TIMING: Current LOCATION: A Latte to Love PARTIES: Lil @the-lil-exorcist and Leticia @rhythmicmeow SUMMARY: Leticia meets up with Lil to discuss a radio ad for The Bread Cemetery. CONTENT WARNINGS: none
Lil wasn’t exactly sure if she was the best person to start helping with the advertising of the bakery, knowing that generally she didn’t seem to be able to take it with the sincerity of her brother and mother. Still, while she liked being somewhat goofy, she didn’t want to cause harm to the business either. After all, Jonas loved it here and she owed it to him to make it successful, if only because he followed her out of this town without a second word.
So, despite herself, she decided to call back the person who had offered to advertise the bakery on the radio. After all, she seemed sincere enough and it would mean that Jonas wouldn’t have to work so hard on social media. So, when Lil saw the other she waved and said, “Oh - Hey Leticia over here.” The cafe was small, but she figured that if she wanted to surprise Jonas she probably shouldn’t have the conversation at the bakery.
“Thanks for returning my call,” Lil continued with a smile. “And sorry for the secondary location, we just don’t have a lot of seat space in the bakery.”
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Leticia hadn't had to worry about making a first impression in years. At least not in a professional setting. As a musician, she had already made her debut. People already had opinions of her and how she dressed wasn't going to influence that opinion. But here? Building a new brand from the ground up in a town where she was keeping her head down about her past? She couldn't fall back into her comfortable habits. Three changes of clothes before the meeting and she still wasn't satisfied, but as time slipped away from her, the time for second guessing was over.
Nervousness hummed in her veins, a gentle pounding that was slowly turning into adrenaline. Leticia held her breath for a moment, her hand on the door to the cafe. It'd pass, she told herself. With a comfortable smile on her face, she opened the door, making eye contact with Lil almost immediately.
"I'm glad you called," Leticia offered, taking a seat across from Lil. "Though I was hoping to take a treat home from the bakery, for business purposes of course - but I don't mind." A degree of separation wasn't the strangest thing. Especially if Lil wasn't entirely sold. "How much thought have you given advertising?"
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Lil smiled at the other, feeling that she wasn’t exactly the best person to make a good impression of the bakery, but knowing that it was her chance to at least try. After all, her mom had said most people liked it when you tried. So she was going to try.
Still, after a moment Lil thought that there was something odd happening the hairs sticking up slightly on the back of her neck as she repressed the urge to look for a spirit in the room. It was just a moment though, as Lil focused back on Leticia. After all, whatever spirit there was Lil didn’t have to deal with it now. She’d either figure it out later, or honestly they could be fine on their own. She just hoped they wouldn’t do something to ruin the meeting.
“No problem - oh I did bring some for you to try. I figured if you all were going to make an ad you should at least try some,” Lil said with a chuckle glad that her forethought was good. Carefully opening her bag she was happy that none of it seemed to have gotten jostled. “I also have to be honest - I wasn’t quite sure how to advertise the bakery. I have some of the adverts my mom made for it awhile ago that could help, but I’ve never done something like this.” Lil said, trying to keep herself from rambling, knowing how easy it was for her to do. “How do you all normally advertise?”
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It was hard to hide the light in Leticia's eyes at the mention of the samples. Holding back from being at the Bread Cemetery had been difficult since her first bite. Leticia had never been one to do anything half-way and that included loving something. It was how she had found success in music, she threw herself into it without a second thought - but here? This was a different kind of business. And enthusiasm like hers could easily be interpreted as pressure. Or manipulation.
The worst part of this job was the salesperson professionalism that had to go with it.
Still, Leticia clapped her hands together, a bright smile on her face that refused to fade as she looked at the goods. "I'm not saying food is my favorite thing, but it's one of the best things." Her eyes lifted from the bag to Lil once more. "I would love to see them." Her face slipped into a more professional, neutral expression. But her tone was softer, wondering if Lil wanted to infuse her business with her mother's - and other questions came to mind too quickly. But she bit her tongue. This was a first meeting, and Leticia needed this contract, so she held back. Didn't over share about her father and how she had modeled her business after his or how much influence he had over her. The relationship between Lil and her mother could have been vastly different - but family was important.
