at last huffed before turning and disappearing through the door behind them.

"Spellweaver…?" Anna arched an eyebrow at Rayne.

She nodded solemnly, "The street name she goes by for all of her shady backdoor dealings."

"Oh good grief," I massaged one temple with my fingertips.

Deciding to steer this conversation towards something a little less silly while we waited for… ugh, Spellweaver to show up, I asked Anna, "So you really have no clue what Mother and Father are planning for this whole weekend family outing thing they're inviting us to?"

"Zip," she popped the P as she shrugged. But then she was crinkling her nose with a frown, "Weaseltown's gonna be there though."

I hugged myself, shuddering. "Thanks, that does not reassure me."

"Relax! Dad's probably just gonna be all, " she gave a lofty sniff, raised her pinkie and deepened her tone in what I had to admit was a pretty good impression of our father, "let's just put this nasty bit of business behind us, bygones and whatnot, chip chip cheerio."

"You are aware he's not British, right?" my eyelids drooped at her. I couldn't resist a tiny grin though and exhaled slowly, "...you really think he'll be that forgiving?"

"Of course! Well... that or he'll be all," up that pinkie went again as she scowled, "how dare you throw your life away like this, young lady, disgracing the family name thusly! I will not stand for it, pish posh!"

"...not helping."

Rayne shushed us as the back door behind the counter swung open again and that Miharu person returned. "Your weirdo friends are here to feed their disgusting habit," they deadpanned, speaking to their coworker that'd also come striding out behind them, presumably none other than the infamous Spellweaver.

Aka Aqua.

I should have guessed.

Gaze darting about again to ensure the coast was still clear, Rayne rapped her knuckles against the countertop, tapping out the beginning of "shave and a haircut." Aqua gave a good natured snort before responding with two knocks herself, delivering the punchline to the tune.

Seriously? What was that supposed to be, some sort of code? This was just getting more absurd by the second.

"What're you ladies in the market for today?" Aqua asked, propping an elbow onto the counter.

"We're here for… the Spice," Rayne put heavy emphasis on the word, giving her a wink that was the very antithesis of subtle. "You still got your super special secret stash?"

"Maybe," she inspected her fingernails, casually bouncing one shoulder. "You know I only stock the primo kind too. But stuff's not easy to come by this time of year. If I did have it, supplies would be getting pretty low. It'll cost ya. You got the munny?"

Anna suddenly pushed forward, grabbing Aqua by the front of her apron and yanking her down to her eye level, "Yeah yeah, you got the goods or what, bitch?!"

"Anna!" I snapped, horrified.

"What?! I was just playing along with the bit!" she defended, immediately releasing her grip.

Aqua gingerly smoothed the wrinkles out of her apron and fixed her crooked visor, "Normally just the munny and a please would suffice."

"Was your sister seriously just about to straight up shank Aqua over some coffee?" a low, amused voice said right next to my ear, making me jump. I spun around, discovering Lea snerking behind me as he straightened back up. Xion and Roxas were with him too, looking dressed to be on the clock shortly.

There was a tiny harrumph from Anna, "Everyone knows you don't get between a white girl and her pumpkin spice latte!"

That's right.

That's what this whole foolishness had been over.

Pumpkin frigging spice.

"Three please," Rayne asked sheepishly, handing Aqua the munny and shoving a hefty tip into the jar for good measure. Then she sighed at Anna, "We can't take you anywhere."

"It was a friggin' bit!"

"Hey, so," Roxas piped up, drawing my attention to him as he smirked. Xion bounced on the balls of her feet beside him, looking positively ready to burst with giddiness as Roxas leaned forward, "...are you like our new mommy?"

I blinked, "Wha-?" Then yelped as Xion, apparently no longer able to contain her excitement, threw herself at me with a squeal and squeezed me in a bone crushing hug.

"I'm so happy for you two!" Her death grip tightened and I wheezed, looking to Lea for help. He just grinned wider at me and shrugged. The useless punk. Thankfully, Xion pulled back, seizing me by the shoulders instead. "Tell me everything! How did it happen? When did it happen? Was it love at first sight? Gah, I still can't believe you two kept it a secret for so long and even guilt tripped me over that harmless lil car prank, you jerk!" she punched Lea in the arm, forcing him to hiss out a pained "ow."

Served him right.

The abrupt sound of someone noisily clearing their throat cut through the air. We turned to find a lanky guy with wavy, ash blonde hair down to his shoulders standing nearby, his lavender eyes giving us a pointed look. "Pardon me, if you would…?"

Apparently we were blocking his path to the Lucky Cat register where Miharu was currently stationed at.

"Oh!" realization struck Xion and she hurried out of the way, dragging me with her.

"Thank you," he bowed his head to us before sauntering up to the cash register with a sly grin, "Well well, don't you look absolutely ravishing today, my fiesty little barista of love."

"Bite me, Joshua," Miharu ground out flatly.

"Only if you insist," he purred.

I was distracted from that exchange by a steaming to-go cup suddenly popping up barely an inch in front of my nose, making me stagger back a step. "Here ya go, sweetie!" Rayne chirped from behind the latte she was offering me.

"Thanks," I mumbled as I took it, giving her a tiny and somewhat dazed smile as I struggled to keep up with the whirlwind of activity going on around me. Too many different things were going on at once and it was all just a lot, okay?

"Ah!" Anna sighed loudly and happily after taking a long, deep swig from her pumpkin spiced beverage. "Pure heaven!"

"Amen, sister!" Rayne cried, chugging some of her own. Then she gasped, snagging Anna's arm and gesturing towards the Ice Palace. "Look! Kristoff's on shift! Think you can work your feminine wiles and score us some free sundaes?"

"Ray-Ray, please. You worked your magic, now watch me work mine. Hold my drink." She handed her cup to my roomie, cracked her knuckles and skipped off, singsonging, "Yoohoo, Kristoff!"

That poor boy was about to get played like a fiddle.

Rayne spared a look my way, grinned and elbowed my arm before casting a significant glance towards Lea. "Have fun," she half whispered, half giggled to me before running off after Anna.

"We should probably get going too, Xion. Gotta punch in," Roxas said as he eyed the massive overhead clock on the other end of the food court.

"Aw man," she whined, looking from him to me. "Fine. But you and me? We're gonna talk more later, got it?" she brightened, giving my arm a squeeze before joining Roxas who waved goodbye to us as the two of them walked off towards Pizza Planet.

Lea shook his head with a soft chuckle as he watched them go, saying to me, "Ignore them. The kiddos are just super happy for us lovebirds."

"Oh." I looked down at my to-go cup, fingers fidgeting with the lid. "So you got a chance to talk to them about it."

"Didn't really have to. I think that bit of theatrics between Anna and your crazy uncle the other day spoke for itself. Whole food court's been abuzz." He flashed me a big smile, shrugging, "Face it, El. We're the new hot topic."

"R-really?" I stammered, doing my best to stop the blush I felt creeping up my neck dead in its tracks. I'd nearly forgotten about that whole embarrassing scene. I think I'd been subconsciously trying to block it out, pretend it'd all been a bad dream.

"Don't worry. It'll become old news pretty quick and chatter'll die down."

"I hope so," I frowned, taking a careful sip of my warm latte. I hated being the center of attention and having people talk about me.

"So…" his eyes crinkled as he took a step closer to me now, plucking the cup from my grasp and depositing it onto a nearby table so he could take both my hands in his. Tracing his thumbs in light circles along my knuckles, he murmured, "Hi."

That blush I'd been keeping at bay? Just called in reinforcements and broke through the bloody barricades. "...hi."

His eyes briefly flicked to our right, discreetly calling attention to the fact that Aqua was grinning at us as she prepared a mocha order. Ah, message received. We had an audience. And an audience demanded a show, one which Lea seemed only too glad to put on as he now brought my hands to his lips, placing a gentle kiss on the back of each one. "Didja miss me?"

My stomach flip-flopped. No, scratch that, it was doing goddamn somersaults like a gold medal gymnast on a set of uneven bars at the Olympics. Panicking a little, I hastily looked away and blurted out, "Miss you? Please, I just saw you yesterday. It hasn't even been twenty-four hours yet, I haven't had time to miss you."

What? I didn't know how to do the whole lovey-dovey thing, real, pretend or otherwise! Honestly, I was beginning to think it just wasn't genetically coded into my DNA.

He tsked. "That's not what you were supposed to say."

I gave him some side-eye. "What was I supposed to say?"

"Hm, I dunno… something like," he transferred his grip to my wrists, pulling my hands up to cup his cheeks, "how much you longed to see this gorgeous face again and how you cried yourself to sleep just counting the seconds until you could look upon its beauty once more."

"...I am not saying that."

"Huh," he smirked down at me. "Funny how ya didn't deny it though. Don't worry, we can work our way up to it."

I snorted. "Don't count on it."

A tiny laugh came from the Lucky Cat. With him still holding my hands to his face, we both looked over to see Aqua hiding a smile behind her fingers. She shook her head, "Sorry, pretend I'm not here. You two are just very cute."

I jerked my wrists free of his grasp and opened my mouth to say we most certainly were not. However, Lea was faster with a chipper, "We know!" With that, he picked up my drink once more, slipping his free hand into mine and cooed, "Let's go, shnookums," before walking off with me in tow.

Stumbling a few steps before matching his stride, I glanced back to make sure we were out of earshot. Then I looked at him. "No."

He cocked an eyebrow. "No what?"

My nose scrunched up. "Shnookums."

"Yes, sugarplum?"

I blanched. "No, that's not- I wasn't calling you-" I sighed, recomposing myself. "I was saying no to that pet name. Sugarplum's out too."

Lea pouted, "Aw, but they're classics. You sure you want to keep vetoing all of these? Pretty soon I'll have to start thinking outside the box."

"I'll take my chances."

"Suit yourself, don't say I didn't warn ya though." He then nodded to my cup, lifting it up slightly, "May I?"

"Uh…" I blinked. "...sure, go for it."

He took a sip then abruptly stopped us in the middle of the food court tables. "Shit, that's actually pumpkin spice. I thought your sister was only joking. October is still months away, how'd you guys manage to get your hands on this?"

My mouth pursed to one side. I can't believe I was about to say this. "...I know a gal who knows a gal."

A snerk huffed out through his nostrils. "Aren't you legally required to be wearing a trench coat and in a dark alley to say something like that?"

One corner of my lips twitched up despite myself as I took the latte back from him, "Was fresh out of trench coats."

"Well then, guess we'll just have to settle for this instead," he gripped the bill of my Ice Palace cap, twisting it sideways.

"Hey!" I swatted his hand away and spun my hat forward again. "I've got connections, I'm not a rapper. There's a difference."

"I know. I just really wanted to do that." His hand snaked up again, tweaking my cap to the left now. "Boyfriend privileges. Sorry, I don't make the rules."

Sighing, I straightened it again. "I've given you too much power. You're having way too much fun with this."

"No such thing." He went for the hat yet again but I caught his hand this time, narrowing my eyes at him. He grinned, shifting the hold so our fingers interlocked together instead, causing my heart to give a little flitter.

Then he used his other hand to turn the cap to sit sideways once more.

I drooped my eyelids at him. "I'm going to throw this drink in your face."

"And waste perfectly good pumpkin spice? For shame!" he chided playfully, thankfully having the common decency now to correct my hat back to the way it was supposed to be.

Ugh, this guy. Of all the people Anna could have shoved me into the arms of in front of the Duke on that fateful day, why'd it have to be him? I'm sure she'd only picked the nearest testosterone toting individual who just so happened to be strolling by in that exact moment but jeez, why couldn't it have been, oh I don't even know… Kristoff perhaps? Kristoff would have taken this more seriously. Kristoff I didn't have a maybe sorta crush on. Kristoff wouldn't have had my face toasting every ten stupid seconds. Seriously, I swear Lea had made me blush more in the past several weeks that I'd known him than I'd ever done in the rest of my entire life combined. I'm not sure who that said more about - Lea or my ex.

Shaking my head at him, I prompted, "So you said something yesterday about coming here to do some couple-watching?"

"Oh, right. Almost forgot." Lea glanced about at the shoppers enjoying their meals all around us. "Lessee here, who do we got…?"

"Why not Riku and Rayne? I mean, I live with them and they're in on the secret, I'm sure they'd be happy to coach us or whatever." I began to lift my drink towards my mouth but stopped it a few inches short, staring down at it with a tiny frown.

"Nah, they're not just a couple, they're married. Married is a whole different animal from dating. Trust me, what we're looking for is a cutesy-wootsy boyfriend-girlfriend dynamic duo." He took a break from scanning the area to focus on me once more, noticing the look I was now giving my cup. He quirked an eyebrow, "Problem?"

