[NEW] Eeveelution Café

[B1] Chapter 9: Complications

"Alright, now that we've seen the proper way of a place to serve food, we'll now start making the menu. This is a list of everything that we're serving." Lavender started the third staff meeting and put down a long piece of paper with everything that the Manager group and the Chefs (Lavender, Willow, Volt, Snowbelle) came up with. 
"Surprisingly, I now have a bunch of drinks that I can make, there's no weekly specials though. I will consider monthly specials if there's a wage increase!" Dewdrop also put down a piece of paper and beamed.
"Seriously? Wage increase?" Volt narrowed his eyes. "Just don't add monthly specials until we're somehow popular."
"Okay!" the Vaporeon didn't stop smiling. 
After everyone had looked through the papers, Lavender continued her speech.
"So...um...we now need to make the menu format. I will leave this all up to you, because I'll be busy with Willow about other stuff. Make drafts first, and also, Dew, you're making your own menu with the support of others."
"Okay, okay." Dewdrop groaned. "Solo work again, huh?"
"Cool, we're done." the Espeon completed the meeting.
"This just feels like an announcement," Moonshade complained. "What happened to letting others talk?"
"Yeah, you only let your girlfriend over here talk," Lavender retaliated. "And by your girlfriend I mean Melody the Sylveon."
"I-he's not my boy-I'm not his girlfriend...?" Melody's face had confusion written all over her face. 
"Do you want to be his girlfriend?" the Espeon inquired. 
"WHOA!" Volt and Dewdrop yelled while Bonfire left to get some spare popcorn. "MELODY ARE YOU GONNA TAKE THAT!?"
"NUH-UH!" Melody yelled back at the siblings. "AND I'M NOT TELLING YOU! I'M NOT TELLING ANYONE!"
Moonshade felt some disappointment, but remembered that Melody wouldn't even just ask him out in front of everybody and laughed along with the rest. Volt stayed close to Willow, and Lavender couldn't really laugh anymore.
"Hey, can I talk to you later?" Volt asked Willow right in front of Lavender and Snowbelle. "There's something."
"No, just tell me right now. It's fine, Snowbelle's my sister and Lavender's basically my best friend." Willow smiled back, pretending to not know what Volt meant. 
"Sorry...this is pretty private." the Jolteon bowed his head. 
Lavender made eye contact with Volt after he looked up, and she smiled in an encouraging way. 
"Please." Volt smiled back before turning back to Willow. "It'll be quick."
"After I grab some water?" Willow narrowed her eyes. 
"Mhm," the Jolteon nodded. "Thanks."
"Yeah, dude. Of course." the Leafeon smiled before getting up to go to the kitchen. 
"Hey, Bonfire, can I have one?" Lavender turned to the Flareon, who was munching on popcorn. 
"Mhm!" Bonfire passed Lavender a pawful and the Espeon offered Snowbelle some after thanking him.
"Hey, what do you think's gonna happen to Volt?" Lavender tossed one into her mouth, ate it, and asked Snowbelle.
"It's either going to be the nicest rejection that exists in history, or brutal. Probably the first one," Snowbelle admitted. "Wait, can you predict the future when you're in that state?"
"I ended up predicting all of the attacks when I got it for the first time, so I think I can, but I don't think I can go into it right now. Besides, I don't want to go more blind just to watch my crush get rejected either way." Lavender ate some more. 
Snowbelle nodded slowly. "Wanna go eavesdrop?"
"What?" 
"I said, do you want to go eavesdrop and see how Willow pulls this off?" the Glaceon repeated her question. 
"I heard what you said, I just..." Lavender glanced at Cinnamon, who was bonding with Moonshade and Melody. "Hmm...yeah, sure."
"Great, I didn't want to go by myself." Snowbelle smiled. "Can I have another one?"
"Yeah, sure!" Lavender gave Snowbelle the rest.

