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Even before Langdon went to med school, his parents had always told him to be careful when consuming sweets. Too much is bad for you, Frankie, he remembers his mom saying. He also remembers not listening at all, consuming most of his Halloween candy in one night and getting a tummy ache in the morning. By the time he was in med school, he learns all about the different illnesses he can acquire with too much sugar intake, but it doesn’t really get rid of his sweet tooth at all. Now, he’s a senior resident in PTMC and he still needs his daily dose of sugar—Dana says the red bull is enough, but he argues that he drinks it for the caffeine, not the sugar so when a new bakery opens up near PTMC called “King’s Sweets” safe to say he was delighted.
“You look chipper today,” Collins commented. Langdon grins, “Do I? Have you heard that a new café opened in the area?”
Collins nodded, “Yes, I have. You’re excited about it?”
Dana cuts in, “You know how he is with his sweets,” she says.
Langdon shrugs, “I’m not me without sugar.”
“You know, for someone who has such a big sweet tooth, your personality reminds me of bitter gourd,” Santos commented, joining them at the charge desk to look at the board, cherry-picking as usual.
Santos gives him a sardonic smile and Langdon rolls his eyes, “Pot meet Kettle,” he says with a huff.
Before Santos could reply, Dana rolls her eyes and interrupts their banter, “Okay, children, this is a work place. Pick a case and get moving,” she says.
After a few more biting remarks, Santos leaves the charge desk to treat a patient in South 15 and Langdon moves onto Central 9, dragging a fumbling Whitaker with him.
Days at the ED are always rough and there is no such thing as a “quiet” shift and if anyone says there is… Well, they better start knocking on wood and throwing salt over their shoulder. Despite that, Langdon feels like he could take on anything today because, at the end of the day, he’ll treat himself to some too-sweet coffee and chocolate cake. Usually, he gets takeout at Dunkin’ Donuts on his way home, but small bakeries have a completely different vibe and quality compared to the iced chocolate drink and donuts they have at DD. If he ends up liking the sweets at this new bakery, he’ll have found a new way to wind down after a hard day at the ED (which is basically everyday).
Today was rougher than usual for Langdon— they had to handle a car crash that involved a family of four and a drunk driver. The drunk driver was DOA, but they lost 2 of the children and had to break the news to the parents after their surgery. It was cases like these that got to Langdon the most; it was too close to home, reminding him of his own children—Tanner and Tiana. He knew that the world was cruel, but the death of children reminded him of this like a punch to the gut.
As he got ready to go out, he ends up calling Abby—his ex-wife and best friend (or maybe his only friend outside of work)—who’s currently taking care of the kids.
The phone rang once, twice, before Abby picks up, “Frank? What’s wrong? Did something happen?”
Frank shook his head, “Uh… No, it’s just… a rough case. Can I talk to the kids?”
“Yeah, yeah, of course…” Abby said before calling the kids over.
“Hi, Daddy!” “Hi, Dad!” They greeted simultaneously. Frank’s expression turned soft and tender.
“Hey,” he says softly, “How are you? You guys are behaving, right?”
“Mhm!” Tiana says.
“Yeah! We even helped Mom and Papa with preparing food earlier!”
“Yeah? That’s great,” Frank said with a small chuckle, “What else did you guys do?”
He’s on call with his kids for a while, his breath eventually evening out and the tension in his body melting. They’re okay, he reminds himself, they’re alive and they’re safe. He inhales and exhales deeply as their conversation comes to an end and Abby is back on the other line.
“They miss you a lot, you know?”
Frank smiled sadly, “Yeah, I know, I miss them too. I’ll make sure to spoil them all weekend.”
Abby hummed, “Good. Is your shift over?”
“Yeah, it is. I’m gonna go check out this new bakery that recently opened in the area,” he says, shifting his weight on the balls of his feet.
“You and your sweet tooth,” Abby teased, “Well, have fun. Call if you need anything, as always.”
“Thanks, Abby,” he says before the call ends.