My eyes flicked to his lips, then returned to my latte. Then back and forth once, twice more.

...oh grow up! It's not like the boy had cooties!

"Not at all," I muttered, hiding my small scowl behind the cup as I finally took a sip, telling myself that the slight warmth I felt in my cheeks was only due to the heat of the beverage, nothing more. "What about them?" I asked hastily, gesturing back towards the Lucky Cat where... Joshua, was it? Was still talking to Miharu. "They're a couple." He was leaning across the countertop with a devilish little smirk, bringing their faces really close. Miharu, on the other hand, looked about ready to grab the nearest banana walnut muffin from their display case and shove it up his nose. I furrowed my brow, "...aren't they?"

He followed my gaze. "Who, them? Those two are… complicated. What they got going on seems to work for them, but it's not exactly the type of Hallmark romance we want to be emulating in front of your folks. No, we want too adorable and precious for this world. We want pure, unadulterated wholesome on a stick. We want cavity-inducing sweetness. We want…" once more, his eyes were darting from one table of mall-goers to the next until at last his face lit up and he pointed, "...them! Perfect!" And off he went again, dragging me with him.

We wove our way past several tables before coming to a halt at one in particular, seated at which was-

"Kairi? Sora?" I blinked at them and they both looked up at the sound of their names.

"Oh, hey guys!" Sora hit us with the full force of that blinding smile of his.

"Hiya!" Lea chirped, pulling out a chair for me. "Mind if we join you two?"

"Please," Kairi nodded enthusiastically, twisting her chopsticks into her chow mein that looked to be from Mushu's Kingdom. "Be our guest!"

I'm sorry, but couple-watching and couple-interacting were two completely different things. This is not what I'd signed up for. Still, I took the seat with only the barest hint of hesitation, feeling Lea push it in behind me before he grabbed the one next to me, spinning it one-eighty on one leg so he could plop down into it backwards.

Eyes dancing, Kairi spoke up again, "So, to what do we owe the pleasure of being joined by the Dusk Town Center's newest It Couple?"

"...It Couple?" I echoed, arching an eyebrow as I put my drink down in front of me, fingers fidgeting with the coffee sleeve.

"Told ya, El!" Lea chuckled, folding his arms atop the table, his elbow coming to rest against mine. "Everyone's talking about us. Can you blame them though? We did have a rather dramatic debut."

"Oh gosh," I smothered my face in my hands.

"Nothing to be embarrassed over, you're fine!" Kairi giggled, then glanced smugly over at Sora. "Plus, I got to tell this loser here that I'd told him so!"

He rolled his eyes, grin never wavering. "Lucky guess. You had no way of knowing they were already dating."

"Woman's intuition," she razzed her tongue at him, tapping her chopsticks to her temple. "It's never wrong."

Welp. It was wrong this time. Lucky for her, Lea and I had a cover to maintain. Good thing too, I don't know if I'd have had the heart to tell her otherwise and burst her bubble.

"Besides," she tacked on, slurping up a noodle, "it's always been plain as day for anyone to see on Lea's face. He has that whole lost puppy look going on whenever she's around."

"I don't have a lost puppy look," Lea scratched the back of his head with a sheepish laugh before glancing my way and insisting, "I don't."

Sora sniggered, "Yeah, Kai, I think that's just the way his dopey face always loo- ow!" That last part was in response to Lea reaching across the table to flick him in the forehead.

Ignoring the boys, Kairi sighed dreamily, "It's all just so sweet! Like some sort of modern day, food court, Shakespearian romance! One from House Pizza, the other from House Ice Cream, two star-crossed lovers defying all odds to be together!"

...okay, why were we here again?

"It's not like we're from two warring families locked in a blood feud." Lea snorted and muttered, "House Ice Cream and House Pizza… what even?"

"Shush, I was being poetic!" Kairi harrumphed before lightly slapping Sora's hand away as he tried to steal some of her chow mein.

Rubbing his sore knuckles, he whined, "Aw c'mon, Kai, all this food talk is making me hungry!"

"You've already eaten twice your weight in orange chicken, you big goob!" she shot back. But when he gave her the saddest pout in the history of all mankind - nay, the history of all existence - her shoulders slumped and she relented, stabbing her chopsticks into the noodles and twirling them, "Fine, open up, doofus."

He immediately perked up and parted his lips wide. Having wrapped a sizable portion around her sticks now, she gently eased it into his awaiting mouth. For all the care she took though, some sauce still managed to get on the corner of his lips as he started to chew. Kairi gave a soft tch and told him, "Hold still." Then she took his chin between her fingers, bent forward and kissed the smudged side of his mouth, leaving it clean by the time she'd pulled back, licking her lips with a tiny smirk.

Sora swallowed his food. "Thanks, bae!" he beamed, bowing his head towards hers and nuzzling the tips of their noses together, eliciting a titter from her.

Oh. Right. That's why we were here.

These two were cavity-inducing alright. I think I was already feeling my teeth begin to rot just by being within a five foot radius of them. Dear lord, I don't think I could ever be like that, especially not where people could see us.

...was Lea suggesting I act this way?

I glanced at him out of the corner of my eye, watching as he stretched a hand across the table towards Kairi's tray and dipped a finger into some of the excess chow mein sauce on one side of her plate. Lea then proceeded to dab the goo onto his nose, plant his elbow on the table, prop his chin in his palm and lean towards me with a cheshire grin, eyes hooded and eyebrows bouncing.

Apparently, yes. That's exactly what he was suggesting.

I stared blankly at him.

Yeah, no. Not happening, pal.

"Worth a shot," Lea snerked as he reached for a napkin to scrub the smear off with.

Kairi bit back a smile, "D'aww, she's shy! That's adorable!"

"That's my baby! Wouldn't have her any other way!" he tweaked my nose with a wink.

"Oh! I just had a great idea!" Kairi clapped her hands together. "Tomorrow night, Sora and I were gonna go out with Riku and Ray. Nothing fancy, just dinner and a movie. But what if you two joined us as well and turned our double date into a triple? How fun would that be?"

I don't know… dinner and a movie? She was asking a lot of little ol' hermit me. Maybe too much.

Lea looked to me, pressing his shoulder into mine. "How 'bout it, El?"

...well… I guess… for the sake of practice…

I gave the couple across from us a shy smile. "What time were you thinking?"

Taking that as a yes, Kairi cried out in delight. "Awesome! We're all meeting up at six. You can get the deets from your roomies!" She then picked up her phone to check the time. "Crap," she hissed, jumping up to her feet, "gotta run! Selphie's gonna murder me for taking too long on my lunch break!"

"Wait up, I'll walk you back," Sora called, taking the opportunity to snatch up the chopsticks she'd dropped and shovel what was left of the chow mein down his throat faster than should have been humanly possible. Then he grabbed the tray and hopped up as well, cheeks bulging with food as he muffled out, "See ya guys tomorrow!" before taking off after his girlfriend.

"So…?" Lea asked, one side of his mouth turning up as he stole another sip from my pumpkin spice latte.

I gave a small, incredulous laugh, "No. Also? No. No, no, no. No. Did I mention no? Because just in case I didn't… no. And just for good measure: no. So in conclusion? No."

"Pfft," he rubbed a hand over his lips. "Well I understand if they may seem a bit… advanced to you…"

"Advanced?" I scoffed. "Try critical mode. I had no idea such couples existed outside of children's storybooks starring princesses and prince charmings. Do they even know they're in the real world and not some fairytale?"

Lea's head tipped to one side. "...you do realize that was some pretty basic boyfriend-girlfriend stuff… right?"

A crease formed between my eyebrows. "You mean that was normal?"

"Well," he averted his gaze, scratching his cheek, "...all couples vary and do things differently. But I wouldn't say Kairi and Sora are abnormal. There's a lotta couples out there that are just as disgustingly cute as they are, if not more so."

I bit down on my lower lip and hunched forward onto my elbows, clasping my hands in front of my face just beneath my nose. How was it I'd been in a relationship for five years and was just now figuring out that I didn't have the first clue when it came to dating? "...my ex and I were never anything like that. Not even close."

"And that," he struck up a finger, "works out in our favor. After all, you dumped his sorry ass, one, cuz you weren't in love with him and two, to be with yours truly," his fingers splayed across his chest as he grinned, "a hunky dreamboat you are in love with, or so the story goes. Now it shouldn't be too hard to sell that to your folks, given your former beau has set the bar so pathetically low for us."

"But I don't know if I have it in me to…" I trailed off, my hands clenching to each other more tightly. "...if I'm even wired to be such an absolute… googly-eyed, twitterpated… mess like those two were." My insides squirmed at the very idea.

"No problemo!" Lea jabbed a thumb into his collarbone, "I can be enough of a googly-eyed, twitterpated mess for the both of us!" He stiffened, then coughed into his fist, "That is, I mean… ya know, for the sake of appearances. If that'd be okay with you, of course."

He was talking about him being, erm… how had he put it the other day? Ah yes… touchy-feely. My eyes darted to the right. "I suppose… for appearances… as long as I have time to get used to it all and there are no more surprises."

"Speaking of, we never really did get around to going over those PDA guidelines for what gets a green light and what's a big fat no-no."

I stared down at the cup, my finger idly circling the rim of the lid. "...what did you have in mind?"

"Maybe we should start by knocking out the most obvious one." I glanced up at him now, waiting for him to elaborate. His grin faltered almost imperceptibly, "You know, the big K?" I merely quirked an eyebrow at him. Eyes shifting about, Lea cleared his throat, "...kissing?"

"Not on the lips." The words sprung from my mouth faster than I could think them, causing me to clamp a hand over it in embarrassment.

But come on now, my brain had had a full system hard crash when the guy had planted an innocent little peck on just my forehead yesterday! I couldn't even begin to fathom what a real, honest-to-god kiss on the lips might do to me. Let's not forget how poorly I'd handled the Kissident and I hadn't even known the guy yet, much less potentially had feelings for him!

He blinked, then snorted and shook his head at me. "Nah, I'd already figured that would be a total no-go. Which is no biggie, lotsa couples out there aren't comfortable sucking face in front of prying eyes. But uh…" he rubbed at the nape of his neck, "What I have been doing… back of the hand, forehead… pretty much any other exposed bit of skin, that all fair game?"

Gosh, this was a weird conversation to be part of. Not to mention awkward. I could already feel my blush from earlier waiting backstage, eager to make an encore performance. Looking away, I said, "That, uh… y-yeah, okay."

It should be fine.

If I allowed myself to get used to it, of course.

Though that was kind of a big if.

"Okay…" A slow smile was breaking out across his face and he repeated, "Okay, good. Onto the next item of business then: hugs. Yea or nay?"

Jeez, this suddenly felt so official. And yet, slightly silly at the same time somehow. I ventured, "...y-yea?"

"You sure?" his finger tapped the tip of my nose. "You don't sound too confident there."

"No, it'll be fine," I said quickly. With proper mental and emotional fortifying, I hopefully could and would survive this. Hopefully.

"Alright," his eyes crinkled as he studied me for a beat. Then, "What about this?" He reached a hand for where mine lay palm down against the table, his touch grazing along my knuckles before softly tracing down the lengths of my fingers. "...kinda like hand holding, but a lil fancier," he murmured, lifting my hand up so he could brush his fingertips to mine for a few seconds before gently flattening our palms together, lazily weaving and unweaving our fingers. "Something for idle hands to be doing when we're just hanging out. That okay?" he asked, still lightly toying with my fingers.

This had no right to be spiking my heart rate the way it was. Not trusting myself to talk as it would probably come out more of a squeak right now, I settled on a tiny nod.

He smirked as he eased my hand back down to rest atop the table once more. "...and this?" Lea gripped one of my chair legs, pulling me closer to him. Then his arm stretched out past my cheek, reaching behind my head so he could sweep my ponytail forward over my shoulder. There, he wasted no time twisting the end of a lock around one finger, playing with the pale strands of hair. "...yea or nay?" he prompted again somewhat distractedly, green eyes locked on his hand as it slowly ensnared itself further.

Was there less oxygen in the room? I swear there had to be less oxygen. Why else was it getting so hard to breathe all of a sudden? Must be all that damn deforestation going on out in the world. Curse all those big evil corporations and their blatant disregard for the environment!

Licking my dry lips, I nodded again, hesitantly at first, then putting more force behind it. "Mm… mm-hm! T-that should be… sh-shouldn't be a problem." I withdrew my hands into my lap, folding and unfolding them only to fold them again. "After all, we ah… must maintain appearances, of course."

"Of course," his grin twitched wider. "So then, what about this?" Carefully disentangling his fingers, he lifted his hand to tuck my bangs behind my ear as he started to lean forward, his face closing in towards mine.