"Alright, go on." Willow's voice seemed calm.
Snowbelle and Lavender crept and hid behind the wall, listening closely without moving at all.
"Listen, Willow...I don't want this to ruin anything between us, but I've...liked you. Since you begged Snowbelle to keep me and Dew over for the night. Of the heavy rainfall. I loved how you were always so kind and sincere with everything..."
Willow was silent. Snowbelle and Lavender glanced at each other. 
"I still have this slim of hope that you can maybe just give me one chance. Please." Volt continued. "I promise I'll be the best version of myself. I promise I'll treat you well, and I promise that I'll make you as happy as I can make you."
Lavender glanced to the side and her mind was drowning with the uncertainty of if Willow betrayed her and accepted Volt. Snowbelle, who seemingly read her mind, put a paw on her shoulder and gave her a reassuring smile.
Willow was still silent on the other end, but Volt was waiting for her to give him a response.
"Volt..." the Leafeon finally organized her thoughts and her speech. 
Snowbelle's eyes brightened with anticipation and the two listened closely. 
"You're too sweet," Willow bowed her head, her voice suddenly going cold. "I'm not as sweet and caring as you think I am."
"You're everything good to me." Volt said, but the Leafeon shook her head. 
"I'm not your type. You'll figure that out sooner or later." Willow said. "You're a really funny Jolteon, y'know? You just always seem to be able to light up the world around you, to a point where you come off more as a Mon-pleaser."
"I'm not-"
Willow continued her explanation. "Listen, Volt. I'm not going to make you feel any worse. I'm not going to crush you in a way that you would be afraid of asking anyone else out ever again. But I just need you to hear me out, even if it's for the last time."
Volt nodded. "I promise."
Lavender and Snowbelle exchanged looks of surprise. Willow was going easy on Volt, to the Espeon's relief.
"First, you can be perfectly honest with me. I won't tell anyone else, but do you by any chance, have any other crushes before? Or just me?" Willow asked.
Volt hesitated. Lavender prayed. Snowbelle simply just zoned out while waiting for someone to speak up again.
"I've always liked you, but recently I did get into a mental conflict in choosing between you and someone else. That's why I decided to just go for it and ask you out." the Jolteon admitted. "Just to end the conflict."
"Are you going to ask her out?" the Leafeon's expression was tense. 
"Probably not. I already told her about it yesterday, and I think she's mad about it for some reason. I'm probably just overreacting, because I really don't expect her to like me back or anything." Volt sighed. 
"Who? Lavender?"
The Espeon in question fiddled with her paws in anxiety. Snowbelle, on the other hand, grinned at her with confidence. 
"...Mhm..." 
Lavender had wide eyes. She instantly wanted to scream and start hyping around the entire place until she was completely worn out. Snowbelle's grin grew wider and she mouthed congratulations to the Espeon. 
Willow smiled to Volt. "Ah, Lavender's good girlfriend material. I'm sure of it. She'd be more of your type, and I'm sure she'd be willing to be with you."
"Too late, she hates me already." the Jolteon shook his head. 
"Did she say that to you?" Willow inquired, which got Volt into more deep thought. 
Lavender was even more tense than before, and felt like she couldn't move. Although she was extremely excited, she knew that if Volt never asked her out and his crush on her went away by itself, this would've all just been meaningless and a waste. 
Volt answered. "...No. I just sensed she was angry."
"Do you know what would've made her angry, then?" Willow asked again.
"I mean, she seemed off after I told her that I was probably going to ask you out." Volt recalled. 
Willow laughed. "Hey, Volt, have you ever thought that she only did because she likes you?"
Volt stayed completely silent this time. Lavender and Snowbelle signaled each other to leave the area, since this conversation seemed like it was going to end soon. Willow glanced to the side after hearing some weird rustles and dropped the last sentences for this conversation.
"Go for it. Take your shot before she loses interest. You'd be happier with her than with me, I know it." the Leafeon put her paw on the Jolteon's shoulder before leaving. 
Volt just stood there, his mind on the verge of malfunctioning from all the processing. 

"Dang, I honestly thought Belle was the only one who was eavesdropping," Willow smiled. "I didn't think you'd also come with her."
"Thanks for...going easy on him." Lavender was grateful for Willow.
"I wasn't going to make him not confess to you," the Leafeon laughed. "That just defeats the whole purpose of this specific plan!"
"I still really appreciate it," the Espeon bowed her head. "But I really hope he listens to you."
"He always keeps his promises, so I doubt that he'll not follow this one. Right, Sis?" Willow reassured her. 
"You said I was biased a few days ago." Snowbelle narrowed her eyes. 
"Yeah, you still are. Anyways, when do you think he's going to talk to you?" Willow asked Lavender, eager for her answer.
The Espeon shrugged. "I really have no idea, but I hope soon. Then again, I want him to be fully healed from your rejection."
"I think he'll be fine, I went as lightly as I could." the Leafeon shrugged. "You never know how emotionally or mentally fragile someone really is."
"Mhm," Lavender agreed. "I really hope Volt is okay."
"I'm not sure if I would say the same, but I will because he needs to get his act together and ask you soon. Y'know, get this over with?" Snowbelle didn't really show any sympathy. 
"Hey!" the Espeon cried. "Don't just wish him to ask me out without healing first!"
"I mean, you can be the one who heals him," Willow pointed out. "Make him like you even more."
"And hate you even more? I'm not doing that." Lavender frowned. "Listen, guys, don't just pray or anything, I believe that he'll make his promise and eventually ask me. Just give him some time. I also need some anyway."
"Okay, okay." Snowbelle groaned. "Well, now what?"
Volt bowed his head and left, his head still whirring with decision and options that he can do. Maybe it just isn't time to figure these complicated things out. Maybe he should just go with what he feels that is right. At least he knows that Lavender is willing to wait for him. 
Just let time do its thing.