Frank lets out a soft sigh, now more relaxed. He and Abby have been divorced for more than a year now (honestly, he’s stopped counting) and he was really glad that their whole co-parenting thing was going well and, if you asked him, they worked better as co-parents than husband and wife (he knows Abby would agree). They don’t argue anymore, not as much, and when they do get into disagreements, it’s easier to solve and sort out. The divorce was agreed upon by both parties—partly because of his job taking up most of his time and partly because they got married too early. The only reason they stuck together for as long as they had was their children—not knowing how they’d cope with their parents divorced. Luckily, though, the divorce wasn’t messy and the custody arrangements went smoothly. She got the children most days, but that was mostly because Frank was busier considering his job.
He acknowledges that they’ve been through a lot together, spent half their lives (or so) next to each other. Sure, they’re divorced, but he will always be grateful towards her for giving him their children and he’ll always love her, as a close friend, as his closest confidant, but never as a lover—they’ve both grown to accept that. With each other, they weren’t ex-husband and ex-wife, just co-parents and best friends, the past being left behind in the wind.
So, the divorce (and everything that came with it—too many visits to the court, paperwork, and judgement from others) wasn’t as heavy on his heart and he didn’t experience his heart being split in two when Abby told him, 6 months later, that she had found a boyfriend. He didn’t even flinch or feel bitter when, after 1 year of dating said boyfriend, their children had began to call him “Papa”. In fact, he found himself incredibly proud and happy for her and relieved that the existence of said boyfriend was seen as their family expanding rather than serving as a replacement, with his children accepting that they have a dad and a papa. He was also, maybe, just a little envious because, given his job, he never had the time to go out and meet someone new and he isn’t even sure if anyone would be okay with dating him given how unpredictable it is.
Anyway, it isn’t the time to think about his struggles of finding someone to love. He pockets his phone and mulls over the decision to change into more comfortable clothes before deciding that he probably wont take too long at the bakery so it should be okay going out in his scrubs. He grabs his backpack from his locker and tapped his ID to log out for the day. He waves goodbye to familiar faces before he’s hit with the fresh, evening air. He breathes deeply, a small smile growing on his face before he walks to King’s Sweets, trying his best to not skip excitedly to the place like a little girl going to buy cookies.
He walks into the café, the door bell jingling in greeting. He’s immediately met by the smell of freshly made bread and freshly brewed coffee along with the sound of soft jazz on the speakers. He looks around and there are only a few people there, some on their laptops with headphones on as they did their work and others quietly reading a book as they sipped on their drinks. The ambience was perfect.
He walks up to the counter where there would usually be someone to take his order but no one was there. He takes this opportunity to look over the menu, mulling over what he should get. As he’s deciding, the door to the employee’s room opens. His eyes leave the menu and land on what he can only assume is an angel. Soft (or what he can only assume is soft), blonde, hair; beautiful, dark eyes; and a smile that basically lit up the entire café. It was a little awkward, mostly apologetic and Frank only breaks out of his trance when she starts speaking, “Oh! Sorry sir, were you waiting here for long? I’m really sorry, we’re pretty short-staffed right now…”
Frank blinks before he shakes his head, “Oh, no, it’s alright. I haven’t been here for long, I haven’t even decided what to order,” he says with a slight chuckle, a hint of pink on his cheeks. Gosh, he hopes she doesn’t notice that.
The tension in the woman’s shoulders ease away and she smiles, “Oh! Okay… Do you want some help choosing? I can recommend some,” she says.
“Yeah, that’d be great…” Frank said with a smile. He glances down at her chest, where a small name tag is secured to the upper left of her apron, “…Mel?
She nods, “Ah, yes—Oh, sorry I forgot to introduce myself… My name is Mel King and I’m the owner of this bakery. We’re a little short staffed right now since we just opened, but please don’t be afraid to approach me if you need anything…”She paused, “Sorry, I’m rambling.”
Frank chuckles and shakes his head, amused, “It’s okay. It’s nice to meet you, Mel. My name is Frank, I work over there at PTMC.”
“Oh! Yes, I noticed the scrubs. You’re a doctor? That’s cool.”
“You think so?”
Mel nods, “Mhm. I took a premed in college. I finished it but I dropped out of medical school,” she shares.
Frank blinks, “Woah, really? What a coincidence. Do you mind if I ask why you dropped out?”
“Oh, well, it was hard to balance taking care of my sister and studying medicine. I still miss it, but I think I’m pretty happy with my life right now.”