Conceal, don't feel!

Remember, this? This was just… just an act. We were in the middle of a very busy food court. He was merely putting on a show for the masses. Just playing the role that had been given to him.

...but honestly, did he have to be playing it so goddamn friggin' well?!

I swear I could feel every last drop of blood in my body dogpiling up into my face as he closed the distance. The tip of his nose brushed mine and he shifted over to the right at the last second, positioning his mouth next to my ear. My heart hammered wildly, threatening to punch a hole through my ribcage as he inhaled, preparing to whisper something, his lips grazing against my earlobe and-

"Fwunkle-munkle."

My eyebrows twitched and I blinked.

"Splubbet. Squippo."

...were my eardrums broken?

"Flerple. Mubble-whoomp."

I spluttered and snorted. "What are you even doing?"

Lea pulled back just enough to look me in the eye with a cheeky grin. "What's it look like I'm doing? Whispering sweet nothings into your ear, duh!"

My fingers went to my mouth and I choked back a laugh, "More like sweet nonsense."

"Eh, same diff. Now if you'll excuse me, I wasn't quite finished." He bent towards my ear once more, his voice low and breathy as he continued, "Yuppet. Smoorple."

"Stop, that tickles," I was cracking up now, putting a hand to his chest so I could push him away.

He didn't budge, just moved his own hand to cover mine. "Fleegget-smeegget. Kronkle. Pixie Petal."

That last one caught my notice. "As in the ice cream flavor?"

"Mm-hm!" he straightened up now, exiting my personal bubble and crossing his arms atop the back of his reversed chair. His eyes squinted at me and he pursed his lips in thought. "...but no, that's not your fave either. It's all sparkle, no substance. You need quality. Nothing but the best for you."

Fighting a grin, I shook my head at him, "You think you know me so well."

His face softened a little as he looked at me. "...I think I'm starting to."

My breath hitched.

Oh dear. Remember that maybe sorta crush I had? I think we could now safely drop the "maybe sorta" part of it.

It was official. I'd gone and caught feelings.

For a man who was totally unavailable at the moment. A man who'd made it clear he was only doing this favor for me as a friend.

This was a dangerous game I was playing. And with someone who was much better at the game than I was, especially when you considered that he didn't even know he was playing it.

My eyes shifted about, alighting on everything and anything that wasn't him before finally landing on the food court clock. "Oh!" I took note of the time and shot up to my feet, the chair scraping along the tiled floor as it pushed out. "My shift's starting soon, I need to get going. Tomorrow then? Yeah, I'll text you once I get the specifics from Rayne. Right. So… until then."

I turned to book it but hadn't gotten more than a step before I felt his hand close around my wrist. I glanced back at him to see him standing now as well, a crooked curve to his lips. "Leaving without a proper goodbye? I don't think so."

He then pulled me back towards him, taking hold of my other wrist as well and bringing both my hands up to cup behind his neck. There he left them, moving his arms down to snake around my waist, hugging me tightly against him as he once more bowed his head down next to my ear. His breath was warm, making me shiver slightly as he whispered, "Wear my jacket for our big date tomorrow. For appearances."

Then he tipped my hat up and smooched my forehead before releasing me, shooting me a wink and walking away with a whistle.

Leaving me a blushing mess leaning against a chair for support, feeling just about ready to go supernova and obliterate all buildings within a ten block radius of me.

Oh yeah. I'd caught feelings all right.

And I didn't like it.

How the hell do I get rid of them?!

Author's Note: The whispering sweet nothings bit I wrote is one of my most favorite things ever. And at the same time, I hate it. It's so stupid. And yet, I love it so much xD Also, here, have some silliness with Aqua aka Spellweaver aka Command Style or Best Street Name For Shady Backdoor Deals Ever? You decide! And if you didn't recognize where the name came from that I used for the ice cream flavor this chapter, it's the name of a keyblade - the one you get from clearing Neverland in BBS, to be exact! That's right, I've resorted to keyblade names. I think I picked a few good ones too in the chapters ahead! That's all I use for the ice cream flavors from here on out in the story except for ONE of them, and there's a reason behind that one… which I'll only be too happy to explain when we get to it xD Anyhoo, if you were looking at the ice cream menu board, the description for Pixie Petal would probably go something like: "This lime soft serve in a green cone, garnished with white chocolate wings and gold edible glitter is sure to get you thinking happy thoughts!" Annnnnd side note: in case you're wondering, no, Miharu is not a character that appears in any of the KH games that you may have forgotten about - she's another OC belonging to my beloved bestie who I'm borrowing Rayne from xD She ships Miharu hard with Joshua from KH:DDD (or more specifically, TWEWY) so I just wanted to throw in a brief nod this chapter to that endearingly oddball lil ship!

Next chapter, how will this lil date night go? Will Elsa learn a thing or two about how to act like a sickeningly sweet couple? Now that she for sure knows she is in fact crushing on our dear fire boi, will she be able to keep her cool in front of him? Will Anna be checked into rehab for her unhealthy addiction to white girl pumpkin spice lattes? Stay tuned!

Thanks for reading, I super duper appreciate it! And an extra BIG thank you to those of you who’ve liked, reblogged, and followed so far, seeing those lil notifications always brings the biggest, goofiest smile to my face!

FIRST CHAPTER || PREVIOUS CHAPTER || NEXT CHAPTER

[evak-fic-rec-turtleanon]

Evak Fics - Coffee Shop

** Coffee shop comic ** Additional ice cream/cake fics ** Fics where there's no coffee shop but it involves coffee lol ** Coffee shop fics ** Bonus Nooreva fic

***** COMIC *****

KB au comic by @elli-skam 

P01,  P02,  P03,  P04,  P05,  P06 P07,  P08,  P09,  P10,  P11,  P12 extra art 

Instagram: elli_skam

***** ICE CREAM/CAKE ***** 

ice cream at 2am by hippopotamus (1.1k words) - isak goes to the shop for ice cream and ends up getting something else as well

Ice Cream Parlor by glbertblythes (1.5k words) - AU where Even works at an ice cream parlor as a summer job and Isak really likes the ice cream and he and Even play a game where Even tries to guess Isak's favorite flavor of ice cream but every time he gets it wrong, he gives Isak the ice cream for free.

You’ll never believe how ice cream helped this man to get a date by nofeartina (3.3k words) - 5 times Isak buys ice cream for Magnus and 1 time Even buys it for Isak.

blow out all the candles by shadesofcool (4.1k words) - It's Eskild's birthday, Even works at a cake shop and Isak doesn't know how to make tea.

***** INVOLVING COFFEE ***** 

Morning Person by dani (wormstash) (881 words) - Isak is not a morning person.

Right Now by YellowSpatula (1.1k words) - In another universe, they meet on the street and smell of coffee.

Morning Activities by glbertblythes (1.4k words) - Even wants his coffee - Isak is sorta in his way - but Isak makes an offer.

"Ah, Sorry, Sorry!" by bazsucks (1.5k words) - "So rude, because someone hasn’t gotten his grumpy boy coffee today." Even keeps speaking whenever Isak doesn’t. He loves that about him. He loves everything about him.

Med Student Syndrome by frenc (1.8k words) - In which slightly paranoid med student Isak tries not to diagnose his boyfriend with diseases he learned in the textbook. And Even fails to hide a coffee burn from him.

The Study Buddy by wordsarelifealways (2k words) - In this universe, Even meets Isak when he pours Red Bull into a black coffee at 7.15AM to cope with a morning class. Even's inner barista is horrified, but damn if the boy isn't cute.

***** COFFEE SHOP ***** 

Bees by spoopydumpling (562 words) - "Even come home" "Miss me?" "Hell no, there’s a BEE in our BEDROOM"

blood on the leaves by queerness (597 words) - In which Isak's hands are weapons, Even's nose bleeds too easy, and Green Tea Créme Fraps are present.

in every universe by queerness (632 words) - The first time your soulmate touches you, a handprint stays there for the rest of your life.

Feeling Weird, Feeling Happy by wesoftandfluffy (735 words) - A boy with blues eyes, blonde hair and a very nice smile makes Isak feel shy, weird and very very happy

Maybe I´m a little jealous by parttimehuman (743 words) - Just Isak not being jealous at all.

i think i recognise your face but i've never seen you before by monsterandmana (914 words) - Even works in a coffee shop. Isak is on the coffee run. It's Christmas.

sweet creature by Skamtrash (1k words) - Along the lines of "We’re both baristas and sometimes I have trouble reaching for things and I show up to work one day to find a personalized stool with hearts and my name on it i hATE YOU but also thanks"

remember what your old pal said by colazitron (1k words) - Mikael hangs out at KB during Even's shift. Not evak centric

seventeen days by hippopotamus (1.1k words) - Isak had come to know him, in his head, as coffee shop guy. Sometimes, when he was tired, and had no filter on the thoughts as they travelled from the back of his mind to the front - he would call him hot coffee shop guy. Sometimes even fucking beautiful.

Flat White and a Moment of Bravery by Bellakitse (1.1k words) - Isak is having a crap morning until he walks into his local cafe and sees his favorite barista.

I Like You A Latte by i_once_wrote_a_dream (1.2k words) - It’s not love. Not yet. But Even’s certain it will be.

Handsome Mystery Boy by waitineedaname (1.3k words) - Even thought working at a coffee shop would be the perfect way to meet his soulmate. They had to give him their name for the order, and his name was there for everyone to see on his nametag. It was a flawless plan. Or, it would be if the handsome boy in the snapback would actually give him his real name.

Good days start with coffee and you by starfishunicorntea (1.3k words) - Isak is tired, ill and cold but he has an exam he has to get to so he decides a cup of coffee can make his day more bearable.

Forget-me-not by FrkAnn (1.5k words) - Even is curious about the name Lea on Isak's parent's house door and Isak decides it's time to share.

I HEARD YOUR NAME by cromulent (1.6k words) - Break up fic. i thought i needed you, but then you left me and i realized i don't.

Woo Me With Your Words by obscurial (1.6k words) - It’s not very often that Isak finds the confidence within himself to approach a handsome guy in a café. (A coffee shop au in which Even is Isak's favourite author.)

I Think I'm Falling (I Think I'm Falling For You) by MacksDramaticShenanigans (1.7k words) - Isak isn’t sure if it’s this guy’s incredibly endearing face or the fact that he didn’t just order a fucking Pumpkin Spice Latte, but he suddenly really really wants to kiss him.

Defending My Honour by wordsarelifealways (1.7k words) - Isak's sure it's about a thousand degrees in Oslo, but it won't be as hot as the hellfire he's going to rain down upon the customer he sees yelling at Even.

I'm FALLing for you by Schedazzle (1.7k words) - It always crept up on Even, one moment everything was green and the next the whole world seemed yellow and cozy and just so nice. This feeling only grew when the little bell above the door went off and his favorite customer came in.

your hands next to mine by hippopotamus (1.8k words) - When he takes the drink, his fingers brush Even’s. He clears his throat and mumbles out a “oh, uh, sorry, thanks,” and escapes before Even can even process any of it.

The one where Even isn't a stalker... by Ye_Olde_Hedgehog (2k words) - There is a sad lack of coffee in this coffee shop au. Instead there is a bit of mutual pining and some very exasperated friends.

Ready For Those Flashing Lights by ultimatelawrence (2.1k words) - It was meant to be harmless: taking a sneak photo of a hot stranger to send to Eva. Expect it's not so harmless when the flash is on.

Lemon and Ginger: Coffee Shop AU by fictitious99 (2.1k words) - 4 times Even bought a pretentious herbal tea and one time he bought one for Isak.

Mitten found by Kollakolan (2.1k words) - It’s a mitten. And not just any mitten, this is clearly a hand made very personal mitten with a small flowery pattern knitted by some one who put a lot of love into the work. On top of the mitten “Emil” is embroidered. Shit.

Peppermint Mocha by Jules1398 (2.1k words) - Eva's new boyfriend comes in everyday and orders a peppermint mocha and, well, Isak is definitely NOT falling in love with him.

The Hot Muffin Thief by Bellakitse (2.2k words) - There is a magical muffin at the café where Isak's buddy Jonas works. It's Isak's lifeline, he has it every day and then one day some hot art hipster steals his muffin.

do you like or like, like me? by cosetties (2.2k words) - Isak is totally down for supporting Jonas through the whole liking boys thing, but it's a little hard when that boy is Even.

The Stars Align by VenezuelanWriter (2.4k words) - There's a bakery. Prince Isak and barista Even.

sickeningly sweet like honey by thekardemomme (2.4k words) - Even likes to write pickup lines on Isak's cup.

cups of coffee by slvtherxn (2.8k words) - Even has a giant crush on a boy he doesn’t know, and he’s waiting for the perfect movie-moment to finally meet him. The only problem is that life has a different plan.

