Dynamics (Twoset Violin Fanfic)

Chapter Fifteen

As soon as they got to the shop, Brett knew he'd made a mistake.

"This... this is a gay bubble tea cafe," Eddy said slowly.

"I suppose it is," Brett said. If the pride flag awning wasn't obvious enough, the rainbow-colored seats and free pronoun stickers definitely were.

"How did you even find this place?" Eddy said, eyes widening as he looked around.

Well, I was walking through the city in the dead of night to avoid my drunk roommates, as one does.

"Um... the internet? I could find somewhere else if— "

"Hey. It's perfect," Eddy said, brushing their fingers together as if to prove some kind of a point.

"Oh, okay."

Maybe this wasn't such a mistake after all.

Aimlessly, they chatted while waiting for the line to move forward, and Eddy eventually asked: "So, what flavor should I get?"

"Well, if you're just trying bubble tea for the first time, you should probably get chocolate, but then you could have some fruit flavor like pineapple or strawberry, that's my favorite—"

"Oh my gosh, babe, that's so funny!" Eddy exclaimed suddenly, wrapping an arm around Brett's shoulders and smiling adoringly.

"What?" Brett said.

"One strawberry and one chocolate bubble tea, please," Eddy said to the barista, who smiled so wide they looked like they were about to fall over.

Whatishappening ohmygoshhe'sholdingme it'skindanicebutstill ran through Brett's head as he stood absolutely still while Eddy— what was Eddy doing?

"Oh, and half sugar for both," Eddy said. "He's sweet enough already," he added, squeezing Brett's shoulders again.

And with that, the barista outright squealed. Breathlessly, they said: "You two are such a cute couple!!! This one's on the house."

"Thank you so much," Eddy said with a smile, leading a still-frozen Brett to the side while they waited.

"What was that?" Brett asked as soon as they were out of earshot.

"Sorry, but there's no way I'm paying fifteen dollars for a small bubble tea."

"Fifteen dollars?"

Eddy pointed to the sign.

"Oh." And for some reason, Brett felt the tiniest bit disappointed.

"And you didn't seem to be thinking of an alternative way to get a discount, so..."

"So charming the barista with our cute couple-ness was the only option?" Brett said with a half-smile.

"That I could think of, yes."

Realizing Eddy was still holding him, they separated quickly.

"Sorry about that," Eddy said quietly.

"I don't mind," Brett said. "I mean— it's okay."

Now it was Eddy's turn to smile.

"Since when do you charm baristas anyway?" Brett asked, desperate for a change of subject. "And how did you know I like bubble tea with half sugar?"

He shrugged. "You must've mentioned it in passing. As for the charming, I learned from the best," Eddy said, elbowing him lightly.

Brett suddenly felt very warm. Luckily, their bubble tea arrived just in time, the barista still glowing.

Saved by the boba, Brett thought.

And of course, (because their lives must be some sort of terrible fanfiction) there was only a tiny booth available; how the cafe had crammed in a table was beyond him. Brett felt Eddy's leg brush the inside of his thigh as they sat down.

This was going to be interesting.