𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗱𝗱𝗶𝗲

ღ. 𝑩𝒂𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒂

✎. 𝐀𝐔

Police!Steve, Barista!Eddie

Supposed to be double update but I fell asleep

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"Hi sir, can I get your order, please?" Eddie asks with a big smile plastered on his face.

"Ah, yes, one Machiatto, medium. And a Mona Pisa donut." Eddie nodded, noticing that the customer is a police officer.

When he had already finished the police officer's order, he handed it to him, smiling at him thankfully.

Eddie noticed his K-9 companion's fur looked so fluffy and fuzzy, just like cotton candy. Eddie wants nothing but to pet the dog.

Eddie tapped the policeman's shoulder lightly with his pointer finger. Which gained the man's attention

"Uhm, excuse me, can I pet him? Or her?" Eddie asks with so much hope in his eyes.

"Yes, of course; it's his day off anyway. He's a he, by the way."

Eddie lit up with joy. He softly touches the neck, gently scratching under his chin. Eddie knows not to directly pet the dog on the head, as the dog doesn't trust him enough.

"What's his name?"

"Brutus"

Eddie smiled lovingly at the dog. "Hi, Brutus, nice to meet you. I'm Eddie." Brutus, gaining another gentle pet and scratch from Eddie. Brutus made soft eye contact with Eddie while wagging his tail.

"It looks like he likes you. It's rare for him to like a stranger. Are you perhaps a dog trainer?"

"Oh, no, I just did a lot of research about dogs because I absolutely adore them and I'm planning to adopt one if I'm already financially stable. I assume he's a German Shepherd, yes?"

"Yes, he is." Eddie nodded, smiling kindly at the man.

"We should go, and I'm Steve; my apologies for not introducing myself."

"No, no, it's fine. Thank you so much for coming, sir, and you too, Brutus." Eddie petted Brutus goodbye.

                            ☆

Months later, Steve and Brutus came by every day at Eddie's coffee shop. They have been closer, especially Eddie and Brutus; every time he would sense, smell, or see Eddie, he would immediately wiggle his tail with excitement.

And Steve, well, the reason he often comes to Eddie's coffee shop is not only the coffee and donuts but the owner itself.

Brutus, the coffee and donuts are just Steve's plain dumb excuse to see Eddie every day. He's not even a coffee drinker in the first place. But he does enjoy the way Eddie's eyes will light up every time he sees Brutus; is he jealous? Well, not really. He's also happy that Brutus could have somebody he could play with, not just him, and besides, Brutus has been the best companion ever. He deserves every praise, pet, and scratch he receives from Eddie.

"Same order?" Eddie smiled at him. The same exact smile he always had when they came by.

"Yes, please. Also, you should be careful; there's a rapist and a murderer lurking in this street; he hasn't been caught yet."

"Alright, thank you for the warning, sir," Eddie says while handing Steve's order. Steve smiled sweetly, and Eddie reciprocated.

Eddie has to admit that Steve also has a special place in his heart. Every morning when the entrance bell tingles, his heart is pounding so hard that he thinks it's Steve. And every time the man made eye contact with him, he could always feel his heart beating so fast that he was concerned that maybe something was wrong with him. But it's all just because of his big, fat crush on Steve.

                              ☆

It's already late at night when Eddie closes his shop; he only walks because his house is just five blocks away from his shop.

As he walks, he can feel someone following him, but he just shrugs it off, thinking maybe he is just heading the same way as he is. But no, he tried to walk the other way; the stranger was still following him. Remembering what Steve said, he calmly reached for his dead cellphone to not raise any suspicions, pretending to call somebody.

"Hello? Babe? You're near? Yes, I'm on my way." Eddie hoped that he could see a single soul around to save him.

Somebody answered his prayers. When he saw a tall man in the shadows leaning against the wall, he couldn't see his face.

"Hey babe!" His feet forced him to run to the man, hugging the stranger as he was also running away from stranger. Ironic, ain't it?

The man is confused, but Eddie tightens his grip on the man, whispering, "Please, help me; someone is following me." Eddie could feel a big, strong arm holding him protectively.

The man reached for something from his pocket. "Tommy, we've got him," says a familiar voice. Eddie is frightened; what does he mean by we got him? Are they confidants? With millions of things running through Eddie's mind, he's wondering if he's going to die. What's going to happen to his shop? His dreams?

Before he could cry, the man spoke again. "Are you okay, Eddie?"

"Steve?" Eddie removes himself from Steve, taking a closer look at him.

It's really him.

Eddie hugs Steve again, crying out of relief.

"Hush, now that we've already got him, you're safe now. Come on, I'm going to drive you home." Eddie nodded, following Steve in the car.

                                ☆

They arrived at Eddie's house. Getting out of the car, Eddie decided to hug Steve again.

"Thank you, my hero." Steve snickered

"What? I'm serious; you're my hero"

"No worries, it's my responsibility."

Eddie beams, placing a hand on Steve's shoulder and leaning in to kiss him. It was a sudden kiss. Steve closes his eyes, feeling the heat rushing through his body. He had been waiting for this day to come, and it did. It did last long, until Eddie broke the kiss.

"I'll see you tomorrow, yeah?"

"Yeah, see you tomorrow"

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