Page 97 of Cream & Sugar
“Getting knocked back by your ex on camera? Pretty embarrassing, yeah.” Freddie looks at the camera lens on Lara’s phone, still propped up and recording. “Hey everyone, I’m Freddie, Shaun’s new boyfriend. ’Fraid he won’t be back on Lara’s feed any time soon.”
He blows a kiss to the phone as Lara snatches it up and stuffs it in her jacket.
“You’ve ruined everything!” she screams. “Fuck you, Shaun! Fuck your boyfriend and fuck your fucking café! Have fun making no money for the rest of your life! You’ll wish you were with me. You’ll fuckingwishit!”
Lara draws herself up and, for a second, I think she might be about to slap me. Even Freddie, my gallant knight, takes a half-step in front of me for protection. Thinking better of it, Lara wheels around and bolts for the door, aiming a kick at a chair on the way. It skids across the floor but somehow doesn’t topple over. Lara lets out a screech and storms out of the café, her hair whipping around her face like wildfire as she disappears down the street and out of sight.
A few seconds pass in silence. Once it’s clear she’s not coming back, Freddie and I let out a long sigh.
“Holy shit,” he says, after a beat or two. “Sorry man, but she is completely mental. Did you two seriously used to date?”
“Yes,” I say, still regaining the power of speech. “For five years.”
“Man, that’s rough. I’m sorry for jumping in, I just couldn’t stand back and let her speak to you like that.”
“It’s okay,” I whisper.
Freddie lets go of my hand, and I immediately miss his grip. He rubs the back of his neck.
“And I’m sorry about the whole ‘boyfriend’ thing. And for outing you, I guess. I know we haven’t talked about it. I just didn’t think she’d be satisfied with ‘we’ve been on one date and sucked each other’s dicks a few times.’ ”
I run a hand through my hair and fall back into my seat. Freddie pulls up Lara’s vacant one and sits beside me while I massage my temples.
“She’s just so…shallow,” I say. “And mean.”
Freddie nods. “Yup.”
I bury my face in my hands and groan.
“How did I not see it? What kind of person behaves like that?”
“Someone who doesn’t deserve you.”
I let one hand drop and it finds Freddie’s thigh. He scoots his chair closer and rubs smooth circles on my back with his palm. My breathing slows. Finally, the words come.
“She told me all the time how stupid I was for wanting to open this place. It’s all I ever wanted to do, but she always said it wasn’t ambitious enough. And I’d never make any money. And it would take over my whole life. It was never ‘how can I help you, Shaun?’ It was never ‘I believe in you, Shaun.’ She didn’t want me to have my dream. She was just using me to get hers. What should have been the best time of my life—getting this place ready to open—was just so shit because she made me think I’d failed before I even started.”
“Oh, Shaun,” Freddie hangs his head for a moment. “I had no idea.”
My breath shudders.
“Then she dumped me the week before we opened. All I could think was if Lara, my girlfriend, didn’t believe in me, then why should I?” I swallow the lump forming in my throat. “I was so ready to give up. I wasn’t sleeping. Staff quit with no notice. Honestly, I don’t know how much longer I could have kept going. But then…” I look up and meet Freddie’s gaze. “Then you came along.”
Gently, I place a hand on the back of his neck and smile.
“You’ve given me more in a couple of weeks than she did in five years. Thank you, Freddie.”
I kiss him softly and he kisses me back. He tastes like peppermint and chocolate. Like sweet cinnamon. I don’t think I’ve ever tasted anything as wonderful as Freddie’s lips.
Remembering I’m at work, I force myself to cut the kiss short. As we separate, the roar in my ears has all but disappeared. I feel… fine? In Freddie’s aura, held by his comforting hands, I couldn’t feel unsafe even if I tried. Anyone else and I’d be hiding in the bathroom by now. But not with him. Not with Freddie.
“Thank you for standing up for me,” I say. Then, blushing, I add, “Talk about a knight in shining armour.”
“You were doing just fine on your own, to be fair. But no one speaks to my boy like that.” My heart swells.His boy? Freddie holds me with his sapphire gaze. “Take a look at what you’ve done, Shaun. You built this place from nothing and you’re nailing it! In spite of everything, you have your dream! And what has she got? A few thousand followers and the relationship equivalent of a smallpox outbreak? No wonder she wants to cheat on that guy!” He claps me gently on the back. “So, who’s winning?”
I smile and shrug.
“Me, I guess. Oh, and they split up, actually.”