Frank smiles at that, “You should be. Sure, you aren’t a doctor, but you own a bakery. In my opinion, that is way cooler.”
Mel laughs softly, “Agree to disagree. I do love baking…”
“You make everything you sell here?”
“Oh, yes. That’s why I tend to open when it’s already noon rather than in the morning…”
Frank can’t help but admire her. The food industry is a tough place to get into, with the most competitors and all, plus she makes everything from scratch? Frank couldn’t help but find that incredibly hot.
She glances at the menu and back to him, “So… what do you like?”
Frank hums, “Well, I’m basically okay with everything as long as it’s sweet,” he says with a grin.
Mel smiles, “Then you’ve come to the right place. I suggest the triple chocolate cake and a latte,” she says, “The slight bitterness of the latte will go well with the chocolate cake.”
Frank nods, smiling, “Sounds great, Mel.”
Mel beams in response, “Okay. Is that all you want?”
“For now, yeah. Thanks.”
“Okay! I’ll call you when your order is ready.”
“Gotcha,” he said, giving her one of his charming smiles, but it turns out to be more of an awkward grimace. Well, his parents and Abby did say he loses his natural charisma when he’s in front of someone he likes. If Mel notices anything, she doesn’t point it out, merely smiling back at him in response before she begins to prepare his order.
Frank watches her for a moment, almost like he’s been hypnotized and he only snaps out of it when the door bell of the bakery rang once more and another customer steps inside. He side steps, giving one last glance to Mel before finding a seat. If it just so happened that the seat had a perfect view of Mel as she did her job? Well, that’s his business and no one else’s.
Frank was never one to believe the cheesy “love at first sight” bullshit that he reads on the internet or that he sees whenever he (unwillingly) watches a 2000s romcom movie, but now… He kind of understands. He understands how it feels to have your world turned upside down after speaking to someone once, after only getting one look at them, after making eye contact for the first time. Frank feels a little silly—he isn’t in highschool anymore, but the whole situation was very highschool. It’s not like he’s fallen, but he’s for sure slipped.
“Order for Frank?”
Frank smiled and he couldn’t help but feel his heart skip a beat when he hears his name roll off her tongue. He stands up, getting his order, “Thanks, Mel.” He looks down at the triple chocolate cake and the latte—the triple chocolate cake was decorated with chocolate genache and looked incredibly appetizing and the latte was beautifully presented in a mug with latte art of a heart.
“It looks incredible,” he says.
Mel blushes, “Thank you. Have a nice meal.”
Frank chuckles, “I will since you made it,” he says before walking back to his table. Mel watches him with wide eyes and gives him a small, shy smile filled with gratitude. Frank feels like he wants to stab himself for being so bold, but the feeling eases away the moment he sees her smile. Good work, Dr. Langdon, you flirted with someone you like without making a total fool of yourself. Maybe he’ll ask Abby for advice before he goes back here again.
He took a bite of the cake letting out a pleased moan—it was delicious, much like he expected. If he wasn’t attracted to her already then this basically sealed the deal. As he ate, he found his thoughts and his eyes drifting towards Mel at the counter. So far, he hasn’t seen other staff which means that Mel is working on her own. In between customers, she would pull out a book to read and when there is a customer, she’s warm and welcoming, a soft smile on her face. A mother and her daughter walked into the bakery and she had given the little girl a cake pop for free for absolutely no reason but the fact she’s a kind person.
Maybe Frank is getting ahead of himself, but it’s not like he’s going to make a move yet. He isn’t ready and he doesn’t want to be rejected by the woman who owns the bakery that he’s now decided will be a part of his daily life. That’s too awkward and then he wouldn’t be able to enjoy the sweets—he still has so much to try on the menu—and he wouldn’t be able to see her smile so sweetly.
He takes a sip of his latte and, usually, he likes his coffee sweeter, but Mel was right—the slight bitterness of the latte paired well with the chocolate cake and balanced everything out. The combination of flavors added enough diversity that made it so he didn’t get tired of the sweetness of the cake or the bitterness of his latte.
He sits there for a while—even after he’s finished the cake and coffee, basking in the calming atmosphere of the café. The number of customers in the shop slowly trickles down as it gets later and later into the night and Mel waves each one with a goodbye and thank you. Eventually, Langdon is the only one left in the café. He watches as Mel busses the tables, humming to herself the tune of a rap song that he swears he’s heard on Spotify’s Top 40 recently.