A Look Across (a fraction of) the Multiverse by rhys_withoutaspoon (2.9k words) - a look across the multiverse. The coffee shop au is the second one.

I'm not the kind of fool who's gonna sit and sing to you about stars by Plantsandplanets (3k words) - Second year is rough. Isak buys expensive text books with the money his dad sends him and silently worries about Even paying for everything before Even soothes his concerns with soft words and softer touches. His eyes tell Isak to stop worrying, please. Isak nods because Even asked him to even if he didn’t say so.

A Spoon Full of Sugar by MacksDramaticShenanigans (3.3k words) - A spoon. Spoons. Spooning. God, a proper cuddle sounded absolutely heavenly right now. What Isak would give to crawl into bed, burrow into some cozy blankets, and curl into someone’s (Even’s) arms. They could just lay there, maybe Even would trace shapes into Isak’s back, or maybe he’d play with his hair— it didn't matter to Isak, either sounded lovely. It would be warm and comfortable and he’d finally be able to catch up on all the sleep he’d missed.

Five (5) times Isak and Even found each other, in different universes. by AnonymousPoet (3.3k words) - Parallel universe. The coffee shop one is the first one.

Cookies and Cream by GayaIsANerd (3.5k words) - Isak has a crush on the barista. He's too scared to do anything about it, but luckily there's a blizzard coming up.

Baby, You're a Knockout by wordsarelifealways (3.5k words) - Even has been crushing on the cute boy who comes into the university cafe for weeks, but he never expected a minor head injury to be how their relationship got started.

If You're Under Him [You Ain't Getting Over Him] - Part I by givemesumaurgravy (3.7k words) - First fic of a SERIES. Isak Valtersen is happy. He's finally starting his surgical rotation at the hospital where he hopes to work someday and he's happily married to his best friend. But then Isak meets Even, the intriguing new barista where he gets his daily coffee. And that's when shit really starts to hit the fan. Affair au

And I'll find myself in your eyes one day by Evak2121 (Marshmallows07) (3.8k words) - Isak and Even fall in love one day in the Sun

Five Stars by bri_ness (3.9k words) - Even works at a café and is infamous in Yelp reviews as a flirtatious, charming barista. But he’s never wanted to take anyone home—until he meets a man with thirty-eight expressions, an affinity for eye rolls, and a deep hatred of pumpkin spice.

I like my sugar with coffee and cream by imminentinertia (4k words) - 5 times Even buys a coffee +1 time Isak buys a shirt.

For next day will a stranger bring by lovelycarcass (4k words) - On Tuesdays, without fail, Isak's first customer orders a drink at the café, gives a name and leaves. He never uses the same name twice.

Coffee and Krylon by gayashecklmao (4.1k words) - Caught in a daydream filled with technicolor and floating spray paint cans, he doesn't hear the bell above the shops' door ring, indicating that someone has come in. Only when he hears Eva shout an unidentifiable order at him does he turn around. There before him, on the other side of the counter, is possibly one of the prettiest people he’s ever seen.

you keep robbing my heart like a bank by xhorans (4.2k words) - 'How are you, Even?' 'Better now my new favourite customer is here,' in which Isak has a crush on hot barista Even and it's nearly valentine's day

i can't get it right by noirophelia (4.3k words) - “You forgot your sketchbook,” Isak says a bit out of breath and he doesn’t even know why. He has a feeling it’s just what Even usually does to him. Leaving him breathless. “Thank you, Isak,” Then Even smiles and Isak is just. Gone. “You shouldn’t have left your work place for that. Could have just messaged me or something.”

My mind was somewhere else, I guess by rosecolored_girl (4.6k words) - How did Even end up working at Nissen cafeteria? Let's just put it this way: He graduated last year at Bakka, took a gap year to pursue his dreams of traveling the world, realized he didn't have any money to even buy a freaking plane ticket to start with, spent the entire summer feeling sorry for himself...and now, he got a job at high school. Serving people only two or three years younger than him. Great. kinda coffee shop au except it's a cafeteria

from my lips my sin is purged by slvtherxn (4.8k words) - After Even's last relationship with his coworker ended quite messily, his boss has forbidden him from dating any more of her employees. It takes him ten seconds alone with his new trainee before he decides to date him in secret.

he tasted like coffee and lemon drops. by glbertblythes (5.7k words) - Isak gets stood up at Kaffebrenneriet, Even brings him a hot chocolate, and they get to talking.

Don't worry, I've got you by everything_else (5.7k words) - Isak groaned. “Just because I’m new doesn’t mean you can give me the shit jobs” “I’m not. It’s either that or bleaching the toilet, you can choose if you want.” “Okay fine.” Even took another drink of his beer, and cast a teasing look at Isak. “I give you a week.”

(Baby) It's Cold Outside by himmelsky (6.1k words) - December is approaching, but Isak isn’t feeling the Christmas spirit. Barista guy, aka Even, wants it differently.

because your eyes said you were feeling it too by spoopydumpling (6.1k words) - Even and Isak meet when their friends send them on a blind date.

In Sickness and In Health by Flatfootmonster (6.2k words) - That one time he caught me looking through the window, I thought I had to do it then—or I never would. I was sick of being tongue tied—I still am. And so, when I’d finished my coffee, I wrote on the cup: ‘I like you’. That was it. I wasn’t even sure if he was going to read it, but I saw him watch me write it; peering over the counter in the curious way he does, like I’m doing something completely amusing that I’m also entirely unaware of. Then I picked up my things and scrambled for the door, almost sending someone’s drink flying over their laptop.

Large Americano, Extra Milk and Sugar by daigina (6.5k words) - It's almost Valentine's Day. Mikael has a new job. Even has a new crush and no courage. This makes for lots of pining Evens, frustrated Mikaels, and spilled coffee.

five times even watched from afar and one time he didn't have to by alotofphandoms (7k words) - Even sees Isak around so many times that he's sure it's destiny and he's determined to not let him get away. So he watches from afar before he doesn't have to anymore.

all I see is you by littlemovie (Lejla) (7.4k words) - “Aren’t you gonna ask me why I’m a bad person?” Isak somehow whined and demanded at the same time. Jonas blew out a breath in amusement, which made the dark curls on his forehead move with his breath. “I’m guessing it has something to do with that guy, Even, from the coffeeshop?” Isak nodded his head pathetically.

closer to free by Skamtrash (7.7k words) - Even works at a coffee shop that Isak always studies in and Even has been crushing on him from afar for way too long so Elias makes them happen

Make a spark, break the dark, find a light with me by LostInAdmiration (8k words) - Isak can't sleep, so spends his nights wandering around the street. Even works the night shift at the store around the corner, and they bond over their mutual insomnia.

Cuddle Monsters by sikily (8.2k words) - One spoke of true love and the other a critic, But Christmas would be the day to believe in magic, A wink of his eye and a tilt of his head, And Isak became a believer instead.

Crying Over Spilt Milk by MacksDramaticShenanigans (8.4k words) - The boys get their hands on Isak’s resume; Isak gets his hands on Even.

baby we've got new love by itjustkindahappened (9.5k words) - Isak is hella fucking gay and desperately single, and Eskild wants to change that. Even just has a thing about timing. Coffee shop AU with an ironic amount of tea enthusiasm and a whole lot of pining.  

Second helping's always better by diamondjacket (10k words) - A sequel. Coming into this last-minute coffee date, Even had honestly thought that once the sheen of the previous day had worn off, things would be different. That he could see Isak and keep a level head, that he wouldn’t be overcome with the urge to just...taste him everywhere. No such luck.

possibly (maybe) i’m falling for you by boxesofflowers, Eeyoreneedsahug, safficwriter (10k words) - Even tries to get Isak to smile with coffee. Every time he buys Isak coffee, he becomes more determined to find the perfect drink (and falls in love along the way).

The One Where Even Goes On a Blind Date by valtersheim (10k words) - Eskild forgets to find someone for Isak for their double blind date and he approaches the first attractive man he sees in Kaffebrenneriet.

Ground Me by Bellakitse (13k words) - In which despite his father helping with rent, Isak still needs money and therefore a job. Isak gets a job at a cafe and meets a barista who's beauty blows Isak away.

A Thin Line Between Hate and… Other Stuff by TheFilthWithin (Flatfootmonster) (14k words) - Isak is studying while working at a coffee shop. His life is Ok... ish. Filled with lies, mocchiato's, and hook ups, fate storms in and lends a hand in the shape of Mr Spielberg, AKA film director Even.

something in the language of trees by scarletbluebird (20k words) - This woman, Isak thinks, must really love her son. He keeps spinning the coffee cup for a good minute, mulling it over. He still feels weird about it, but it’s not like he’s signing a contract in blood or anything. And he’s already going to see Even at the party later in the week, so it could work. the one where Isak's job really is to Be Even's Friend

You're a different kind of new by LostInAdmiration (23k words) - Even has had a hopeless crush on Isak for months now, but has never been brave enough to talk to him. Luckily, Isak decides to make the first move by rescuing Even from unwanted attention at a party

take me as i am by argentae (24k words) - He isn’t crushing, and nevertheless this guy has become a Problem, because whenever he’s on shift he’s made it increasingly difficult for Isak to really spend his time productively. Sure, he could just find another place to study but he likes the access to coffee here even though he actually kind of hates the bitterness of it and he’s just not going to let himself get swept aside because of this guy.

don't you keep it all to yourself by colazitron (24k words) - Isak starts buying daily coffees before school at Kaffebrenneriet around the corner because it tastes better than the coffee in the cafeteria and keeps his hands warm. But mostly because the barista is heart-stoppingly cute. An AU in which Even didn't need to repeat his last year and instead started working at the coffeeshop Isak passes on his way to school every morning.

is it gravity, or are we falling in love? by mels (28k words) - Isak works at a coffee shop. There's two things he loves about the morning shift: 1, how beautiful the city is when it's sleeping and 2, avoiding the hot guy who he happens to have a crush on. Until one faithful day, he has no choice but to work with his crush.

Caught in the Middle by dvorahbee (30k words) - Even keeps seeing the cutest boy around campus and in his new favourite coffee shop. He'll slowly get to know Isak but he'll have to go on a journey of self-acceptance and love at the same time.

A Fucking Bet by Crazyheart (32k words) - Isak and Even are just friends. They make a bet and decide to fuck only five times and then go back to being friends again. Isak hopes that he might be able to fuck his crush out of his system, once and for all. Who knows what Even’s motives are.

Just your average ordinary everyday Superhero by vorfm95 (34k words) - Isak works for the governament fixing the chaos caused by the Yeti a young superhero who protects the streets of Oslo. It's just a superhero soulmate Au. (oof this fic tho)

Golden Boy by alotofphandoms (43k words) - Isak thinks his life is great until Even Bech Naesheim waltz in and starts taking him out on dates. (Mostly fluff and flirting but I live for angst so there's a little bit of that to keep it interesting)

Scrim by scritch (45k words) - Isak works as a lighting technician in a theatre. He's under strict instructions not to talk to the actors. This is all fine, until he meets Even.

such a beautiful mess by skambition (48k words) - Isak works at Kaffebrenneriet to save up some money for a trip with his friends. Normally, working there is chill. Until Isak starts to work together with Even, an arrogant hipster with horrible taste in music, that keeps using the phrase 'sex hair' and is not only judgemental and stupid, but also so hot that Isak sometimes can't breathe around him. Isak hates him. Until he doesn't.

What If? by MermaidsandMermen (SophiaSoames) (57k words) - What if Skam never happened? What if Even is just an awkward boy working in a coffee shop? What if Isak is just the loneliest boy in the world? What if Even is slightly obsessed with Isak? And what if Isak is spending every afternoon in a freaking coffee shop? Because he can OK? It’s not because he feels like at least he isn’t alone when he is there. Not that he actually talks to Even. Not that he thinks Even is the prettiest boy he has ever seen. It’s not like that. It’s not.

Lover Of My Impossible Soul by shoulderbone (lavenderforluck) (66k words) - Part 2 of Pointing at the Moon SERIES. Possible spoilers if you haven't read the first part: We don't often reveal ourselves, when we don't actually know what there is to reveal yet. Or, alternatively: Isak returns to Oslo, and most importantly, to Even.

with love, from anonymous by cosetties, iriswests (136k words) - Isak just wants to get his coffee in peace, Even has a crush, and there's a secret admirer on the loose.

***** BONUS NOOREVA 

untitled by princevaltersen (15k words) - Eva knew she had a crush on Noora and she couldn’t refuse it at all.

