Chapter Text
Dimitri stands outside of the doors to St. Cetheleann's Patisserie and tries to remember the advice his therapist had drilled into his head over the past couple of months about managing his anxiety. The irony doesn't escape him that the only reason he needs to recall this advice is due to the task he'd been given at the end of their session on Monday. Byleth had looked over his glasses at Dimitri as they were wrapping up, and told him that his homework before their next session on Thursday was to return to just one of the places he used to frequent before everything collapsed the new year started. He had fully intended to ignore this request, and pretend like he forgot at his next session tomorrow. Of course though, in typical fashion, he'd made the crucial mistake of mentioning his therapy homework to Dedue as he'd driven Dimitri to work after the session's end. Dedue must have passed along the information to Sylvain to make sure he followed through. It's the only explanation for the way that Sylvain had pushed him to return to his old lunch spot with a kind of focus and determination Dimitri rarely sees from him.
Today's headache had started the second he'd woken up this morning, and left him unable to focus on work for even a second longer by the end of the morning. He'd been pressing his forehead on the cool wood of his desk when Sylvain had let himself in. Sylvain had taken one look at him, then announced that he was taking him out to St. Cetheleann's. He had refused to hear any of Dimitri's excuses about why it was unnecessary. Sylvain had argued that the fresh air could do him some good. When that hadn't worked, he'd guilt tripped Dimitri until he caved and agreed to go. Frustratingly, Sylvain was right. Even the walk to the car parked at the front of the building in the fresh, spring air had been enough to alleviate the worst of the pain tormenting his skull. Sylvain had driven him there with the windows down, and by the time he parked Dimitri's headache had faded into its normal, manageable level of hurt.
He notices that his hands are shaking and takes a deep, steadying breath. He lets the sweet scent of spring fill his nose and lungs, then forces himself to grip the door handle and push into the cafe. The first thing he notices is the smell of spring being replaced with the scent of freshly baked bread in the air, and he forces himself to take another deep breath to take in the familiar scent. He keeps his eyes glued to his shoes as he walks up to the counter, knowing if he looks anywhere else he'll be convinced that every other customer is watching him make a fool of himself.
"Welcome to St. Cetheleann's, how can I serve you!" cheers the cashier as he reaches the counter. It takes him a moment to realize that while the inflection is reminiscent of Annette, the voice behind it is completely unfamiliar. He whips his head up, startled to hear someone new. Standing behind the counter is the pinkest woman he's ever met in his life. Her eyes are bubblegum pink, as is her hair which is pulled up into a messy bun. She's wearing a pair of pink, heart-shaped glasses with white rims on top of her head and a pair of golden hoop earrings that reflect the natural light back at him. There's a lollipop hanging out of her mouth, and he finds himself entranced by it when a hand with perfect, manicured nails plucks it out of her mouth to reveal a red ball of candy on the end. Pinned to her uniform apron is a name tag that reads "Hilda" in a elaborate, pink font. The name rings a bell in the back of his mind, but he's not quite sure why he would recognize it. He's so distracted by her, that it takes a moment of watching her lips move before the question she's asked reaches through cotton in his ears.
"Are you alright?" is what she's said, and his eyes flick up to meet her concerned ones. His mouth is bone dry, so he nods his head shyly before going back to staring at his shoes. He's forces his usual order out while tracing the scuffs on his black dress shoes with his eyes.
"Ohhh~" she exclaims, "you must be Dimitri! Mercedes told me that you were coming in today!" Dimitri startles a little at the sound of his own name, then the fact that Mercedes knew he was coming in, but Hilda keeps talking. "Don't worry about paying or anything, Mercie said it was on the house. Go ahead and take your usual table and I'll bring it out to you shortly~" He wonders how this woman recognizes him from his order, and even seems to know where he normally sits. Before he can think too hard on that, his mind finishes processing the words she's said. He finds himself unsettled by not paying, and it forces him to finally find his voice.
"There's no need for that, I'm more than happy to pay," he insists with a frown, forcing himself to meet her eyes. She fixes a pleading gaze with a pout on him, but he makes sure to stand firm. He's certain that if he accepts any more charity from any of his friends, he will simple cease to exist. Their staring contest is broken by the bell on-top the door to the shop ringing. Dimitri breaks their unofficial staring contest to glance to see someone knew has come in. Thankfully someone has departed, meaning that he will not be inconveniencing any other customer if he continues to insist on paying.
