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Eleven months, two weeks, and five days.
That was how long Van Arkride waited for the limited edition dessert to return. He still cursed his bad luck and incompetence last year. Who would have known that he would receive cases during the holidays?! The dark bluish-haired man wanted to get the limited edition, delectable strawberry cheesecake only sold during Christmas, but fate seemed to want to get in the way. Every day he was busy, busy, and busy that he couldn't visit the bakery. When he heard the cheesecake was about to be sold out, he drove to the bakery like a maniac after he finished his work, only to find them sold out.
For an average joe, they would be sad, but they could easily brush it off the next day. But for someone like Van— a genuine sweets maniac— it hit him hard... like a car crashing into him!
Okay, maybe that’s exaggerating things, but it really affected Van!
The poor man suffered a slight depression and lost motivation to do any cases he would receive. The Spriggan refused to do any cases for two weeks! Two weeks, people! If it weren’t for his employees doing the cases they would receive for him, Van might have to say goodbye to Arkride Solutions. And they weren’t going to lie; the expression of utter depression of the stun caliber user caused them to feel a certain gloom well up inside them. Luckily, Agnès had an idea during her boss’s week of despair that was worth a shot.
With three cakes of different flavors put in front of the Spriggan, Agnès told him that she and the rest of her coworkers would work on the cases they would receive on the day the cheesecake makes its return. Van immediately perked up upon hearing that and started counting the days. The rest of his employees sweatdropped but smiled (sans Aaron, who was expressing his relief/annoyance that he would not have to see the depressed face of the Spriggan anymore). Anyway, they were happy to see their boss out of his gloomy state. Days, weeks, and months went by in a blink of an eye, so fast that the man couldn’t even remember what he had done for the past months. He counted the days methodically until...
The day of the cheesecake’s return arrived.
The man woke up early so he could be first in line at the establishment. Unfortunately, the connoisseurs of sweets also had the same idea. When Van arrived at the bakery, a bead of sweat rolled down his face when he saw the line. He just sucked it up and endured the agonizing wait time.
“Come on, Van... You want that cheesecake, right?” He asked to no one in particular as he slapped his cheeks lightly. “A little bit of waiting won’t hurt anyone... right?” He soon would regret those words...
An hour later...
‘Why did it take that long for me to get my turn?!’
Sighing, he didn’t let it get to him. He was already in front of the counter.
“Can I get a Christmas Special strawberry cheesecake and a vanilla latte hot chocolate?” / “Can I please get one Christmas Special strawberry cheesecake and one vanilla latte hot chocolate to go?”
He blinked when he heard someone say his exact order. Turning to his right: his countenance showed shock and a bit of relief when he saw a familiar set of baby blue optics. His heartbeat quickened. His Adam’s apple bobbed as he eyed a beautiful blonde-haired woman.
“Elaine?”
“Van?
“What are you doing here?!” Both of them expressed their surprise, comically pointing at each other.
The first one to pull their finger away was Elaine, who let out a sigh as her palm met her forehead. “I shouldn’t even be asking that. I had a feeling you would come and buy the strawberry cheesecake here. You’re too much of a sweets addict to miss the limited time offer.” Her expression held a half-lidded blank look. Van looked away and whistled innocently. With a sigh leaving her lips, she addressed another thing that surprised her. Elaine gave a nostalgic yet sad smile. “You’re getting vanilla chocolate too?”
He ceased his whistling but kept his gaze away from her. The Spriggan didn’t expect that question to hit him hard. “Just felt like drinking some today.”
“I see.” Elaine’s sad smile didn’t fade as she returned her attention to the front of the counter, their orders resting on top of it. It was probably set there while the two were talking. Something about that smile annoyed Arkride. Well, ‘annoyed’ might not be the right word, but the guilt that he long had in his heart was bothering him to no end. As the Maiden was about to grab her items, Van’s voice stopped her.
“Elaine.” Said woman turned to look at him, raising a brow.
“Yes, Van?”
The sweets lover didn’t respond right away. His eyes would look to his side, and a hand would rub his neck. It was just a habit of his.
“Want me to keep you company for a bit?”
To say she was stunned would not do what she was feeling any justice. A conglomeration of emotions took the stage in her chest, swirling and running rampant. There was shock, a bit of confusion, but most of all... joy. Subconsciously, the lips of Maiden curled slightly upward while the Spriggan kept his gaze to his side.
Deciding to have a little payback, Elaine teased him. “Only for you to run away while I take a bathroom break?”
His head snapped as fast as humanely possible. No one would be surprised if they heard a crack sound.
“Oi! I won’t run away! At least not this time...” He mumbled the last part. Elaine sighed, yet her smile never disappeared. Her gloved hand reached for his right, the blonde giving it a gentle squeeze as she flashed a smile. A smile that could melt even the frozen walls of his heart.
“I would love that... Also, do you mind if we do some catching up?”
“Uh...” He was afraid she would ask that. Seeing that smile of hers made keeping his distance from her even more painful to bear. Sighing, he nodded. “Screw it; I’m all yours. You can consider this my advance gift to you.”
The Spriggan grabbed the plastic bag containing his order and averted his gaze once more, missing the blush and widened smile of the woman. At least for today, he won’t do his usual antics of avoiding her. The thought of that heartbroken frown would bother the man to no end. Besides, hidden in his denial and usual demeanor: is a soft spot for the Sword Maiden.
“You’re being awfully generous with your presence today. Care to tell me the real reason?” She asked with a hint of mischief. Her smile turned to a smirk as she grabbed her own baggy.
“Ugh... just... can we just go now and eat our cheesecake?” Van groaned.
“All right, all right, we’ll continue this conversation back at my place then.”
The woman boldly intertwined their fingers, locking them in an embrace as the pair left the bakery.
“Such a troublesome woman...” He complained with exasperation in his tone. Despite his words and tone, the Maiden saw a ghost of a grin. Van muttered, whispered even.
“But that’s why I fell for you...”
A shower of white greeted them on the way back to Elaine’s apartment. The winds of winter accompanied the snow, brushing past the Bracer and Spriggan. It was cold, but they didn’t feel cold. On the contrary, they have never felt warmer. He looked forward to eating his strawberry cheesecake, but it seemed like there was another reason for his growing smile. As they strolled back to the blonde’s home, both squeezed each other’s hand gently. Heads quickly turned to face their prompter before laughter rose in their throats.
They felt the chilly breeze brush against their skin, but the warmth of their laughter warmed their hearts.