He never would have suspected that Mel would be the type of person to listen to rap but then again, they did just meet a few hours ago. (Plus, it’s not like he looks like someone who would enjoy sweets as much as he really does. Don’t judge a book by its cover, he reminds himself). He finds that he wants to learn everything he can about her, wants to know her likes and dislikes, what makes her happy and what makes her sad. His heart thuds against his ribcage thinking about that.
He checks the time on the clock and grimaces—he should probably go home. He stands up and the movement makes Mel look over to him. She smiles, “Did you enjoy the cake and coffee?”
Frank smiles back and he nods, “Yeah, you were right. They pair well together. I’ll for sure come back,” he said.
Mel beams at him, “Really? I’m so glad you liked it.”
Frank chuckles, “Yeah, really. I might want to try out something else from the menu though. Surprise me for tomorrow?”
Mel nods, “I’ll try my best,” she says cheerfully.
Frank fidgets in place, “Uhm… Sorry for staying until pretty late.”
Mel shook her head, “Nothing to apologize for. I actually prefer it if someone is here anyway.”
“Oh, okay, great… Do you uh… need help or anything?”
“Oh! No, it’s fine. You should head home, it is getting pretty late.”
“It is. Hey, what time do you usually close?”
“Oh, 9 PM.”
“It’s 9:30.”
“I know. You’re still here so I didn’t want to close yet.”
Frank feels his heart leap a little at that before a pang of guilt passes through him, “Oh shit, I’m really sorry.”
“No, no. It’s okay. Like I said, I like the company, really…!”
Frank gives her a boyish smile, “Okay, if you say so. It was really nice meeting you today, Mel. See you again tomorrow?”
Mel nods, smiling, “Yeah. See you tomorrow.”
Frank walks towards the exit and gives her another wave before leaving the café, the doorbell jingling as the door opens and closes. A grin is permanently fixed on his face as he walks towards his car. He looks back, watching Mel for a second through the glass walls of the café.
Yeah. He’s totally coming back here tomorrow.
—
After that day, the café became a part of his routine. Not only that, Mel became a part of his routine too. He’d stay a lot later than the other customers and they exchange stories or check up on each other. With every new thing he learns about her, his infatuation grows, and he learns a lot of things—like how Mel is an orphan and has been taking care of her sister, who is autistic, all while she was studying for her degree. He learns that her sweet tooth is just as bad as his, No such thing as too sweet, he remembers her saying.
He also finds himself sharing and opening up more of himself to her the more they talk. He talks about his children and Abby. He talks about how he has chronic pain that affected his back. After finding that out, Mel made sure to reserve a table with a soft, cushioned chair just for him. It makes his heart melt knowing how kind and sweet Mel is. He talks about the dog he bought on impulse from his children and that’s when he finds out that Mel loves dogs. Each day, his walls are broken down and he willingly lets them stay down—but only around her. Although a lot of his coworkers have commented that he seems to be smiling more nowadays.
Dana had stopped him and asked if there was anything he wanted to tell her and he just shrugged and said, “I’ve been eating a lot of sweets, lately.”. This doesn’t clear up anything at all and leaves Dana even more confused, but she shrugs it off. It isn’t any of her business anyway.
It was his last day assigned to day shift before he has to do night shift and he tells Mel this.
“Oh… Does that mean you won’t be able to come here anymore?”
Frank shook his head, “No—I mean, I’ll still be able to, don’t worry, but I probably won’t be able to stay as long,” he said.
Mel nods in understanding, “That makes sense.”
“Yeah, uhm… This might sounds weird, but can I have your number? So we can still talk and all... Maybe outside of work, you know? I mean—only if you want, though. I just think we can talk longer and I mean… we’re friends, right?”
Langdon wishes that he could just merge with the floor or wall after rambling. God, this is incredibly embarrassing despite the fact he’s replayed this scenario in his head multiple times throughout his shift so he could be prepared to ask her. Right now, though, he was pretty much spiraling—was it appropriate to ask? He’s sure it isn’t. Well, it probably isn’t. They’re both adults. But what if Mel rejects the offer? What if she’s just tolerating him? What if—
Mel smiles, “I’d love that, actually.”