"Alright fine," she says with a mighty sigh, "but you're the one explaining that to Mercedes if she gets me in trouble." She accentuates this demand with a perfectly shaped nail pointing directly at his chest. Dimitri nods seriously, feeling slightly guilty that he may cause trouble for this new employee (Her name is Hilda, his mind supplies) with Mercedes. He knows she's not the type to lose her temper over small things, but his anxiety spikes regardless. As she rings him up, he pulls out his card with shaking hands to tap it. The tip screen pops up, and Dimitri decides that the least he can do for potentially causing trouble between her and Mercedes is to leave a good one. He types in a ten dollar tip. Like the fool he is, he submits it before realizing he left a hundred dollar tip instead of the ten dollar one he had intended. He waits to see Hilda's reaction to his blunder as she hands over his receipt, but she doesn't react at all as she sticks her lollipop back in her mouth once he takes the paper from her hand.
"I'll bring it out to you when it's ready," she says with a wink. Dimitri's heart skips a beat, and he finds himself frozen in place. It's not until Hilda raises an eyebrow and makes a shooing motion with her hand that he snaps out of he. He quickly makes his way over to his usual table, grateful it's empty as he tries not to cringe at his inability to have normal introductions to new people. He imagines explaining his behavior to Sylvain, and shrinks down in his seat at the endless teasing that would be sure to follow. He barely registers that his headache is gone as he continues to torment himself with his own awkwardness. Maybe I could take it to-go, he thinks to himself, then I could get out of here with my dignity still intact. I'm sure to break something with how much my hands are shaking if I stay. His anxiety spiral ( he thinks this is what Byleth meant when he first introduced the term to him early on in their sessions) is interrupted by a hot cup of tea being placed in front of him. The smell wafts up to his nose, and he places the tea as Chamomile. He looks up, and Hilda is standing at his table.
"I didn't order tea," he says, trying to bring himself back to earth. Hilda shrugs and twirls one of the strands of hair by her face in her fingers.
"Mercedes insisted I bring it out," she replies, lingering for a moment to give him a look he can't decipher before returning the counter. He finds himself watching her as she goes back to work, unable to look at anything else. The bell above the door rings again, but this time it's a man walking in. He doesn't look much different that Dimitri himself, he notices. He's wearing a tailored suit and dress shoes. He's clutching a phone to one ear, talking quietly enough that Dimitri can't hear what he's saying. Every part of him screams that he's in a hurry and has no patience to spare. Hilda welcomes the man in without any of the cheer she'd greeted him with. The man immediately starts ordering one of the signature lunch sandwiches with so many changes that it's not even the same dish by the time he's done. Dimitri sends a quick prayer for Ashe's sake in the kitchen. Hilda gives him the total in a saccharine sweet voice. The man plucks a twenty dollar bill out of his pocket to hand to her. She gives him his change and receipt, and Dimitri watches as the man puts all of the coins and bills she's just handed him back into his pocket. Dimitri is no longer ashamed of his ridiculous tip. The man walks over to the pickup counter, already tapping his foot impatiently.
The second the man isn't looking at her, Hilda sticks her tongue out childishly then rolls her eyes. Her head turns away from where the man is standing, and her eyes end up meeting Dimitri's. The two of them hold eye contact for the longest second of his life before he jerks his head back down to his table. He takes a gulp of the tea she'd brought him to keep his hands busy. The liquid burns as it goes down his throat, but the smell is comforting even without the taste. He's just finished draining the cup when the doors to the kitchen swing open. Mercedes walks through them carrying a plate of food he recognizes as his own. He greets her with a small smile that she returns with that blinding grin of her own.
"Dimitri, it's so good to see you," she says warmly as she sets his food down in front of him. "I was worried you were never coming back." There's a teasing twinkle in her eye as she says so, and Dimitri finds himself relaxing. She doesn't mention the reason for his prolonged absence, and he can already tell that she has no intention of bringing it up.
"Sylvain wouldn't let me never come back," he replies with his best faux serious voice. Mercedes giggles, and takes the seat across from him.
