Hullo! :)
First, there are a few key factors that you need to be aware of before reading this fanfic:
1. Everyone is HUMAN – this means there are no ally or enemy groups. The characters will thus have differing personalities from the books and they may hang out with people they normally wouldn't. Deal with it and don't let your prejudices get in the way.
2. Because they're all human, I may tweak their physical appearances a bit. But you'll still be able to recognize them, no worries.
3. There are mentions of college and things pertaining to it. I'm still in high school so I may make a few mistakes; please be patient with me.
4. Seeing as I'm in high school, obviously I have no clue what I'm going on about when I talk about the café and the complex system. Everything I say most likely stems from Wikipedia knowledge so if I say anything or use any terms wrongly, forgive me!
5. I've never lived in New York (I can only dream) so some places may be fictional – which is works out alright seeing as this is a fictional story.
6. This has nothing to do with the movie Serendipity, just that the cafe happens to also share the same name. Also, I changed the name from my previous title of Providence because of a little hiccup on my part. Sorry for the confusion!
7. The only thing I own is Marty, the sex-addict. Yay Marty!
Enjoy!
Chapter One
Mary Alice Brandon, who refused to answer to anything but Alice, woke with a start on Saturday morning.
Brown eyes blinking open, then shut, she groaned from her fetal position on the bed. Eyes still squeezed shut she reached over with her left arm and felt around the bedside table for her cell phone. Finding it, she wrapped her hand around the chunky object before grabbing it and looking at the time.
The cell phone innocently informed her that it was 5:17 A.M.
"Fuck!" Swearing more blasphemies under her breath, she jumped out of bed and began rummaging through her room for her uniform. Clothes were strewn all over the ground, leaving only patches of wood boards open to air.
"Skirt, skirt, where is my bleeding skirt?" She chanted before pulling out a wrinkled black cloth out of a sad looking pile of clothing on her equally sagging arm chair. "Aha! Now where is that shirt?"
Twelve minutes later and she had finally found all the clothing needed to complete her uniform and had already donned on said ensemble. Smoothing down her skirt, she gazed at herself critically in the mirror. The skirt was plain, with not a frill or design in sight. It modestly fell an inch or two above her knees and made her ass look rather nice Alice mused as she stared happily at her backside. The shirt was just that: a soft, cream dress shirt, without the bothersome collar, that buttoned all the way up till the beginning hint of cleavage. She rolled the sleeves up and ran a hand through her black curls. If there was one perk of having short hair, it was that she didn't need to bother with it every time she woke up late for work.
After washing her face and brushing her teeth, she rushed towards the kitchen. Glancing at the time ("Shit, it's already 5:48?"), she grabbed a pop-tart in one hand, and with the other grabbed her coat and bag and quickly slipped on a pair of black high heels before running out the door.
Living on the third floor of a five story apartment complex, Alice decided to take the stairs. The building itself was old enough to be her great-great-relative, which meant that the elevator mirrored the movements of said relative. Skipping steps, she slipped on her coat and began munching on her pop-tart.
Oh yum. I had no clue I still had s'more flavored pop-tarts left.
She finally reached the first floor and raced through the lobby, shouting through a crumb-infested mouth, "Hiya Marty!"
Marty the lobbyist was a 50 year old who did nothing but read sex novels. He was supposedly there to help the residents with any problems they had, but the only problem that Marty had ever helped solve for Alice was her leaking sink, and even then he hadn't been much help. Still, she adored the old grump, who always baked cookies on Christmas and left a batch in front of her door, although he always denied it.
"Uh," he grunted, too absorbed in his latest smut.
Pushing through the doors, Alice had to pause and adjust her eyes to the sudden brightness of the morning. A light wind ruffled her black curls and she grinned into the sun.
I love Autumn.
Humming a light tune, she began walking down the sidewalk, eyes drinking in the life around her. The whole neighborhood was rather old, but that didn't diminish the quaint character of the locale. Trees dutifully lined the street, leaves brilliantly displaying their red and golden hues before their final closing scene. There were plenty of boutiques and cozy restaurants, and Alice grinned and waved at Aria who was rearranging the chocolate display in the window of her candy store.
There wasn't anywhere else Alice would have dreamed of living.
After ten minutes of walking, she finally reached her destination. Serendipity was a small café where she had been working part time in order to help ease the rent of her apartment. Though her parents agreed to shoulder the cost of her education at New York University, Alice had to pay for her own apartment. Uneasy about borrowing too much money from the bank, she had done a few odd jobs. So far, her job as a waitress was by far her most favorite, a fact that irked her parents.
"Alice, why can't you get an internship at a local newspaper? I thought you wanted to be a journalist."
She did want to become a journalist. But lately, she was simply content with the way things were: writing for her school newspaper and going to Serendipity to work during the morning and night shifts on the weekend and sometimes during the weekdays.