[fluidityandgiggles]

Dalton Big Bang day 11 - The Natural Next Step (coffee shop AU)

Writing Masterpost, AO3 Link

Notes: Sperril will not let me go, and so I shall write for them.

(Who cares? They're adorable)

Meeting one

"Logan, back me up here?" Charlie called into the break room, to his fellow barista, who was currently on break. "Your boyfriend is here!"

"Good!" Logan called back, pushing his glasses up without even looking at Charlie. "I'm having lunch."

"Okay!" Julian laughed as he saw Charlie come back and immediately turn to Dwight, letting out a loud "yeehaw!".

"Yeehaw?" Dwight replied, getting away from the cash register to join Charlie. "Yeehaw, yeehaw!"

"Yeehaw, yeehaw yeehaw—"

"You made your fucking point!" Logan almost screamed by then, getting out of the break room as the two Texans started laughing. "Yee fucking haw. Yeah, yeah. Fuck you too."

As Logan went to greet (read: kiss) Julian and get his order, and the others could not help but make fun of the two, Merril silently thanked them for keeping her out of it. They were her friends and she loved them all very dearly, but they could be a wild bunch when they wanted to be… and it could honestly sometimes be a lot. So these times when they all got this chaotic, Merril counted her blessings and smiled to herself.

She was in the middle of piping the meringue on top of a lemon pie when she heard another commotion outside, looking as Dwight ran into the kitchen to grab a cup of water.

"Are you okay, darling?"

"He's here."

----

Spencer Willis didn't think, not in a million years, that he would ever become a set designer for an off-Broadway show. He didn't even think he'd enjoy set designing at all, until getting discharged on medical grounds from West Point.

It took him a year to recover, spent while living with Justin in New York and not doing much more than physical therapy and just being dorks together, and then he applied to Syracuse. It was an easy choice to make - it's still in New York, so he could still see Sydney from time to time; he could afford it, between his parents and some scholarships and grants he could apply to; and best of all, it had a great art department, at least according to his research (and Justin's sister's friend Lucy who also applied).

Lucy Westwood was, for a lack of a better word, quite chaotic. The eighteen-year old costume design major quickly took to the twenty-year old art major, which didn't go unnoticed, and before Spencer knew it he was asked by his professors if he thinks theatre design would be a better major for him. Well, less asked and more told to try a couple courses and see how he likes it, and… in stage design he ended up staying. It was still art, and amazing art at that, but it was also a lot of physical, tactical work, and he fell in love with all of that.

It's been four years since graduating Syracuse. Four wild, wild years, where he got to meet and befriend Reed Van Kamp, get roped into the theatre world harder than ever before, and as of a few months ago and thanks to Reed's insistent pleas, also start working off-Broadway on a revival of Assassins.

He still couldn't quite wrap his head around how this happened, but somehow it just did.

"I saw Shane again last night," Reed told him and Lucy as they joined them for lunch, in the middle of a long day none of them could guess just how long it'll end up being. "He's so good! Lucy, he's so good!"

"Now you're going to tell us we need to come see Once On This Island," Lucy laughed, bouncing as they waited at the queue at the cafe they ended up going to. "You've told us that several times already."

"Mercedes Jones is a goddess, okay? And a literal one in this production! And Shane is really good as Daniel, and Jane, the girl who plays Ti Moune, is just… I can't praise them enough! I think I'm in love with a whole cast. Can you be in love with a whole cast?"

"I think you definitely can," Spencer answered them, watching as the cashier ran away into the kitchen. He started doing that after the third time Spencer and Justin came here, to meet with Justin's boyfriend Charlie, and they had a conversation about Cats that got the whole cafe involved in it. He always felt bad for the poor guy, but to each their own, he supposed. "Hey, Chaz."

"Oh, hi," Charlie chuckled as he came to the register for now. "I swear, Dwight needs to get over that Cats debate…"

"No he doesn't, he's fine."

As Reed and Lucy left the queue to sit down and Spencer stayed to order - "two caprese sandwiches, an omelet sandwich, two chocolate cake slices and three iced coffees, everything to-go so Reed won't hurt themself" - Dwight showed up again, being pushed out of the kitchen by possibly the prettiest girl Spencer's ever seen.

"...Spence? Dude, you're gonna pay?" Charlie even waved a hand in front of his eyes, and it's only after the girl runs back to the kitchen that Spencer shook back up, realizing he's been staring.

"Uhh… yeah, sorry. Yeah."

----

Meeting three

The depression hit Merril pretty hard about two weeks ago, and this was the first time in ten days that she left the house. She showered, changed clothes, cleaned her apartment somewhat, all in attempt to make herself feel better, but nothing really worked.

But… that nice guy from the c-- Spencer! Spencer asked her out on a date last time they met, and she'd never back out on this… not to mention she might seem like a flake if she does, and it's so unfair to him, he's so nice and sweet and, and…

"Merril, go home," Charlie told her the second she stepped into the cafe. "Honey, you don't have to work today, remember?"

"I'm here for a date," she reminded him, sighing tiredly and going to hug him. She could smell his detergent as she did so, calming down almost instantly. Charlie… smelled like home to her.

Then again, isn't that what he was for her…?

"You look beautiful," he reassured her, patting her head gently. "You bought this dress with Casey, right?"

"Mmhm."

"It looks very good on you. I'm so happy for you."

"Thank you…" She smiled into his chest. It's the first smile she managed in over a week.

"Get away from the counter now," he told her after a few moments of hugging. "Go sit down. You have a date."

"Who has a date?" Came the question from Logan, who came back from the break room, wiping his hands with a paper towel.

"Merril does."

"Oh, hello!" He smirked at her, in that uniquely Logan way of his, and she just had to smile back. "Who's the lucky fella, mom?"

"Don't you have band rehearsal today?" She teased back.

"Drew canceled in favor of meeting Alex's parents."

"Oh, poor guy… sucks to work an extra shift, doesn't it?"

Just as Logan stuck his tongue out at her, Spencer stepped inside the cafe, barely looking for her before just heading over and sitting down next to her.

"Hi."

She smiled at him, swatting at Logan to go away. "Hi."

----

Seeing Merril in that blue floral dress, with her hair curled around her face and her eyes sparkling so beautifully, Spencer didn't want this date to end.

But alas, he was needed back at work soon.

"So…" Merril twirled a lock of hair around her finger, sipping her iced tea. "You really don't mind dating me…?"

"No!" He called almost immediately, startling her. "Merril, you're… so out of my league. You're so beautiful and smart and nice, and-- and you're the baker here, so obviously you're talented, and--"

"No, no no no, Spencer…" She took her hand, her face falling. "Spencer, I'm transgender."

"Okay, so what?"

It took a second, but then she just looked at him so weirdly, like she can't believe his words.

"What… what do you mean, so what?"

"You… absolutely ruined my expectations in women. I don't care what your body is like, you're perfect in my opinion, I enjoy being around you, I would love to keep dating you, and I very much hope you would the same. So, so what? You're a girl that I like. I like you very much even."

Merril just laughed.

"What… what's happening--"

"I like you very much too," she told him, through sad laughter. "And I would love to keep dating you too."

"Oh, that's-- that's good! Can I kiss you?"

She laughed again, and nodded, and Spencer could swear he heard Charlie and the other barista cheer as he leaned in to kiss her.

He did too, in his own way.

----

Meeting twelve

It was Julian's birthday, and Merril could see Logan avoiding work and just hanging with him and their best friend Derek near a window. She was almost finished with his cake, just piping a small happy birthday on top of it, when Dwight ran into the kitchen.

"You need to stop doing that, darling. Spencer isn't going to kill you."

"He's a cursed man," Dwight told her, making her chuckle. "You're dating a cursed man, Merril."

"Oh dear… did you not know I like Macavity?"

It took him exactly three seconds to put his cup of water down and march right out of the kitchen, hollering "I HATE THIS FUCKING FAMILY".

"But I do!" She called after him, going back to finish the cake right afterward. Poor guy… She never meant to upset him, but…

Huh. Maybe it was just a touchy musical.

"I want to try something new," she heard faintly from the front, smiling a little to herself. On their third date, Spencer told her that he decided to try new types of coffee every day - he's an artiste, after all, so what's a little experimenting going to do - and that she should be prepared for some bizarre drinks. Of course, she reminded him she's not the barista, but…

"And what would it be today, Spence?"

"A cortado with lemon."

Of course.

She stifled a laugh when she heard that, almost dropping the cake before she even picked it up. She steadied herself, picked the cake back up and left the kitchen, watching Charlie hold back from beating himself up over Spencer's order.

----

"A cortado with lemon?" Spencer nodded as Charlie just stared at him. "Do you know what you're ordering?"

"Nope."

"...I'm fucking glad you're not ordering an iced pumpkin spice latte at least," Charlie sighed as he slid Spencer's card for him. "It's the middle of August."

"Glad to not disappoint for once."

As Spencer waited for his coffee, he watched Merril hug Logan after serving his cake, then come over to hug Spencer himself.

"Hey there, Gilear Faeth."

"Stop calling me that," he laughed. "But hi."

"You know a cortado is just an espresso with a bit of milk foam, right?"

"...what the fuck did I just order?"

Merril just giggled. "I can't tell you, I've never tried it."

"I'm going to die…"

"Spencer?" Charlie called after a bit, and he let go of Merril to go get his coffee. "Here's your poison, man."

"Gee, thanks."

"You're here late," Charlie pointed out as Merril ran to the bathroom, kissing Spencer's kiss as she goes. "What's the occasion?"

"I got two tickets to see Once On This Island. Reed finally convinced me…"

"That's their boyfriend's show, right?"

"Yeah. They finally broke me, and Merril's interested, so I got two tickets." He took a sip from his drink. "Oh god, this is disgusting."

"I'll replace it for you with hot chocolate for free if you stop ordering stupid drinks," Charlie laughed.

"I would like that very much, please and thank you."

Merril came back from the bathroom after a few minutes, dressed in a clean red dress instead of her black shirt and jeans, her makeup retouched, to see Spencer drinking a cup of hot chocolate instead of his absolutely random abomination.

"I'm ready. Are you?"

----

Meeting seventy-seven

Merril and Charlie were closing the cafe that day - well, more like Merril was closing and Charlie spent most of his time talking with his boyfriend (who just so happened to stay there after closing so he could "pick Charlie up") - when Merril found an envelope under the counter.

An envelope addressed to her.

"Charlie, darling, it's not payroll day, only tomorrow…" her eyes got dark as the boy turned to look at her. "What… what's going on…?"

"Mom, it's not what you're thinking," he was quick to say, but she was quicker to cry.

"I… I don't understand, what…"

"That… was supposed to be for tomorrow. Spencer asked me to help him surprise you…" She just looked at him confused. "It's nothing bad. Let's finish here, go home, you'll get to cuddle with your boyfriend and watch whatever cheesy show you two watch nowadays. Tomorrow it'll all make sense."

"Spencer adores you," Justin tried to add, looking quite worried. "This is a good one, we promise."

"I…" she took a second to stop shaking before putting the envelope back in place, feeling something hard inside of it. "Okay… you're his best friends, I'm going to trust you."

"Go home, Merril," Charlie sighed, watching her fumble. "I'll finish here. Please."

"...fine."

----

Spencer showed up for lunch the next day, ordering his omelet sandwich and iced coffee, and a slice of lemon meringue pie. It was a quick order, one made fully knowing that Merril would join him for lunch today.

"...and a chocolate cupcake, please."

"Sure thing."

Merril joined him after thirty minutes, looking grateful to be off the clock for the day as Dwight brought over a cup of green tea and an envelope, looking rather suspicious to be near the table.

"God save your soul, Spencer," he told the man before putting Merril's things down and leaving.

"...is he still about that?"

"I don't know, honey. We're working with him on it."

They ate lunch, talked about their day, but Spencer couldn't help looking at the envelope like it was about to kill him.

"...and then Dwight just-- Spencer…?" Merril kissed his cheek, making him look at her. "Honey, what's happening?"

"Can you open the envelope please…?" He looked off to Charlie, who gave him two thumbs up. "The anticipation is killing me."

"Oh! Oh… sure." She frowned as she opened it, too focused on making it neat to ignore Spencer getting down on one knee as a ring fell out of the envelope.

A delicate gold ring with a lovely blue stone in the middle of it, and three tiny diamonds on either side of it.

"Spencer…?"

"You're perfect for me," Spencer managed to say as he grabbed the ring, holding it up to her. "Merril Portman, you are perfect. I love you more than words can describe, and if I started listing the reasons why we'd be here until Sunday in fifty years."