Frank sighs, “Yeah, I get it. You don’t have to say yes or anything. I was just—” He paused, finally processing her response and a grin breaks out on his face, “Cool.”
Cool? Really, Frank? What are you, a teenager?
Usually he’s more eloquent with his words, more confident and steady, ready to give out orders at any time, but around Mel that part of him kind of melts away. He’s still stern sometimes, when there are moments that Mel seems exhausted and he reminds her that she has to rest and that’s non-negotiable. All those times, she ends up with unshed tears in her eyes and a grateful smile on her face. He gets reminded that, with all that Mel has achieved in life, no matter how strong she is, she also needs a break—she needs someone to take care of her and, selfishly, here he is, praying to whatever gods are out there, that it should be him taking care of her, not anyone else.
Okay, he’s getting ahead of himself again. Focus, Langdon. You can’t fuck this up.
Mel smiles, “It is. Cool, I mean. I’ll give you my personal number.”
“Sure! Whatever you prefer.”
“Well, I want to be able to see your messages quickly. I can’t do that with my work number,” she says, taking Frank’s phone as he offered it to her. She types down her number, “Here you go.”
Frank grins, “Thanks. I’ll message you when I get home.”
Mel nods, smiling, “Okay.”
They stand there, looking into each other’s eyes for a few minutes before they’re both broken out of it by the jingling of the door bell. Mel breaks the eye contact first, “Oh—I should probably get that—”
“Oh, no—yeah, yeah, I’ll uh… talk to you later, okay?”
Mel gives him one last smile, “Okay,” she says before walking back to the counter.
Frank watches her and he breathes deeply. He might be a bit gone for this girl already.
—
The moment Frank got home, he immediately message Mel. He felt a bit like a highschooler with a crush every time he checked his phone to see if she’s replied and, when he doesn’t see a new message, he visibly deflates.
It’s 9PM and Langdon knows he should probably sleeping rather than waiting for a message, but his heart won’t stop racing with anticipation. He’s staring at the ceiling of his darkened room and he can hear the pounding of his heart. His phone, which sits atop his bedside table, suddenly buzzes and he’s up faster than you could say the word “cake”.
He opens it and a grin takes over as he sees Mel has replied.
Frank: Hey! This is Frank. (Sent at 6:30 PM)
Mel: Hi, Frank! I’m so sorry for the late response. I’m just about to close up. (Sent 9:15 PM)
Mel: Hopefully you’re already at home and getting your deserved rest!
Frank: Hi, Mel! That’s totally okay. I know you’re busy.
Frank: Hey, I have tomorrow off before I shift to the night shift. Do you want to hang out? You don’t have to say yes, though. I know you have the run the café.
Mel: Oh! Well, I’d love to. I need a break anyway.
Mel: Where are you planning to go?
Frank paused. Okay, he didn’t expect that he’d get this far.
Frank: There’s an exhibit at the museum right now all about stars and stuff. Would you wanna go?
Mel: Oh, that sounds great! I love astronomy.
Frank: Great! I’ll pick you up?
Mel: You don’t have to! I can always take the bus.
Frank: No way I’m letting you take the bus
Frank: Plus I asked you out so it’s only polite that I pick you up, right?
Mel is typing…
Langdon watched the three dots appear as Mel types out her answer. He feels anxiety curling in his stomach as the seconds tick by until he finally gets a response from her.
Mel: Okay, if you’re sure! Thank you
He let out a relieved sigh, a small smile on his face.
Frank: I’m very sure, Ms. King. No need to worry about it.
Frank: Anyone would be lucky to be your chaperone ;)
—
The next day, Frank was shaking in anticipation. He wasn’t able to get any proper sleep last night because of how excited he was to spend the next day with Mel, but he’s filled with the energy of someone who got 8 hours of sleep or someone who drank one too many cans of Redbull.
Before leaving his house, he checked how he looked in the mirror at least five times, each with a scrutinizing gaze at his reflection. After the tenth time, he isn’t even sure—he’s lost count at that point, he gave up and went to his car, making sure that he picks up Mel on time for their not-so-date.
