Chapter Text
Every day, 4:15 sharp, Elena stopped by candy store to restock on caramel pieces before cheer practice. She got what she wanted and left in less than ten minutes. At first, she barely acknowledged the cashier behind the counter. But once the cashier started having her usual order ready for her by the time she stepped inside, she thought it would at least be worth knowing their name.
Her name was Ivy. That was all she needed to know.
They weren’t even friends.
4:15 sharp, Elena picked up her caramel pieces. As always, Ivy had them wrapped with a pale pink bow. She presented the bag to Elena with a smile. Elena smiled back, both out of courtesy and as a reflex. For a brief moment, Ivy froze.
“What?” Elena’s brow furrowed. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing, it’s just…” Ivy shook her head, tapping away at the buttons on the cash register. “Never noticed you have dimples. They’re cute.”
Elena felt the heat immediately rise to her cheeks. Her skin nearly matched the ribbon in her hair. She quickly dropped her money on the counter, snatched the bag of caramels, and fled from the the store without a second thought. It was such a basic compliment. A surface level observation. Yet the more she thought about it, the most flustered she became.
It shouldn’t have mattered. They weren’t even friends.
4:35. Everything was going wrong. Her bag had ripped open, several of her squad members had called out sick, a migraine was steady working its way through her temples— and on top of it, she was already sorely missing her usual bag of caramel pieces. By the time she made it to the shop, there was already a long line at the register. She immediately took her place in line, checking her phone nervously every so often. With each minute that ticked by, her nerves grew more tense. By 4:40, she finally got to the register, relieved to see her order already packed and ready for her.
“You had me worried, you know.” Ivy greeted her with her usual smile. “Thought you weren’t gonna show up.”
“It’s been a long day. If anything, I need this. ” Elena sighed in relief, digging in her skirt pockets for her wallet. Her eyes widened at the feeling of fabric brushing against her fingertips. She switched pockets once, and then twice. Nothing but lint and loose threads.
“Oh my god, are you kidding me?!” She shrugged her backpack off of her shoulders and frantically began digging through its contents. Binder, folders, pencil pouch, thermos— no wallet.
“Fuck.” Elena hissed, zipping up her bag. “Fucking fantastic.”
“Lost your wallet?”
Elena glared. “Gee, what gave it away?”
Ivy held up her hands defensively. “Hey, it happens! I’m not judging.”
“Whatever. Just— whatever. Didn’t need them anyway.”
Before Elena could step out of line, Ivy reached over the counter and dropped the bag of caramel pieces into her hands.
“Keep ‘em.”
“Wh— No! I can’t!”
Ivy closed Elena’s hand around the bag. “Consider this a special for a loyal customer.”
Elena had no time to think further. She shoved the candy into her bag, fighting the spots of red that threatened to burn through her cheeks. She muttered a “Thank you” before rushing out of the shop and back to school grounds.
She was just being nice. They weren’t even friends.
Guilt ate away at Elena’s conscious. As soon as she found her wallet, she promised herself that she would pay her back. 4:15, she was back at the store, wallet in hand, ready to call things even. Before Ivy could retrieve her caramel, Elena slammed a $20 bill on the counter with a satisfied smirk.
“I think this should cover everything from the other day.”
Ivy blinked, staring at the bill in disbelief. “Uh…whoa. Okay, for that much, you could just take the entire bin if you wanted.”
“Consider it a tip.”
“Are you sure you don’t want anything else? This is like, a lot. A lot, a lot.”
“If you’re really that concerned, give me your number and we’ll call it even for real.”
As soon as the words came out, Elena regretted it. She had no idea where the thought came from, where the confidence to say something so ridiculously cheesy came from. She tried to mask her growing embarrassment with a smile and a casual lean against the counter. Ivy’s silence only added to the weight growing in the pit of her stomach.
Ivy slowly took the money and added it to the register. “…Okay.”
“Okay?”
“One sec.” Ivy printed a receipt and jotted her number down on the back of it. She slid the receipt towards Elena, along with her usual bag of candy. “Anything else I can get you?”
“No!” Elena snatched up her items, her voice on the verge of cracking. She shoved them into her purse and rushed out of the door. “That’s it, thank you!”
She couldn’t believe it worked. Maybe they could be friends.
Ivy texted her every morning. Their exchanges were brief— A simple “Good morning!” here, an outdated meme from Pinterest there. But within these exchanges, Elena learned more about Ivy than she anticipated.
Her favorite color was yellow. She had a pet hedgehog. She was allergic to almonds and she loved chocolate and glam rock and lemon squares and cross-stitching and every single detail that Ivy casually gave away was precious to Elena. The small pieces of her she got from texts and phone calls were sacred, tucked away in the parts of her memory that were far too important to ever consider forgetting. With each detail, she found herself becoming more and more attached to her.
The first time Ivy came to visit her, her heart wouldn’t stop racing. As they sat in Elena’s room, surrounded by high school memorabilia and caramel wrappers, they found themselves in bed watching far too many movies to keep count of. They bumped elbows, nearly fell off of the bed as they shook with laughter, shared sips of cola and rested on each other’s shoulders during lulls in the action. When the credits rolled, when Ivy had fallen asleep, Elena found herself brushing the stray strands of hair from her face. Elena’s heart threatened to pound right out of her chest. Her fingers brushed across Ivy’s cheek for just a second, but the contact was enough to make her fingertips burn. She snatched her hand back and reached for the remote.
They were just friends.
4:15. The store was empty. Elena’s order was waiting for her right at the counter. Ivy greeted her with that ever so intoxicating smile, leaning dangerously close to Elena over the counter. Elena found her hands reaching for her. Ivy reached back. Ivy squeezed her hands and pulled her closer.
Neither of them knew who started it. Elena didn’t even care. All she could think about was the feeling of Ivy’s lips against hers. She stood on her tiptoes, eager to receive more. The taste of chocolate and caramel mixed between them. Ivy’s sugar-coated fingers found themselves tangled in Elena’s hair. Elena felt as if she could melt in an instant. It was messy and playful and thrilling all at once— and she liked it. The fact that she liked it was both a shock and something so obvious to her, it only pushed her closer towards Ivy.
The sound of the door opening was the only thing that broke them apart. Ivy grinned at her, the remnants of Elena’s glittery lip gloss trailing across her lips. Elena took her caramel pieces, thanked her, and made her way out of the store. She heard Ivy calling after her, teasing her with a “Come back soon!”
Elena blushed. She clutched the bag of candy to her chest, her heart still racing.
She wasn’t quite sure what they were anymore.