Of Cupcakes and Skulls | Part 7
(A/N) Once again a bit shorter, but I think this was a good place to break. ALSO WHAT KINDA DRESS DO WE WANT TO WEAR? Send me some ideas if you want. (I'm definitely thinking high slit, so he can easily finger her during the car ride home. 😏) Also, I couldn't help myself with the Gordon Ramsay cameo.
Pairing: single dad! Mafia! Simon x baker! Reader
Warning: kissies, fluff, Simon is fucking smitten, a lot of money spending
Synopsis: Based on this post by @lunamoonbby
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8
When Simon told you that you’d go grocery shopping, you didn’t expect him to take you to the most exclusive wholesale supermarket that existed. To get in, you had to get a card, and to get that card you had to be super rich. But of course, Simon had one.
“Ah, Mister Riley, welcome.”
Even the staff was dressed as if you had just walked into a five-star hotel.
“Will you be needing a shopping assistant today?”
The woman at the front desk smiled and fluttered her lashes as she handed him a champagne flute, trying her best to look as desirable as possible. You couldn’t help but grumble some obscenities under your breath, just loud enough for Simon to catch, who quickly started chuckling. That brought the woman’s attention onto you, and suddenly, she no longer looked as friendly as before.
“Oh, and who is that?”
If looked could kill, the two of you would be having a battle for life and death, clashing swords and dodging each other’s blows. But when Simon wrapped his strong arm around your waist and pulled you into his side, a proud smile on his face, the woman’s eyes widened.
“My girlfriend. And no, we won’t be needing an assistant today, just a cart or two. And could you go ahead and issue my lovely lady a card as well?”
She smiled through clenched teeth and you couldn’t help but smirk at her, victorious in your little battle. While still trying to act as pleasantly as possible - in which she tragically failed - the woman asked for your name and date of birth, and once you gave both to her, she disappeared into the back, before reemerging with a slick, black card in her hand.
“Here you go, Miss.”
You gave her your best fake smile and took the card, placing it in your purse without even glancing at it. No way you would give her the satisfaction of geeking out over it, right in front of her.
Once everything was handled, Simon grabbed a cart and walked in, one arm still wrapped around your waist. As soon as you were out of eyesight of the woman, you pulled out the card again and marveled at it. When you started your business, you wished you had access to this store. But you knew that it would always be a dream…well until now.
“I can’t believe I have this.”
Your eyes were still fixed on the card, even while you were walking, and Simon had to pull you closer to keep you from running into things. He just watched you, amusement sparkling in his eyes, while he grinned.
“I’m glad you like it.”
He pressed a quick kiss to your head, before focusing on the task at hand. And after a bit more marveling, you did too.
As if he knew the layout of the store like the back of his hand, he led you to the baking supply section, where you realized, that maybe one cart wasn’t enough.
“Just take one of each, and tell me the amount you need, we’ll take care of everything at the checkout.”
You nodded and did as you were told, grabbing everything from flour and butter to sugar and decorations. By the end, the cart was overflowing with things, and you weren’t even done.
“Then I need fruits, vegetables, and meats.”
Simon glanced at you, while he was driving the cart through the store, already heading in the direction of the checkout.
“I have some people for that, we’ll go to them.”
You nodded, curious about his connections, but not saying anything.
At the checkout, Simon went through every item and the amount you needed, the clerk writing down everything he was saying before Simon asked him to have everything delivered to your bakery. The clerk confirmed the items once more and accepted Simon’s card as he handed it over. As the clerk was about to read out the total, Simon quickly clasped his hands over your ears, making sure you couldn’t hear it. You glared up at him, knowing that he was once again spending hundreds - if not thousands of pounds on you. Once it seemed to be safe, Simon lowered his hands and took his card and the receipt back, folding it and quickly hiding it in his pocket, so you couldn’t look.
The cart was taken away, and you had to admit that it felt weird walking out of the store empty-handed, but once you saw that car Simon and you had taken, you quickly realized why. It would never have fit.
As you were walking through the parking lot, you saw a familiar figure out of the corner of your eyes. But no, it couldn’t be.
“Is that Gordon Ramsay? Oh my god, I’m such a big fan.”
You whisper-shouted at Simon, who quickly turned to look in the direction you pointed, a smile spreading on his lips, as he started to steer you in that direction. Your protests fell on deaf ears as he just pulled you along as he approached the famous chef.