Sighing and pushing her nagging parents out of her mind (Go away she thought with a scowl) she entered the café.
"You're ten minutes late for your shift," a monotone voice informed her.
Boo – busted. Fixing her features into a remorseful expression, Alice turned around to face Rosalie. Like Alice, she was wearing a waitress uniform.
"Okay, yes I know, but this time I actually have a valid reason Rose! See, when I woke up this morning, early might I add, my next door neighbor, Ms. Tillie, bless her old soul, knocked on my door asking for – "
Before Alice could continue, Rosalie cut her off, green eyes narrowed, "Save it Alice."
A warm chuckle greeted the two, and Alice perked up when she saw Emmet McCarty, whose tan face was split with a handsome smile. Unlike the two who helped serve and take orders, Emmet was the sous chef at Serendipity, and a brilliant one at that.
"And what are my two favorite girls up to now?"
Pouting, Alice pointed a reproaching finger towards Rosalie, "Rose is being a bitch."
Spluttering, Rosalie opened her mouth in retaliation when Emmet kissed her unsuspecting lips. Breaking away, he winked at her and huskily whispered, "Rose, it's not nice to be so mean early in the morning."
Smothering back a grin, Alice gave Rosalie a small victory dance behind Emmet's shoulders and left the two lovers to be.
Walking away, Alice could hear Rosalie grumbling, "Traitor."
Emmet's laughter greeted her accusation and suddenly the two were silent. Alice rolled her eyes. No doubt he was shutting up Rosalie the only way he knew how; by kissing her until both were breathless and blushing like high school students. When Alice had first started working in Serendipity seven months ago, the two were already well integrated into the café's routine. According to Emmet they had met in high school and it was love at first sight for both. Rosalie had merely snorted and mumbled under her breath, "You mean you stalked me for the first half of high school."
Shooting her a wicked smile, Emmet gave her a short but hard kiss on the mouth.
"You know you liked it."
The two were almost complete opposites of each other. While Emmet was loud and a complete goof-ball, Rosalie was more withdrawn and could be blunt to the point of being mistaken for a bitch. But Alice had never met a better matched couple and she loved them fiercely.
Slipping on the skirt apron, Alice went into the kitchens to see if she could quickly steal a cup of tea. A blonde hair and blue eyed vision greeted her.
"James!" Alice gave him a delighted bear hug.
James scowled down at her, "Hey now, you can't always go around randomly hugging me or else my bad boy image might go up in flames."
Laughing, she gave him a playful shove before looking around for a familiar mug.
"Please, you get all emotional and weepy whenever somebody complains about one of your dishes."
"Oi, I'll have you know that cooking is an art and artists are sexy as hell. Just because I want others to appreciate my work doesn't make me any less appealing."
Alice scoffed, "Right."
"Isn't it a bit early for you two to be arguing already?" Jasper Hale suddenly appeared with an apron in one hand and a sunny yellow mug in the other.
In the span of a second Alice went from standing next to James to standing in front of Jasper with her hands held out and a look of adoration in her eyes. Jasper blinked, shook his head, and placed the mug in her hand before walking away.
Leaning against a counter and taking a slow sip from the cup, Alice let out a happy noise.
James shook his head, "Such a simple mind."
Unperturbed, Alice took her time swallowing before retorting, "Believe me, Jasper has way more girls falling after him than you do."
"You've got to be kidding me – that twerp?"
"Hey, this twerp happens to be here." Jasper had reappeared just as quietly and suddenly as his first appearance.
James stuck out a tongue while Alice lifted her mug in thanks.
Continuing on, despite Jasper standing in the same room, she nodded thoughtfully, "Absolutely. He's got his looks going for him and he's charming to boot. And the mind boggling part is he's not gay."
James smirked, "In other words he's a parents' wet dream."
Jasper frowned.
"Uh, guys, can we please stop talking about me like this? It's a bit degrading."
James ignored him and plowed on, his grin growing by the second, "I, on the other hand, satisfy and go beyond the expectation of every girls' dream. Hell, I leave them panting for more."
Wrinkling her pert nose Alice grumbled, "Gross" into her mug.
James shrugged.
"Hey, I can't help what I am. That's just the way things are."
To both Alice's and Jasper's relief, Rosalie entered the kitchen with her hands on her hips and a slim brow rose in expectance. That only meant one thing: it was time to get their asses out of the kitchen and to start serving some customers.
Despite being a Saturday, the morning was surprisingly slow. Alice gazed out the window; with the sun shining and the wind being minimal, they had decided to put some tables outside for customers wanting to enjoy the weather. She and Jasper had played a quick game of rock, paper, and scissors to determine who would get to serve outside.
After five tries ("You cheated! I demand another round!"), Alice had lost and spectacularly at that.