And maybe Leticia was desperate for a connection.
"Normally, I start with this, a consultation and get your expectations and what your thoughts are and hear about your business from your own mouth. Half of sales is the love you put into your work, and I need a taste of that, so to speak," Leticia explained, holding in a laugh. "From here, I'll write out a script and film an advertisement and then let you hear it first before it goes live so that we can make any alterations you might want."
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Lil couldn’t help the smile that spread across her face when the other seemed to be interested in the samples carefully putting it in front of the other . It wasn’t something that she had made - she was much more likely to burn down a kitchen then make something anyone would want to eat- but she did feel connected to the food. Her mom and brother especially worked hard on the bakery, and she wanted it to succeed. She needed Jonas to have something that was familiar and happy.
Lil nodded and pulled out the adverts that her mom had made to pass on to Letcia, hoping that there was an idea there. “My mom I think got some mock ups for advertisements she might want - I don’t think she ever ended up using them though. Again, I’m not really the brains behind the operation with this but I figured it would be a good place to start.” She’d found them buried in her mom’s office, under carefully filled out divorce papers that Lil had decided not to mention to Jonas. It had felt personal, something that Lil wasn’t supposed to find. She wasn’t quite sure how to feel about it, and at the moment she wasn’t going to.
With the explanation Lil nodded and thought for a moment. “That sounds good - I think that would work really well. Essentially, I thought we could do something about how they were spooky good baked goods.” Lil chuckled a little and shook her head, “But that might be a little -uh cartoony? I guess if you’ll let me babble for a while I might find a better idea? I probably should have written a list.” Lil couldn’t help but feel the red start pricking at her face as she realized she was probably underprepared again. It always seemed to happen when it wasn’t an exorcism that she always was not prepared. “What kind of information do you usually want?”
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“She never used them?” Leticia questioned as she delicately flipped through the mockups. “Can you tell me more about her?” Pausing a moment, Leticia mentally kicked herself. Parents were often a sore subject, and in Wicked’s Rest, it felt like it was safer to assume that it was. Even Leticia, who had a great relationship with both of her parents, could point out the center of the hole in her chest that grief had caused. “If you want to, of course.”
The awkwardness between them hadn’t quite faded away, but Leticia’s smile warmed as Lil started to give small bits of information, a small taste of the direction she wanted to head in, followed by backtracking. “No - no, I like that. And I think Wicked’s Rest is the perfect place for that kind of brand. I mean, I’m new here, but this place has weird in every shadow. And if that’s the brand direction you want? Commit to it. I think it’d help you stand out.” She tapped her thumb for a moment, running through some phrases in her head, trying to make one work that didn’t cross that line of cartoony.
“Get haunted by flavor at the Bread Cemetery? Lift your spirits at the Bread Cemetery?” Leticia started writing a few notes, only pausing when she glanced up and realized that Lil was embarrassed, the hint of red coming to her cheeks giving her away. “Oh. Oh. No.” Leticia reached across the table towards Lil, not touching her, but hoping to provide some comfort. “It’s okay to make me do that work. It’s sort of my job here.” She hadn’t been in business long, but as a person, it was hard to sit across from someone and pretend that they weren’t bothered. To ignore their troubles and focus on selling them a product? Leticia could never bring herself to have that kind of barrier between herself and the world. “Why don’t you tell me about your favorite thing about the bakery? Don’t think too hard, just, what makes you love that place?”