"And here I thought you enjoyed our food," she sighs dramatically, "Ashe will be devastated when I tell him the truth." Dimitri imagines the sad expression Ashe would make at this, and finds himself wincing even if it was a joke. Mercedes reaches out a hand to lay on top of his trembling one, and meets his eyes. "I won't tell him if you don't." Dimitri can't help the anxious laugh that leaves his lips, and Mercedes leans back with a secretive smile. He can tell she's gearing up to ask him how he's doing, so he blurts out the first thing he can think of to avoid talking about himself.
"Annette normally works this shift right?" he asks, and Mercedes lets him change the subject.
"Annie is studying in Morfis this semester," she says kindly, and Dimitri suddenly feels foolish. He'd known that. He suddenly remembers celebrating at Mercedes' apartment with Annette and Constance when the two of them had been accepted into the program with their mutual friend Lysithea back in October. The three of them had planned to leave early in the New Year, but Dimitri was unwell gone when the date finally rolled around.
"Actually," Mercedes says, shaking him out of his misery before he can fall too deeply into it, "Hilda was Lysithea's roommate funnily enough. She was left without one with the three of them went abroad, just like me, so she moved in on the same day they moved out! It worked out perfectly, and she even offered to help out at the cafe so I wouldn't have to hire anyone I didn't know. It was very kind of her. Lysithea warned me about hiring her, but she's done a great job so far."
"She seems nice," Dimitri offers in response, and Mercedes gives him a fond smile.
"I'm surprised the two of you haven't met yet, she's very close with Marianne." Dimitri feels her name finally click into place in his mind.
"Ingrid's told me about her before, then," he says, choosing not to mention that most of what he's heard were complaints about her lack of work ethic and numerous ways of taking advantage of people to get out of doing work. Based on the tight line of Mercedes' lips, she's also been privy to Ingrid's many complaints about Marianne's closest friend.
"I'll leave you alone so you can eat before your food gets cold," Mercedes replies after the silence stretches out for just a moment too long, "we should catch up sometime soon when I'm not at work." Dimitri nods in agreement and starts eating as she sets off to the kitchens. He realizes as the kitchen doors swing shut behind her that this is the first meal he's eaten on his own in months. In the past three months, his meals have been taken under the watch of orderlies, then his friends. He hadn't realized how much he missed eating on his own until just this moment, and he's suddenly incredibly grateful that Sylvain had forced him out of his office. He decides to slow down and savor the solitude the best he can, even if there's no point in slowing down to take in the flavors of the food. He's just finished his plate when Hilda pops up by his table again. She sets a second cup of tea down in front of him and sets about clearing off the empty dishes in front of him.
"Thank you," he forces himself to say, and Hilda seems to become even pinker.
"No problem," she says dismissively as she sets his old cup of tea down on top of his empty plate, "I hope you enjoyed everything~"
"I did," he says somewhat awkwardly, unsure how to respond in this situation to someone new. If it was Annette clearing away the dishes, she'd be talking a mile per minute about her studies with no chance for Dimitri to respond. He makes a mental note to reach out to her as Hilda walks away with his dirty dishes, he's sure she would be delighted to hear that he misses hearing her talk about her research projects. Maybe I should even call her, Dimitri thinks, but shakes off that thought as quickly as it comes. Annette is certain to want to know about how he's doing, and at least in text he can lie without getting caught. He finishes his second cup of tea while drafting the message, and is still doing so as he gets up to leave. Right before he walks through the door, Hilda's voice calls out behind him.
"Have a good day, Dimitri~" she sing-songs.
"You too," he calls back, feeling his face start to flush. She smiles at him, and Dimitri gives her a small smile back. The whole drive back to the office, Dimitri thinks about the red lollipop and wonders what flavor it is.
The rest of his work day flies by quicker than he's used to. His headache even stays gone for two whole hours (a new personal best, he thinks wryly) before the throb settled back into his temples. He's still not used to the new location of his headaches since he started taking the medication Dr. Casagranda had prescribed him back in February. No longer does his pain radiate from behind his eyes as they strain to catch shadowy figures that always seem to be just out of reach in the daylight. The voices that were once so clear at all times are now murmurs that he can't seem to catch no matter how hard he tries to make out the words. Byleth and Dr. Casagranda are pleased with this development, but Dimitri misses his old normal where only his eyes hurt instead of what feels like his whole skull. They both reassured him that his system will adjust to the medication, that the headaches will become a thing of the past, but Dimitri has a hard time believing them when the pain reaches its peak. Despite the increasing pain levels, time seems to speed by instead of dragging on like usual. Felix barges into his office at five p.m. sharp to drag him home, even though Dimitri could swear it had only been a couple of hours since he returned from lunch.
