Work Text:
The world was on fire and no one could save me but you.
Donovan paused the song.
For the first time in forever, he had no rush. His classes were cancelled for the day because apparently a group of students decided to deck the halls of his university.
So that meant he could hang out at his favorite coffe place and have breakfast without worrying he might burn his tongue while drinking his coffe.
And he could actually enjoy his biscuits without throwing them in his mouth hoping not to choke on the street.
A new song started playing in his headphones as he walked in the coffe shop.
Down the block, there's an antique shop and something in my head said "stop" so I walked in...
Weird Donovan thought, I could have sworn I had closed spotify.
He shrugged and enjoyed the rest of the song before ordering his usual and sitting down.
...in another life you still would have turned my head...
"This is ridiculous."
"Honestly fuck you."
"You've been pining for that guy for weeks Lee. If you won't go talk to him I will." Kaden loved Adria, he really did but sometimes he regrets ever telling her of that boy with brown hair that caught his eye.
"I don't even know if he likes guys, I won't have that embarrassment again."
"He wears fucking converse, of course he likes guys."
"What does one's shoes have to do with anything?"
Aria sighed before asking loudly "Guys, do you think that the guy Lee has been pining on for weeks likes dudes?"
"Yup" came Emery's response.
"I mean maybe? You won't know if you don't ask" and then Karter's.
"I'd say you have a 65% chance" and Maeve's.
"See?" Adria looked at Kaden.
"Ok fine I'll talk to him, but if it goes badly you'll have to buy me more Marvel comics."
"Deal."
"Now let's go back to work or Rayes will have our head."
"Reyes loves us, they couldn't be mad at us even if they tried."
Reyes was their boss and fairly scary to anyone who didn't know them, but loved their employees like they were their kids and they knew that.
Kaden loved working at that coffee shop.
It was a quiet place, they didn't have many customers so if there were regulars they knew them by name.
Except that brown haired boy that made Kaden's heart skip a beat whenever he passed by, or drank his coffe, or did literally anything.
Usually the guy was always in a rush, to school maybe? Kaden didn't know. What he did know is that he was sitting in one of the tables reading a book and looking so unbearably beautiful Kaden thought it should be illegal.
"I'm going to talk to him."
"Fucking finally."
"Maeve shut up." Kaden half laughed before making his way to the boy's table.
He had met his colleges when he started working there a couple years back and they quickly became like siblings to him.
Of course, there were some times when they couldn't stand each other, but everything was resolved within the day ( mainly thanks to Reyes, who was the only responsible adult stuck babysitting a bunch of twenty year olds.)
Jokes aside, he loved his found family.
He had never met his real parents, but he thought that the universe's way of making it up to him was sending him his friends.
And that guy with brown hair.
Ok Lee, you can do it, what's the worse that can happen?
He started repeating this mantra in his head until he realized that there were a lot of ways that could go wrong so he stopped.
"Uhm, hi?" The boy with brown hair looked up and took off his headphones to see one of the workers looking down at him.
"Hi" He responded.
"Can I sit?"
"Yea sure" He moved his things so the stranger could sit in front of him. "Have we met before?"
...in another life, you still would have turned my head...
The question took Donovan by surprise. He definitely would have remembered if he had already stumbled upon this infuriatingly good looking guy.
"I don't think so." He said taking another sip from the half cold coffe he had in hand.
"Maybe we knew each other in another life you know? You're just so...familiar."
And Donovan knew, because he felt it too.
Instead he half laughed and said "Do you believe in alternative universes?"
The stranger shrugged.
"My name is Donovan by the way."
"Kaden."
"Cool."
This is so awkward Kaden thought. Think of something to start a conversation, come on Lee think-
"What book are you reading?"
And apparently that was the good thing to say because he got to hear the boy with brown hair- Donovan to rant about the novel.
"How can you read this stuff thought? It's like eight hundred pages."
"The length doesn't matter if a book is good."
"I wouldn't know, I only read comics. Marvel ones mainly."
"Oh that explains the whole alternative universes thing." And as he was talking he saw the exact moment Kaden reached for one of his biscuits and ate it.
"How dare you!"
"What? They're good."
"I payed for those."
"I'll give you a discount sunshine."
And Lord have mercy on Donovan because he was only human and felt like he could melt on the floor.
And Kaden, the little shit, noticed.
"For how long have you been stalking me?"
"I wouldn't exactly call it stalking, more like observing."
"Fine then, for how long have you been observing me?"
"A couple of weeks or something like that." And that was a surprise. If Donovan knew that this handsome guy was watching him out of all people for all this time he could have done something about it earlier.
"Sunshine? Are you there?" Kaden asked as he saw Donovan spacing out.
"I'm fine, and sunshine? Really?" He laughed.
"What, do you prefer baby?"
Donovan blushed.
"Ok ok this is moving too fast, I mean: do I find you attractive? Yes. Do I want to get to know you? Please. So-"
"I can take you out on a date if you want." Kaden finished the sentence for him.
"Is this what you act with every costumer? So they come back just to see you?"
"Only the ones I really like and want to have dinner with." Kaden smiled and Donovan felt like he could look at him forever.
"You owe me that biscuit thought."
"I'll buy you a whole jar if you want."
"Fine, you win. Give me your number you arse."
"Can I save you as "Sunshine"?" Kaden asked grinning.
"Fine."
And oh God, Donovan was so glad his classes were interrupted.
As he walked out of the coffe shop with new hope in his heart, he opened his music app once again.
...and you'll say "oh my, we really were timeless", we're going to be timeless...
Yea, maybe he already met this guy.
