The Timid Scholar KlitzXReader

Literature Landscape

Klitz rubbed his eyes drowsily, it was 4 am. He was desperate for a quiet space to finish his assignment & that place hopefully offered an assortment of caffeine & sugar.

That was the day that he came upon 'The Athena; Overnight bookstore & Café'. The vintage Walnut sign hung above the doorway, swaying gently in the crisp early morning breeze. Klitz shrugged at it. Suppressing a yawn he pushed through the door.

The expanse of the room was refreshing to him, never in his life had he seen a room so aggressively filled with books. The aged velvet armchairs were placed in a calculatedly inviting manner throughout the store.

It was all so overwhelming to the then 19-year-old Klitz that he didn't even notice the Owner eyeing him expectantly through a long slot in the wall, connecting the kitchen to the books section.
"May I help you?" The owner rang out. Klitz jumped at the noise.
"Oh my I'm sorry, I didn't mean to spook you.." The owner, Y/n moved through the kitchen into the main store. Klitz was still trying to gather his composure.
"It's okay, I'm alright." He muttered breathlessly clutching a hand to his chest.

Stood in front of him Klitz took a good look at Y/n. Their outfit matched the vintage environment of the store.
"Is it your first time in The Athena?"
Y/n tilted their head to the side. The question was more of a statement as Y/n knew every single customer they entertained at The Athena, it wasn't a store that newcomers found regularly & Y/n loved it that way.

'The Athena; A hidden gem' Y/n's father would remark with great gusto to any newcomers that managed to stalk through the maze-like city to their storefront. Y/n never understood his enthusiasm until they took up his mantle. But upon the flurry of business, they quickly adopted his keen adoration & adapted to the nightlife of the profession.

Klitz nodded bashfully. He was sheepish at the accurate assumption.
"Is it that easy to tell?" He stammered.
"No, no, we just don't get many new faces in here. I assume you're attending college, right?" Y/n inquired, Klitz nodded his head quizzically.
"College students are the only people our age that would enter a bookstore café at 4 am," Y/n explained.
"Well, make yourself at home and I'll serve you just about any drink or snack you'd like."
Y/n enthused.

Klitz sat in one of the abundantly plush armchairs. It was sat in front of a gorgeously carved mahogany desk adorned with a vintage tasseled lamp. He pulled out his laptop & got to work on his assignment. It was a review of a piece of literature by Stephen Graham Jones, Klitz was struggling with the assignment as he had hit a mental block nearly three paragraphs in. He waited on his coffee & stared at the half-filled page.

Y/n buzzed around the kitchen, it was a normal day at work for them. A flat white coffee is what the overworked college student had ordered, that was one of the only things that were ever ordered from The Athena's menu. Y/n had started to believe the other drinks on the menu were just for show. Running The Athena was only a two-person show, their customer base was often fairly dispersed throughout the night. Though, as the store was placed nearby Yale when the year dragged on and the workload of students upped in intensity The Athena would sometimes quadruple the number of visitors. Usually, there would be no more than five or six occupying the space at once, but, as the year went on the number would grow to the twenties & that would be when Y/n would take on help.

Bringing Klitz over his coffee Y/n sat it carefully on a coaster. Seeing his blank stare at the laptop screen.
"You've become stuck, haven't you?"
Y/n eyes the boy over, it was rare to have a customer their age.

Their overnight business had heavily impeded Y/n's relationships, not just dating but friendships as well. The only person that Y/n interacted with that wasn't a customer was Craig, the boy who took over Y/n's job during the day. Their fathers had the same deal, Y/n's would take over the night & Craig's dad, Gideon, would take over during the day. They would switch over 6 am & 6 pm daily. That's just how the business went & that's how it stayed. The business was slow enough that free time was often throughout their shifts.

Klitz rubs his eyes, nodding his head.
"Yes, college is a lot more complicated than I expected." He breathes.
"I have something that might help with the stress though," Y/n uttered mysteriously, moving swiftly through the store and scooping up what looked like a black ball of fluff from the window sill.

"Lucky, our store & student therapy cat." They smiled scratching Lucky's belly. His paws shoot out of the void of his fur, stretching lazily. Klitz reaches his arms out. He takes Lucky carefully. His fur is long and soft, his wide yellow eyes stare into Klitz's in a way that indicates wiseness. He could feel the tension in his mind relieve just a little as he strokes the fur of the ironically named pet. Lucky had put on the charms, purring loudly & kneading Klitz's thigh responsively.

Klitz got to work. He powered through the third paragraph and moved through to the next. He knew he didn't like what he added but he had time to revise it later. 'Something is better than nothing' he pleaded with himself.

Customers come in & out as they please. Lucky gets a lot of attention & treats that early morning. Soon enough it's 6am & Craig is doing the switch with Y/n.
"Good morning to you." He's teasing, looking at Y/n's tired face. Y/n shrugs.
"Morning." Y/n mutters under their breath.
"Would you like me to make you a drink for warmup?"
"Just hot coco will be enough."
"Sure thing boss." Craig bows at Y/n satirely, they roll their eyes.

Y/n sits their hot chocolate on the opposite side of the table to Klitz, hurrying over to a door hidden in one of the bookcases. It wasn't anything too interesting, just the entrance to Y/n's apartment above the shop itself.

and Y/n sits down to write poetry for an upcoming competition. Klitz and Y/n have a small bubbling conversation. Lucky begs for treats with his wide gold gilded eyes. Soon Klitz has to go back to his dorm.

The air is cold against his face & stings his eyes. He will be back to the Athena soon.