He does, indeed, arrive on time. Actually, he arrived five minutes early, sending a message to Mel that he’s here. He tapped his finger against the steering wheel, the feeling of excitement now mixed with the feeling of anxiousness. He startles when he hears a knock on his car door but quickly relaxes, a smile growing on his face when he realizes it’s just Mel. He gets out of the car, jogging over to the passenger side where Mel is.
He grinned, “Hey,” he said.
Mel smiled, “Hello to you too.”
Frank opened the door for her, “You ready?”
Mel nodded, “Mhm! Thank you,” she says, getting into the passenger seat.
“It’s no problem. It’s the least I can do,” he says, gently closing the car door and going back to the driver’s side. After settling back in the seat and buckling his seatbelt he looked over at Mel, “Have you eaten lunch already?”
Mel shook her head, “Not yet.”
“Me either. What are you craving? It’s my treat.”
Mel’s eyes widen slightly, “Oh, no, you don’t have to—”
“Please, Mel, let me do this. I’m the one who invited you out,” Frank says, almost pleading.
Mel blinks before she lets out a soft sigh, “Okay, okay, but I get to treat you next time.”
Frank grins, “Deal. So, what are you craving?”
“Diner food?”
“I know just the perfect place.”
Frank drove them to a small diner, one Garcia had talked about. However, he was never able to go due to his busy schedule. Going inside felt like being transported back to the 1980s. Red, leather chairs, waitresses in the distinct yellow uniforms, linoleum floors—black and white—and they even had a jukebox playing what Frank can only assume are top songs of the 80s. There weren’t a lot of people there, meaning that the atmosphere was perfect.
Mel and Frank went to one of the unoccupied booths, sitting across from one another. Frank looks over the menu, his eyes sparkling. He lets out a soft hum, “They have milkshakes,” he says.
Mel perked up, “Ooh, that sounds good,” she says, leaning forward to look at the menu as well.
As they exchanged their thoughts over the menu items, a waitress walks up to them, “What can I get you, darlings?”
They both look at her, “Oh, we aren’t sure yet,” Mel says honestly.
The waitress—Kira, her name tag read—smiled, “That’s alright. How about I give you both some suggestions?”
Frank nodded, “That would be nice.”
“Great! Well, you can always go with our best sellers. We make the best burgers in Pittsburg,” Kira said with a wink, “We also have pizza. Our best seller is the classic pepperoni, but if you want to switch it up we also have sardines.”
Mel scrunched her nose slightly, “As a pizza topping?”
Kira laughed at her reaction, “It’s not everyone’s cup of tea.”
Frank stays quiet, the only thought running through his head was how cute Mel was with her little reactions.
“But I think, since you two are on a little date—” Frank’s mind blanked and he looked at Mel to see her reaction at the assumption that they were on a date. To his relief, there was a small blush on her cheeks and she doesn’t seem uncomfortable at all.
“You two should get out couple’s special. It comes with two of our signature burgers, with fries on the side, and a big chocolate milkshake—with two straws, of course. It’s also much cheaper than buying everything individually.”
Mell hummed in thought, thinking about the practicality of buying the couple’s special.
“I think it’s a good deal. What do you think, Frank?”
Frank blinked and cleared his throat, “Sorry, what?”
Mel’s eyebrows furrowed a bit, “Do you think we should get the couple’s special?”
“Oh! Oh, yeah, sure,” he says with a nod, clearing his throat.
Kira smiled, “Alright, then. I’ll come back with your food in a bit, just enjoy you two,” she said before walking away.
Mel waved and thanked Kira before her attention shifted to Frank again, “Are you okay?” She asked, voice laced with concern.
Frank nodded, “Yeah, I’m fine. Sorry for spacing out there a bit, I didn’t really get much sleep,” he says sheepishly.
Mel shook her head, “No, it’s okay. Do you want to talk about it?”
“Ah, it’s really nothing serious. Promise.”
Mel relaxes at that, although it’s clear she isn’t fully satisfied with the answer, Frank is glad that she let it go because if she finds out that he was spacing out, day dreaming, about them being a couple? Well, he’d die right there and then.
“Okay,” Mel says softly, “So… How have you been?”
