[Slow Brew Series 1 of 2] [Completed] Look, I didn't mean to embarrass myself the first time I walked into Brewing Grounds. Or the second. Or...every other time since. But something about the place-and the barista with the messy ponytail and the glasses that she pushes up her nose-makes me forget how to form actual sentences. Bea. Her name's Bea. She spelled mine wrong on my cup the first day (Ell-yot Hayul), and now I'm kind of obsessed. Not with her. With medium lattes. With her handwriting. With the little hearts she scribbles on my cups. Okay... maybe a little bit with her. The point is: I'm a walking disaster around her, and I'm pretty sure she knows it. And okay, maybe I started showing up every morning at exactly 7:30 just to see her. And maybe I've been reading up on how to flirt because I thought that might help (it hasn't). But honestly, what's the worst that could happen? I embarrass myself again? (Already done that.) Spill coffee on my tie? (Happened last week.) Accidentally fall in love with the barista who writes flirty notes on my coffee cups? Oh, wait... [1 of 2: Slow Brew Series] Dual POV | Romantic Comedy | Coffee Shop Romance | Slice of Life 18+ for suggestive dialogue, some steam (nothing too explicit) 🏆 1st Place - Pimp My Romance Awards 2025 🏆 1st Place - Pink Watty's pINKspire Awards 2025 "Best Dialogue" 🏆 The Nano Watt 2025 - Contemporary Romance Winner 🏆 Wattys 2025 Winner 🏆 Ambys 2025 Grand Favorite

"You know what I hate most about you? The fact that when you win, you don't just win. You make sure I lose." *** Oscar Piastri hates school. And life. And the stupid things he can't explain, like the winged horse that flew through the window on his second day, and the weird monsters that keep screaming 'DIE!' whenever he takes a wrong turn on Google Maps. Like, can't he just make it through a year of school without being suspended, or running from a fire-breathing chihuahua, or having burnt toast for breakfast? (The third one might actually have a solution but he's given up.) Anyway, Oscar thinks he's going to make it. He's going to finish high school and go to college, maybe take some therapy and figure it out from there. Until he goes on a field trip and almost gets eaten by a freaky sea monster thing. Then stuff gets confusing, he gets brought to some magical camp where 'people like him' climb up lava walls and beat the crap out of each other like it's a normal Tuesday. Oscar can handle it. Or at least, he's going to try. But when opportunities start appearing, it gets harder and harder to turn them down. Especially when these 'opportunities' mean beating a certain somebody (*cough cough* not targeted at all). Like, who can blame him if he plays dirty? He's just competitive. Deadly competitive.