Chapter Text
Sitting in coffee shops seemed to be a regular occurrence for Magnus for the past year. His poetry had taken him there. Coffee shops opened its arms to characters of all backgrounds and stories from all over. Being a poet it was important to observe people and the world around him.
Magnus decided that a regular change in scenery allowed him to stumble upon the greatest of inspirations. Magnus’ poetry had changed considerably over the last few years. From being in love to the absolute destruction to his heart that followed made Magnus avoid love poems in which he had been so created for before. Now he’d spent the last few years writing about the common experiences of human behaviour and life. Something that people could understand, this kind of message allowed normal everyday people to realise they weren’t alone or abnormal. Magnus craved to make others around him feel better, it was an innate behaviour that he had always had, maybe it was due to his own upbringing. His upbringing was something he never wanted anyone to experience.
Downtown Brooklyn was Magnus home. It has been for many years now but he still managed to find the smallest coffee shops that he’d never visited before. His fellow workaholic friend Ragnor who was also a poet had suggested visiting a new coffee shop that had opened up near his apartment. Magnus was stood outside looking up at the rustic sign that said ‘Hunters Moon’ and interesting name which surely has a story behind it Magnus wondered. Magnus pushed the door open and instantly the smell of coffee infiltrated his nose, it was a smell he welcomed.
Magnus gave his surroundings a glance the inside looked as if it had be built by hand, everything was so very homely as it was built from wood of all shades. There was mismatched chairs that looked like they had seen many lifetimes. The place had character and he knew this would be the perfect place to help get his creative thought flowing. Magnus made his way to the counter to a very pretty girl with curls that were untamed that made her stand out from the rest. The girl gave a warm smile as he approached which he returned.
“Good Morning, what could I get for you today?” the girl was polite and that was a rare commodity in people.
“Good morning dear, I think I’d like to start my day off strong so let’s go with a black coffee. I like my coffee like I like my men. Strong.” He gave her a quick wink and the girl chuckled.
“Wait till the boss hears that one, I haven’t heard that one yet. Is there anything else I can get for you today?”
“That’ll be all for now dear. Oh darling is it okay if I stay for a few hours. You see I have a load of work to do, if that’s not an issue?” Yes, he was a customer and could stay but manners were all too rare these days.
“I don’t see why that would be a problem. I double check with the boss he’s just setting some things up in the kitchen. If you’d like to take a seat, I’ll be with you shortly with your coffee.” The girl gave one last smile and bounced off towards the kitchen at the back.
Hunter Moon may be Magnus’ new hot spot. It was everything he looked for in a location, inside it was visually different, the people were nice and it wasn’t too popular. Magnus walked over to the window the shop giving him a clear view of the bustling outside world and a perfect view of the inside of the coffee shop. He began to pull out a fresh pad and pen in case new inspiration arose. He pulled out his last poem and began to check its flow and see if there were any grammatical errors. He just finished scanning through his last poem when the girl arrived with his coffee.
“Here you go, sorry to keep you waiting. The boss said there is absolutely no problem with you staying, in his own words he said you should stay as long as you like.”
“Thank you very much, these environments are very important for my creative thought processes. Tell this mystery man thank you when you see him.” This made the girl giggle
“If you need anything feel free to ask.”
“I didn’t quite catch your name dear”
“Oh. It’s Maia.” The girl seemed shocked.
“What a beautiful name, well thank you Maia and thank you, mystery man” Magnus raised his voice a little in hope he might catch a glimpse of the boss to ensure they genuinely knew he appreciated it. But he had no luck, this did however make the pair of them laugh.
“I like you, you can definitely stay as long as you like. Alec maybe my boss but this is non-negotiable.” Maia had a beautiful smile which really was infectious. But in that moment all he could think about was Alec. Alec had to be short for Alexander, what an elegant name. Alexander meant defender of men, it was a name that held history behind it quite literal. Alexander was a famous name for kings. The name shouted leader to him. This was it, Magnus’ mind was ready to start writing. The ideas began to pour out of his skull and there was no stop button when it started.
“I see your thoughts are occupied I’ll leave you to it. Call me if you need anything!” the girl hurried off before he could apologise for his behaviour, Rudeness wasn’t something he could tolerate.
Magnus began to scribble some idea for a power being about the king of a coffee shop, the battles of customers and the invaders it brought in. Magnus was drafting his ideas going back and forth between his ideas. It hadn’t even realised that a whole hour had gone by, by the time he sat back to have a break. When he looked up the world around him had changed, the once quiet coffee shop was picking up quickly in business. Maia was still rushing about serving customers but she wasn’t alone now she was accompanied by a young man. The man caught Magnus’ eye and he couldn’t help but analyse him. His hair was messy, clearly not styled but Magnus wasn’t thinking about that. He could only think about the sensation of running his fingers through it. He let his eyes wonder and the first thing he noticed was a drip of sweat that slowly slid down the outline of his perfectly shaped jawline. Magnus swallowed hard.
“Magnus, pull yourself together” He muttered under his breath.
Magnus saw the way his long sleeved grey top hugged his chest exposing his muscular build. It was sinful, but Magnus didn’t mind because he loved to sin. The apron that the man wore hug on his hips. When the mysterious man reached over the counter a sliver of his belly was exposed. Magnus could make out there was a trail of hair that let downwards.