"Let's go, Dimitri," Felix snaps. His body language is daring Dimitri to start a fight over his demand by insisting on finishing one last thing before they can leave. Normally Dimitri would rise up to the challenge, but he doesn't have it in him today.
"Alright," he hums, setting his pen down and packing up his things. He finishes as quickly as he can, somewhat eager to go home and take his headache medicine. When he stands up with his things, Felix is standing frozen in his doorway. His eyes are wide, but when Dimitri meets them, they narrow into the sharp shape Dimitri is most familiar with. He's clearly disgruntled about something, though Dimitri can't understand what it could possibly be when he's cooperating for once. Whatever Felix wants to say, he keeps to himself as they make their way to his car. It's only once they've left the parking garage that he breaks the tense silence between them.
"You didn't do something stupid today, did you," Felix accuses him, hands gripping the steering wheel so tightly that they're white. Dimitri can't stop the cynical laugh that leaves his lips. Of course that's where his mind went, Dimitri thinks to himself.
"No Felix, I didn't do anything stupid today." Felix glances over at him while they're stopped at a red light, and Dimitri refuses to meet his gaze. No matter what I do, it's all a sign to them that I'm still mad. He finds himself filled with bitterness at the implication.
"Don't snap at me," Felix snaps, and the irony makes Dimitri roll his eyes, "last time you left work this easily was-"
"It's not like that," Dimitri bites out, refusing to hear Felix's version of events. "I just had a nice lunch." He can feel Felix giving him a scrutinizing look, but Dimitri jerks his head to look out the window instead. He pushes down all the bitter things that threaten to spill past his lips. His teeth clench down on the inside of his cheek hard enough that he's certain he'd be tasting blood if he could taste anything.
"Sylvain said you went back to Cetheleann's today," Felix says, his tone back to something less accusing and more like his usual sharpness.
"Byleth wanted me to," Dimitri replies, taking the olive branch that's being offered. Felix sits with that for a moment before letting out a defeated sigh.
"I'm glad," he says roughly, "that you went back." Dimitri can tell that Felix means it, even if he sounds like someone is pulling his teeth out.
"Me too," he admits, and all the tension leaves the car in one fell swoop. He peeks over and Felix's hands have relaxed on the wheel. He closes his eyes for the rest of the trip, letting the pain in his temples be the only thing he dwells on.
"Sylvain said you went out to lunch today," Dedue says as he chops vegetables by the sink. Dimitri is watching him cook like he does most nights now. Felix had retreated to his room when they'd gotten home with a slammed door. Dedue had watched the two of them come in from the couch with a raised eyebrow, but he hadn't said anything about it. Felix had left for the gym a couple of minutes later, shouting behind him not to expect him to be back for dinner. Dimitri couldn't help but notice that he had left without his gym bag even though Dimitri's been in his care enough recently to know that it's not there. Dedue had turned his curious look to Dimitri, but he gives him a shrug in response. Dimitri turns his focus to chugging a whole glass of water with the two Excedrin pills Dr. Casagranda had told him to take when the pain became unbearable. Right now though, Dimitri fidgets in his bar stool and considers the very real possibility that there's a group chat he's not in. The idea fills him with cold dread he can't explain.
"I did," he says cautiously, crossing his arms and resting his head on top of them.
"Was it good," Dedue simply asks, never the one to pry for details. Dimitri considers making a joke about the food to lighten the sudden heavy mood, but instead tries to come up with a response that'll cause the worried set of Dedue's shoulders to relax.
"I think I'll go back tomorrow," he says, watching Dedue's face soften. He feels a small sense of victory as Dedue's shoulders drop too.
"That's good." The silence that follows Dedue's words is peaceful, and Dimitri finds himself wanting to mention Hilda to Dedue, though he's unsure why.
"I met the new cashier who took over Annette's shifts," he finally says. Dedue hums to let him know he's listening. "Her name is Hilda, she used to be Lysithea's roommate before she went to Morfis with Annette and Constance. She was…" Dimitri hesitates over the word he wants to use to describe his interactions with her, "kind to me. And Mercedes says that she's been very helpful."
