sweet surrender | pulisic ✓

thirteenth

Slipping the keys into her pocket, she slowly sauntered into the bakery. Lea was leaned over the register, her eyes glued onto something as Alex entered the place.

"Sometimes, I hate Erik's car," she lamented, heading over to the counter. Lea looked up for a moment and seeing Alex, she chuckled, "then why don't you get your own car?"

Alex ran a hand through her hair, a smirk forming on her face. "It's on my to-do list," she quipped, earning a laugh from her friend. She dropped her bag into the backroom, before joining Lea by the register.

"What are you looking at?" She asked. Lea let out a long sigh before answering, "sales." There was no need for Lea to continue, because Alex knew exactly what was happening.

For the past few weeks, sales had been continuing to decline and there was close to no signs of imminent improvement. "I don't really know what to do anymore, Alex," Lea exhaled, almost resigned to their fate.

Alex took the papers from Lea, her eyes studying the figures scattered around the pages. "What about our new flavors?" She queried. In reply, Lea shook her head, "flopping."

Some customers entered the bakery, and so the pair flashed them their brightest smiles, "welcome!" But soon after, Alex was frowning again as she scanned the papers before them.

"Any ideas?" Lea sounded after a good minute of silence from the Durm. The thought very suddenly struck her, and she bit her lip anxiously. Looking up, Lea was watching her expectantly for a reply.

A small sigh escaped Alex's lips. "The recipe of Christian's..." she began, letting her voice trail off as she found herself looking down to the ground. "You have it?" Lea asked, her tone neither eager nor vexed.

Alex shook her head. "I've been thinking –" she paused, meeting Lea's eyes again, "I can't do it. It's wrong in every way." And, I've also caught feelings for him.

Lea let out a small chuckle, more from relief than amusement. "Took you long enough to realize that," she stated, prompting Alex to nod slowly. She wasn't even thinking about the recipe anymore.

All she could think about was not wanting to hurt Christian. She couldn't – and she wouldn't; not to someone who her feelings for was only growing.

"Well, I guess we have to find another way now," Lea suddenly announced, gathering the papers before her. Alex watched as she began sorting them back into the folders.

"Maybe we could look at advertising," Alex suggested, to which Lea hummed in return. "We're short on funds," she admitted. Alex furrowed her eyebrows, seeing as to how nothing was going their way at the moment.

She couldn't lose the bakery. It was the only thing she had to fuel her passion for baking, and she wasn't going to let it slip through her fingers like this.

"I'll try to ask my parents, then."

⦁⦁⦁

The condition Erik had for borrowing his car was that she had to pick him up from training. So later that day, she found herself strolling over to Hohenbuschei's field from the car park looking for Erik.

The boys were almost done with training, and were wrapping up with final stretching for the day. Leaning against the railing, she tried to single out Erik from the mass of men clad in yellow on the field.

But it wasn't Erik who she spotted first.

Seeing Christian, she couldn't help the smile that graced her lips. She kept her eyes on him, hoping he would eventually turn around. Maybe it was intuition, but he finally turned and the first thing he saw; was her.

Alex gave him small wave, a shy smile etched across his face. He wasted no time in jogging over to her as the group of men began dispersing. "Hi," he greeted sheepishly.

"Hi," she echoed. "Here for Erik?" He asked, resting his arms on the railing beside her. Alex tilted her head, pretending to think, "let's just say I didn't voluntarily come for him."

Christian laughed, and Alex found herself blushing as she thought about how adorable he looked when he laughed. "So, are you free tonight?" He smiled, gazing eagerly at her.

Unfortunately, she was not. "I have to be at some exhibition with my parents," she sighed. But she was quick to suggest an alternative, "what about tomorrow night?"

He immediately nodded without hesitation, "yeah, I'd like that." And for a moment the pair simply stared at each other, wide smiles etched across their faces.

"Hey, uh," it was eventually Christian who spoke again, "I have something for you." He reached into his pocket, and pulled out a folded piece of paper. "My grandmother's recipe," he held it out to her.

The recipe?

"What?" Alex muttered, taken aback. "You looked so happy making it with me yesterday, and I like seeing you happy," he explained.

Alex couldn't react, her hands were paralyzed in place. She couldn't take it. But Christian carefully took her hand, placing the recipe in her palm.

"Besides, my grandmother said to only share this with people you trust," he smirk, hoping she understood his implication. "Chris –" She tried, only to be interrupted as he shook his head. "Take it," he said, his hands still wrapped over hers.

Alex looked down at their hands, and then up at him again. This couldn't be happening. "I'll see you tomorrow," he said, and swiftly pecked her cheek before jogging away.

Her hand made it's way to the cheek he had kissed, and as he glanced back at her with a grin, all she could do was smile back.

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