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“If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world.”
― J.R.R. Tolkien
Barry Allen considers himself a patient man. I mean you have to be to run a Coffee shop, especially the City’s busiest coffee shop.
But right now he can practically feel the vein jumping in his neck as the glares out the front window to the Bakery across from them.
They have a sign in their window, proudly proclaiming; don’t get the Jitters, Try our Profriters! Profiteroles with double thickened cream, 12 to a box or eat in!
“You stare at that sign any harder and it’s going to explode.”
“It- it says Jitters right there!” He hisses to an unamused Iris, “Jitters! That’s us.”
“Really, I had no idea that was the name of the Café I co-own with you.”
“It’s a swipe at us!”
“Oh no,” Iris says mockingly, “They’re taking a swipe at us, whatever shall we do?”
“It’s unprofessional- it’s bad for business!”
“Considering how many times I’ve seen one of our customers spill our coffee in there, I think we can suck it up and deal with it this time, Bar,” she squints at him suspiciously, “You’d better not start a war with the most acclaimed baker in Central City, you hear me.”
Barry grunts and goes right back to glaring at the signs.
“Great.” Iris sighs, “Just fantastic.”
…
Two days later Barry spends more money than he should on a new display case, and a new line of pastries.
He delights in the way the owner of Good Vibrations stands in the widow of his shop and glares at him.
…
Barry and Iris bought Jitters after college. They knew that their degrees weren’t going to do them much good anytime soon, and Iris had inherited some money from her mom so they made a spur of the moment decision to buy a Café. Because apparently they want to live up to the complete Millennial aesthetic; live at home with their dad and own a business of their own.
And it was successful. They made enough profit to hire some other employees, and if things went right they would be working their dream jobs in a couple years with a steady financial backing.
And then the particle accelerator exploded.
Jitters remained as popular as ever, but now Barry has powers.
Two months after the explosion the vacant shop across from them gets bought and Cisco Ramon opens Good Vibrations Bakery.
“I hear he used to be a scientist,” Iris tells him when they are watching them move in, “over at STAR Labs.”
“Why is he running a Bakery then?”
“I dunno, Bear, why are a future CSI and a budding Journalist running a Coffee Shop?”
“Touché.”
And then they don’t think about the other shop for a while.
Until no one is buying their pastries and muffins anymore. Until Barry is cleaning up paper bags with the bright yellow Good Vibrations logo on them, and throwing out half eaten pastries.
“I mean they can’t be that good if people are only eating half of them.”
“They’re actually really good, I think people are just eating so much they can’t finish all of them.”
“…have you been eating their food?”
Iris breaks easily.
“They’re so good, bear! Like fluffy, sugary pieces of heaven. And they’re so nice over there, Cisco and Caitlin-”
“Cisco and Caitlin?”
“The owners, they’ve been through so much and are so sweet. You really don’t need to be so competitive, bear.”
Needless to say Barry doesn’t listen to her.
…
So whenever Good Vibrations has a promotion Jitters has one too, a better one in Barry’s opinion. He knows they aren’t really in competition, but the rate of people staying to eat in Jitters has decreased while the number of people eating at Good Vibrations has increased so much they have an outside seating area.
Barry has a win for his side when they bring in the Flash coffee (Iris’s idea, he’s not that ego centric).
And then one day, just before closing, Barry sees a new promotion hanging in Good Vibrations window.
Bring in any Jitters Coffee and get a free Bee Sting! You’ve tried the rest now try the best!
“You have got to be kidding me- Kendra can you man the counter, I’ll be right back!”
Barry storms across the walkway and steps into Good Vibrations for the first time.
It smells like sugary heaven, and its bright and happy inside, but Barry doesn’t let that slow him down. He catches sight of a figure bent down behind the counter.
“You have to take that down!”
The figure jumps slightly before popping up over the counter and promptly stops Barry’s heart in his chest.
He’s never actually talked to Cisco before. He’s seen him from afar and heard about him from Iris (and various smitten customers). But he had never actually had a front row seat to the beauty that is Cisco Ramon.
He’s wearing a pair of thick framed glasses, and his hair is curling messily around his face, dripping down to skim the shoulders of his impossibly soft looking cardigan. His face is sporting a light smattering of facial hair, and he has some flour under his chin, and though his beautiful brown eyes are currently giving Barry a ‘what the fuck dude?’ look they are so pretty he can physical feel it constricting his breathing.
“Excuse me?” Cisco says, and Barry is a little affected by his sarcastic voice.
