The Donut Shop | Robsten (ON HOLD)

Chapter 4: The Deal

Third POV
NYC, NY

Snow fell down, the tiny crystals covering the ground of NY. The bustle of everyday life continued around Rob as he trudged through the cold like he does every morning. His gloves were thin, barely hugging his cold hands. His coat didn't trap the heat as well as it should, leaving him shivering slightly. He could see the way his breath appeared in front of him, a clear sign of the freezing weather.

He hated the winter months just because of his everyday struggle. Every winter got worse as the years progress. It doesn't seem like his life is going to get any better anytime soon.

The only happy thought that was constantly on his mind was that donut shop. Everyday he'll travel through the freezing environment just to get to it; about a twenty minute walk from his apartment to there. Almost everyday he was late to work, but his boss tries to understand since it is winter and transportation is just harder.

He reached the familiar space, a big smile spreading across his rosy face. He kicked off the snow that was stuck on his boots and entered the warm interior.

The now familiar smell of coffee and sweets filled his nose with delight. His smile grew wider as he spotted the familiar brown haired girl. He headed to the counter as usual, ready to order. His happiness faltered a little when he realized that it wasn't Kristen who stood at the counter, it was the other one.

Did he feel bad about calling her, "the other one?" Yes, yes he did, but he couldn't help it since he never speaks to her.

"How can I help you?" The girl said, her voice was blank and emotionless, nothing like Kristen's. I quickly told her my order, then watched as she typed it into the electronic system and walked away. He sighed, feeling a little disappointed with how the morning is going so far. Usually by now he would be so giddy and ready for the day since had a chance to see Kristen, but her sister just doesn't make him feel the same.

His name was called over the voices and chattering of the other customers. He stood up to take his food, watching as that girl packaged it all for him and handed it to him without any other thought.

"We need some kind of exposure, just something!" Rob's boss shouted at his employees, clearly frustrated on the direction their company is heading towards.

Chatter brewed up in the small meeting room, but was soon silenced by a loud "shhhh".

"Any of you just find a way to help spread our company name! Team up with a local business or something, JUST DO SOMETHING!" And with that, the short meeting ended quicker than it had started.

Rob walked towards the subway that night with his boss's words repeating in his head. Night covered the city in a blanket of comfort, most people heading home for the night or quietly walking around in the snow.

He had an idea that relates to what his boss was complaining about earlier, but he doesn't know if the other side would agree with it. Soon he found himself standing in front of the "closed" donut shop, waiting for Kristen to come to the door.

The said girl was sweeping the floors and wiping down the counters before she locked the building for the night. She looked at her watch knowing that around this time is when Rob would always drops by. She smiled when she turned around to find the boy standing outside with a shy smile on his face.

Putting down the broom, she dried her hands off a bit and headed towards the glass door. Taking out her keys, the girl unlocked it and allowed Robert to come inside.

Rob let out a sigh of relief when the warmth of the space engulfed him completely. It had to be under zero degrees outside, so any type of warm environment felt the best to him.

"Didn't expect you to drop by again," she laughed and winked, "especially not this late." Rob chuckled a bit and dusted his coat off a bit. He stood there shuffling back and forth, changing the weight from one leg to the other. His mind was debating if he should just go ahead and ask her the question that he's been replaying over and over again in his mind.

Kristen seemed to notice his little fight inside his head, tapping on his shoulder lightly, asking him to sit down.

"So you want to advertise for us? Is that what you're saying?" The girl said while laughing a bit. Such a simple question yet Rob made it a whole essay.

"Uhm, yeah basically. In return you hang up advertisements for our company." Rob replied, swirling around his coffee with his straw absentmindedly. "Since your shop is pretty popular if you haven't noticed." He continued. Kristen smiled a little at his words, feeling a bit embarrassed from all of the praise.

"Yeah well when we opened up this shop a few years back we would have never thought that it would become this popular. It started as just a family thing, but my parents wanted to travel so they handed the business down to me and my sister."

"How old were you then?" Rob said as he gulped down the rest of his freshly brewed coffee. Kristen contemplated for a bit, "Probably around twenty one, I balanced it and college at the same time."

Rob raised his eyebrows, "How old are you now?"

Kristen leaned back into her chair, "Twenty six. I know I look old." Rob's eyes widened, surprised at her words, "No no no, that's not what I meant. You're beautiful! I mean-n sorry I didn't—" He automatically stopped talking when Kristen placed her tiny hand on his mouth.

"Calm down dude, I was just joking." She laughed, the beautiful noise filling Robert's ears. Rob laughed too, only to ease the weird feeling he was experiencing. Whenever he's around Kristen he just feels more care free. He's never had that many friends so it felt new.

Once the laughs calmed down, they found themselves staring deeply into each other's eyes. Something about the muffled sounds of outside mixed with the crackling of the fire from inside made it even more special. It sort of felt like a date, but not really.

A sequence of knocks on the wall brought them out of their lovey dovey moment. They both looked up, a bit startled.

"Uhm, am I interrupting something?" The unknown person said. Rob couldn't make out their face since they were standing in darkness. He completely forgot how late it was.

Kristen sighed in relief and got up from her seat. "Sorry sis, just talking about a potential brand deal. We can leave now." Rob scrambled up from his seat and bidded a goodbye to both of them, already feeling uncomfortable with her sister. Kristen waved to him and escorted him out the door, watching as he dashed around the snow flakes falling from above.

"You talk to that boy an awful lot. Are you sure there isn't anything going on between you two?" Kristen's sister questioned. Kristen just chuckled a bit while searching for the keys, "He's a friend actually, we get a long pretty well. It's nothing to worry about Nora."

Nora just looked at her ecstatic sister with doubt; there's definitely more than a friendship brewing between those two.

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