If you stay by my side- [Nanatsu no taizai AU]

Chapter 1: Beautiful stranger

-Arthurs POV-

If you had asked me a few months ago who and if I was in love with someone, I would have just laughed it of and said no. At that time, I had never been in love with someone before. It just didn't really fit my character. I have always been the shy and quiet type, mostly keeping to myself all the time. I didn't have that many friends, and I never really socialize with those I have. I was far to busy with all my studies and my work. I studied to become a businessman and start my own company some day. But to pay off my education and scholarships, I needed money. Since my biological parents died a long time ago, and since my adoptive family didn't have enough money to pay for my education, I had to work together all the money on my own. When you looked for me, you would either find me studying or working since that was basically all I did. I had managed to get a part-time job at Starbucks at the beginning of my Sophomore year of High school, and I have held on to it for dear life ever since. That was two years ago. Now I'm going my Senior year, still working at the same place. It had all started a few months ago, when I had changed shifts over summer vacation in order to get a higher pay. I had taken the morning shifts, the most dreaded shift off them all, but also the one you could get a pay raise for. Since I really needed the money, I had been fast to volunteer for it when the boss went through the summer schedule with us. I had been well prepared for the flow of customers that were to come, since it had been the start of summer vacation and many still worked as usual. However, I hadn't been prepared to meet Him.

~Roughly six months earlier~

"Arthur! Can you go and check so that all the coffee machines are on again?" I heard Jillian shout, going to lock up the door and let the morning customers in. I quickly snapped out of my dizzy state, nodding a little as I went to do as I had just been told without any objections. It was my first morning shift and I was still extremely tired. I really needed to pull myself together..... If I would continue to be as tired as I was now, I was sure to drain Jillians patience with me quite fast. Miss Jillian is a tall and slim young woman somewhere in the start of her twenties, with beautiful and slightly wavy hazel blonde hair reaching a little below her shoulders. Checking up on all the machines went swift and easy, since they were already turned on, so I went back at the pay desk quite quickly again, and just in time to watch Jillian open the doors. The room quickly filled with people, everyone quite grumpy as they hadn't got their morning coffee yet. Since I was used to working the afternoon shift, I was more than a little overwhelmed by how many customers there were all at once. As I took a small step backwards I suddenly felt a hand comforting on my shoulder.

"Come on, take it easy. You're not new to this work, just to the shift" A voice said calmly behind me. I jumped a little at the sudden words, turning around to see who it was. Behind me, Simon was standing. He was only a few years older than me, having recently ended his sophomore year of college, waiting to start his junior year after summer vacation. It was easy to mistake him for a girl with his straight and long silver-bluish hair and relatively short stature. However, he didn't really seem to mind that much, simply laughing it of when someone realizing they had used the wrong pronunciation for him.

"You already know how all of this works, so you don't have to worry. I know you'll do just fine~!" He chuckled, giving me an encouraging smile.

"If it only was that easy..... I'm so tired I could fall asleep standing up!" I responded with a heavy sigh. I had stayed up a little too late last night out of normal habit, however I never had to wake up this early on normal days. Simon patted my shoulder a little again, walking over to the desk next to mine.

"Don't you worry, I'm sure it's going to go fine" He said with laugh, turning to great his first customer. "You're not a greenie. Believe me, that would have been a lot worse on this shift" I stood in silence for a few seconds, considering his words. When I suddenly heard someone clear their throat, I turned around and noticed a long line of customers at my desk. "This is going to be a very long day......"