Frank grins and begins to talk about the hectic week he’s had. In turn, Mel also tells him tidbits about her week that they haven’t talked about yet whenever they hung out at her café. It was nice, finally being able to talk to Mel without the daunting feeling that their time together is limited. Neither of them are busy today, they can finally focus on each other.
Frank tells her more stories about his kids and how, one time, Tiana was using his phone and saw a picture he took of Mel while they were hanging out one day and that she’s demanding to meet her because “Daddy, you have to let me meet the pretty princess! It’s not fair if you’re the only one who knows her”. In turn, Tanner was also demanding to meet this “secret princess” that his daddy has been hanging around lately. The word of Mel even reached Abby, who hugged him and told him that she was proud he found someone. He doesn’t mention to Mel that he ends up rambling about how perfect she is to Abby and how down bad he really is for her.
Mel tells him more about his sister. She tells him how she’s her primary caregiver, ever since she was young and that, before she turned 18, her mother died and her father left—she was an orphan for most of her life—with burdens so heavy that it made Frank’s heart constrict. Through all the challenges she’s faced, she still manages to be kind and determined. He only hopes that, with everything she’s carrying, she doesn’t collapse. He hopes that she can depend on him too, let him take care of her like she does with others.
Their conversation is cut short when Kira comes back with their order. They thanked her as she left to go take another table’s order. Mel looks at the food and she smiles, “This all looks really good!”
Frank nods, “Yeah,” he says with a grin.
They ate together in a comfortable silence, smiles on their faces. At some point, some sauce gets on Mel’s cheek and Frank wipes it off for her with a gentle touch. They grin shyly at each other right after he does.
They share the large chocolate milkshake between them, Langdon taking sips after a few bites of food and after he takes a sip from his straw, Mel takes a sip from hers. At some point, they both reached for the milkshake at the same time, both leaning forward. Frank paused, looking at Mel; they’re inches apart and he can see her beautiful green eyes clearly, how her lashes brush against her cheek with every blink and the mole near her eye. He’s able to see how pink her lips are and he can’t help but think if they’re as soft as the look.
He pulls away first, his heart racing and he’s pretty sure that he’s blushing, “Oh, shit, I’m so sorry,” he says, stumbling over his words.
Mel smiles, “Oh, it’s okay! It’s uhm… meant for sharing at the same time anyway—with the two straws and all…” she says, a bit shy as a blush blooms on her cheeks.
Frank gives her a shy yet boyish grin in response, “Right.”
They finish eating their lunch and Frank makes sure to leave a fat tip for Kira as a thank you for telling them about the couple meal deal that the diner had or else he wouldn’t have been able to pretend, in the secret places of his mind, that Mel is his girlfriend and he wouldn’t have been able to see the small details that make her so much more beautiful than she already is. He’s always loved milkshakes because of his sweet tooth, but now he loves them because it’ll remind him of that small moment between him and Mel, accident or not.
They get back to Frank’s car and once they’re settled, seat belts buckled, he begins to drive to the museum.
“So, what about astronomy makes you love it?” Frank asks out of curiosity and a desire to hear Mel’s voice.
“Well, I think there are a few reasons. I’ve always been a curious person, I remember asking my mom about stars a lot. The idea that there’s this other space beyond Earth is just fascinating to me,” Mel says.
Frank nods, “Yeah, I get it. I’m the same, kind of. I think I went through every science phase I could as a kid before I settled on becoming a doctor,” he says with a chuckle.
“Oh! I get that. Me too. I wanted to become a scientist for the longest time.”
“Well, I guess you are a scientist now. You know they say baking is a lot like Chemistry.”
Mel laughs softly, “I guess you can say that. It needs the same precision that Chemistry has and uhm… a lot of chemical reactions affect the outcome of whatever you’re baking.”
“See? A scientist. A chemist specifically.”
“Does that also make you a scientist? You know, since you should know the biological and chemical processes that the body goes through, right?”
“Hm. So I’m a biologist?”
“Technically you can be, right? Or maybe applied chemistry.”
The drive to the museum wasn’t that long, but it felt faster while he was talking to Mel. Too fast. He doesn’t want the conversation between them to end, but it’s bearable this time because they’ll still be together inside the museum. He doesn’t know if he’ll be able to say goodbye later without spilling his feelings for her.