“Gordon!”
The man turned around, at first he looked confused, but once he got a good look at Simon, a smile spread on his face.
“Simon! How’re you doing, mate?”
Simon was mates with Gordon fucking Ramsay? Of course, he bloody was.
“Good good, just wanted to introduce you to my girl. She’s a big fan o’ yours.”
Shyly, you peeked out from behind Simon’s massive frame and waved at the chef. He smiled and reached out his hand.
“Oh, lovely to meet you, I’m Gordon.”
You quietly introduced yourself, slightly shaking from excitement.
Simon and Gordon chatted for a bit, keeping you in the conversation, and you slowly started to warm up. In the end, you were even joking with Gordon and you had stars in your eyes as he noted down your bakery’s address, promising to swing by.
“How about you come to the 1890 tonight? I’ll be there, cooking.”
Simon glanced at you, and when you eagerly nodded, he turned back to the chef.
“Of course, I’ll get one of my guys to babysit Millie and we’ll be there. Is eight okay?”
“Eight is perfect, see you then.”
He nodded at you, before walking into the store and disappearing. With your hand in his, Simon started to walk back to the car, chuckling as you practically bounced up and down next to him.
“I can’t believe I just met Gordon Ramsay. And he is coming by the bakery!”
You squealed in excitement before you realized that you lagged something for this evening.
“Si?”
He hummed, gently squeezing your hand as he typed something on his phone.
“I don’t have a dress for tonight.”
He hummed again, quickly opening the door to the passenger side and ushering you in, only closing said door, once you were all safe and buckled in. With quick strides, he rounded the car and jumped into the driver’s seat, putting on his seat belt, before pulling out of the parking lot.
“I know.”
That was all he said, as he continued driving. You frowned at him for a moment, wondering what he had planned, but you quickly gave up and decided to trust him. He wouldn’t let you embarrass yourself.
Just a minute into the drive, his free hand landed on your thigh, giving it a reassuring squeeze as he kept his eyes focused on the road. Yeah, he wouldn’t let you embarrass yourself.
After about a half an hour's drive, he pulled into a parking space, right in front of one of the most luxurious boutiques you know and you already knew that this was going to be expensive. But you also knew that it was no use to complain, that was very clear.
Ever the gentleman, he opened the door for you, helping you out, before wrapping an arm around you to keep you close. During the few steps it took to get to the boutique it felt as if the entire world was watching, as you felt more eyes on you than ever before. And you knew that most of them probably looked at you with jealousy, seeing the man by your side.
But he was yours. As you were his.
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Call of Duty - Masterlist
Master-Masterlist
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Heartbreaker
Summary: The events of Alberta’s descendent through Trevor’s eyes & and the resulting aftermath of Hmoney’s coming out.
AO3
***
As Trevor and Hetty walk into his room to discuss the Nigel situation, he asks, "So, what's the play here, huh? We're going to dig up dirt on Nigel?"
He knows it would be fun to find something to return fire against Nigel, especially since Nigel had been causing trouble since he moved in.
"The play is that we're going to give him exactly what he wants," Hetty states, in a tone that leaves no room for negotiation, which he would usually find hot. "You're going to give him your room."
"But I don't want to do that." Not to mention that giving into blackmail never works, but he doesn't say that. Surely, Hetty already knows that. "And who cares if he tells people?"
He certainly doesn't. It's not like they could hide it forever anyway, and it'd be nice not to have to sneak out of his and Thor's room in the middle of the night or find excuses whenever someone wonders where they've been.
Hence, why he'd been suggesting that they just casually come out or not make such a big production of sneaking off once he started finding sneaking around tedious.
"Isn't it more exciting when it's hidden?"
He shrugs. It definitely was fun at first, and it does make things more interesting around the mansion, but there were other ways to make it fun.
"I mean, sure, but we can figure something out. We can role-play." He smiles and offers a specific role-play he'd been wanting to try. "Maybe you're a mermaid and I'm the co-owner of a wholesale fruit and vegetable business."
"We're not doing Splash stop asking," Hetty says, shooting down his idea, again and walking passed him towards the door. "Now, let's just go and talk to Nigel and get this whole thing over with."
