"Oh come oooon Lucy just ask him out already!! You know you two would be the perfect couple."
"Be serious Nat, he comes in here twice a week for a cinnamon roll and an iced latte, we've shared like maybe ten words. There's no way he'd say yes to me!"
Natalie was leaning across the counter while Lucy swept the floor, the two having just opened up shop for the day. Lucy owned the establishment, fittingly named 'Lucky Lu's Place For You.'
And that's pretty much what it was. This little corner shop café was cosy and easily created a sense of belonging... A sense of home. Many people from all stages and corners of life came here for the delicious goods this café had to offer. When a serious accident had forced Natalie to leave her job at the police force, she didn't know where to go... She had spent years drowning out her environment with pain medication, food, and mindless entertainment...
It was Lucy who helped her get off her feet. She knew all her regulars and knew what they were like... Easily able to tell when someone needed help.
And help she did.
She had hired Natalie the moment she heard she needed a job and patiently showed her how to do everything. How to work the coffee machine, how to make latte art, how to bake, so forth. Thankfully, Natalie was a quick learner and this busy bustling environment kept her mind busy and her hands at work.
They had grown a strong bond over the years of working together, and had considered their relationship to be something like sisterhood. Sisterhood they shared with the neighbouring beauty salon, it's beautiful owner currently perched on one of their chairs, staring at the café owner.
Missy Carlson, the queen of gossip and beauty.
Even on what she called a bad day she was beautiful, and that beauty wasn't just external. She had a good heart as well, and a strong marriage with her own husband Eddie, who worked at the same car repair shop as Lucy's brother Dante.
"Don't be a wimp Lucy, you've seen how he looks at you! That firefighter is head over heels for you, he goes all red in the face, even redder than his hair! That freckled ginger looks at no one else but you when he walks in here" Missy chuckled, resting her head on her hand. "I'll tell you what. You ask him out, make it a double date. Nat then has to ask out that big shy lug she eye's whenever he's in here."
Natalie gasped as she heard this and quickly leaned over to give her friend a light punch in the shoulder, blushing heavily. "As if! We haven't even spoken a word to each other, there's no way he'd say yes!" She laughed, rolling her eyes a bit as she then stood back, fixing her apron though paused as she saw Lucy staring at her.
"What?"
"I mean... It's not a bad idea. They're brothers, you know. Chuck and Brandy. A double date I think would keep all four of us at ease."
Silence filled the air as they stared at each other, finally snapping out of thought when Missy sighed and stood up. "Well, while you two love struck puppies try figure out what to do, this poodle has to go open up shop. Toodles!" She called as she left, the ball of the door jingling its cheery tune as she left... Just to jingle again a moment later as their first client of the day stepped in.
For now, the topic of dates had to be pushed to the back burner. They had work to do, and it was Friday, their busiest day of every week.
As time krept on, they saw many of their usuals. Ford, the flirtatious police officer who Nat once was on the force with. Eliot and Lizzy, the nature rights activists with hearts of gold and brains full of pot. Ziggy, the art student who Lucy always teased Natalie about since the crush he had on her was blatantly obvious. JD, Natalie's old work partner and current best friend other than Lucy and Missy. A handful of others as well, though two were still missing to pop by...
The two Lucy and Natalie wanted to see most.
The Leroy brothers.
They were both on the local fire fighting squad and were each unique mixes of muscle and kindness. Chuck, the younger brother, proved to be a chatterbox with good intentions while his older brother Brandy was a man of few words but a golden smile. Brandy had been the one to rescue Natalie from the sight of her big accident... One that had rendered her hospitalised for ages, and had cost her a working leg.
It had been a typical call. Neighbours called over a disturbance, lots of shouting in a house in a run down area. She had still told JD she'd be able to handle it on her own. When she arrived on scene, nothing seemed out of the ordinary... She had figured it was maybe a domestic violence case but the silence suggested otherwise. She knew she'd been careless. That she should have been far more alert... The front door had been unlocked, and the second she stepped through, pain spread through her left shoulder. She remembered seeing long strands of grey hair, and vibrant, unnaturally pink coloured eyes. Then an explosion.
