sweet surrender | pulisic ✓

first

Not a single cloud lay in sight as a seemingly endless blanket of blue extended over Dortmund. It was a beautifully serene morning, perfect for a casual stroll or even a quick jog.

But for Alex and her brother, the scene inside his car wasn't exactly all cheery and rosy. They had already passed three traffic lights since leaving Erik's apartment, but Alex's ranting about their parents was still going strong.

"Why won't they just accept that?" She grumbled as Erik carefully turned the corner. His eyes glued onto the road, he sighed in reply. "You know they only want the best for you," he reminded her, flashing her a half-smile.

She ran a hand through her hair in frustration. "But what if I don't want to date a lawyer, or a doctor, or the CEO of a freaking condom company?" She lamented, getting in response a chuckle from Erik.

Alex and Erik's parents were virtually idealists. They wanted nothing but the ultimate best for their children. But in contrast to their parents, the siblings never could quite live up to their expectations.

"Did mom suggest you date the CEO of a condom company?" He probed as he drove into Hohenbuschei, doing his best to hold back his laughter. Alex frowned, crossing her arms over her torso. "No, but she probably will soon."

Erik giggled, as the car came to a halt in front of the training ground. Alex studied the unfamiliar surroundings, even though it was most definitely not her first time there. "Why does it look so different? Did they have renovations?"

"The last time you came was months ago, Lex," Erik raised an eyebrow, turning off the ignition. She smiled, recalling the times when she used to watch her brother train almost everyday.

"To be continued later," he announced, opening the door of his car. "Take care of the car," he said, playfully ruffling her hair. With that he left, leaving Alex to fix her hair and ponder over her thoughts alone. She sighed before exiting the car to head over to the driver's seat.

She opened the door, took one look at the ignition and furrowed her eyebrows. She quickly scanned the car park for her brother, praying he hadn't disappeared yet. Thankfully he was standing by the entrance, speaking to someone who Alex couldn't recognize.

Alex hurriedly ran up to her brother while screaming his name. The men turned their heads in unison, but only Erik's expression changed when he saw her. "What?"

"You didn't give me your keys," she chided as she punched her brother on his arm, earning a chuckle from the unfamiliar guy beside them. She glanced at him, unknowingly flashing him a small smile in the process.

Despite not having been to Hohenbuschei in ages, she was confident she had never met him before. If he had recognized her, he would have surely acknowledged her by then. But he only mirrored the smile, saying nothing. There was, however, one thing she noticed about him. He was pretty cute.

Erik snickered as he reached into his pocket. "Sorry about that," he held out the keys in his hand. She took the keys from his hand, making a face at him before walking off. "Hey you better take of care of my car," he shouted after her.

She simply waved her hand in reply, knowing full well that was something she couldn't exactly promise her brother.

⦁⦁⦁

The roads were mostly clear, much to Alex's relief, and within not time at all she arrived at the bakery. She stopped the car in front of the shop, which had a giant sign spelling Bake the Cake above it. All it took was one honk for Lea to come scurrying out.

"You're early," Lea commented, making herself comfortable in the seat. Alex grinned at her as she started the car again, "no traffic today."

"Fabulous," Lea laughed, "now let's get this over and done with." She glanced at Alex, who had her eyes fixated on the road, before speaking again, "then we can go to that restaurant you've been telling me about."

Alex nodded as they came to a halt at a red light. "How's the crowd so far?" She queried Lea, who was the owner of Bake the Cake, and supposedly Alex's employer. But having worked there since Lea first opened the doors of her bakery, they were practically best friends; inseparable.

"Not too bad," she answered, "hopefully this trip and the new wallpaper we bring back will draw in much more people."

Before Alex could reply, she continued, "but we need more. We need new cake flavors, more variety, and maybe even add new things into our menu." Alex raised her eyebrows, surprised by how enthusiastic Lea suddenly seemed.

But Alex knew exactly why she was acting that way. Sales had been slowly dropping in the past few weeks, and that was something Lea had been losing sleep over. She was very worried.

"I'd choose the flavors with you right here, right now. But my brain's already fried from my parents nagging me about my future; again," she said.

"The usual?" Lea questioned, to which Alex nodded in reply. Lea flashed her a sympathetic smile. She understood very well. She was, after all, the other person Alex always ranted to about that.

—

I should be finishing your one shots but here I am starting on this. damn. Can't turn back now can I? So here it is! My first long story inspired by my Christian Pulisic one-shot; How Sweet. It has a similar story-line but not entirely the same.

Thank you so much for clicking on this, and reading this, and voting and thank you just for being here. I hope you guys will enjoy this as much as I'm excited to write this! Love y'all ♡☺