Cup of Roasted Coffee

7; stfu ted

Emma walked to work the next day, needing to lose the extra calories from last night. She wore her usual work clothes with the added jacket provided last night. It was one of those days where she was the only one working in the coffee shop so she knew no one would ask her about it.

She unlocked the front door and cleared the counter. The first hour of operation would be a pain in the ass but nothing she couldn't handle. Morning shifts alone were always like that. This time, though, she was surprised.

"Paul? You're here earlier than normal." The coffee machine was turned on and her mood became slightly better.

He chuckled. "I came here to pick up my coffee before work. Don't worry, I'll be back for lunch break like always."

Emma took the pot and a cup, pouring the drink for him. "You want your jacket, too, right?" She raised her free hand to show she was still wearing it. "I'll take it off as soon as I'm don-"

Paul cut her off. "Oh, no, keep it. It looks better on you anyways." A faint blush crept onto her cheeks that she struggled to hide. Blushing ruined her whole badass vibe, as badass as a barista can get.

She wrote his name on the coffee cup and he gave her back a 20 dollar bill. "Keep the change." She looked at him skeptically. "I don't have any other cash, and it's the least I could do."

"For...what, exactly?"

Just as Paul was about to answer her, Ted entered through the door with an extra loud "hey!" He joined their minicircle with his hands stuffed in his pockets.

"Paul, looking good today. Emma, that's a nice new jack- hey wait a minute," he looked between the two of them. "Is that your jacket?" He finally asked Paul. Emma snorted, doing her best not to direct it towards the products.

"Are you jealous, Ted?" She teased, biting her lip so her laughter wouldn't draw any attention from other customers. Paul didn't normally laugh at those kinds of jokes but that one got him.

"Wha- no! I was just going to say that's cute. So are you two, like, official now or what?" The question caught both of them completely off guard. Paul even spit out some coffee(which, might he add, is much better than it was the last time).

Emma was good at quick recovery though. It didn't affect her as badly as Paul, who would now have to walk into work with a coffee stain on his shirt. "Did you come in here to be an asshole or did you want to order something?"

Ted scoffed. "Sorry, I didn't realize I was interrupting a private mome-"

"Chai iced tea, coming right up, sleazeball," Emma cut him off and turned around in a single swift motion, a cup in hand. She drew a little penis next to his name, poured the drink, and slid it across the counter. "That'll be $5, sweetie." Her words practically dripped with sarcasm.

Ted muttered some unknown profanity under his breath and took the cup, slipping her $5 cash. "You're quite the Picasso, aren't you?" He pointed at the little drawing, matching her tone of voice.

Emma and Ted had an odd relationship. They always acted like they hated each other but really, they had more of a brother and sister vibe once you got to know them. Paul thought it was interesting. Ted had known her for longer. How long was debatable.

"I'll see you two at 12?" She ignored his comment and leaned against the counter top, looking at both but mostly at Paul, who nodded.

"See you then, " he smiled, raising his cup. Emma gave him a mini-salute in return and the two men left afterward.

-♡-

Twelve o'clock couldn't have come soon enough. Sure enough, the "overaged assholes" were all gathered in Beanies itself. The name had stuck after an interesting conversation on their group chat.