Magnus gave out a sigh and shook his head. He swore he usually had more self control, he observed people for his poetry but not like this. His internal voice told him to get his head out of the gutter and he continued to look over the last poem he was working on.
It wasn’t long after that until Magnus felt his stomach scream out for attention. Magnus had seen they served food so he decided he’s give it ago. He approached the counter, Maia was off cleaning tables so he was left to be served by the insatiable young man. When he approached the man looked up and there was a change in his expression so quickly that he hardly noticed it.
“Good Morning, what can I get for you today?” The man didn’t smile but he wasn’t particularly rude either. Up close he could see his feature much more clearly. He had a small scar on his eyebrow and his eyes were hazel. Magnus couldn’t take his eyes off of him.
“Can I order a slice of you?” this was typical of Magnus, he had refined his flirting skills over the years. The man’s reaction was sweet and it made Magnus smile grow wider as the man blushed.
“I’m afraid that’s not on the menu and I can assure you we have plenty of stuff that would taste better.” The man gave a slight smile this time but Magnus pouted in protest.
“Mmm…. Well as an employee what would you suggest? I’ve got time and I’m starving.” Magnus shot a wink to the man which made him blush again.
“Well I can assure you that the pizza here is pretty good, I should know as it’s my recipe. I could get you something sorted now if you like?” The man seemed enthusiastic enough.
“Sure, surprise me handsome. Could I have a jug of water with that. I’m going to be here a while”
“No problem, I’ll bring it over to you. I know you’re busy with work so don’t worry about anything, I’ll sort it.” The man turned his attention to the cash register. How did he know he was working? May be Maia had pointed him out?
“How did you know I was working?” Magnus was curious. The man swiftly turned to face Magnus and he looked flustered.
“Oh- I’m sorry- I just saw you working and erm, Maia asked me if somebody could work in here for the day so I just wanted to know who I was catering for.” The man rubbed the back of his hand on his neck. His stomach was slightly exposed but Magnus tried to hold his gaze with the man.
“So you’re the mystery man, nice to meet you…” Magnus gestured as if to ask his name.
“I’m Alec and oh I’m sorry I didn’t come out this morning I was doing so finance in the back as we just recently opened. That’ll be $10 altogether.”
“I’ll have to come here more often. Not only are the staff stunning but the food is cheap.”
“I’ll bring your food over when it’s ready. Is there anything else I can get you?” It was clear that Alec was avoiding the compliments which made Magnus smile.
“That’s all but do let me know if you become an item on the menu because that I would like to try” and like that Magnus turned on his heal and took a seat as he watched the flustered Alec go to the kitchen. Magnus was almost sure he saw Alec smirk.
Magnus felt a poem formulating in his head and before he knew it, it was finished.
The Barista
Coffee. Espresso. Double that.
Latte. Mocha. Americano and,
Cappuccino. Any space for an English,
Man in new York?
Crush, crack and crunch.
Tap, Tap, tap. Times ticking,
‘I’ve got a meeting today’,
‘How long does this take?’.
Hazel eyes darting between,
The Flood of bodies seeping,
Into the innocent café. Messy Hair,
Sweat dripping, like earning a living.
Sweet pastry you may be,
Dusted in sugar. A sweet delight,
To me. The invaded café and all I see,
Is you. Mundane world dissolves away,
Like that sugar in my tea. Honey.
You’re all I need to make my tea,
Sweet like honey.
It was as if like magic he finished just as Alec approached him with the food which looked irresistible. Man covered his poem discretely, the poem had been sparked by Alec and he didn’t want to scare the poor guy away.
“Here you go, sorry for the wait”
“It’s no problem, I’ve managed to write a whole poem so I wouldn’t hold it against you.” Magnus made room for the food. He really was hungry now and food was only one thing he wanted to tuck into.
Get a grip Magnus, you are not a hormonal 16-year-old anymore.
“You’re a poet?” Alec’s eyebrows met in concentration as he seemed to be thinking over the newly presented information.
“That’s what people call me, however I just say I’m a man without a life plan.” Magnus chuckled but Alec was processing still.
“Poetry is beautiful and to my knowledge it takes real talent to be one. If you have any poetry published, I’d love to check it out.” Alec face seemed to loosen up and he seemed content.
“Sure, I’ll be back tomorrow. I’ll bring you something?” Magnus tried to contain his happiness, not many people seemed to give a damn about his poetry.
“That would be perfect. I’m sorry but I’ve gotta get back to work. I’ll se you tomorrow then?” Alec raised his eyebrow, the scarred eyebrow.
Shit. Shit. Shit.
“Till tomorrow and thank you again for the food.” Alec was gone and Magnus was left with a flutter in his stomach.
Till tomorrow.
Magnus tucked into his food. This had to be the best pizza he’d ever had, the mysterious man had continued to surprise him and he liked that.
Don’t fall, when you fall you Fall hard.
Magnus sniggered at the irony of falling ‘hard’ over Alec but it was try he did fall for people hard and fast. He needed to protect his heart. Camille had broken it before and it was now hanging by a thread ready to snap with the slightest bit of pressure.
But he felt so good today, a better day he’d had in a long time in all honestly. He would come back again tomorrow with one of his poems. His poems always exposed something raw about him, this would be an opening into Magnus world and it was only a matter of hour before Magnus found out if Alec wanted to venture into that world.
Till tomorrow.