Trevor frowns. She really didn't want people to know that much? It wasn't just a game?
"Wait, I thought this was all just a bit that you did," Trevor states, stopping her from leaving and seeing the slightly confused look on her face. "That you're embarrassed of being with me." He laughs, hoping that he's wrong. "I just thought it was playful... if a little mean... banter, but it's real? You're that ashamed?"
He's hoping that he's wrong, but as soon as the question left his mouth, he could see that he wasn't. She really was embarrassed - it was real. It wasn't just a game.
"Oh, how do I put this?" Hetty questions as if she hadn't just broken his heart with the idea that he'd been sleeping with someone that not only doesn't appear to care for him but is actively embarrassed of the very idea of being with him or of people knowing she was with him. "I was a woman of extremely high status, and you got bombed at Mardi Gras with your Lehman brothers."
"Yeah, we did," he smiles at the memory. Then frowns. Wait a second.
"Also, the pants thing," Hetty states, annoying him further as she moves closer. He notes that she looks down, and he can’t help thinking that she doesn’t mind the pants thing when they’re getting busy, or she can check him out. It pisses him off, especially when she adds, "The pants thing is hard to get passed."
She knows that he struggles with not having pants, especially whenever Jay refers to him as no pants or the others refuse to listen to him because of it. It was a low blow, especially since she knew now that it was due to being nice to Pinkus and saving him embarrassment.
He scoffs, upset. "So, I'm not good enough for you?"
"Well, I mean, that's more harsh than I would have liked to have put it, but..."
He shakes his head. Of course it was harsh, but it was obvious that is what she's saying. He's not good enough for her. Well, he's worth more than being someone's embarrassing secret.
"Well, you don't have to be embarrassed anymore. Because this is over," Trevor states, plainly gesturing between them.
"What?" Hetty asks, genuinely surprised.
"No more hooking up, no more whatever this is," he states, plainly. He was not going to keep pleasing her if she couldn't even handle their friends knowing that they're together because it's too embarrassing. She could find someone else or do it herself.
Then he walks passed her towards the doorway.
"Oh, God, don't be so dramatic."
"I'm not kidding," Trevor states, as he stops in the doorway and turns back toward her. "I was fine keeping it a secret when it was just 'cause it was hot, but this... this doesn't feel right." He turns and begins walking away but stops to remind her just why he’s not wearing pants. "And the pants thing was a hero move.” Then he turns back around to leave, muttering, “Why does no one remember that?"
Turns out that Hetty Woodstone is quite the heartbreaker.
***
Trevor thought it was all a game, the idea that Hetty was embarrassed to be with him or more specifically, for others to know that they're together in whatever this is. He should have realized that it wasn't a game for her when she asked him to say all those comments to Sam or when she seemed worried after what happened with Nigel, but to actually hear her say that she was embarrassed and humiliated to be with him had hurt him far more than he'd be willing to admit.
It's why he hadn't hesitated to suggest that they could just come out or let Nigel tell the world. Instead, he's feeling a lot more upset than he ever imagined. It just sucked that Hetty didn't seem to have the same level of respect for him that he had for her. He really was just a toy for her, a replacement washing machine and it hurts.
What hurts worse is that despite ending things - because there's no way in hell that he'd continue with her when she doesn't respect him - is that he still cares enough about her that when Nigel still threatened to tell everyone, he still gave up his room.
He just couldn't stand the thought of hurting her like that, even if he was insanely hurt over the thought that she probably wouldn't give a damn. Probably would expect him to do that.
Thus, he lays morosely in his new room, hating every second of it, and wishing he could go back to that blissful moment before he knew that it wasn't just a game and Nigel wasn't just an ass that can't possibly understand not having power in the house.
Why did that little British twerp have to ruin everything?
He's jerked out of his musings by Hetty. She's probably the last person he wants to see next to that twerp. What was she going to do now, rub more salt in the wound?
"Trevor, what are you doing in here?"
"Just hanging out in my new room," Trevor says, morosely. He hates this room. "This is the most time I've spent in the library since I found out Penn had Playboy on microfiche."
"Well, but..." Hetty starts, looking surprised. "You switched with Nigel?"
Obviously, this is about that twerp. God, he's starting to hate him.