“Your uh,” Barry licks his lips, momentary forgetting why he even stormed over here, “Your promotion, it’s really not cool man.”
“Not cool?” Cisco scoffs, raising his eyebrows, “What’s not cool is your customers coming into my shop and spilling coffee everywhere, Barry. And those gross ass defrosted pastries you sell for a ridiculous amount? Those are the epitome of not cool, bro.”
“Wha- those are café certified, I wouldn’t sell anything that would hurt my customers!”
Cisco smirks.
“Not that you’ve been selling vary many lately.”
Barry clutches his metaphorical pearls in indignation.
“You-! You’ve been stealing my customers on purpose!”
Cisco picks up a box of ingredients or some baking stuff and turns away to walk into the back of the store.
“Hey, we’re not done!”
“Then follow me!”
Barry’s knows he’s being sarcastic but he doesn’t care. He follows Cisco through the kitchen back to the storage room.
“Seriously, you can’t just-“
“Dude, it’s not stealing customers if they go to you for coffee and me for food!” Cisco says with exasperation, “It’s more like a partnership or like a symbiotic relationship.”
“Symbiotic? I-”
“Now what would be stealing customers would be if I was selling coffee too … which I have been thinking of doing actually.”
“What?”
Cisco turns to face him, leaning against the shelf and oh Barry did not realize how close they were. He is so close now that he can feel Cisco’s breath on his face and see the depths of his deep brown eyes. He should really step back.
“I mean,” Cisco continues, keeping eye contract with Barry, “I would much prefer that people spilled my own coffee in my own shop, that way I am at least making money on these failed drinks.”
“That-that is like so underhanded! What if I started a bakery out of Jitters?”
“Good luck,” Cisco snorts, “From what Iris has told me neither of you are going to be putting on an apron anytime soon, bud.”
Barry gasps again, indignant.
“I- I could learn or, or I could hire someone.”
“Great business management,” Cisco says sarcastically, “I mean, if I start selling coffee it would cost me next to nothing. You start making donuts, and cookies and pastries without getting it right on the first try, and you’re going to lose more money than you can afford.”
“You don’t know that.”
Barry is getting really confused about this argument.
“No, but what I do know is that I’m running the best bakery in central city,” Cisco continues, stepping closer so he can poke Barry in the chest, “I’ve been getting twenty times more customers then when I started because of our little war, people think it’s hilarious! My donuts have been selling like hot cakes! And my hot cakes haven’t been doing so badly either. So, I’m keeping the sign, the promotion is running for the next month, and you’re just going to have to live with it.”
“You can’t just-“
“I’m thinking the next promotion might be; trade in your Jitters loyalty cup and get a free box of mini apple pies.”
"You wouldn't."
"I would."
“What- how would that be good for your business? What could that possibly get you?”
“Satisfaction.”
Barry feels himself go slack jawed. He’s mad and frustrated- and kinda turned on? He and Cisco are standing so close now, face to face and chests heaving, and Cisco is so beautiful and-
And then Cisco is kissing him. Quick and hot before he pulls back looking a little shocked at his actions.
“Sorry, I should’ve asked I-“
“I liked it,” Barry says without thinking, breathless, “I-I liked it.”
“Oh.”
“Yeah.”
“Because I’ve kind of been doing the promotions just so you would come over here?”
“What?”
“Yeah.”
“…you couldn’t come over to Jitters?”
“Maybe I’m too macho for that.”
Barry snorts.
“In that cardigan?”
“Hey!” Cisco smacks his arm but he is grinning, “This is a very manly cardigan.”
“it’s covered in daisies.”
“I will have you know that daisies are-”
This time Barry’s cuts him off with a kiss, a deeper, and hotter one than before because Barry still has the lingering tingle of frustration under his skin and Cisco’s mouth looks positively sinful up this close.
They break apart with a gasp, clinging close to each other. Barry has one hand tangled in Cisco’s hair and Cisco has one hand on Barry’s ass. Cisco turns his head to start sucking marks on the side of Barry’s neck, making his legs buckle.
He moans and his other hand goes up to clutch at Cisco’s neck.
“I guess there are some advantages to being short.”
“… and you just talked yourself out of a blowjob.”
Barry shivers at the feeling of Cisco’s breathe on his neck.
“I could make it up to you.”
“Oh really? How?”
Barry’s going to remember the noise Cisco makes when he drops to his knees in front of him for the rest of his life.
And Caitlin’s going to remember the sight of them when she walks in twenty minutes later until the day she dies. They’re never going to live that down.