Drabbletober - Spicyhoney
Edge shook his head fondly while Rus gasped; both had seen the sign, heralding the return of ‘pumpkin spice season’ to the small coffee shop they frequented. “I assume you want one of those, rather than your usual order?” Edge asked, pretending to be put-upon by the very idea.
“yep!” Rus said cheerfully, accustomed to his gruffness. “with extra whipped cream. and caramel. and nutmeg on top.”
“Would you like any coffee with that?”
Rus laughed, following him into the shop. They took off their gloves and coats, though Edge retained his scarf. The scent of coffee and something sweeter lingered in the air, warm and inviting. They got into line, just before a group of college kids walked in. Three boys and one girl; one of the boys had his arm thrown over her shoulders, and he asked, “So? What do you want, babe?”
She smiled shyly, almost apologetically. “It is pumpkin spice season....”
He rolled his eyes and turned to his friends. “God, I swear, I’ve never met a girl that just drank a normal damn cup of coffee. They’ve all gotta have stupid-ass flavors and whipped cream and caramel and fucking—fucking sprinkles and shit! It’s coffee, not ice cream!”
He was laughing now, and his friends were smiling and nodding, quietly agreeing that plain black was the only ‘real’ way to drink coffee. His girlfriend, meanwhile, was still smiling; the expression was frozen on her face even as her cheeks grew red. She swallowed and looked back up at the board, tugging on her sweater sleeve.
Edge found himself glaring at the back of the boy’s head. Sensing him—feeling his sins crawling on his back—the boy turned. Still snickering, he proved how poor his survival skills truly were by turning away from Edge and jerking a thumb at him. “He gets it. Right, tough guy? Plain black?” Before Edge could reply, he turned back to his friends, laughing as if he’d said something funny.
Edge glared, but Rus just squeezed his hand, and when he had Edge’s attention, he winked. Baffled, Edge blinked as Rus turned his attention to the girl. “are you getting the pumpkin spice latte?”
She flushed and fidgeted. “Um...maybe just a plain latte....” She glanced at her boyfriend, but he wasn’t paying her any attention.
Rus shook his head. “life’s too short for boring coffee. what do you want ?” She glanced at her boyfriend, cheeks still red.
“Our treat,” Edge broke in, voice gruff.
Her eyes went wide. “I couldn’t—“
Rus, smiling, said, “may as well tell him what you want. if you don’t, he’s just going to guess.”
Maintaining his gruff demeanor, Edge added, “I’ve never been very good with guessing games.”
She glanced at her boyfriend, stepping out from under his arm. “Pumpkin spice latte,” she finally confessed, “if that’s not too girly....”
Keeping features set in a stoic mask, Edge asked, “Extra caramel?”
The boyfriend finally realized his girlfriend had been talking with the pair of monsters when it came time for him to place their order, and she politely confessed they’d already paid for hers. “Hey!” He pulled her away from them. “Back off, man. She’s taken!”
“So am I,” Edge said, showing off his wedding ring. “And may I offer you a little advice?”
The boy just gaped at him. “What?!” It was an expression of confusion, but Edge took it as invitation.
Edge leaned toward the boyfriend. “Try putting a little sugar in your coffee sometime. Maybe it will sweeten your demeanor.” He offered his arm to Rus, who handed him his plain coffee. “Ready?”
Rus was grinning at him, his eyelights sparkling. They walked out, arm-in-arm, the little bell jingling behind them. “Don’t—“ Edge warned.
“‘sweeten your demeanor?’ babe, have i told you how much i love you?”
Edge rolled his eyelights. “About half as much as you love pumpkin spice season?”
“hey! it’s at least three quarters!”
Edge cracked a smile, shaking his head as Rus cuddled into his side.
