Another day, more work. Not that Paintbrush minded though. Money is money, they'll tell you that. After all, they need to pay rent.
They slam the door to their car, making them flinch. They should really stop doing that. This is the only car they could afford anyway. They locked their car doors and started heading for the cafe.
The door dings and Paintbrush is greeted by a high-pitched voice again. They concluded that this would be a normal thing from now on.
"Hiya, Paintbrush! Ready to start again?" Paper said, his hands clasped together. "There's a long day ahead of us!"
"Yeah, yeah. Ready," They responded back with a sigh and walked behind the counter where Paper was. He gave them a small smile before going to OJ's office.
Not even 5 minutes in their shift and the 2 girls were already there. They ordered their usual coffees with half milk, 2 wafers, and 2 pinches of sugar and made the water lukewarm enough for them to drink.
They practically threw the money in their face which resulted in Paintbrush groaning. 'Stupid girls..'
Paintbrush perked up at another bell chime and saw a short purple-haired girl alongside a taller white-haired boy. He seemed to be talking in a posh way. How annoying.
"Good day, Sir," The man spoke. Paintbrush took a deep breath when he said that. Paintbrush would just like to let that slide again. They really didn't want any trouble on their second day.
"I'd like to order a non-fat oat milk latte with six pumps of artificially flavored syrup and I'd like that in a large cup. How about you, my dear?"
The girl just gave him a small smile back and clasped her hands together. "I'd like a Affogato, if that isn't too much to ask. In a small cup, please."
Paintbrush typed it in the cash register and gave a paper to Knife, who immediately went to work. "That'll be $11.45 in total." They watched as the taller one paid and they both sat down.
Knife gave them the tray to both of their orders and they grabbed it. They walked over to their table and carefully placed the girl's cup in front of her. They turned to grab the man's cup but it turns out Knife didn't close it properly.
The lid popped off and the part of the drink spilled on the table, leaking onto the floor. The man's eyes widened as soon as a bit of the spilled coffee went on his pants. 'Yikes.. that's gonna leave a burn.' Paintbrush thought.
And then came a scream. A high-pitched one. It sounded like a girl's, despite the scream coming from the man.
~~~
The man angrily left the store, holding the girl's hand after 20 minutes of scolding Paintbrush.
Paper patted Paintbrush's back, reassuring them that it wasn't their fault and that it was just an accident. They weren't really listening though. They wanted nothing more than to punch that asshole straight in his scummy face.
They just grunted and dragged themself back behind the counter, leaving Paper to wipe up the mess. They sighed, this made them hate themself and assholes even more.
And just when they thought their day couldn't get any worse, Lightbulb came inside the cafe with 4 of her friends. It was 3 girls and one boy.
One of the girls had green hair, odd. The boy had red hair with yellow streaks, double odd. Another girl had red hair and the last girl had white hair.
Is this friend group just full of oddities? They could only recognize the white-haired one who was Marshmallow, their best friend from high school.
"Hiya, Painty! I brought my gang here!" Lightbulb greeted, holding her arms out in a 'ta-da' type of way. Paintbrush just sighed, rubbing their temples before dealing with this nuisance.
"Yeah, yeah. Lightbulb, right? Usual order?"
"What's my usual order again?" Lightbulb asked. Does this girl have the memory of a goldfish? "Oh right! Hot choco with marshmallows and 3 wafers! Oh, and add a blueberry cheesecake, the blue donut with sprinkles, and the choco mouse. Err... mousse."
They wrote it down and glanced at the other 4 beside her. Their eyes landed on Marshmallow. "Hey, Marsh."
"Hey, Paintbrush. Long time no see." Marshmallow waved back, giving them a small grin.
Lightbulb's eyes went wide and glanced back and forth at the two of them. "A- eh? You two know each other? Whaaaaaat?"
Marshmallow chuckled at Lightbulb's confusion. Lightbulb got slightly offended by it though. "Yeah, Lb. We know each other," Marshmallow turned back towards Paintbrush.
"I'd like the donut with mocha on top." She said while pointing at the specific donut in the display.
"I'd like a ristretto." The green-haired one spoke up. The red-haired boy gave her a look of disgust and concern but shook it off. "I'd like a strawberry cheesecake please."
Paintbrush kept writing down the orders they listed until only the red-haired girl was left. She tugged on Marshmallow's sleeve, before finally speaking. "I just want what Marshy wants!"
Marshmallow sighed. "Fine, fine. Two mocha donuts, please. Since Apple over here insists.
They just raised their eyebrows at her but didn't question it further. They handed Knife the list and saw how his jaw dropped at the order.
Lightbulb's group sat down and waited patiently for their orders. Paintbrush couldn't help but listen to their conversation. After all, they needed some type of gossip in this boring job.
"No, it's just.. look, so what if I can't move on? I feel so guilty!"
"Marshy, don't you worry! I am here and we could always hang out! FOREVER!"
"Yeah, Marsh! To put it in a less threatening way, we're here for you. It wasn't your fault she was shot down."
Shot down...? Who are they talking about? They glanced at the green-haired girl, who was writing something down in her notebook, it looked like some formulas.
Their eyes then scanned the red-haired boy beside her, who was typing furiously on his phone.
Their focused gaze was interrupted by Knife handing them the tray of orders. They nodded and took the tray, walking towards the table.
"Hey. Your orders are here." Paintbrush said as they CAREFULLY placed each and every cup and plate on the table, just to not drop it again..
"Thanks, Painty!" Lightbulb grabs hers and starts sipping and munching on it immediately. The red-haired boy looked at her in a concerning way to which she replied, "Don't worry, flatface- err.. I mean FAN! I may be lactose intolerant but that ain't stopping me enough."
Marshmallow suddenly perks up as an idea of hers comes to her mind. "Hey, Paintbrush. Why not join us for some group bonding whenever you're free from work?" She leaned in closer to their ear, taking her order. "Lightbulb seems to like you."
Paintbrush scoffs at this. They did not like the girl at all. But if Marshmallow is joining, then Paintbrush could probably tolerate all her crackhead friends. After all, they could never turn down a free escape.
"Alright. I'll come along."
-----
paintbrush has met the gang
next chapter is where lightbrush kiss
sayonara
- kweku/cleaykk
YOU ARE READING
Something is brewing between us and it's not coffee. | I.I AU
Fanfiction❏ HUMANIZED LIGHTBRUSH Have you ever been fired and hired on the same day? Probably not. But Paintbrush has. After getting forcefully resigned from their old job, they stumble across a lonely cafe. Wanting coffee but being too lazy to walk to an act...
