Cindy halted her bicycle and let Dawn hop off.

"Uhm, so I'll see you t-tomorrow?"

"You are leaving already? I thought you'd come inside for a bit."

The tall girl considered for a moment, then nodded. "Okay... b-but I don't have money..."

"That's fine, you can have my free drink of the shift." The girls won't mind if I take two drinks for once. The others do it all the time.

The ruby eyes showed traces of a smile behind the scarf, and Cindy bopped up and down before jumping in to hug Dawn. The girl's full chest pressed against the shorter one's head and she spoke, "Thank you, very much."

As Cindy let go, Dawn looked at her stunned. Mostly because of the physical closeness she hadn't felt in a long time and the first touch of such an intimate area. But also because in her gleeful movement, Cindy's scarf had loosened and exposed her face.

A sharp chin beneath full lips of almost violet hue, parted as the pale girl smiled. Inside her mouth, slightly elongated canines showed. She couldn't be...

When the moment of joy passed, Cindy hastened to fix her scarf. "You can keep it off, we are going inside anyway." The girl's brows raised a bit and her eyes became unsure. She hesitated. "You won't be able to drink with your scarf up, you know?" Dawn giggled a bit at the thought of a veiled Cindy trying to slip a straw into her scarf.

"Oh... okay." With a nod, she took the loose end of the fabric. She considered, then threw the end over her shoulder, wearing the scarf but not hiding her face. Good enough.

Dawn smiled, then moved to enter.

"Just sit wherever, there is hardly anyone here yet. Most people come in the late afternoon on their way home from work. I'll go change real quick."

Cindy slid into a booth in the corner of the room, and Dawn moved to put on her uniform. She briefly greeted the two colleagues who had today's first shift and slipped into the backroom.

"Hi, Leia." Her eyes wandered to the exposed back of the changing girl. She was only wearing panties. "I'm soo glad to have my shifts with you this month."

"Hey! And yeah, likewise," Leia said as she turned around, her hands tying her hair into a ponytail. Dawn's eyes lingered a moment too long on the bare chest, and she felt embarrassed for being caught staring. "The others can be so annoying."

"No kidding." Dawn moved to her locker and started taking off her own clothes. Pulling off her white beanie and scarf, she spoke, "For the past three months we never had our shifts together. It was exhausting." Red coat and boots followed, neatly placed in the locker.

"You at least had the afternoon shifts! I thought I'd choke Rita on one of these Monday mornings. Why can't she simply do her work?" While Leia ranted, Dawn had taken off her hoodie and pale jeans. On went the classical maid look. White overknees, a short black dress with white frills and an apron.

"And both always get away with noting orders wrong or messing up the drinks. Just because guys find them hot."

"So you are saying I'm not hot?" Leia responded, winking as Dawn spun around.

"I- What? No!" She panicked. "I- I-"

"Relax, I'm just joking." Leia giggled. "Now, could you help me with this?" while pulling on the dress and motioning to the zipper on the back.

"Can't you do that yourself?" Dawn did as instructed.

"Of course I could. But where is the harm in a little fan service?" Another wink followed before Leia left the room. "Oh, and here you go." As usual, she lent Dawn her lipstick.

Dawn could feel herself blush and hurried to finish up. Outside, her coworkers ended their shift so Dawn and Leia could take over.

"I brought a friend today, is it alright if I chat with her when waiting for customers?"

"Hun, you could sit with her all day and still be less of a nuisance than when any of the other two do what they call working."

"Don't worry, I won't slack." Dawn took her small notepad from the counter and walked over to Cindy. The tall girl was curiously looking around the café - the wooden vintage decor had caught her eye.

"Good day miss, here you go." Dawn handed her the menu, equipping the usual fabricated smile, and performed a curtsy. "Since Christmas is coming up, we are offering our candy cane homebrew for a limited time. It comes with an actual candy cane for stirring - no spoon! Of course, the usual menu is also available."

"Uhm..." Cindy went through the pages, briefly looking at her options and shaking her head. "J-Just something very sweet, p-please."

