Work Text:
Vaggie sighs as she sets the final box down in her new apartment. Moving wasn’t so bad, considering she didn’t keep a lot of mementos from her former life, but it still was exhausting carrying all the furniture by herself.
While Vaggie wasn’t going to miss her previous home, moving was more of an occupational need at this point. She participated in several photoshoots for up-and-coming kink and lingerie brands, making enough of a name for herself that people would request ‘Demoness’ to help launch their new lines.
Modelling under the name Demoness allowed her to maintain her angelic day-to-day life; she was able to keep up with the strict expectations her parents set while still making the money she needed from her other career. Moving out of the small town, however, would provide her with more opportunities, as well as some freedom from the conservative household she was raised in.
Unfortunately, it also meant she had a lot more to pay in rent. Thankfully she was starting her new day job at a nearby café soon, and that would help make ends meet until the modelling took off (if it ever did, she always reminded herself sternly).
She spares another glance around the apartment- empty and full of boxes, just the amount of potential she needed for her new life.
~*~
“I have a triple mocha decaf extra foam no sweetener cappuccino for Nifty!”
Charlie takes a quick breath after shouting out the whole order; she had to ask the short woman three different times what the drink was supposed to be with how fast it was said. But the joyous look after the customer, Nifty, takes the first sip reassures Charlie that she got the whole thing right.
“Babe you are really on another level. I still don’t think I can remember what that drink was.”
She gives her friend, Angel, a bright smile from across the bar. “How are you doing, Angel? I was just about to take my break! Our new employee should be starting soon, and I want to be fully prepared when she shows up!”
Angel just offers a laugh, guiding Charlie to the front doors, giving them a bit of sunshine on their break. Or, more accurately, giving Charlie some sunshine while Angel hides underneath his pink and white parasol.
“Do you have a shoot soon?” Charlie asks him, knowing that he’s doing his best to protect his skin from any damage.
“This afternoon,” Angel confirms, lighting a cigarette and offering it to Charlie, who politely declines. While Angel was obsessed with every minor detail of his appearance, his insides ‘didn’t count’ according to him. “I think I’m going to be modeling for Husk’s line again.”
Charlie hides a giggle behind her hand, knowing that Angel has several reasons to want to work with Husk more often- one of them being that the owner of the line shows up for the shoots. The owner just so happened to be a very sexy man that Angel denied having a crush on.
“Husk always pays well,” Angel winks, before looking toward the woman approaching them from a distance. “This bitch is kind of cute. Could use more tits, though.”
Before she has a chance to chastise Angel for the comment, Charlie catches sight of the woman. She’s petit, long silver hair tied up with a bright pink ribbon, wearing dark shorts and a matching pink shirt. She looks like she could be a café employee, if it weren’t for the almost nervous way she approached the shop.
Dressed to work at a café, nervous, and headed towards them. Soon Charlie puts the pieces together. “Oh! You must be Vaggie! I’m Charlie, I’m the owner here at The Happy Café. It’s so nice to meet you!”
Angel grins to himself as he slips inside the café, letting the two get acquainted outside. But by the way Charlie and Vaggie blush while talking to each other, he knew his best friend’s life was about to get very interesting.
~*~
While her first days at the café were busy, they were also fun. Vaggie found herself enjoying all of the conversation with her boss. ‘Boss’ was a strong word; while Charlie did own the café she was more of a friendly coworker than an actual boss. Still Vaggie gave her the proper respect, no matter how much Charlie insisted she didn’t need it.
It takes almost a week, but finally Vaggie books a shoot under ‘Demoness’. It’s a collab with someone called ‘Princess’, and that only increases Vaggie’s nerves. She’s never done a collab shoot before, and with a name like ‘Princess’, this person could be either super sweet or super not. Then again, her own name could be considered misleading, so Vaggie tried not to put too much stock into that.
She does her own base makeup; they didn’t specifically ask her to, but Vaggie is used to helping the makeup artists out when she can. That way they can start right away on the glamor they want for the shoot.
“Well, you’re pretty,” the artist grins, adjusting the eyepatch she had. Vaggie wonders if it’s necessary, or just for show. “Name’s Cherri, you’re new around here, right?”
“Yeah, I just moved to town,” Vaggie explains. “I’ve done a lot of modeling before, but there was only so far I could get in a small town.”
“Moving on up in hell,” Cherri laughs at her own joke. “Nah, I’m kidding it’s not that bad here. Well, let me get you ready.”
Vaggie sits for what feels like an hour, letting Cherri try out various styles until she’s satisfied. When she looks in the mirror, Vaggie is almost shocked by how bold the look is. Usually, she gets a very traditional ‘bold’ make up style, but what Cherri does is entirely new. On top of a normal smokey eye, she has a large pink ‘X’ over her left eye. Her light bangs are pushed to the side as usual, but her hair is tied into a high ponytail with a pink ribbon.
The costume she’s given only makes her look more badass, Vaggie thinks. The bodysuit is black with white gloves and thigh-high heeled boots. A matching pink belt is attached around her waist, and a white three-ring collar is secured around her neck. Instead of a whip or a riding crop she’s given a long spear, which she confirms is fake when she plays with the shining end.