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“I don’t think so,” Lil said softly, looking down at the adverts. “Oh sure - She’s a lovely person. Warm and kind. She’d let you talk for hours and sit with her. I don’t think I’ve ever heard her raise her voice.” Lil remembered June for a moment and didn’t quite know how to really explain her mom in a way that made any more sense. She had a calm presence that seemed to make the most unruly persons - or spirits- calm down and sit quietly. While Jacob often raised his voice at Lil, even when June was disappointed she never did. She would just pull her into a hug and tell her that it was going to be okay. Her mom always seemed to know that Lil was trying her best even when it was clumsy. She seemed to understand Lil in a way few people ever bothered too - but Lil didn’t know how to say that. “You would like her. Almost everyone does.”
“I think it would be helpful at least. Our name is Bread Cemetery you know - it’s going to be at least a little weird,” Lil said with a little laugh. After all, it was a strange name even if she couldn’t remember why it was named that way. She’d have to ask her mom once they found her. At the lifting spirits Lil couldn’t help but laugh and say,” That’s great.”
At the question Lil paused for a moment and said softly, “My brother I think. He’s so excited about being back in the bakery and - he really likes baking. My mom taught him everything she knew and he’s really good at it. It makes me happy to see him so calm and being able to be creative. - That’s probably a cheesy answer huh?”
It was true though, Lil wasn’t much of a baker. If she ever had a role as a Ballard it had always been in exorcism, not with the bakery really. She would always come in to cover shifts being a cashier - and often would hide out there when her dad was being especially mean - but she didn’t exactly belong there. It was June and Jonas’s special place, not really hers. She was always welcome, but it wasn’t for her.
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There was a faint smile at the corner of Leticia’s mouth. The way she spoke about her mother was like coming back home to her own. Was it wrong to want to hear more about Lil’s mother just so she could hold onto that warm feeling for a moment longer? To reminisce without any of the guilt that came with reality? The calm description of Lil’s mother made her compare the two — her own had been so loud. Always yelling and calling her from another room in the house. The energy between the two had been vastly different, but there was comfort in both. “It takes a remarkable person to have that kind of patience. I’m sure I would have.”
It was fun — niche, sure. But it had personality. And there was no doubt in Leticia’s mind that the kids around town would eat it up if they could make a meme out of it. Leticia just had to make sure that it was a meme in good taste and not something like… obsessed girlfriend. “The name is what brought me to you guys in the first place, it’s creative.” And considering her own business was called the Vinyl Countdown? There couldn’t have been a doubt in anyone’s mind that this was her exact brand of fun and weird.
“I’m not here to judge you,” Leticia reminded. “I mean — The Vinyl Countdown? My dad has a place just like it back in California. Grew up in the back room of the shop playing music and having this place is like… having a piece of him with me. Even when he’s not here.” She shrugged. “Cheesy? Maybe. But it matters.” Exhaling, she leaned back in the chair, letting the air between them breathe. “Can I ask one more thing?” Her words were softer now, not wanting to press too hard but unable to let it go. “Why are you invested? Your family aside. What does the Bread Cemetery mean to you?”
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“Yeah she’s remarkable,” Lil said slightly softly. She loved her mom, and the kindness that seemed to wrap around her like a blanket. She wished more than anything that she was more like her, even if she knew the truth of it was that she was more like her dad than anything else. Still, unlike him she could help keep people like her mom from feeling bad at least. “She’s really pretty too. I think part of it was just the kindness you know?”
Lil chuckled and said, “I appreciate that. I’m sure there was a reason for the name, but for the life of me I can’t remember why. My mom’s sense of humor is all like that though, and I don’t doubt that comes through my family.” After all, despite most things the Ballards weren’t known for being particularly serious - well most of them weren’t. In a lot of ways a family that is involved with death couldn’t keep the deadly seriousness expected of them in other areas of their lives.
“Fair enough - oh you own that place? It’s super cool,” Lil said, her eyes lighting up at the mention of the vinyl store. Lil wasn’t much of a collector but she loved looking through the store when she had time. At the rest of her statement Lil nodded slightly, realizing a bit too late that meant that Leticia’s father was probably dead. She hoped that she didn’t make the other too sad. She nodded at the change of direction, although at the question she didn’t quite know what to say.