Trevor shrugs as if it doesn't matter and sits up because he’s uncomfortably aware of how exposed he is when he’s laying down as he explains. "Well, he said that he was still gonna tell everyone about you and I if I didn't give up my room." He groans, still feeling stupid for even caring. "And while I don't give a crap..." he sighs. "I know you do..."
He doesn't have to explain that he did it for her because she gets it.
Hetty looks oddly touched and surprised. "But ... you broke things off." He nods because she looks like she's wondering if he's taking that back. "Why, then, still do something selfless for me?"
Apparently, she still doesn't get who he really is. The pants really are hard to get passed.
He sighs, deeply. "Because, Hetty, that's just the kind of guy I am." Unfortunately. "The kind of guy you could've had if I wasn't such an embarrassment."
He words obviously have an affect on Hetty, but he doesn't want to hear a lame or empty apology right now – as if she even would - so, he lays back down and says, "Now, please leave. My shirt's not long enough to cover my butt and I want to roll over."
The and you don't get to look at the goods anymore is implied so strongly that Hetty looks away, slightly embarrassed and leaves the room. Good.
***
"Trevor, do you have a moment?" Hetty questions, some time later.
Oh vey, why won't she leave him alone? It's like breaking up or ending this whatever has made her suddenly want to be around him.
"Actually, Hetty..."
"Please. I'd just like everyone to gather upstairs."
"Fine," he sighs.
He follows her upstairs to his old room, and notes that all of the ghosts are in the room, except the two of them. Was that a snub on her part or had she anticipated that he would be difficult to get upstairs? Deciding to assume the later for his piece of mind, he moves to the nearest side of the couch as everyone looks at Hetty since she gathered them there.
"First, I would like to thank you all for gathering. I have an announcement to make." Hetty pauses, chuckling nervously. "This news will be shocking, so if any of you need to sit, please do so now."
As Pete sits, Trevor can't help being hopeful that this is what he wants it to be. Has Hetty come around to telling everyone after all?
"Wait, are you saying what I think you're saying?" Trevor questions. At Hetty's slight nod, he asks, "Are you sure about this?"
"As sure as I'll ever be," Hetty responds, giving him a slight smile and gaining looks from some of the others in the room. He returns the smile, happy that she's willing to do this, and that it means she's, at least, gotten over her embarrassment. Well, that or she thinks he's worth it, which is a win for him.
"For the past three months, Trevor Lefkowitz and I have been engaged in amorous congress."
That was probably the most awkward to phrase it.
Worse yet, no one seems to understand what she's saying since they’re all exchanging confused looks.
"Hetty's in Congress?" Flower asks, obviously confused.
"No, we've been scrumping," Hetty states, when no one seems to get it.
"Is that a dance," Alberta whispers.
This is the funniest coming out he’s ever seen.
"Playing a game of nug-a-nug," Hetty tries. Everyone is still looking very confused, and Trevor's struggling not to laugh. "Must I be vulgar?"
He nods at her because clearly this isn't working, and she yells, "Fadoodling!"
They're still not getting it and it's no longer funny, so he goes up next to her and says, "Oh, for God's sakes, people! We've been doing it."
Everyone gasps, surprised. Trevor can't help looking at Isaac, who's initial reaction was somewhat appalled, but it took less than five seconds for him to process as the others comment.
"Oh... I can't wait to find out who their third is," Flower says, excitedly.
Trevor's not sure how to tell her that they don't have a third but is distracted by Sass.
"This is the stuff I should've known about. You're slipping, Sass," he says to himself.
Done processing, Isaac does a small little wait gesture, before he does a little clap and says, “You finally found your stable boy. Happy for you, Henrietta.”
Trevor smiles and then looks at Hetty, a little confused. Isaac knows about Hetty’s interest in stable boys? She shakes her head slightly as Nigel comes around from behind the others, obviously angry that the blackmail didn’t work.
Hetty stops him. “Enjoy the library, Nigel. There’s a chessboard down there. You may want to study it.” He goes to leave, but she puts her hand on his shoulder. “Because I just checkmated you.”
“Yes, I understood. Thank you.”
“Good,” Hetty grins, then she looks at Trevor, obviously wondering if he’s proud of her, as she nudges him.
He gives her a smile. It didn’t erase this afternoon, but it did help quite a bit, so he smiles back at her. Before he could suggest going somewhere to talk, Sass interrupts.
