Chapter Text
Patton Joy had always dreamt of this moment. Here he was, his first day in the city, and he was approaching the place he worked. It wasn’t just the place he worked however – it was the place he owned, with the place he lived in on top. It was a quaint little café he now owned, it was only popular with the limited elderly before he took over but he was going to make it the hot spot of the city for coffee and cookie lovers alike. He had experience both as a barista and a baker so knew a lot about both trades and was determined to mix them together in a warm friendly atmosphere.
So here he was, behind the counter of Lily Pad Coffee and Cakes, waiting for the customers to spill in. He had gone through four years of college for this, was in crippling debt, and was excited to work for sixty years in this job until he died. Maybe he’d even have a few kids to play around in the shop and a husband to get coffee with before opening, but that wasn’t going to be for a while. Right now it was just him and his new business.
He didn’t expect the shop to be so empty. The sidewalk Patton could watch from his place on the counter was very busy – people were walking up and down by the hundreds. A few looked at the open sign and looked through the window, spotting a smiling and waving Patton, and then decided to walk away. A few kids saw the animal themed cupcakes and begged their parents but they too were ignored. It soon reached 1pm – 5 hours after the store opened – Patton had resorted to cleaning the counters again and praying he’d have at least one customer today.
The bell rang quietly as Logan Sanders walked into the shop, looking around to realise the store was completely empty. He was comforted by the smell of coffee and fresh pastries making him smile. This was his favourite coffee place, well – before it was renamed. All there was before was fresh coffee and old people. There was no music, hardly any chatting, you just ordered your coffee and sat. He usually only went to get coffee after work to read but he had spotted a sign outside saying ‘free WiFi’ so knew he had to take advantage of the ability to have coffee during his lunch break. What he didn’t expect was the shop to be completely empty with a faint noise of Katy Perry music coming from the back of the shop. “Hello?” Logan called out, his voice clear even though he didn’t want to shout. Soon enough a cheery blond man around his age appeared from around the corner with a wide smile. This was just Logan’s chance to get his coffee and go. “Ah, good. Can I have a black coffee with one spoon of sugar and a dash of honey?”
“You’re my first customer!” The blond barista screamed excitedly, laughing to himself and working the coffee machine quickly. Patton was not only excited about his first customer, but this new customer was outside the previous coffee shop’s demographic. The person was a man aged late twenties, wearing a completely black suit and tie with a small black laptop bag in one of his hands. “What’s your name?”
“I doubt you need to call my name out if I’m the only one here.” Logan said sternly, fixing his glasses slightly and trying to keep his voice monotone. This person seemed too extroverted for Logan’s taste, he would prefer to just get his coffee and head back to work at this point. The blond man chuckled again, untying a green apron covered in flour to reveal a second apron, this one brown with the face of a green frog on, paired with a white button-up, green trousers and circular white glasses.
“Oh don’t be silly! It’s coffee shop tradition.” The barista grabbed a nearby post-it note and a pen. “Green post-it note good for you? Or are you getting takeaway so I can write it on the cup?”
“The name really isn’t needed. Just give me my coffee and I’ll leave you be.” Logan said sternly again, trying to repress a sigh. The barista’s face immediately dropped its happy smile. Logan fixed his tie to try to dissipate the guilt he felt watching that smile go.
“What if I tell you my name?” The barista chirped quietly, his light blue eyes expanding innocently with the last shred of hope he had left. “I’m Patton Joy.”
Logan sighed. “Sure…” He rubbed his temples and went closer to the counter to retrieve his coffee. He did need to get some work done - and doing work in an empty coffee shop would be better than trying to find a seat in a different café or library. “Logan Sanders – and on a blue note.”
The coffee was laid on the counter and quickly picked up by Logan. He turned and sat at the booth in the corner, getting his laptop out and looking at the writing on the cup. The small blue note had his name simply written – he never thought he could be so interested by his own name written but this was different. The calligraphy was very fine and specific, swirls at the end of letters and a few stars and sparkles around the two words.
“You like it?” And almost immediately Patton was in front of him again, with a wide smile. Logan nodded and sipped his coffee, turning to his laptop to begin his work. Patton sat opposite him still with a smile. “What are you doing on your laptop?”
“Work.”
“Oh! What do you work as?” Patton cupped his hands under his face, watching Logan with extreme interest. He wanted to get to know his first customer like a friend, this was a big moment for him and he wanted Logan to share in that excitement too. Logan raised an eyebrow and sighed, sipping his coffee again for a moment before answering – albeit vaguely.
“Business, is this… annoying the customer a part of the business model?” Patton frowned again after that question, tilting his head and watching the busy city people walk past the new café without a care or desire of going inside. Logan understood the struggle of starting a new business in the city as he was a financial accountant but that didn’t mean he liked talking. People that lived here weren’t exactly adventurous.
Logan’s alarm went off to alert him that he had to get back to the office for an important meeting. Patton perked up at that, realising Logan packing away his things with a small smile. “Oh – are you going?” Patton chirped, also standing to face the coffee drinker. “It’s been great having you as a customer!”
Without particularly thinking Logan gave Patton a wider smile and whispered to him. “I’ll tell my coworkers about this place. You seem like a good person, you deserve this business.”
Patton smiled widely at that, giggling and going back to the counter. He was excited, his dream was working. He was going to do this. For the rest of the day he stood behind the counter and watched the public. A few people even came in to get coffee and a large group of parents and children arrived just after the end of school for a sweet treat. And Patton loved watching little kids being cute and filling themselves with sugar, although his business was his pride and joy.