After all, most of what Lil did was for her family, at least partially. She left partially to get Jonas out from under Jacob’s thumb. She became an exorcist because it was expected of her. She came back because her family needed her. Sure some of her choices seemed to be opposed to that - but there was always an undercurrent of it being for her family. It made her somewhat uncomfortable to think of anything else, but she tried too. “I guess it’s the closest feeling I have to home. Most of my favorite memories took place there, and I want to protect it. If we get a good amount of business that means that it’ll stay there for a long time and other people might think of it fondly like I do.” Lil said trying to place feelings - a thing she was never truly good at doing. “I don’t know if that’s different really than it being important to my family, but - if I can help keep it running then that’s what I’m always going to do. ”
With that, Lil thought that she did find out what she really wanted. She wanted to make sure the bakery was safe because it would make Jonas happy, and it would mean that when her family came back they’d still have it. She was hardly an entrepreneur, but she was a protector - even for something as seemingly silly as a bakery.
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Leticia couldn’t help but laugh. The way that Lil described her mother was familiar in a way that left Leticia envious. She had always been close to her own family, but her mother had been the distant one while her father had been the one that pushed her into the public and wanted her to see the world in ways that her mother’s family had been scared to do. The story was one that Leticia had only heard in snippets and in arguments—mostly around the time that Leticia had signed her contract. “Actions speak louder than words, that’s the saying. I’m sure it helped.” Conventional attraction was nice, but some things were better.
“Well, if you ever learn the story, I want to hear it. Sounds like it would be a fun one.” It might not help them create a decent advertisement, but Leticia loved knowing things. And stories like these always warmed the heart. “Yeah. We opened up a few months ago. I had a booth soundproofed in there too for the radio.” The questions stopped as Lil started to describe what the establishment meant to her, and the smile on Leticia’s face was less the practiced one that she used to something softer. It was her home and she wanted to protect it. Leticia could relate to that. Wanting to spread those good memories to others so that it would live on when she wasn’t there to run it anymore? Leticia could relate to that too.
Writing down a few more notes, Leticia felt like she had a good feel for who Lil was and the business. It might not have been the most conventional method, but the things she loved about businesses that she frequented weren’t what they sold, but the people who were there. The food, in this case, would always be wonderful, but people made it special. And if the others working at the Bread Cemetery were anything like Lil, it was a special place. “Thank you,” she finally said, looking up from her work. “I know it was an odd question. But I think I have a few ideas now.”
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“Yeah, I think it did. She’s really good at little actions,” Lil said, her hand now actually going to her necklace - even though her dad always taught her not to touch it. She didn’t mind if Leticia knew where it was after all - she doubted that the other would even know what it was and even then Lil thought she was kind enough not to use that. At the statement Lil laughed and said, “Absolutely I will. I’m sure it's a pretty silly reason, just knowing her. And that’s awesome.”
At the thanks Lil blinked, not feeling like she actually had answered the question and being slightly shocked that she didn’t say don’t thank her. After all, she was hardly the important person in the bakery. It wasn’t a place for her really, but maybe that was something Leticia could sense. Lil didn’t want to argue though so she nodded and said, “Glad I could help. - Uh Is there anything else that you need?” She wasn’t sure what else she could do, but also did enjoy the others presence and didn’t want to rush back to regular life either.
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Watching Lil touch the necklace she wore, Leticia silently wondered if it was something that her mother had given her. She hoped her assumption was right, if nothing else than to have just one more thing in common with her. The bracelet on her wrist was supposed to protect her, but she had no idea the meaning behind what Lil wore. Maybe it was the same, just framed differently for different cultures? “I really hope you find the story, she sounds like she’d certainly make it a fun one.”
Closing her notes, Leticia shook her head and offered the other a warm smile. “I think that’s all I need for the ad.” Lil had given her a lot to work with, but the spirit was all written on paper. “But thank you for this,” she said, leaning into the table slightly. “And for the pastries. I’m going to have to fight off my staff to make sure I at least get a bite. They love the shop.”