“Okay, we got to hear how this happened.”
Given what happened that afternoon, it was only fitting that he gets to tell the story. So, ignoring Hetty as she rolls her eyes, he says, “Well, it all started on a very horny Hanukkah…”
“Oh, God…”
***
There were so many questions – particularly from Sass. He wanted to know how they managed to keep it a secret and kept running through moments with them when it should’ve been obvious.
Isaac, on the other hand, finally interrupts Sass’ interrogation to ask, “What was that with Nigel?”
Trevor shares a look with Hetty, who explains, “He caught us last week and decided to try his hand at blackmail.”
“Blackmail?” Isaac asks, as Sass says, “NIGEL knew before me? Damnit, I’m really slipping.”
“Hetty wanted to keep it a secret,” Trevor offers, leaving out why she wanted to keep it a secret – it still hurts to think about. “So, Nigel asked to switch rooms, which I did, to keep quiet after he almost outed us to Sass –”
“Damnit! Why did I believe you about the chocolate drawer?” Sass asks, clearly still annoyed. “I should’ve stayed around and asked questions.”
“–and I decided that I didn’t care if everyone knew, thus the announcement.”
“But you did care enough to have Trevor cave?” Isaac questions. At Hetty’s slight nod, “Why? You could’ve just told me – it’s not like I didn’t already know, and I doubt that you were that concerned about anyone else’s reaction. No offense.”
“Offense taken, man,” Sass retorts.
Not that Trevor’s paying attention. He’s too confused by Isaac’s statement, and a look to Hetty says she is, too.
“Uh, Isaac, you seemed pretty surprised, so what do you mean – you already knew?” Trevor asks.
Isaac chuckles. “Hetty’s not exactly quiet.”
“But we were in the basement –” Trevor starts, thinking of how loud Hetty can get.
“Not what I meant,” Isaac says, putting his hand up to stop Trevor from continuing. “I meant, leaving and coming back in the middle of the night. I’m a light sleeper, you think I didn’t notice?”
“I was sneaky! You should not have noticed,” Hetty says, obviously upset that Isaac had a figured it out because he’s probably the only one she was actually worried about.
Isaac just gives her a look. “Obviously not because by the time you had him help get Freddie fired the second time, I was convinced.”
That was two weeks into their relationship.
“Wait a second, but you looked very – extremely surprised,” Trevor states, and disgusted but he leaves that part out.
“Well, it’s just – I had my suspicions and it’s one thing to suspect and then have it confirmed with amorous congress, but then you said, ‘doing it’ and the image popped in my mind, and I needed a second to clear it.”
Trevor still feels confused by Isaac’s reaction, which Isaac picks up on.
“It’s like – you know you were trying to get your parents to have sex when they were here–”
Oh no. He did not like where this was going.
“– but it’s quite different to hope for or suspect than it is to hear for certain that they had sex and that most of the ghosts watched…”
“Including Hetty,” Sass adds, helpfully. He gasps. “Oh my god, you two were together when you decided to –”
“We don’t talk about it, okay?” Trevor says, cutting across Sass because he doesn’t want to be reminded of that event. He hadn’t been able to look at Hetty like that for two days afterward.
“I wanted to talk about it –”
“There’s not a lot of hard nos for me, but that is one of them, I didn’t need to know, and I don’t want to know.”
Sass is laughing at them. “That is so weird.”
“Anyway, I get it now, Isaac.”
“I just don’t want the image in my head, that’s all,” Isaac states. “However, I am happy for you both, but it appears that I need to talk to Nigel because the very idea that he tried to blackmail you both and that you decided to come out just to stop him –”
Trevor frowns. Was that what this was? Had she only done it because she wanted to win? Was it not about him or his feelings at all?
“It wasn’t just that,” Hetty states with a glance at Trevor. He’s not looking at her, so she grabs his hand to get his attention. “It was time. It was fun sneaking around, but we were always going to come out eventually.”
***
The conversation continued for a little while longer before they could get some time alone, but rather than go to the basement, they head out to the grounds for a walk. They had some things to discuss that shouldn’t be distracted by sex, and they both know if they went to their room in the basement that they would be easily distracted.
Hetty is the first to speak once they’re a distance away from the mansion.