"Sylvain mentioned that Hilda was working there now," Dedue mentions. The information is startling to Dimitri, and he feels the pit in his stomach roll over.
"Sylvain knows Hilda?" Dimitri asks cautiously as Dedue dumps all the vegetables he'd chopped into the pot boiling on the stove. Dedue nods as he stirs all the ingredients in the pot together.
"Sylvain knows everyone," Dedue says simply. Dimitri sits with that for a second, and realizes that Dedue might well be right. "And he used to study with Annette and Lysithea in college. Lysithea and Hilda were roommates then as well," Dedue adds after a moment. The information makes Dimitri's stomach settle back down though he doesn't understand why.
"Before he dropped out," Dimitri says absentmindedly as he starts re-arranging his mental map of how which of his friends know each other. The conversation drifts off after that, and Dimitri finds himself nearly dozing as Dedue continues cooking. He barely wakes up enough to eat, and goes straight to bed after Dedue clears their bowls off of the bar counter. He's dead asleep within minutes for the first time since he was a child.
Byleth's office is just as quiet as always the next morning. He's waiting to be called back, letting his half-awake mind drift away on the ocean sounds of the white noise machine in the lobby. Dimitri had gotten up with more trouble than usual this morning, and he hasn't quite shaken off the residual sleepiness that normally vanishes as soon as his alarm goes off at six a.m. every morning. He could tell that Dedue was worried about his low energy levels as he struggled to keep his eyes open during breakfast. To Dimitri's surprise, Dedue had chosen not to say anything about it at the table or on the drive over. Dimitri's almost fallen back asleep when the door opens and Byleth peeks his head out.
"Dimitri," Byleth calls coolly, and Dimitri startles out of his tiredness in an instant. He gets up from his chair, and follows his therapist back into the private office that all of their bi-weekly sessions happen in. He gets settled in his favorite chair, fidgeting until he's comfortable while Byleth grabs a notepad from his desk and takes the seat across from him. Like in every session, Byleth sits quietly and waits for Dimitri to speak first. He isn't sure where he wants to start, so he blurts out the first thing that comes to mind.
"I went back to St. Cetheleann's yesterday." He waits for Byleth to respond, but all he's getting is a look that says Byleth wants him to elaborate further. He takes a deep, steadying breath and continues. "You asked me last session to try and return to somewhere I used to go before. I wasn't going to do so, but yesterday Sylvain made me," he admits.
"How did you feel about the experience," Byleth asks, jotting something down on his notepad. Dimitri wishes he could see what was being written, but the pad is always tilted away from him so he knows it's not possible. It makes his skin crawl and he's still working on making his peace with it.
"I was very anxious at first. I made a fool of myself when there was someone new working there," he pauses for a second to twist his fingers, "I know time has passed since I last went there, but… I don't think I was ready to admit just how long it's been since things were normal." He doesn't say it out loud, but a huge part of him can't help but wish that he had been allowed to continue on as he had. If he'd been able to do so, maybe he wouldn't have missed so many important things in the lives of his friends. He would've been allowed to stay in his comfort zone and wouldn't have lost his autonomy. Byleth's expression stays neutral, but his pen suddenly stops writing. Dimitri shoves down the urge to backtrack what he's said, apologize for whatever he said that was wrong, but he knows that that's not how things work in this room.
"Isn't it a good thing that things are no longer normal, when your previous normal led to your hospitalization?" Dimitri feels the question like a punch in the gut. Of course Byleth would see through his words to the root of the matter. The rest of the session is spent digging into this, and by the time is over Dimitri is ready to go back to sleep. He feels off kilter as he leaves Byleth's office, this time with the instruction to catch up with one friend he hasn't spoken to since his hospitalization. He knows Dedue is going to ask him how his session is once they get in the car, but Dimitri isn't sure how to explain why this session dug under his skin more than any other.
"I don't want to talk about today's session," Dimitri says once they get into the car. He can't look at Dedue as he says this, but he knows there's no need to worry as Dedue gives a brief acknowledgement and turns on the radio. Dimitri is forever grateful that Dedue is able to take him to his sessions. Dedue is the only one of his friends that never pries when Dimitri isn't ready to answer, always ready to accept his requests to leave things unsaid without a fight. The one good thing that came out of the worst night of Dimitri's life is his friendship with Dedue. He can hardly believe how much time has passed since the two of them met in the burn unit after the fire that left both of them without families.