He opened the car door for her again, a charming smile on his face, “Ready, princess?”
Mel blushed, “Yeah! I’m so excited,” she says with a grin.
Frank felt his heart melt, “Then, let’s go,” he says, holding out his hand for her without thinking. He paused, looking at his own hand and he’s about to put it down before Mel gently and carefully links their hands together, tentative, like she’s waiting for him to take it back. Instead, Frank just smiled and squeezed her hand gently and the hesitation Mel has immediately disappeared, her eyes sparkling as she looked at him.
“Let’s go,” Frank says, voice softer than usual.
They walk into the museum, hand in hand, and his heart felt like it was about to burst out of his chest. He’s a bit worried he might start getting heart problems if moments like this keep happening between him and Mel, but he thinks it’s worth it. For her.
The astronomy exhibit is beautiful but Mel was even more so. Her eyes sparkled and she had the biggest grin on her face as she dragged him around to different parts of the exhibit, rambling on and on about heavenly bodies. Honestly, Frank didn’t fully understand everything, but he tried his best to ask her questions, just to keep her talking, to be able to listen to her voice as if it was his favorite podcast.
Now, Frank knew that Mel was smart. After all, she was studying premed before she dropped out. He was sure that, if she had continued that path, she’d be one of the best doctors out there. He wonders if they’d ever meet if she did go to med school, if they’d ever have moments like these—moments he’d never trade for the world. He sure hopes so because he can’t think of another life time where he can be happy without Mel—which is saying a lot, given that they’ve known each other less than a year.
He didn’t realize that Mel’s stopped talking about the exhibit until she called his name, “Frank? Are you okay?”
Frank blinked, “Oh, yeah, I’m okay. You’re just so beautiful,” he says before he can stop himself. His heart skips a beat.
“Oh.”
The blush on Mel’s cheeks brightened and she looked away shyly from him.
Fuck, Frank thought to himself. A blush bloomed on his own cheeks and he feels his ears heating up. He hadn’t meant to say that aloud, but there was no more taking it back. Not when she’s already heard it, not when he was just telling the truth.
He cleared his throat, “I’m… It isn’t a joke. You really are beautiful. So beautiful, in fact, that it’s kind of distracting,” he says with an awkward laugh, “It’s just… Mel, when I first stepped into your café, I was never supposed to fall in love, but I did. And as much as I love your baking, and your coffee, and you know I have a sweet tooth—that’s not why I stayed. That’s not why I kept coming back.”
Mel stares at him in awe and he gently cups her cheeks, touch tentative. When she leans into his touch, he lets out a soft, relieved sigh.
“Mel… You are amazing. When I first laid my eyes on you, I thought you were an angel and maybe you are, with how much happiness you’ve given me these past few months of knowing you,” he says caressing her cheek with his thumb, “God—I like you so much, Mel. And you don’t have to like me back, but this entire time, I wasn’t even looking at the stars—I was looking at you.”
Mel gasps softly, “Frank…”
Frank gave her a small smile, allowing her to process everything. After a while, Mel swallowed and she nodded. She placed a hand above one of his hands that are still cupping her face, “When I first met you, I think I felt the same way. I thought you were really handsome and you became much more attracted to you when I began to learn things about you. You’re… you’re such an amazing person and I never considered that you’d ever like me back,” she says, seemingly breathless.
Frank’s eyebrows furrowed before he let out an incredulous laugh, “Baby, you’re the one who’s out of my league. I was—still kind of am—a mess.”
“We’re both a mess,” Mel points out with a small smile, “You’re a mess I want in my life. Frank, you make me feel complete.”
Frank’s eyes soften, “You too. I like you, Mel.”
“I like you too, Frank.”
There’s a moment of silence between them before Frank breaks it once more, “I really want to kiss you.”
Mel’s blush deepens, “I’d like that,” she says softly.
At that, Frank pulled her close by the waist with one hand and pressed a gentle kiss on her lips, still tentative just in case Mel changes her mind. Instead, Mel kisses him back, just as tender. Frank felt dizzy. He’s eaten a lot of sweet things, but Mel’s the sweetest he’s ever tasted and he’s pretty sure he’s addicted.
(And, yes, they kissed under real stars after going through the exhibit.)