“We’re not giving you a real weapon, don’t worry,” the photographer laughs as he approaches her. “We want to show you and Princess in an epic battle, so we’ll be switching between traditional weapon styles and kink toys.”
“I see,” Vaggie nods slowly, adjusting to the new situation. She’s done shoots before, but they’ve never been so stylized. It’s equal parts nerve wracking, strange, and exciting, and Vaggie has to control herself not to make an entire fool. “Do I get to meet Princess soon?”
“She’s just finishing up in makeup,” the photographer reassures Vaggie, gesturing to the set. “Go on and get comfortable, I’d love to start with some solo shots of you while we wait for her to finish.”
Vaggie approaches the set, which also exceeds her normal expectations. It has a normal green backdrop, with props and settings used to create an apocalyptic-like scene. She lays upon the surprisingly comfortable wooden boxes. The first few photos that are taken are so awkward that Vaggie almost expects to be kicked off of the shoot right then and there, but once the photographer makes a few jokes she starts to relax, getting comfortable in her own skin.
“Perfect, beautiful, amazing!” the photographer cheers as the camera snaps and lights flash, going so deep that he doesn’t hear the others approach at first. “Oh, looks like Princess is ready. Alright, let’s get you two going!”
Vaggie has to catch her breath from laughter, pulling herself up with the help of a crate. “It’s nice to-”
Her words go flat as she sees the tall woman standing in front of her. She wears a tight pink minidress with black gloves and a black version of Vaggie’s own boots. Her hair is down, which isn’t what Vaggie is used to seeing, but there’s no mistaking who ‘Princess’ really is.
“O-oh! It’s you,” Charlie chuckles awkwardly, rubbing the back of her head. “Yeah, totally didn’t expect you here. Um, good to see you. I kind of… well I do some shoots in my free time and… yeah, you know just for fun. I really hope you don’t think any different of me at work and-”
“It’s fine,” Vaggie speaks quickly to interrupt the other’s rambling. “I’m here, too, right?”
“Right, yeah, totally,” Charlie points finger guns at Vaggie, before stepping onto the set with her. She holds a spear similar to the one Vaggie was given, and they let the metal ends clang against each other in the rhythm that the photographer takes his shots.
Despite the awkward beginning, Demoness and Princess are professionals, and ultimately new friends. They laugh and play around with the weapons, not worrying as they switch from spears to whips to even comically shaped dildos.
Vaggie is unsteady for a moment when a leash is attached to the collar, given to Charlie to hold onto, but she rolls with it and the photos are clearly coming out right, based on the photographer’s cheers. What really throws them, however, is the final direction.
“Alright, and now kiss!”
The women freeze, catching themselves staring into the others’ eyes. They’ve kissed people before- Charlie even for work- but today it feels so intimate. The photographer instructs them to kiss a few more times, before Charlie finally takes the plunge, pressing their lips together.
It’s like magic to Vaggie, the way her whole body floats to heaven and sings with the angels. Charlie’s lips are soft, and even the copious amounts of gloss don’t make them disgustingly sticky. They taste vaguely of strawberries, and Vaggie remembers that those are her favorite fruit.
The kiss ends too quickly, the photographer telling them they’re good to go, and the girls get back to their daily lives, as if the passionate shoot never happened.
~*~
“Excuse me!”
“Oh, sorry!”
“Wait don’t-!”
“Oh shit!”
Charlie falls back against the plush office chair. The back room contains a supply closet that was converted into her office, and Charlie is almost never there. But after the day she’s had so far, she just needs a minute away.
A minute away from Vaggie, specifically. It’s not that she didn’t like the girl- quite the opposite. After their unplanned kiss the other night, it was hard to see Vaggie as just another coworker. The woman’s lips were so plush and gentle, warm and felt like home. Not home as it is now, with parents who can never seem to get along. But home when she was a kid, looking up to her dad and mom like they created the world.
And even with that comforting home-like feel, the kiss was still so sexually empowered, electrified by the kinky tools they were modeling and the toys they played with. If it weren’t for the fact it was a shoot, Charlie thinks she would have wanted to actually play with those toys with Vaggie.
Normally she doesn’t care about her coworkers this way, both at the café and on set. She’s all but had sex with some of the models she worked with, and she never thought about them afterward. The other baristas had gone out with her for drinks and fun, but she never wanted to kiss them.
Then there was Vaggie.
Vaggie, who was beautiful and sweet and so fun to work with. And then on top of that had to be so sexy and so intense at the shoot. Charlie had several inappropriate dreams about her already, and it only got worse after their shoot.
Once she catches her breath, Charlie steps back to the floor to help work. There’s a rush, and if she can just focus on steaming the milk and pulling the shots then she won’t have to worry about-
“Ouch!”
Vaggie holds her hand close to her, and Charlie realizes she’s spilled steaming hot milk on her. “Let me take you to get that washed!” Charlie gasps, dragging Vaggie back to the sink and running cool water over the fresh burn. It doesn’t look too bad at least, and it should heal quickly. But that does nothing to soothe the guilt that Charlie feels.