On the drive to his office, he ponders who he should reach out to to fulfill Byleth's request. He had already planned to reach out to Annette, but Byleth would ask why he picked her and the session would circle back around to the topics they'd discussed today. If he's allowed to be honest with himself, he already knows who he should reach out to. Edelgard has done well giving him space, but Dimitri knows he can't avoid talking to his ex-stepsister turned close friend for much longer before she asks Hubert to start stalking him (if she hasn't already asked that of him yet). I'll call her tomorrow, Dimitri decides, it'll be a Friday night and I can feign plans with Dedue if I need an excuse to hang up. He internally winces at the fact that he's already planning a way to cut the conversation short if it gets too real, but he's had to accept that this is a new part of his personality now. Dedue pulls up to the front of the skyscraper that houses Blaiddyd Industries. Dimitri gets out of the car, vowing to leave such thoughts outside of work.
Once he gets to the office, it's easy to lose himself in all the work that's waiting for him. His headache isn't nearly as bad today, and he manages to actually work for a couple of hours before his stomach rumbles. Right on queue, Sylvain lets himself into his office.
"Lunch time, boss," Sylvain chimes, arms thrown causally behind his head as he approaches Dimitri's desk.
"Let me finish this first, Sylvain," Dimitri says as he pulls up another contract that he needs to review. Sylvain is once again determined to ignore his wishes though, much to Dimitri's frustration. He walks behind Dimitri's desk, and starts dragging his chair away from it.
"No can doskie, sir," Sylvain says in a voice reminiscent of a TV butler. He pauses for a second before dropping the facade entirely, "if I don't drag you out now we both know you'll work through lunch." Dimitri's uncomfortable with the sudden seriousness Sylvain is showing, but refuses to relent.
"You could go grab me something to eat, and I could have a working lunch," Dimitri bargains, desperate to get as much work done as possible while his headache is just a subtle throb. He is so rarely able to focus this easily, especially after one of his sessions with Byleth.
"Nope, Dedue said you wanted to go back to the cafe today and I promised I'd make sure you did." Sylvain forces him out of his chair and starts pushing him towards the door. There really must be a group chat, Dimitri thinks half-miserably and half-anxiously. He tries to dig his heels into the carpet, but it's not nearly as effective as it would've been this time last year. He still hasn't regained his full strength yet after being unable to go to the gym for the past several months.
"I can go tomorrow," he tries to insist. He's frustrated at the fact that he can already tell that there is no use in fighting Sylvain on this particular issue.
"Great! I'll make sure you go tomorrow too then," Sylvain says cheerily. Dimitri almost snaps at him, but thinks better of it and decides to be a nuisance in a different way. He grabs onto the edge of his desk as Sylvain tries to usher him past it. Sylvain tries to push him to keep moving forward, and Dimitri waits for the exact moment he puts his full force into it to let go and side step. Sylvain tumbles forward, barely stopping himself from face-planting on the floor. He gives Dimitri a genuinely surprised look and something mean flares up in his chest in response. The two of them are about to tussle like they're children again, when the door bangs open. Only one person Dimitri knows would do that, so he's unsurprised to see Felix in the doorway.
"What the fuck are you two doing," he says, fixing one of his signature glares on both of them. Sylvain hurriedly rights himself and turns to face Felix with a shit-eating grin on his face. Felix lips are turned up in disgust, and for some reason it makes Dimitri want to laugh. He really does feel like a child again, fighting with Sylvain while Felix tries to decide which one of them he wants to side with. The memories soothe Dimitri's hurt back down into something he can ignore.
"Nothing, Felix," Dimitri says at the same time Sylvain says "taking the boss to lunch." Dimitri knocks his elbow out to hit Sylvain in the stomach.
"What did you need, Felix," Dimitri says innocently while Sylvain sputters beside him.
"It can wait til after your lunch. Which you better attend or else I'll drag you there myself if you're still here in the next ten minutes," Felix threatens, then turns and leaves just as quickly as he came.
