open to : anyone
location : coffee grinds , a coffeeshop a block off from washington square park, manhatan
time : 6:45 pm
A SOFT SIGH SPILLS past pink-glossed lips as she moves to wipe the sweat clinging to her brow ; the early morning shifts had a rather nasty habit of winding the small lycan out far more than the afternoon rush -- & though julia partially blamed the early mornings preceding the bleeding periwinkle hues of dawn for her persistent exhaustion , she couldn’t help but puff her cheeks & endure with as few complaints as she could manage. the extra cash to her bank account surely couldn’t hurt -- and though her mother & father were always more than willing to accommodate for the discrepancies between her dwindling paycheck & the manhattan-skyscraper high rent , the pale-haired lycan finds herself as eager to embrace her optimism as she could … even if it meant sacrificing a few hours of sleep to man the small coffee shop before the first of nyu’s student population began trickling in past the doors.
the life of a barista , julia realized early on , was far less glamorous than she had initially expected. the doe-eyed dreamer in her had always looked on from the opposite side of the counter with a soft sigh before fingers wrapped snugly around the oat-milk latte ( sweetened with zero-calorie vanilla & agave syrup , of course ! ) she had ordered to start off her day , considering that there could be no better way to spend the day than being surrounded by the rich , decadent aroma of roasted coffee beans. reality had swept in with a harsh smack upon the cub’s head soon enough -- and after scrubbing three too many cartons of soy milk from her favorite black jeans , julia resigned herself to hating her job approximately ten percent more each & every day.
the crowds packed into the coffee grind’s small space had thinned out considerably over the past half hour , granting the blonde with a moment of reprieve to catch her breath ; with the clock striking 6:43 PM , julia shifts her hands to untangle the knot resting at her lower back. once the threads come untangled , the black apron hugging her slight figure unfurls , hanging loosely from her before she pulls it up & over her head. with far less grace than intended , julia tosses it into the backroom before excitedly fishing out her cellphone from her back pocket. sky blues light up with excitement as the screen glows to life -- but the sudden dearth of notifications greeting her is enough to cause her expression to drop. brows knit together & glossed lips pull into a hint of a pout before thumb works quickly to navigate through the settings of her phone. not one text , one snap , or even one instagram like. “ REALLY ? “ she whines under her breath , initial excitement at having her shift come to a close fizzling out almost instantly.
a slew of annoyed grumbles follows suit before she stuffs her phone back into the pocket of her jeans , kicking at a stray plastic cup littering the floor before she bends down to pluck it up & toss it into the bin. the blonde hardly bothers shouting back to her manager that she’s on her way out , half-stomping with each successive step. in her sudden heat of annoyance , she hardly registers the solid form standing between herself & the exit until she collides face-first into them. “ eep -- ! “ her soft squeak is undignified at best & as julia stumbles , arms flap awkwardly at her sides until she regains her balance. it’s enough to cause pale cheeks to flush rose-pink and as her nose scrunches in embarrassment , a half-exasperated breath is all she manages in response. “ ex-cuse me ! you’re in my way. can you , like , move ? puh-lease. “ as if her mood hadn’t already been spoiled enough.