“Accidents happen,” Vaggie repeats over and over, but Charlie knows if she had just been paying attention she wouldn’t have hurt Vaggie. If she stopped worrying so much about wanting to see the girl naked, she wouldn’t be here, tending to her burn now.
~*~
It took a surprising amount of effort to convince Charlie not to take her to the hospital. Vaggie knew it was very mild, and some burn cream and dressings would keep it healed perfectly. She had another shoot booked, but it was only a foot fetish shoot so she didn’t need to worry about the burn on her hand.
It was hard, though, not to worry about it. She didn’t care so much that she was burnt, but she cared about how careless she was. She wasn’t paying attention, knocking over the steaming milk because she was too busy thinking about how much she loved kissing Charlie, and how she wanted to do it again.
Vaggie wasn’t like this. She wasn’t the type to forget things and drop things and let someone else take over her entire mind. But since that kiss…
Vaggie’s dreamed about it several times. The soft lips felt as real to her in any dream as they did during the day. She groans, shoving her face into the pillow.
She was never getting free of this feeling.
~*~
“Come on, Charlie, you have to tell me about it.”
The lights flash as another photo is taken, and Angel adjusts his position so that it looks like he’s riding Charlie’s strap on. His thighs are starting to burn, with the way he holds himself up to both show off the strap and still look like he’s having sex, but the pay was worth it.
Working with Husk was always worth it.
“It’s just… you know she’s so…” Charlie sighs loudly, the snap of the camera telling her its time to jerk her hips and pretend to penetrate Angel more. “She’s so cute. And funny, and sweet, and sexy. You should have seen her, Angel! She was like some sort of kinky goddess!”
Another snap, and Angel climbs off of Charlie. The strap is removed, and Husk replaces the product they are advertising. They are curled around each other almost romantically with a bottle of lube in between them. Angel makes lustful eyes at Charlie as he continues to respond. “So why not ask her out?”
“Because, Angel,” Charlie blushes, not realizing the camera is getting even closer to her than before. “She’s my coworker. And it was just a shoot, there’s no way she actually thinks anything about it. It’s my own stupid brain thinking about her.”
“I don’t know, Charlie,” Angel picks up the lube and starts to spread a little over the bedsheets. “I’ve been by your café since that shoot and she seems awfully into you, as well.”
“It’s not like that, Angel,” Charlie continues to argue, a bit of the flavored lube drizzling over the edges of her lips. It tastes sweet- but nothing like Vaggie did that night. “Look, I’m just a girl with a stupid crush. That’s all it will ever be.”
“What if I told you that I’ve talked to Vaggie already?” Angel taunts, and Charlie’s hands come to her face in shock. The camera snaps, and somewhere in the distance Husk is commending them for such a great shot. “I’m teasing, Charlie, but you never know until you ask.”
“I can’t.”
“Just ask her tomorrow,” Angel says, purring as he leans closer to his friend. “You owe me one, remember?”
“You can not use that favor like this!” Charlie tries to plead, but Angel isn’t listening. Just a few more shots and Husk finally tells them they’re free to go. Perfect timing, as Charlie is just seconds away from ending both Angel’s life and worse- his career.
~*~
“Hey.”
“Hey.”
The two stand sheepishly across from each other. They weren’t supposed to open the café together, but when Verosika called in (again), Vaggie was the only one free to cover. And the problem with opening shifts was that it was just the two of them.
“I hope that burn didn’t ruin your shoot,” Charlie offers, gesturing to the still-bandaged hand Vaggie has.
Vaggie just laughs, though. “Don’t worry about it,” somehow the conversation was relieving the tension she felt leading up to working with just Charlie. “It was a foot thing, anyway.”
“Oh, I remember I used to do a ton of those! Guys really like feet, I guess.”
“They really do,” Vaggie agrees, letting Charlie open the doors to the café. “I wanted to talk to you.”
Charlie lets them in, locking the door behind them and facing Vaggie. They’re early enough that she can have the conversation. “What’s going on?”
“Look, Charlie, since our shoot I… I have to quit.”
Charlie stares, stunned into silence. Quit. She was prepared for so many things but to quit? “Oh, did you, um, get a lot more booked? You’re really talented, you know.”
“No, it’s because of you.” Silence lingers between them and Vaggie realizes what she said. “Wait, no, not like that. I mean… it’s because I can’t maintain a professional attitude around you anymore. When you’re here I just… well… keep thinking about…”
“Our kiss?”
“Our kiss.”
They both sigh, going about their separate opening duties as the words linger between them.
Our kiss.
It’s only five more minutes before they have to open, and Charlie knows she won’t get another chance like this. She kisses Vaggie quickly, glancing at the empty street outside. “Don’t quit. Please?”
“I…”
Vaggie kisses her again this time, and the clock ticks down the final seconds they can spend together. “I won’t quit. For you, Charlie.”
A final kiss and they’re forced to separate, opening the doors to begin their day.