"You heard him," Sylvain teases behind him, and Dimitri resigns himself to leaving his work untouched for the next hour. He's not in the mood to fight with Felix again, so he really has no choice but to go along with Sylvain's plan. He at least hopes his lunch will let his head stay this clear enough to return to work with the same focus.
Sylvain chats his ear off the entire drive over to St. Cetheleann's. Dimitri ignores him, still upset at being forced from his office at the height of his productivity. Of course that doesn't dissuade Sylvain from continuing to talk until they park beside the bakery. He escapes the car as quickly as possible, strangely frustrated, and makes his way inside. The bell rings as he enters, and Hilda looks up from the counter. She has a lollipop in her mouth again, but this time there are no glasses on her head. The gold hoops still shine in the light, and Dimitri thinks he could watch the light dance off of them as she moves forever. Her whole face seems to brighten when she sees him, but Dimitri is certain it's just a trick of the light.
"You're back!" she says cheerily as Dimitri reaches the counter. He nods, throat suddenly bone dry. He should've planned what to say to her on the drive over. He's always awkward around new people. Normally he never sees them again afterwards, so he's spent years convincing himself that it's okay. Hilda though, is a new normal in his routine, and he is suddenly overwhelmed with the desire to make a good impression on her.
"You want the usual? I'm prettyyy sure I remember it," she adds when he doesn't speak up after the silence stretches on, and Dimitri suddenly flushes bright red as he snaps back to reality.
"Yes please," he says, grateful he doesn't choke over his words.
"Are you having a good day," she asks while she rings him up. He nods again, then realizes she's looking at the screen and not him, and forces himself to speak up.
"I think so," he says, happy that it's the truth for once instead of a carefully crafted lie.
"That's good~ someone as handsome as you should always be having a good day~" she says with a sly wink. Dimitri feels himself going even redder. She giggles and turns the screen over for him to pay, and Dimitri is very proud of himself for leaving a ten dollar tip this time instead of a hundred dollar one.
"I'll bring it out when it's ready," Hilda says, handing him a receipt.
"Thank you," he says. He hesitates at the register for a moment longer before he gathers up his courage to say one last thing. "I hope you're also having a good day. You're too pretty not to as well." As soon as the words are out of his mouth he flees to his usual table, already regretting trying to replicate her compliment to him. He's so grateful Sylvain prefers not to come inside with him, he would never live this down if he saw it. He doesn't even know why he said it. Clearing she had been joking with him, but he meant it when he said she was pretty and now he's worried that she thought he was joking too. An even worse idea pops into his head, what if she thought he was flirting with her? What if he made her uncomfortable because she thought he was flirting with her, and she feels like she has to play along since he's a friend of Mercedes? He's about to spiral even further into overthinking when she sets down his cup of tea.
"I wasn't trying to flirt with you," he says before he can think better of it, "please forgive me if I've caused you any discomfort." The head on the teacup retreats, then comes back to poke him in the forehead. The contact shocks him into looking up, and Hilda takes that as her queue to speak.
"Has anyone ever told you that you think way too much about things?" she says with an amused expression.
"Many, many times," he admits with a wince. She nods approvingly and pokes his forehead again.
"You should totally take it to heart then," she says dryly.
"I've heard that many times too," he says solemnly. She laughs at that, bringing a hand up to cover her mouth as she falls into a full-fledged giggle fit. It's infectious, and Dimitri finds himself giggling along with her.
"Marianne was right," she gasps between peals of laughter, "you are funny!"
"I'm pretty sure that's not something I've ever heard before," Dimitri says as he catches his breath. While he calms down, Hilda starts laughing even harder. She braces a hand on his shoulder as she doubles over with the force of it.
"You have got to stop talking before I start crying and ruin my make up. I worked so hard on it this morning and it turned out so cute." Dimitri shuts his mouth with an audible click and waits for Hilda to get her wits about her. He misses the weight of her hand on his shoulder the instant she retracts it as she rights herself and starts fanning the tears out of her eyes with both hands. He finds himself struck dumb by he radiance of her grin as she does so.
"I haven't laughed that hard since Lysithea left," she admits once she's found her bearings. Dimitri feels an odd sense of pride at her statement.
"You know," she starts, staring directly at him, "I just realized I never properly introduced myself." She brings a hand up to cutely make a "V" symbol at the side of her face.
"My name is Hilda Valentine Goneril, it's nice to meet you~"