"Spencer, I love you too, I…"

"You complete me, Merril. God, I can't tell you how much I've gone through that just seemed to… go away when I'm with you. So… this is just the natural next thing to do."

She started crying. Merril won't lie, she started crying. Prompting Spencer to give her a hand, squeeze it a bit, watch her smile through her tears.

"Merril Portman… will you do me the honor of--"

"Yes!" She laughed, still sobbing. "Yes, absolutely, I will marry you."

They kissed and hugged and kissed some more, to the cheers of everyone around them, and it didn't really matter how much Merril cried or how odd Spencer felt the rest of the day afterwards. This was just the natural next step for them.

[shinjekinootp]

The Angry Coffee Shop

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Relationship: Levi/Eren Yeager Tags: Platonic Hange Zoë & Levi, Based on a Tumblr Post, Drunk Sleepy cute Levi, Domestic Fluff, Mainly focused on Drunk Brootp Levihan, With some cute Ereri in the background Summary:  Eren comes back late from work to an unusual scene. Levi passed out on the floor, surrounded by empty bottles, spilled chips, and a notebook reading: Flat white: Fuck you 

*based on the Angry Coffe Shop meme from Tumblr*

You can read it here or on AO3

“Ugh, I’m so thirsty.”

Levi rolls his eyes “You’re literally in a coffee shop, just get yourself something to drink.”

“Not that kind of thirst dummy. I’m thirsty for booze. Customers have been complete assholes today. I need to get shitface. For my mental health.”

“That does sounds pretty good,” he says, giving a final sweep to the counter. “Your place or my place?” Hanji doesn’t get the chance to reply before Levi is speaking again. “Let’s go to mine. The shithole you dare to call an apartment is dirty enough when you expect me to come over.”

Forty-five minutes later, they are sitting on Levi’s couch, a glass of red wine in their hands, the coffee table crawling under various snacks.

“Sometimes I wonder how we make it through the day without murdering anyone,” Hanji begins. “How hard can it be to order a drink without being a pain in the ass? You wait in line for your turn, order something from the board, pay, and wait patiently for it to be ready.”

“Erwin doesn’t pay us nearly enough to deal with those shit head all days,” Levi agrees. He empties his glass and pours himself a new one. He makes the red liquid swirl and takes a sip of it. He savors the bitter taste, as Hanji digs into a bag of chips.

I swear to god, if I found any crumble on my floor-”

“Yea I know, you’ll make me lick it until it’s clean again,” they dismiss him, taking a handful of doritos.

“And clean it with bleach right after. Spit is gross.”

Hanji laughter fills the room. “Where’s pretty boy uh? I thought he’d be here.”

“I don’t know. Probably still at work” He looks at his phone, and sure enough there is a text from Eren informing him he’s staying overtime and not to wait for him.

“Let’s play a game!” Hanji suddenly screams.

Levi frowns “No strip poker this time. I don’t think I can take the sight of you wearing nothing but your glasses one more time. Plus I had to get rid of my rug after you dirty  butt sat on it.”

“I will let you know my butt is very clean. Petra can vouch.”

A giggle escapes Levi’s lips. Under normal circumstances he would be concerned by that. But with the alcohol running through his veins, his clouded mind doesn't care.

“So the game is simple. We both tell a story about a bitchy customer we had, and the one who has encountered the biggest prick wins.”

Levi tilts his head to the side.“Isn’t that basically complaining, though? We’re already doing it all the time. That’s hardly a game.”

Hanji is thoughtful for a moment before they clap their hand victoriously “I know! Each time one of us wins a round; they have to take a shot. That should spice things up.”

“Alright” Levi says, slumping to the ground and reaching for the bottle, a smirk on his lips “Game on then.”

Hanji laughter echoes through the room as they struggle to form words. “This- This is priceless, how come you’ve never told me about it before?”

“Didn’t want to risk Erwin hearing about it,” he downs his shot in one swift motion, barely grimacing as the liquid burn his throat.“It’s not like I’m actually the manager.”

Hanji rolls on their back, as a new fit of laughter shakes their body. “I would give anything, to see the lady’s face when you’ve spun around.”

“It was quite the sight to behold,” he refills his glass, while Hanji straightens up their glasses threatening to fall of their nose.

“Once I had this lady coming in, she kept stressing out how important it was that her drink was dairy free -and I get it, lactose intolerance is a pain in the ass- she was watching my every move like a hawk. When I handed her her drink, she freaking asked me why I didn’t put whipped cream on top of it. I had to explain her that yes, whipped cream contains dairy, but she would not believe me. I ended up putting a shit ton on top of her damn frappuccino and I hope she got diarrhea from it.”

“What a bitch” Levi snorts.

“Alright your turn, what do you have in stock?”

He hums thoughtfully, distractingly playing with a the edge of a pillow.

“They were this one time, when a girl went batchit crazy on me for drawing a heart in her latte. She screamed at me that she had a boyfriend, and that she was so fed up with men hitting on her.”

“Did you? Drew a heart in her latte I mean.”

“No, I did draw something, but it was not a heart. Not from my perspective that is.”Levi smirks amusement glinting into his eyes.

Hanji seems confused for a split second before they exclaim.“Oh my god Levi! Did you draw an ass in that girl drink?”

“I most certainly did,” he replies with a toothy grin. “It was the day when Eren came back from his family trip. All I could think about was that glorious ass of his.”

“You’re the worst.”

Levi shrugs and slides a shot towards them before pouring one for himself. “That’s a draw,” he solemnly declares.

They empty their glasses and sigh contentedly almost in perfect synchronization.

“You know what really is the worst kind of customer ?” Hanji hiccups.

He raises a thin eyebrow at them.

“Those who are unable to remember the name of the drinks. If they got their orders wrong, it’s not my problem. Learn to fucking read you moron!”

“I couldn’t remember the name of the drink when I began,” Levi giggles.“Eren had to help me study the menu. He even made cards and all that shit.”

They shake their head “You’re a lucky idiot you know that?”

Levi nods. He does know how lucky he is to have a boyfriend like him.

“In my defense,” he begins“the name of the drinks makes zero sense. Why did Erwin have to go for the fancy hipster shit name? ‘large black’ that’s easy to remember. But Americano? Frappuccino? Freaking Macchiato? It gives zero clue about what the drink actually is.”

“That’s how they’re called,” Hanji looks at him skeptically  “That’s pretty standard actually.”

“Well, the standard sucks.” Levi says, slamming his fist on the table.

“What would you call them then?” They ask, eyes glinting in amusement.

“I dunno,” Levi frowns.“Something meaningful.”

They tilt their head to the side.“Like what? It’s not like you could describe the recipe of the drink. That would be way too long.”

He reaches for the bag of chips, and munches slowly. Hanji observes him pulling his eyebrows together, creating small line between them. He’s so deep in thoughts he doesn’t notice them snatching a picture of what they consider to be an ‘Accidentally cute Levi.’

“Hangover,” he blurts out.

“We certainly will be tomorrow, but don’t worry we still have time.”

“No,” he throws the bag of chips out of his lap, spilling it on the ground.“The name of the drink, it should be Hungover.”

“Lemme guess, a strong black coffee?”

“Triple espresso of the less bitter coffee we have,” He grins.

They smile cheerfully.“What else do you have?”

“I’m Studying For My Finals. Double espresso with a dash of vanilla. Because you both need energy and comfort.”

“Why not make it a triple, though?”

Levi shakes his head.“Because when studying for their final, student drink coffee all day. With a double they can still get that energy shot multiples time a day without intoxicating themselves. Also, it’s refillable.”

“This is good!” Hanji shouts excitedly. They scramble up to their feet and run to their bag, pulling out a notebook. “Alright keeps going, we gotta keep track of this.”

“Babe?” Eren calls upon entering the apartment. Despite the late hour, he knows Levi isn’t asleep. He goes in the living room, expecting him to be sitting on the couch, tucked into a blanket, enjoying a his tea. But instead he’s met with what looks like a warzone. Two empty bottles of wine, one who has rolled up to the ground, another bottle of what looks like tequila, empty for the most part, chips, chips everywhere, on the table, on the carpet, on the couch, and finally Levi, sleeping peacefully on the ground, crumbs all over his hair.

“What the fuck,” Eren whispers to himself. He walks up to Levi and picks the notebook next to him. It reads:

Large Americano: Not A Morning Person

Tea: The Only Valid Drink

Flat White: Fuck You

Vanilla soy latte no foam extra shot: I’d Like To Speak To The Manager

Double espresso with vanilla sirup: Studying For My Final

Iced coffee: Hoe Never Gets Cold

Pumpkin spice latte: Spooky Season

Latte, extra shot: Stayed Up Too Late Looking At Memes

Peppermint latte: Basic Bitch

“Hey Eren!”

The cheery voice of Hanji interrupts his reading.

“Hey,” he tentatively greets them.“What’s going on ? And what is this?” He asks shaking the notebook in his hand.

“Just a thing for a work,” they say, wiggling their eyebrows mysteriously.

“So, you’re telling me, this was a work meeting?”

“Guess you could put it like that,” They chuckle.“I was just about to clean up. Would you take care of sleepy-head over here?” They point at Levi with their chin.

It’s Eren’s turn to laugh. “You cleaning, and Levi passing out. That’s a first.”

He bends down and gently dusts the crumbs off Levi’s hair, before carrying him to their bedroom.

“They don’t know what's awaiting them,” Levi mumbles, as he undresses him.

“Hum what was that? What’s awaiting who?”

“Karen, Margaret, Susan and all the other.”

“Alright babe,” he chuckles.“Go get them.”

He makes sure Levi is well tuck in, and not at risk at falling off bed. He makes a move to leave, but a hand on his forearm stops him.

Levi cracks a lid open “Stay.”

“Are you sure it’s safe to leave Hanji alone in the living room?”

“Hmph, what are they gonna do? It’s already a mess anyway,” he tucks on his arm, nearly yanking him off his feets.

“Alright, alright,” Eren surrenders. He quickly takes off his shoes and clothes, throwing them in a corner of the room. As soon as he lies down, Levi rolls to his sides, resting his head on his chest. He’s already drifting back to sleep, soothed by the hand gently stroking his hair.

“Good morning! What can I get you?”

“Flat white. Large. Quickly, I’m in a hurry.”

“Fuck you,” Hanji says, a shit eating grin on their face.

“Excuse you?” The woman says, outrage evident in her voice. “What did you just say to me?”

“Fuck You,” They repeat, their smile growing impossibly wide. “That’s the name of the drink you’ve order.”

A displease frown appears on the woman face. “I’d like to speak to the manager.”

“Sure thing, Coming right up!” They grab a cup. “May I have a name?” The woman stares at her, confusion written all over her face. “I bet it’s Sharon,” they say writing it down. “You look like a Sharon.”

Hanji turns around, and quickly prepares the drink. The woman said she was in a rush after all.

“Here you go! That’ll be $5 please.”

“What is this?”

“What you’ve order Ma’am. A Vanilla soy latte with  no foam and extra shot.” They answer with a mischievous smile.

“I didn’t order this,” she nearly shouts. “Are you deaf? I said that I’d like to speak to the manager!”

“Yea… that’s the name of the drink Ma’am.” They point at the board above their head.

Her face reddens as she opens her mouth, but Hanji cuts her off before she has the chance to speak.

“You better go now, Sharon. You’re holding the line.”

The woman furiously slaps a $5 bill on the counter, and stalks away.

Levi blinks, mouth hanging agape.“That was amazing,” he fights the urge to claps.

“Thank you, thank you. But you nearly deserve all the credit. You’re the one that came up with this idea.”

“How did you get Erwin’s approval?” he asks incredulity in his voice.

“Eh, well, I didn’t,” they answer, rubbing the back of their neck. “I just came in early and re-write the boards.”

Levi shakes his head, chuckling. Of course Hanji would do that without their boss permission. “Guess I’ll have a new co-worker by the end of the week then.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure about that short-stuff.” A devilish smile on their face Hanji takes out their phone. “See one of the ‘soccer moms’ I’ve served this morning wasn’t too happy with our new menu. So she took the whole story to twitter and even made a petition to close up the place.” They slide their phone on the counter.“And it blew up! But not in the way she expected. Everyone is loving the idea. The so-called ‘angry coffee shop’ is the new place to be! We’ve been packed with customers all day.”

“Speaking of which, some help would be much appreciated Hanji!” A panicked voice calls from behind them.

“Don’t worry Moblit. You got this!” They say waving their hand dismissively at him. They focus back on Levi and frown. “What’s wrong Levi? I thought you would be happy.”

He raises his head from his hand and whispers, eyes wide “We’re gonna have to deal with even more customers.”

