1962

JOHNNY SCHLATT × READER

1962 • Slow Burn • Romance • Historical AU

New York City, 1962.

At nineteen, Pamela Broussard has left Louisiana behind with little more than two suitcases, a new job at a newspaper, and the stubborn belief that she can make a life for herself in a city that seems determined to swallow her whole.

New York is louder than she imagined, colder than she expected, and nothing like home. Between crowded streets, ringing telephones, cigarette smoke drifting through newsroom ceilings, and long nights spent trying to prove herself, Pamela begins finding comfort in an unlikely place: a little diner tucked away on a Manhattan street.

And behind the counter is Johnny Schlatt.

Twenty-five, sharp-tongued, effortlessly confident, and far too observant for Pamela's liking, Johnny spends his days working as an accountant and his evenings keeping his diner running. He has lived in New York long enough to know its streets, its people, and the sort of trouble best left alone.

Pamela, unfortunately, has never been particularly good at leaving things alone.

What begins as a cup of coffee after work becomes a familiar face. Familiarity becomes friendship. Friendship becomes something neither of them is quite prepared to name.

Because in a city where everyone seems to be chasing something, Pamela is chasing a story.

And Johnny knows more about that story than he should.

Sometimes the people who make you feel most at home are the ones you never expected to find.

1962, New York City.
One Louisiana girl.
One New York man.
One diner where it all begins.