“I’m sorry that I was embarrassed by being with you,” she says, as she grabs his hand and gives it a squeeze. “I should not have been. In many ways, I still have some of that –”
“Snobbiness?”
“Yes. I do and I shouldn’t.”
“I shouldn’t have been surprised. You did call us peasants on Halloween, and you haven’t really changed that much in that regard since Sam arrived,” Trevor states. “Unlike in other regards.”
He’s obviously talking about how much she’s changed since her dalliance with the washing machine and them getting together. She seems to be open to exploring things with him sexually, but not changing things otherwise. It just hurt that he was only good enough for sex to her. Just that toy that she’d always been teasing him about.
Replacement washing machine.
Despite coming out to the other ghosts, he can’t help wondering she does still feel that way. Especially with the hint that she may have just been trying to top Nigel.
“Yes, well. Honestly, I do believe that it is something that I need to work on. Especially because you deserve so much more than that and the way I treated you today and I’m sorry.”
He can tell that she means it. She does truly feel bad about the events of the day. They turn and head towards the gazebo, still holding hands.
“You really mean that?” Trevor questions. “It wasn’t just because you were trying to checkmate Nigel?”
“It wasn’t about Nigel. That was just a bonus,” Hetty states. “The truth is, after Elias’ vacation from Hell, I couldn’t help relating the two of you – in fact, despite learning about the hero move as you say, I’ve probably associated the two of you since you died. Which is and has never been fair to you.”
Whether he wants to admit it or not, after meeting the man, he could see exactly why she would associate the two of them in her mind. Even if he’s far different than Elias, there’s enough surface level similarities that he could understand.
“Although you’re far better than he is – and I hope he rots in hell forever –”
“So much for forgiveness,” Trevor laughs. “Although he doesn’t deserve it and he never deserved you.”
“Thank you.” Hetty smiles, slightly. “Anyway, I – all this time, I knew you were different than your outward behavior would suggest, but I – I was just afraid to let things be more than they were – just benefits, as you would say.”
“And you wouldn’t want to risk telling everyone and being made a fool?”
“Yeah – yes. Exactly, and despite your efforts for pillow talk and coming out, and the fact that it is quite clear that you respect me and my choices in this – whatever it is – I couldn’t shake that fear.”
“But you said that you were embarrassed by me.”
“And I was – I was embarrassed that I had feelings for someone who I didn’t think was capable of having feelings.”
“What?” Trevor asks, aghast as they reach the gazebo. “You don’t think I have feelings for you?”
“You – you,” Hetty sighs. “You’re always telling party stories about one-night stands and no attachment sex and here I was, and given how things started – I just assumed that I was a floozy to you, just like it was with Elias, and I – is this making any sense?”
Sadly, it was. It made a lot of sense. Except that she apparently had forgotten the chat during their fight about TV time and backrubs. Which seems like forever ago now.
“Yes, it does make sense,” Trevor says, as they sit. “But most of my stories are from college or just after college. I thought the world was my oyster and your thirties were for finding the one and settling down. Of course, I had a string of one-night stands, I wasn’t looking for something serious. I thought I had plenty of time, but I’ve always been clear with my partners what I was and wasn’t looking for.”
It still hurts for him to realize that he’d only just started to settle down and look for someone to spend his life with only for him to die. Why had he been so stupid?
“I thought – given our talk when we were fighting over TV time and backrubs that you knew that I wanted something serious if I could get it,” Trevor states, confused. Sure, things had started fling-like, but he thought she knew…
“So, you meant what you said then, about what you wanted to be like? You actually wanted a commitment?”
“I did – I do,” Trevor states. “I mean, it might’ve taken you time to actually talk to me, but I don’t think you can deny that we’ve been rather committed here.”
Hetty chuckles and shakes her head. “No, I definitely cannot. Although to be fair, we don’t have many options.”
Trevor laughs. “We don’t have to hook up either. I’ve been perfectly fine for twenty years and you’ve been just fine since before you died since I doubt Elias cared about your pleasure at all.”
“He put me off the idea of it for a very long time,” Hetty states. “Either way. That’s where the problem lay. If everyone were to think the same as I – that I was just another easy lay for you it would be embarrassing,” Hetty states. She clears her throat before he can respond, and adds, “However. You did something that I did not expect by saving me my embarrassment despite getting nothing out of it. It showed me what I’ve already seen but couldn’t quite connect – if you know what I mean.”