[prettyoddfiction]

Extra Sugar

Pairing: Fem!Reader x George Ryan Ross III

Request: Yeah! || Congrats on 100 followers!! I absolutely adore your writing, and was wondering if you weren't too backed up with requests if you could do another fluffy one with Ryan? There aren't enough with him in them. With the request, I was thinking maybe something along the lines of the reader living in the apartment above a coffee shop and Ryan's always down there playing his guitar and she loves his music and she finally gets to meet him one day and it's just fluffy (Sorry this was really long)

Warnings: SFW || cursing. 

Masterlist: Here

This is such a cute request and I was in such a good mood while writing this one. I enjoyed it a lot. Also, sorry I’ve been on hiatus for so fucking long. My anxiety and depression have been kicking my ass lately. I hope this makes it a little better. Enjoy some Ryro fluff. xx

You lived in a small apartment above a small coffee shop and cafe on the most run down side of Chicago, Illinois. It was a cute spot to live, and wasn’t far from anywhere you would need to go. Especially with the fact that there were constantly taxis all over, willing to take you anywhere in the city. You were surprised with how cheap the rent was, but figured it was because the apartment was relatively small and there was a constant smell of coffee in your house, no matter how many apple scented candles you burned on a daily basis. 

But that wasn’t the problem you had with living here. This paper wasn’t about to write itself. You knew that. The other twenty three students in your sociology class that had the same assignment knew that too. But yet here you were, two days before the due date and you were the only student that hadn’t turned it in yet. It’s not your fault that you worked five days a week full time and that you never had any peace and quiet at home. 

The cafe below your apartment was always allowing start up musicians to come in and play. And the performers music choices ranged anywhere from piano covers of “Chasing Cars” by ‘Snow Patrol’, to brand new original songs that were nothing but screaming into a microphone and drum solos. You thought the cafe should have limited it to soft guitar, keyboard, and ukulele, but turning all the other musicians away would be considered rude. So they allowed almost anyone to play. Which was fine and dandy till you had a paper that was worth 75% of your semester grade due and had only got your name and the class name typed in the corner of the page. 

But occasionally it was okay. Some times there would be this one musician that came in with his guitar and played songs that reminded you of ‘The Beatles.’ You had no idea what he looked like, or what his name was. All you knew was that he was by far your favorite and you hoped he would remain un-famed, just so he would continue to play in the cafe and give you a mini concert from the vent in your living room. Your favorite song of his was “Cape Town,” followed closely by “The Other Girl.” Two that he played each and every time he would come to the cafe. Sort of, fan favorites. And yes, you qualified yourself as a fan.

Thankfully, today was one of the days that he was here. His soothing voice made nice and calm background music as you typed away and wrote about breaking the social norm in everyday life. 

Three and a half hours later, you heard the crowd cheering downstairs as you submitted your paper to the online course. It turned out worse than you would have wanted it to, but you didn't have time to go back and edit it a lot, nor did you really want to. Nor did you want to wait another day and then have something go wrong and you lose the paper the night before it’s due. So you clicked ‘turn in,’ got your digital receipt, and then shut your laptop.

Your eyes scanned to the clock on the wall and you knew that the cafe would be closing soon, and he would be ending his quote unquote setlist in a minute or two. This was probably his last song before he would start packing up. And something was telling you that you should go see who it was. But that wasn't the only reason you were headed downstairs. You really wanted a fall flavored drink. After all, it was the middle of October. After pulling on a hoodie over the tank top you had previously been wearing, and some fluffy socks because the owners knew you lived above them and didn't care whether or not you put on shoes to come grab a coffee, you grabbed a five dollar bill from your wallet and headed down the staircase, turning at the bottom and opening the glass door into the cafe. As you entered the rustic coffee shop, you smiled upon seeing that it was nearly empty and the boy was on the small stage, playing his guitar. 

He gave off a puppy dog innocence. He was cute, that was for sure. There was a small stand in front of him that read ‘George Ryan Ross III: Acoustic Set.’ George. It didn’t really suit him, but you didn’t name him that. After watching him play about half a verse, you were entranced and didn’t move from your spot against the back wall until after the set when people started to leave and he began to pick up. That was when you went up to the counter and ordered. “Can I please get a small, pumpkin spice iced chai tea latte?” The total came out to about two dollars and twenty three cents, but you always left the change in the tip jar, just because the owners were always so nice to you. The lady working nodded and began making your drink. 

Your eyes drifted back to the stage as you walked down towards the end of the counter to not be in the way of everyone in line. Sadly, the boy and his equipment were gone. The stage was clear and you couldn't help the frown on your face. You had actually wanted to say hello to ‘George’ and possibly talk to him about his music. But you were pulled from your thoughts when someone at the counter said they had two small iced pumpkin chai’s ready. You walked over and grabbed one of the cups, smiling as you brought the straw to your lips and sipped it, immediately swallowing the cool fall drink, but regretting it slightly. It was way too sweet. 

That was when you noticed the little black ‘x’ written on the top of the cup. ‘X’ meant “extra” something. Whether it be extra caramel, extra vanilla, extra whipped cream. But in this case, it was easily-

“Extra sugar? I think that one’s mine...” A soft voice stated from beside you. You looked over and chuckled. George was standing next to you.

“Yeah, I think so too.” You both quickly pulled the straws from the cups and traded, putting your own straw in the drinks and smiling as you fixed your own orders. “Yeah, this one is definitely mine.”

“I agree. Sorry about that. I should probably look a little closer next time.” He chuckled, bringing his free hand up to scratch the back of his neck. 

You nodded and smiled at him, “Yeah George. Maybe you should.”

“Please, everyone calls me Ryan.” Ryan. His middle name. It suited him way better than George did.

“Okay. Ryan. Don't you think that this is a sweet enough drink? Why add sugar?”

“Well, person who’s name I do not know-”

“Y/N.” You stated with a chuckle.

“Ah, Y/N. Well, Y/N, you see, you only live once. I prefer to enjoy each and every thing I consume. I see that you prefer to not wear shoes in public.” Immediately, you glanced down to your feet and giggled. 

“Well Ryan, I do. I just don't wear them here because I’m too lazy to put shoes on. I live just upstairs, so there’s really no point in getting completely dressed to come down the stairs, around the banister, through the door, down the two foot long hallway, into the cafe, up to the counter, and then back out the door and upstairs when I get my drink. It’s a waste. So the owners let me come in here with just socks on.” 

Ryan nodded and sipped his extra sugary sweet drink with a smile on his face. “Socks are cute. Especially fuzzy white ones with pink hearts on them.” He winked. 

You rolled your eyes as he described your own socks to you. “Ha ha. Very funny. You know, I was gonna compliment your music but now, never mind. Have a nice night, George.” You smirked, sipping your drink and starting to walk towards the short hallway back to your apartment’s door. 

“Y/N?” You turned back around to look at him after he said your name. “You like my music?”

“I do.”

“Maybe if you gave me your number, we could set up a day where I could come upstairs and play...?” 

“Sure thing... George.” 

He laughed slightly as you crossed back over to him and took his phone, putting your number in and agreeing that next Saturday he would be back and you would let him play you music in your living room.

[djseaward]

a year of life & travels: 2017

today is new year’s day and it’s time for a recap of last year! it was another great year of being based in southwestern czech republic, feeling like home both here and back in my home country (and realizing that “home” is just a construct), and going to some magical places.

let’s revisit them, shall we? i changed the title of this year’s post to “life & travel” because, as i learned last year, travel isn’t everything and it is also important to capture what else was going on in one’s life. although for this post, it still remains the focal point. (don’t worry) so without further ado....

in january, we had the coldest and snowiest month that i have ever experienced with low low temps that froze over all of the ponds in south bohemia. you know what that meant? checking off my life-long dream to ice skate on a frozen pond! i ended up getting a cold promptly after that day, but it was so worth it. now i am too much of an ice skating elitist to ever skate on anything man-made ever again! (kind of joking, but...)

i also cooked a several course vegetarian dinner for burn's night! (why? we are hopeless "scot-ophiles” who love any good excuse to drink an islay malt and celebrate the the works of burns on a cold, dark winter’s night) that veggie haggis was definitely worth coming back to this month... ooh, i hope i can remember the recipe. it was actually make-again delicious.

in early february we took the first of what would be many many days in the big city (prague). we brought ferdie for his first ever trip on a train, he stayed with a dog-sitter while we saw the vaclav havel exhibit at dox, and generally had ourselves a perfect holešovice day, trudging through slush to get to our favorite cafes and enjoying brunch near the marina. (did you know holešovice had a marina?) i feel like i know the district quite better now!

we also had a very memorable valentine's day tea at born in london and i introduced my favorite students to the british tradition of pancake day -- what better than a lesson where you're making pancakes?!

in early march, my mother-in-law came for her first ever trip to europe and we were so excited to travel with her and take her to all the best spots in prague, český krumlov, and crossing the border into germany to visit bamberg! i had been in bamberg ten years ago during my studies in germany and it just does not disappoint for a low-key trip with excellent food and beer and historical sights. we may have brought two kegs and a few bottles of rauchbier home with us....

april first is always a strange day as the weather is usually quite wacky -- sure enough this year it brought our first forays into summer temperatures, if you can believe it. we marked that day by visiting the beautiful terčino údolí right here in south bohemia - a valley full of blooms, trails, a waterfall, and loads of other cool things to explore. we ate schnitzels while sitting on the terrace of a chateau, because we are in europe. and it was grand.

in mid-april for our long easter weekend, we rode the train into the šumava mountains to the train station with the highest elevation in the country! there we spent our time in a cozy mountain-style house, hiking and relaxing. we couldn't believe our little ferdinand walked 22km in one day! i think this trip is when we realized hiking with him (off-leash) is one of our favorite things to do.

glorious may brought beautiful cherry blossoms, garden parties, and outdoor festivals. i spent my birthday in český krumlov, staying the night there for the first time in over ten years and realizing how magical the town is by night... and how we miss out when we go back home to budejovice before dusk falls! it was brilliant to do all those tourist things like take a coffee in the square, walking around with an ice cream, and doing a bit of shopping in shops i don't usually even bother to set foot in. with our sweet accommodation south of the center right on the river (above), i truly never wanted to leave.

we spent a nice day in june in prague's vinohrady and vršovice districts to celebrate our wedding anniversary with the best mexican food in the country and doing all those big city things. sometimes it's just nicer to avoid old town altogether! (although sometimes i do quite the opposite - there's a time for everything)

at the very end of the month, we shrugged off the long spring and school year with a night in mariánské lázně - a beautiful town in the hills of northwest czech republic that is well-known for its spas and hosting many a famous guest over the past hundreds of years. we danced to jazz in the colonnade and took a hike the next day in the rain... because when you only have a limited time in a new place, you're not going to let a little rain dampen your plans!

at the beginning of july, we woke up and found ourselves in karlovy vary again for our fourth film festival. this time we took it way easier than in past years by staying directly in the center of town and felt so extremely spoiled! it was a great festival, albeit a bit cooler in temperature than every other year. when we got back, we stayed for a weekend with friends at a cottage deep in the wilds of sobo (erm, south bohemia) to have a nice rest before summer camp ramped up.

at the end of the month, we bid czechland goodbye and said hello to chicago! what a city -- i planned to do so much and ended up doing none of the things i thought i would, but instead discovered a whole new side which ended up being one of our favorite parts of our united states trip.

we were in michigan at the beginning of august visiting family and attending a wedding before flying to portland and staying with my dear friend, megs. i can't tell you how good it felt to have landed in the northwest after so long! i felt so at home immediately in that airport terminal. we rented a car and took off for central oregon to be based out of bend for the wedding of another dear friend, julie. we floated the deschutes river, visited many local breweries, and just generally enjoyed that central oregon high desert vibe.

the second half of the month was spent back home in washington -- i was so pleased to make it to my brother's birthday party at his new house as well as a family camping trip near mt. baker, much-needed karaoke nights, hikes, and of course, visiting all the beaches and eating seafood whenever possible... i even learned how to shuck an oyster! we enjoyed our time so thoroughly that it was almost as though i forgot i had to leave again...