She couldn't remember much after that. She remembered coughing on dust, and her lower half being in so much pain as the rubble of the house pressed down on her. Sirens blaring in her ears, and someone's almost psychotic laugh... She'd been dipping in and out of consciousness when Brandy had found her. He'd lifted the rubble off of her and picked her up with ease... Yet his strong figure was so gentle. Like he was scared she'd shatter like porcelain.
She could remember that was confusing to think. Till she finally saw herself in hospital... She had looked awful.
Thinking back to all this now, Natalie thoughtfully scratched a bit at her prosthetic leg. It started just above her knee on her right leg, and sometimes she had ghost itches on the leg itself it seemed. Not that she could feel it. She always found it strange how easily she had adjusted to it.
The ringing of the bell brought her out of her thoughts, and her eyes lit up. The last customers of the day were the two people she and Lucy had wanted to see the most. Chuck amd Brandy Leroy.
Sharing a few soft, shy hello's, silence filled the air as the two women went about making the men's usual orders. Glancing at Lucy, Natalie smiled at her friend and gave her an encouraging thumbs up, Lucy gazing at her for a moment before putting on a brave smile and looking back at Chuck, starting up a conversation with him.
As usual, Brandy stood quietly while he waited for his order. Orange muffin with a cappuccino, panda bear foam art on top. It always made Natalie feel flustered with how patiently he'd watch her work. How he'd just stand there with that soft smile on his face, brown eyes that lit up like honey when sunlight filtered across them. Every part of her wanted to grab him amd kiss him.
She slid his order across the table to him, though paused when she felt his large hands softly take hold of hers. "Natalie, r-right?... That's what your name tag s-says anyways... I know this is s-strange timing but... I-I wanted to ask if you'd like t-to go out on a date sometime?"
God that voice of his was like music and that stutter just made him even more adorable.
It felt like her heart racing as she could feel the heat rising to her cheeks. She didn't have to see it to know she was blushing. Tongue tied, she stared at him for a moment longer before she finally came out of her thoughts and smiled at him.
"U-Uhm, yes, of course!! I'd love to go out on a date with you Brandy, that'd be amazing... Uh, here! Let me give you my number so that we can sort out when it works out best for us" she replied and scribbled down her number on a napkin which she then handed to him, blushing even more as he then softly kissed the napkin before placing it in his pocket and taking his order.
"Perfect. I-I hope to see you again s-soon, Natalie. And h-hopefully outside of the uniform."
She quietly watched as the brothers left before looking at Lucy who was staring at her as well, also blushing with a big stupid grin on her face. Seems like she had also gotten a date.
Fucking score.
Hey folks! Cloudy here. Just some notes and things on todays writing piece!
First off, in this Au, the time period is of the current year, 2023.
Second of, you'll notice there's a difference in appearance between this Natalie and the original Natalie. This is due to a difference in storylines and decisions! In the original storyline, Natalie is heavily reliant on her fellow soldiers during the war. This trust is what prevents her from sustaining much physical damage. However, Natalie in this Au is much more independent. This leads to her loss of her leg.
If Life In Fae Valley were ever to be written in a scenario like this, it'd be much more a romance book than a fantasy/mystery book. However as someone who doesn't really read romance, I doubt I'd ever turn my beloved piece of work into something reminiscent of a hallmark movie.
Lastly but most importantly, I'd like to announce the official release of the Life In Fae Valley Discord server! A few of my own mutuals are already found there, as well as myself of course.
If you're interested in discussing this book more with me or others, don't be afraid to pop in for a chat! Official character designs can be found there as well!
Here's a link to join the server!
https://discord.com/invite/rj5b9SzCnq