“I do.”
“Thus, I realized that it was time and I know that it hurt you – and this conversation has probably hurt you, but I would like to … make things official,” Hetty states, clearly nervous, all of a sudden.
Trevor laughs, “Don’t you think you’re supposed to ask before you announced to everyone that we’re together?”
Hetty laughs. “How else was I supposed to prove that I was not embarrassed by you anymore? I had to do that first, I did not believe that you would have listened to me otherwise.”
“I wouldn’t have,” Trevor confirms. “And I would like to be official, if you promise not to be my little heartbreaker anymore.”
“I think I can manage that,” Hetty confirms.
“Good,” he said before kissing her passionately.
So passionately that he forgets that they’re not in their room hiding from the world anymore, and only remembers when he hears: “What the damn hell?”
He and Hetty break apart to see Sam standing on the edge of the gazebo. She looks quite freaked out. He and Hetty glance at each other. “Guess we missed someone?”
“Yes,” Hetty states. “Uh, Samantha…”
“Hetty and I are officially dating,” Trevor states, plainly. He wouldn’t be telling the Hanukkah story to Sam. “It’s a long story, but –”
“We’ve been together for three months,” Hetty states. “We’ve just been keeping it a secret.”
Sam stands there stunned for several seconds before saying, “Good for you,” and walking away.
Trevor looks at Hetty as she smiles at him, “Yeah, good for us.”
“Hell yeah, it is.” He gives her a kiss, before saying, “Now, let's go celebrate.”
“Yes, let’s.”
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Small Talk with Mr. Yang
The Fruit Seller
Noon. The market is not quite empty, with children milling around here and there, and adults walking close behind them. It is the quieter hours, though, and a languid air saturates the vegetable sellers and fruit sellers’ hawking cries. Crossing through the narrow aisles boarded side-by-side with stacks of chili, cabbage, cucumbers, and lettuce, one finds the fruit sellers at the bend of a curve—just a few steps from the butchers and the wonton booths. Breathe in. The air stinks from the scent of fresh produce. Look forward, and there they are: the large, ripe strawberries, resplendent in their red baskets; the orange tangerines as bright as licks of flame; cherry tomatoes the size of baby buttons; rows upon rows upon rows. An infinite geometric sequence. There are many of them, but the one you have come for is right at the very end. You walk over, a hello wavering from your mouth, when the fruit seller waves at you.
This is the fruit seller, whom your family has bought fruit from for countless years. He sells at a vegetable market called 湖东邻里中心, and he has an additional two stalls at other markets. You do not know his name, and neither do your parents. You only know him for his soundless deliveries to your house, or the cadence of his voice as he responds to your father’s message. This is the first time you ask. He tells you to call him Mr. Yang, and you tell him your name is Claire.
Claire: [nervously] Hi.
Mr. Yang: Hello.
He does not look like you expected him to. He wears glasses, and has a reticent manner about him. His face is very still when he replies. You shift on your feet, fingers playing behind your back.
Claire: Thank you—for accepting my interview request. And taking time out of your schedule. I know you’re very busy.
Mr. Yang: Of course. It was no problem at all. Should I move out of the stall?
He stands behind a wall of fruit, enclosed by similar walls on all four sides, but for a small passage on his left. You nod, and Mr. Yang steps out of his booth. He motions for his wife—a tall woman dressed in a deep blue apron, who is busying around the stall—to man the shop.
Claire: Thank you. Uh—this is for a project I’m working on. One that can allow people to understand that success isn’t… a one-dimensional thing. That supposedly normal people are not mundane.
Mr. Yang: I see. I’m happy you thought of me.
Claire: Yes—I wanted to ask, firstly, if you could give a brief overview of your life, and what got you into selling fruit.
Mr. Yang: My family is from Anhui, and that’s where I grew up. We’ve always been involved in the fruit industry—my family had a pear orchard, and we got into the wholesale market. I suppose that’s how I started out, even as a child. I did a lot of wholesale selling before opening my own stall—selling in Shanghai, Anhui, Suzhou. My friend offered to do wholesale with me here in Suzhou, and that’s how I eventually ended up here. My whole family is here now.
Claire: Oh—so fruit selling wasn’t something you’d been introduced to. Was going into this field more of your parents’ influence, then?