(but i missed this little guy quite a lot)

the beginning of september was a bit rough going, but there are so many fun things happening right in budejovice that it is hard not to enjoy being in south bohemia. we spent some lovely, lazy afternoons in český krumlov, our first czech wedding, and then at the end of the month took a "wine vacation" to south moravia -- znojmo, to be exact! staying right on the square in a spacious apartment and hiking through podyji national park to a winery was a highlight, as well as checking off another thing on my "life to-do list": drinking wine in a vineyard. 

we even moseyed on down into austria for a morning (as it was just across the border from znojmo) and hiked up to a famous windmill as well as toured a huge underground wine cellar. it was a beautiful weekend!

the weather was absolutely gorgeous here in october. we popped off to prague to spend time immersed in the beautiful old town as well as stop at some farmer's markets and get the obligatory annual pumpkin spice latte. we walked to the very end of the street we used to live in (in malá strana) which leads directly up petřín hill -- a fine time of year for a walk amongst the changing colors of the leaves, clear views, and good weather.

november was about "home" in south bohemia if i had to give it a theme -- we focused on home improvement -- we got a new couch, as well as other appreciated upgrades and went to two big dinners: our first st. martin's dinner as well as hosting thanksgiving for the second time. 

on the first of december, we found ourselves in prague yet again for a farewell party of the last of our fellow TEFLers still left in the country -- i can't quite believe that we are the last ones still here of our group from five years ago! it was an emotional time but it's was so good to reconnect with our prague buds. i visited some of the christmas markets there including an attempt to visit old town square, but y'all -- the tourist situation is out of control compared to five years ago (when it was still quite heavy). although there is something special about the market there during advent time... i will probably continue to return despite the crowds!

for christmas, as you may have read, we were in southeastern bavaria (near the austrian border) in the heart of the bavarian alps -- a fantastic and memorable time.

the top five most popular posts on adventurings this year...

-- what i've learned about language learning after +4 years-- best tips & tricks!

-- slow pace or rat race? -- reconciling the relaxed south bohemian lifestyle with what i think i “should” be doing

-- back from the usa + 10 things i love about home -- i was a bit homesick, could you tell? 

-- the expat's guide to christmas away from home -- so many tried & true tips and ideas here

-- musings on identity and being an american -- what i've made of my national identity after five years away

these happened to also be my favorite posts i have personally written this year. funny, that.

i also posted two delicious recipes: a deliciously autumnal pumpkin miso soup, the perfect springy weekday cake, & i shared my fool-proof meal planning strategy.

so, where will we go in 2018?

i am so excited that we are planning a real, actual vacation this year! not a trip. just a lay by the pool somewhere beautiful, visit wineries, eat bread and cheese from a local market, hike and bike ride through the beautiful countryside... this is likely going to take us to provence, france. i think a week or so of living the provençal life will be just the thing, and perfect timing after the school year finishes. (time to brush up on my non-existent french!)

i am also pleased to say we’re planning to head to berlin for a month this next summer! it will be the longest consecutive time i’ve spent there for ten years, and i’m looking forward to greatly improving my language study (actually being in the country should sure help!) and finally doing some berlin things i haven’t yet managed in the past decade. ‘tis time.

everything else is up in the air, so we’ll see where the year takes us! i feel oddly optimistic and ready for this new year. how are you feeling about it? where are you headed this year? if you have any provence tips, i am really all ears.

thanks for being around this year! i have loved & appreciated your comments, shares, connecting with you elsewhere, and the fact that you are here reading this right now. happy new year!

keep up with me in 2018 on bloglovin, twitter, instagram, or facebook.

this post is part of the january travel link-up.

ps, you might like ‘year of travels’ recaps of past years: 2016, 2015, & 2014.

[theconservativebrief]

August 28 is not a day that is particularly known for feeling especially crisp or autumnal in most parts of North America. And yet it’s the day in 2018 — the earliest release date so far — that Starbucks chose to ready its blazing orange jugs of “pumpkin sauce” and unleash its annual run of pumpkin spice lattes upon its customers.

You’d be forgiven for mistaking this tone for one of disdain. Since its inception in 2003, the pumpkin spice latte has become something of a strawman for discussions about capitalism, seasonal creep, and the meaning of “basic,” resulting in widespread hatred for an otherwise innocuous beverage.

For example, back in 2014, at the height of pumpkin spice mania, this very website described the PSL as “an unctuous, pungent, saccharine brown liquid, equal parts dairy and diabetes, served in paper cups and guzzled down by the liters” — even though clearly the pumpkin spice latte is a highly delicious treat that pairs well with wearing vests and making dorky comments about how crisp the air feels today. Yes, it contains 380 calories; yes, it will make your coffee a rather unappetizing orange color; no, you should not “guzzle it down by the liters.”

But contempt for the PSL and other items of the seasonal pumpkin spice variety is often not really about the flavor itself. After all, there are plenty of other flavors we should all be way more furious about. (There is a shop in Scotland that serves mayonnaise ice cream, people!) Too frequently, it’s about sexism, class anxiety, and our collective skepticism of savvy marketing.

The pumpkin spice latte almost didn’t exist. As former Starbucks veteran Tim Kern told Quartz, “A number of us thought it was a beverage so dominated by a flavor other than coffee that it didn’t put Starbucks’ coffee in the best light.”

Fortunately for Starbucks, the Tim Kernses of the company were ultimately overruled, because within a decade of its launch in 2003, the PSL became its top-selling drink, with more than 200 million of them sold. In 2015, Forbes estimated the PSL brought in around $100 million in revenue over a single season.

2015 was also the year that Starbucks changed its decade-old formula to include actual pumpkin for the first time, rather than simply caramel coloring and pumpkin pie spices (like cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, allspice, and cloves). By all accounts, it tasted pretty much the same, just, according to its inventor, “cleaner.”

At that point, the PSL wasn’t just a cash cow: It was a cultural phenomenon. In part, that’s thanks to its marketing — there is nothing inherently seasonal about the spices that go in pumpkin pie, but Starbucks is able to convince us that the drink should only be drank during the fall months, thereby increasing demand.

But there’s another reason why the PSL exploded so much over the past decade. Culinary food trend analyst Suzy Badaracco told Vox back in 2014, “Pumpkin became recognized as part of the comfort food trend during the recession in 2008,” due to its association with Thanksgiving and the holidays. In tough times, we’re more likely to crave foods that bring back happy memories.

Surely, though, the reason we all began talking about PSLs to begin with was their prevalence on social media. It’s not that they’re inherently photogenic — a Starbucks cup is a Starbucks cup regardless of what’s inside it, and the PSL doesn’t get its own special design like the holiday drinks do.

It’s because when you add a PSL to a photo of, say, your new fall boots standing atop crunchy-looking leaves or a selfie featuring a festive dark lip color, it adds to the autumnal aesthetic. It’s not a coincidence that Instagram — the epicenter of cutesy fall tableaus — happened to blow up in the early 2010s, which is the same time that it became cool to claim you despised pumpkin spice.

But maybe that’s not the whole story.

The fact that the pumpkin spice latte — which, to many, conjures the scents and imagery of Thanksgiving — is released in increasingly hot weather year after year is often touted as an ominous harbinger of the evil forces of seasonal creep. “It’s agricultural revisionism!,” argue some, citing the fact that pumpkins aren’t actually in season until autumn proper.

A viral John Oliver clip from 2014 declares as much, noting that “that bottle of pumpkin-flavored science goo sits behind the counter of Starbucks, never aging, like Ryan Seacrest:”

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The success of the PSL is also largely responsible for the barrage of pumpkin spice-flavored everything else, from cream cheese to dog treats, Kahlua, to an especially wacky seasonal crossover, Peeps. There have also been air fresheners, deodorant, even Four Loko (okay, that one ended up being a joke), resulting in the expected amount of hand-wringing about a food trend “gone too far.” (Indeed, back in 2010, spice brand McCormick forecasted that pumpkin spice would be a popular flavor for the holiday season, which in turn likely exacerbated the rush.)

When a food trend is as in-your-face as pumpkin spice is — ever been to a Trader Joe’s in October? — it forces us to think about how the free market is essentially designed to create this kind of phenomena. If a product like the pumpkin spice latte sells, it’s natural under capitalism for other companies to attempt to replicate that success. But it’s uncomfortable when we see it happening on such an exaggerated scale.

Well, maybe, but maybe what pumpkin spice backlash is really about is our dismissal of trends that are coded as feminine. As Jaya Saxena wrote in Taste last fall, in a piece titled “Women Aren’t Ruining Food,” “When men enjoy something, they elevate it. But when women enjoy something, they ruin it.”

She continues, on the topic of “girly” food crazes like açai bowls, rosé, and pumpkin spice versus “manly” ones like barbecue, Flamin’ Hot Cheetos, and IPAs:

When those foods blow up, we judge women for falling for the marketing or trying to jump on the bandwagon, and we assume that because they like something other women like, they don’t have minds of their own. And on top of that, women are asked to reckon with, consciously or unconsciously, the perceived psycho-sexual symbolism attached to seemingly innocuous foods.

Plus, “masculine” foods are almost never chastised for being “basic,” the ever-nebulous term used to describe someone with average, predictable taste that’s usually reserved for women.

In the most stereotypical (and by now, probably outdated) terms, a “basic bitch” wears North Face, leggings, and Uggs, and absolutely adores hashtag-PSLs, marking her as a woman with “a girlish interest in seasonal changes and an unsophisticated penchant for sweet,” as the Cut noted back in 2014.

There are often classist implications, too. In a BuzzFeed piece about “basic” and class anxiety, Anne Helen Peterson wrote:

Unique taste — and the capacity to avoid the basic — is a privilege. A privilege of location (usually urban), of education (exposure to other cultures and locales), and of parentage (who would introduce and exalt other tastes). To summarize the groundbreaking work of theorist Pierre Bourdieu: We don’t choose our tastes so much as the micro-specifics of our class determine them. To consume and perform online in a basic way is thus to reflect a highly American, capitalist upbringing. Basic girls love the things they do because nearly every part of American commercial media has told them that they should.

Essentially, hating pumpkin spice lattes is our way of othering those who drink them, and in the process, marking ourselves as decidedly un-basic.

Of course, this notion of what “basic” means is not the same way black people have been using it for decades, which, as Kara Brown explained in Jezebel, pretty much just translates to “I think that the stuff you like is lame and I don’t really like you.”

“Rihanna could become the official spokesperson for Starbucks pumpkin spice lattes and nobody would think of her as basic,” she wrote. “You know why? Because Rihanna does what she wants and what she thinks is cool and doesn’t give a damn about anybody else.”

Even if Rihanna suddenly became the official spokesperson of PSLs, however, there is also the possibility that, quite frankly, nobody really cares that much anymore. We seemed to have hit peak “pumpkin spice hot take” in the year 2014, with searches for “pumpkin spice latte” peaking in 2015.

Plus, the pumpkin spice bubble may have already popped. Analytics company 1010data revealed that, despite the fact that pumpkin spice products for sale had risen by nearly 50 percent between 2015 and 2016, sales went up just 21 percent — we just aren’t craving it like we used to.

Maybe that’s because we’ve all been stricken with a case of seasonal beverage fatigue in general. Starbucks is constantly coming out with random gimmicky drinks, from the Unicorn Frappuccino to the so-called “secret menu.”

If that’s true, it tracks that we aren’t seeing the same kind of anger directed at what is arguably replacing pumpkin spice as autumn’s de facto flavor. In 2017 both Starbucks and Dunkin’ Donuts released maple pecan lattes. And according to restaurant menu data from that year, “mentions of maple as a flavor in nonalcoholic beverages on menus are up 86 percent this year over last … Pumpkin mentions, on the other hand, are down 20 percent.” Yet nobody’s complaining about how dumb maple syrup is.

And these days, tweets about PSLs are way more in the vein of “Screw you and let me enjoy my shitty drink in peace, because everything is terrible.”

Pumpkin Spice Latte comes back tomorrow and I am 100% getting one in 91 degree weather because this world is a shitshow and I take joy where I can get it, like in delicious flavored coffee drinks.

— drunk wynhaught (@drunkhaught) August 27, 2018

People have also expressed exhaustion about the “actually-ing” over what pumpkin spice even is, as if anyone really wants to talk about it.

“pumpkin spice refers to the spices used in pumpkin pie and doesn’t actually taste like pumpkins” is the “Frankenstein was the name of the doctor” of this decade

— Kyle (@KylePlantEmoji) August 27, 2018

There are even ironic tweets poking fun at the automation of feminist responses to the anti-pumpkin spice brigade:

Women’s unabashed enjoyment of a thing has always led to wholesale dismissal of said thing as frivolous and/or bad. From early examples like needlework to more current cases like pumpkin spice and romance novels, we can track this trend throughout history. In this paper I will –

— The Ripped Bodice (@TheRippedBodice) August 27, 2018

Anyway, this is all to say that maybe now, in the year 2018, pumpkin spice has finally returned to signifying the autumnal blend of cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves, and nothing more: not basic, not everything wrong with capitalism, and not gross. Because it’s not! It’s delicious.

Original Source -> Pumpkin spice lattes — and the backlash, and the backlash to the backlash — explained

via The Conservative Brief