Page 3 of Johann

“Soren always says that too,” he told Alicia, hanging up his coat—which was bright orange and padded and hung all the way down past his knees—on the peg by the counter and glancing down at his outfit, one he’d picked out at the thrift store the other week. “I like my clothes though.”

And he did. His fleece pants were the prettiest baby blue, so cozy, and his T-shirt was so fun; how could anyone not like it? Lime-green tie-dye? Amazing!

“His clothes are fine,” Colin called out in a monotone from the office. “Leave him alone.”

Jay smiled in the direction of the office, even though Colin couldn’t see him. His manager was always so nice to him, never mean or overly stern like the managers on Jay’s TV shows. He was always patient and kept his voice calm and level, even when Jay made mistakes.

Although, to be fair, Jay didn’t make very many mistakes anymore. He was a fast learner and good at following directions, especially if they were clear and concise like the ones Colin gave him. A good worker bee, one might say.

My Johann. You were born to serve.

Jay made his way around the counter as Alicia huffed at Colin’s words. “I’m just saying…he’s such a cute little thing.”

See? Jay was cute! Alicia shot him a wink when he grinned at her. “With the right outfit, we could have the girls all over you.”

At Jay’s wrinkled nose, Alicia raised an eyebrow. “Or…boys?” she corrected hesitantly.

“Alicia!” Colin stood in the doorway of his office now, glaring out at them. Ooh, he’d changed his hair from its former purple to blue, and switched out his sparkling eyebrow jewelry to match. Would Jay look good with a piercing or two? Or would his accelerated healing just…push it out of his skin? He should ask Soren.

Colin pointed an accusatory finger at Alicia. “Stop trying to surreptitiously find out Jay’s sexuality. It’s against the company rule book.”

“Please.” Alicia rolled her eyes, tossing her ponytail over her shoulder. “Like you’ve read the company rulebook.”

“It’s against common decency, then.”

Alicia turned to Jay, her voice full of exaggerated sweetness. “Does it make you uncomfortable, honey?”

Jay had to take a moment to focus on an answer. He’d gotten distracted feeling out the wordsurreptitiouslyunder his breath—it was so rarely used in everyday conversation that it was nice to taste it out loud. “I don’t mind. I didn’t realize you wanted to know. I like guys. I just don’t have a lot of experience with them.”

That felt safe to say out loud here. Alicia didn’t know his real age, so she didn’t know just how unusual the lack of experience on Jay’s part was. And Colin wouldn’t judge him for it, for reasons of his own.

Alicia gave a little shout of triumph, which was nice for her but also a little confusing for Jay. He hadn’t had any idea she even wanted to know what kind of person he was attracted to—he would have told her, if she’d asked him outright.

But that was all okay. Because Jay was hit just then, not for the first time, by how nice it all was: to have human coworkers and engage in human conversation. Everything was soft and easy, and no one tried to bite or tear or snarl at anyone else. They argued sometimes—Alicia and Colin, at least—but they always did it…gently.

“Just get to work,” Colin grumbled, turning back into his office.

“Right on it, Colin,” Jay chirped, tugging on his apron and taking a moment to breathe in all the yummy, swirling scents of the café.

He’d liked the place since the very first time he’d set foot in it. Jay had never held a job before—that wasdefinitelynot allowed back at the den—but he’d seen the help wanted sign and realized working there would give him a reason to come back again and again without being a bother to anyone.

It had felt like fate.

He liked making the drinks—he liked how each one had very specific, easy-to-follow instructions. He liked making his customers happy, liked watching the humans sip their coffees, the little smiles they got on their faces when they were treating themselves to something nice.

He liked it all.

As he and Alicia switched out the register so Jay could start manning it, Alicia cleared her throat. “Um, Jay, honey? Can I ask you a favor?”

“Of course!” Jay loved a chance to do a favor for a friend.

“I’m trying to take a pottery class at the community college, but the only available one is in the mornings. Would you be willing to switch shifts for a while? You’d have to open the café, come in at five a.m. I get it if that’s too early for you.”

“Oh, I don’t mind early. I don’t sleep very late anyway.” Or much at all, but he didn’t want to worry her by saying so. She wouldn’t understand her body had different needs than his was all.

She gave him a relieved smile, tightening her ponytail. “Okay, awesome. I’ll train you to start. I already talked it over with Colin.”

“No pressure, Jay!” Colin called from the office. “You can tell her no.”

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