Mr. Yang: No, not particularly.
He smiles—a sad, bemused smile.
Mr. Yang: I wasn’t a good student. I was one of the naughty ones—never paid attention in class. I dropped out of high school when I was seventeen to do wholesaling, so I didn’t have a university degree, or even high school degree, to try for the white-collar jobs. There was no real other choice.
Claire: I see… but you’re doing well now, aren’t you? You’re very successful as a fruit seller—I heard from my dad that you have three stalls.
Mr. Yang: That’s nice of you to say, but we’re only doing decently at this business. It’s enough to sustain our family needs—I’m thankful for that. Yes, we have three stalls.
Claire: I think you’re being humble here, but I’m not going to comment on it. How do you run your stalls efficiently? Surely your family can’t be in charge of all of them? And how do you ensure that everyone’s doing the right thing?
Mr. Yang: That’s correct. We hired managers for the two other stalls—there are some disagreements here and there, especially with the management of fruit quality, but by and large it’s gone well. You have to put some trust in the people you hire and believe that they’ll do their jobs properly. You hired them, after all.
Claire: That makes sense. Does your family have any plans for expansion?
Mr. Yang: Yes, we’re planning on increasing the number of our stalls this year, if the business goes well. There’s also online retailing, but personally, I don’t have great expectations for that.
Claire: I hope that goes well for you! Really? I’d have thought that online retailing would increase sales by a lot.
Mr. Yang: Thank you. What happens with online retailing is that our prices increase by 15-20%—the platform does that—which makes us less competitive. If you see any fruits that are cheaper than usual online, it’s because their quality is often worse. That’s why I much prefer an actual storefront.
Claire: I see. You mentioned quality—do you think quality is especially important for your business?
Mr. Yang: Absolutely. It’s what attracts our customers. We mainly do repeat business—a customer tries out our fruits once, enjoys them, and comes back, again and again, just like your father. It’s what works for us.
Claire: Yes—so is quality your main method of advertisement?
Mr. Yang: Indeed. I suppose we could price cheap and get attention that way, but something like that is never long-term. People will come only once for the low price. After they taste the fruit—the quality is bound to suffer from low costs—they’ll recoil at the taste, and never come back again. We don’t like to do business that way.
Claire: That’s very true. Do you think your business model results from how competitive the fruit market is, then?
Mr. Yang: Yes, certainly. The fruit market is competitive—it’s easy to enter, and even easier to fail and exit. Countless people try it out, but plenty fail within months because they don’t know where to buy the best fruits—or just source them from a supplier—and how to price them. They don’t know when to sell a certain fruit and when to not. And even for the ones who survive—why should a customer buy from your stall, and continue buying from your stall, when there are an unending amount of identical stalls? That’s why we focus on quality. My wife and I wake up at three or four every morning to go to the wholesale markets, where we personally taste each fruit to make sure that the quality is of a good standard. When some fruit is about to go bad, we don’t try to push and sell them to a customer. We throw them away. That’s how we maintain our customer base even amidst the market competition.
Claire: It makes sense why you have a stable customer base, then. Your attention to detail and quality is such a differentiating factor. Well—I have two more questions I’d like to ask you. Firstly, would you like your children to work in the same industry as you, or would you like them to walk another path?
Mr. Yang: I wouldn’t want my children—I have two, one in kindergarten and the other just born—to work in the fruit industry. It’s exhausting and back-breaking labor. I want them to get an education and do something they like. If they can’t find a job, or don’t know what they want, and our business is doing well, I might give them a few fruit stalls to manage—but only if it’s their choice. I don’t want to dictate what they can and can’t do.
Claire: That’s very kind of you. I think they’d appreciate you saying that.
He smiles, and this time it is a true smile.
Claire: Finally, what is one regret you’ve always held in your life?
Mr. Yang: One regret… I suppose it would be not paying attention in school. I don’t necessarily agree with the Chinese system—it demands too much from its students. My older daughter—she’s in kindergarten, but she’s already overloaded with homework. If I had the financial capability, I’d put my kids into the international school system, but unfortunately I don’t have a choice. Regardless, education is a valuable asset. For a lot of people, it’s the way out. And if I could go back in time, that’s what I’d do. Pay attention in class.
Claire: Thank you.
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