Dawn's smile was replaced with a genuine one, the forced professionality faded. "Something very sweet coming right up!"

On her way back to the counter, she cleared two tables that had been abandoned for a while. Those dishes had been her colleagues' job.

"They left dirty tables for us. Again."

Leia sighed. "Means we'll have to report them. Again."

"And as always, nothing will change. Anyhow, you got the dishes? I have an urgent order of something very sweet to process."

"Sure, Hun." Leia took the dishes handed to her and started cleaning the practically empty café. Dawn, on the other hand, started experimenting.

"Hmm, how about... ah yes, hot cocoa... add a scoop or two of strawberry syrup... some whipped cream on top... aaand done." Will I ever stop speaking my thoughts while making coffee?

Leia gave her a look and spoke, "That just sounds... weird. Surely sweet and maybe delicious, but weird."

"Just as I like them. Sweet, delicious, and weird." Dawn replied with a satisfied smile.

"You sure do."

"Sugary drinks are simply more enjoyable than bitter coffee. In my opinion, anyway." Only then she caught Leia looking at Cindy and grinning. The comment wasn't only referring to my drinks.

"Oh come on, can't you stop teasing me at least once in a while?" Dawn took the two mugs - she decided to pay for Cindy's so they could enjoy them together - and went to serve the girl her something very sweet.

"Of course I can, Hun," Leia started, then lightly slapped Dawn's bottom, "and now go get her!"

"Wha-!" Dawn felt herself blush as she stumbled forward. Leia's snickering came from the counter and Dawn continued to the corner of the room.

The noise got Cindy's attention and ruby eyes landed on the approaching waitress. Heavens but those eyes...

"This is so p-pretty," she stuttered as she saw the translucent cups. Dawn agreed - however, hey eyes weren't on the drinks. The contrast of almost violet lips to the white skin was holding onto her sight.

"It's just cocoa with strawberry, really. Try it!"

Taking a careful sip of the hot beverage, she replied, "This is really yummy." However, Dawn couldn't help but giggle audibly.

"You stuck your nose into the cream! Wait, I got it." A small motion with a napkin later, Cindy's face was clean again. Quick enough that she couldn't refuse.

Touching her nose, she responded, her voice low, "Why'd you... do that?"

"Oh, I'm sorry if you didn't like that. I was just making fun."

"It's al-alright, my nose is just... I don't like it being t-touched."

"I see. Then how about..." Dawn took her mug and drank, covering the tip of her nose in cream. "Payback."

"What?"

"It's payback time."

×××

"It took her a moment or two, but she got what I meant and giggled. Unnecessary to mention, when she cleaned my nose I blushed - which got her laughing even more." Happy thoughts warmed Dawn's heart.

"We talked a lot about coffee and tea, about all the creations I make. Up until the café started to fill and I had to work. I still checked up on her now and then, and offered that she could leave whenever. But she insisted on waiting till my shift was over."

Dawn got up, cleared her throat, and walked over to the table to drink some coffee. Her throat was dry from talking. "By the way, wasn't it cold as hell just now? I feel like melting beneath this blanket."

Touching the radiator again she felt its heating warmth. She must have imagined it in her fit.

"Anyways, when my shift finally ended, she gave me a lift home. It had gotten absurdly cold in the evening and snow was falling all around. I could tell she was freezing. No wonder, since she was only wearing her broken coat, her long top and stockings. But she avoided any questions regarding her outworn belongings or her family, and I had decided to give her time with that. So instead, we discussed what kind of coffee creation I should try the next morning because - obviously - I'd bring her some too."

Her grip on the mug tightened until she felt a sharp sting on her finger. A little blood came out from where she had held the cup's missing handle. The day when this cup had hit the cupboard next to her was engraved in her memory. She shouldn't have asked her mother about him.

She took a deep breath and brushed that aside. "When we reached our home, I got off the bike and offered her my phone number. The look in her eyes signaled pure joy, as if my number was all she had ever wanted. It felt... amazing having someone so eager to be close to you." Her face sunk. "That's at least what I thought she felt."