More Than a Soldier

Chapter 67 - Positive or Negative?

A/n: This chapter is going to cover quite a time skip as I want to move the story along and get to the good bits! I hope it doesn't feel rushed.

Y/n's POV:

It's been a little over a week since the café opened and I can't believe how well it's doing. With Ava back at school, I've got into the routine of dropping her off at school and heading over to help with opening up in the mornings. Sophie would be there baking her cakes and pastries for the day. Hannah would be making sure everything was set and our staff would be preparing the machines for the morning rush.

We get a steady stream at the start of the day. A lot of people stop by on their way to work and with the local business parks, we get a good trade from them. It then usual gets a bit quiet after schools start and picks up again around lunch. I then head off to pick Ava up. A couple of times we've come back here when Scarlett has been working late. Ava is absolutely spoilt when she visits and I'm sure that why she is always so keen to tag along.

The late opening seems to also be a success. Some drop by for a quick pint on their way home, whilst we also get some of the university students stop by to work on their assignments in a bit of peace.

I absolutely love the place and I enjoy coming by. I don't have to be here every day, but I enjoy it. Hannah has taught me how to use the coffee machine, so sometimes I'm able to help when it gets really busy. I also give her a hand with some of the orders when she needs it. I stay away from the kitchen as I know that Sophie will have my head if I ruin anything, but I'm a great taste tester.

There has been a real buzz about the place since opening with a couple of magazines and papers doing articles on the café. They've been really positive, and they've all talked about the calm and safe vibe that we've created, which was what we were hoping to achieve. So, we're happy!

Our social media is growing by the day and we're getting positive feedback from people who visit. Though I know a lot of its initial success is down to the fact that people know that I am married to Scarlett and they're hoping to catch a glimpse of a star if they visit. Thankfully, most of the customers are really respectful if one of those "stars" do drop by. Lizzie and Tom have been here the most and are so supportive of the place which is great.

I just hope that we can keep this up. Next week we are starting to doing more events. We've got an open mic night and we're even going to do a quiz night. First topic of choice. Marvel. We also have a couple of private events booked for a few weeks' time. That means they get the courtyard and catering for whatever it is they're using it for. I leave that stuff to Hannah as she's a pro at organising everything.

The more time I spend here, the more I am learning. It was a totally new environment for me to be a part of. Other than helping at Sophie's every now and then, I didn't really know how it all worked. But I've had a crash course and I've really enjoyed it. Especially working out ways for us to attract people. Looking at the demographic and picking things that will appeal to them. It's been really good fun. It sometimes doesn't even feel like a job!

Yesterday was the first day we were open when the Dodgers had a game and man was it packed out. We had to do an emergency order to restock as we sold so much. It has definitely taught us to order ahead for game days. Scarlett isn't too happy that we have a signed Puig jersey on the wall of the café. But how can you say no when he delivered it himself?

He had visited one day and really like it here and saw that we did dodger deals for game day and came back later in the afternoon and gave us a signed jersey and hoped that we would have every success. We couldn't believe it and made sure to hang it up before the game. It went down a storm on social media when we posted a photo with him. It did mean that I had to promise Scarlett that I would wear my Yankees hat on game days there. Which I did and it earnt me a fair few comments. But it was all good natured.