Swept Away by Sweetness

03. Delicious Delicacies and Dapper Doodles

"Perfect," you murmured in satisfaction as you finished the last stroke of the robin you'd been drawing. You smiled at the careful penwork illustrating the bird. Every feather sat perfectly on the monotone winged creature.

Your head flicked up to where the little bird once sat, but it was long gone. After a moment of admiring the varied shades of powder pink flowers and dark branches, the lack of robin caught up to you. You let out a sigh in disappointment, head lolling around in search for something of interest to sketch.

You crossed one of your legs over the other, laying your sketchbook on your lap as you supported your nearly-asleep head in one hand.

"What to do, what to do..." you muttered, watching the enthusiastic passersby. You pulled your coat tighter around your figure and stared through the occasional flake of snow.

Immediately, a woman in blue caught your eye. She had a proud grin on as she showed off her necklace to her fawning friends. 'She's pretty', you thought to yourself, watching her shiny black bun stay perfectly still as she boasted. It'd be nice to draw her, but something about her admiring companions felt a bit uncanny.

You shook your head, revolted by your own thoughts. You often delved too deep into other people's business, even just observing from afar. However, that nack for observation gave you an eye for the minute details in life.

You let out yet another sigh and brushed a gloved palm over the cool winding bench. Out of the blue, another bright color flared through the pale scene in your peripheral. Except this time it wasn't blue, if your eyes served you, it was a flash of burgundy. You turned to find the source of the color was a thin man dressed in red.

You stared wide-eyed at the peculiar figure. He stuck out from the crowd of blacks and beiges with a dark red waistcoat, soggy brown boots, colorful green ascot, and a top hat to tie it all together. You couldn't help but pause for a moment, mesmerized by the beauty of his radiant smile and bouncy brown curls.

Afraid that you wouldn't get the chance to see someone this handsome and boldly dressed, you quickly got to sketching him. Your movements managed to be erratic and methodical at the same time. You'd look up for a moment, mark the page, look up for another moment, add another line, and repeat. You were nearly done with the image when you met his eyes. While all you wanted was to tear your face away from embarrassment, your eyes couldn't pry themselves off the beautiful stranger's face. His rosy cheeks, pink lips, and bright green eyes made you weak in the knees.

And then, it hit you. He was staring back at you with an equally large smile as before. Deciding this moment couldn't get any more awkward, you dipped your head to finish the sketch.

Alas, when you lifted your head again, the man was right in front of you. You let out a little yelp in surprise and dropped your pen.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to frighten you!" the man said quickly, reaching down and handing you your pen. You could listen to that voice all day. Wait, ah, were you starstruck again? Hopefully, that didn't last long, because he sat down right next to you.

After a moment of thought, you tried your best to make conversation—though he looked fully content just staring at you. "What brings you to the Galleries Gourmet?" you asked politely.

"How do you know I don't live here?" he questioned right back, setting his suitcase on his lap.

"Well, I know everyone around here."

He raised a brow before pointing at a man in yellow, "Who's that then?"

"He always comes out of Prodnose's shop. He often goes to the produce stall to pick out tomatoes before going to the hairdresser's to fetch what I must assume is a toupee," you informed him lazily.

He seemed to be impressed by your answer, but still confused. "What is his name?" he asked.

You scrunched up your eyebrows in thought, "I don't know," you admitted.

"You said you knew everyone around here," he pointed out.

You sighed, "I've seen everyone around here. I see them every day."

"To take notes on them?" he asked curiously, staring down at your book.

"I don't take notes on anyone!" you said, a bit offended.

"Then what were you doing staring at me and scribbling in there?"

"Well—" you cut yourself off, embarrassed by your mediocre pieces. "It's... complicated."

He bit his lip in thought before his face lit up. "How about I show you what I was doing? Then, we'll be even!"

After deciding you had nothing to lose—and being mildly curious yourself—you gave in with a small nod.

He smiled widely, propping open his case. You expected papers or antiques of some sort — with his attire and all — but instead, it was full to bursting with different bottles and bikes. "Whoa," you breathed, staring intently at the colorful and luminescent elixirs.

He chuckled at your loss for words. "I make chocolate," he informed you, "I've collected ingredients from across the seven seas to create the most marvelously magnificent morsels." He grinned before continuing, "Would you like to try one?"

"Wait," you took a deep breath. "I should show you what I was doing; it's only fair," you admitted.

He nodded, "Well, I'd like to know... but not if you're uncomfortable!" he added the last part quickly as if he'd been in a situation like this before.

"Here," you said, boldly deciding to just hand him your weathered sketchbook. He quirked an eyebrow but took it nonetheless. You stared tentatively as he flipped through the pages. At certain drawings, his eyes would widen, but there wasn't any other indication of his opinion on them.

Well, there wasn't, until he got to the one you were still working on. "So, that's what you were doing," he murmured.

"Oh, they're awful, aren't they?" you groaned, hiding your head in your hands. Most others laughed at your doodles and mocked you.

"What? No! They're wonderful! They're amazing! Wow, I-I've never seen anything this... this beautiful!" he gushed, showing off the pages to you as if you'd never seen them before.

"R-Really?" you chuckled, wiping a tear off your cheek.

"Really," he reassured, hugging you spontaneously. You blushed at the close proximity but didn't let go until he did. "I'm afraid I never got your name," he said meekly.

"I'm Y/n," you smiled, taking his hand.

He shook it heartily, "Willy. Willy Wonka."

･ ─── °•*⁀➷ ꒦꒷♥꒷꒦ *ೃ༄ ─── ･

1119 words

"Willy Wonka x (GN! Artist!) Reader. Requested by BabyChalamet. Ok, I know you asked for a female reader, but I don't usually describe reader very much (for obvious reasons) and, when I realized I didn't use any pronouns,  I decided to just keep it that way :) Besides, I want to make these as inclusive as possible. Anyway, I'm working on getting your requests out, but I'm also working on my own ideas, so I have a few drafts on the way. A lot of these are just Willy meeting reader, so maybe I'll make some more fluffy well-acquainted ones. Also, also, am I still doing a good job at writing Willy? I try my best to add some of his quirks in speaking like his occasional alliteration (which I don't see often enough in fanfiction of him) so it would be nice to get your opinions.

Fun Fact of the Day: Smarties (aka the pellets of tubed sugary chalk) are called that because of their creator—Edward Dee, a Cambridge University graduate—wishing it to inspire others to pursue an education.

Vote if you liked it, comment your thoughts, and I'll see you next chapter!"

- Coffee