Casting one last forlorn look and ignoring Jasper's cheerful wave, she turned and walked back into the kitchen. Emmet was chatting quietly in the corner with Rosalie, and every now and then his hand would play with the blonde strands of hair that had come loose from her ponytail. James on the other hand was making a salad, his tongue sticking out of the corner of his mouth and his brow furrowed in utter concentration.
Alice chuckled. So dramatic.
Looking around the kitchen, she frowned.
"James?"
He grunted.
"Where's Victoria?"
"Dunno."
Although his tone was intentionally indifferent, Alice could see his shoulders tense and his mouth flatten to a stiff frown. Victoria, the head chef of Serendipity, was perhaps the sexiest woman alive that Alice had ever met in her short 21 years. A curvaceous red-head, she practically oozed pheromone and her constantly quirked lips knew that as well. She was wonderfully kind, but could be deliberately cruel as well – especially when it concerned James.
When Alice had first started working at the café, Victoria and James constantly fought like cats and dogs. To this day they still saved their best sneers for each others' eyes only. But whenever James thought nobody was looking, Alice would catch him casting looks of such yearning at the oblivious siren that her own heart would break. Victoria was too stubborn to notice and James was too stubborn to change that.
Rosalie piped up from her corner, "She's coming around noon; had to go to the doctors first."
"Is she sick?"
Once again, the indifferent tone. Alice scowled; she wished he would just admit that he was concerned.
Rosalie simply shrugged, but Alice could see the worry in her eyes. Although Rose would deny it, she constantly mothered everybody at the café. She was surprisingly sweet like that.
"Well, she better not be or else she'll contaminate everybody," James muttered, viciously adding the finishing touches to the salad before thrusting it towards Alice's direction, "table six."
"Whoa, you might want to be more careful with the dressing in the future. I don't think that they can handle such abuse," Alice joked, wanting to see a smile on James's troubled face.
Instead he grunted and muttered an apology before going off to make another dish. Kissing Rosalie tenderly on the forehead, Emmet went to go join him, no doubt to interrogate James. As both Rosalie and Alice went out of the kitchen, Rosalie took the salad out of Alice's hands.
"I'll serve this. Go see if anyone's glasses need refilling."
"Yes ma'am," Alice gave a mini salute and grinned at Rosalie's twitch of the lips.
For the greater part of the morning, Alice went from table to table bearing her water pitcher. She would stop to chat with the regulars and would pause at the door from time to time, russet eyes furtively looking for one specific customer. Not seeing him, she would then deflate and then continue on her journey of refilling the glasses of parched customers.
As it neared noon, more and more people began piling into the café.
Rushing towards the kitchen, Alice immediately yelled upon opening the doors, "Where the hell is my order for table twelve? They're starting to get impatient and it's not pretty!"
"Wait, I'm almost finished," Emmet swore under his breath, "where the fuck is Victoria when you need her?"
"I'm here bear boy, so chill out," Victoria drawled.
"Victoria!" A smile lit Alice's features.
"I wish you would stop calling me that," Emmet grumbled, his dimples even more prominent when he frowned. Ever since Rosalie had 'accidently' revealed that Emmet still slept with his stuffed teddy that he had had since he was a young child, Victoria constantly teased him about it.
"I'll stop when it starts getting old."
"Which means never," Emmet gave a defeated sigh.
Victoria gave him a pretty smile before putting on the white chef's coat. Tying up her wild curls, she went to go wash her hands before moving to join Emmet and James.
"About time you got here," James bit out, shooting a nasty glare in her direction.
"Aw, hope you didn't miss me too much," Victoria retorted, her words dripping with sugar and venom.
Alice groaned.
"Quit it. We don't have time for arguments, and Emmet I thought you were almost finished?"
Letting out an annoyed huff, he placed the finished dish onto the counter.
"God, people just don't appreciate that these things take time."
Alice took the plate with a laugh, "You're almost sounding as bad as James."
Before Alice left the kitchen, Victoria managed to halt her with three words.
"Alice, he's here."
James raised a confused brow.
"He? Who the hell is – oh. Him."
Flushing red, Alice shot both Emmet and James a glare but that didn't stop them from letting out amused sniggers. Victoria, seeing Alice's discomfort, barked out, "Who told you to stop and start giggling like little girls? Go back to work."
Giving Victoria a relieved smile and a mouthed 'thank you', Alice left the kitchen and distractedly gave table twelve their order with a side dish of humble apologies. After she managed to get them settled down and refilled their glasses, Alice hurried outside with pitcher clutched in on hand.
"Hey, I thought we agreed that I got to serve outside," Jasper said with a playful frown.
"Yes, I know, but Jasper, please switch with me," Alice pleaded.
"What? Why – oh. Right then, off you go."
"Yes! Thank you, thank you, thank you!"
Alice stood on her toes to give Jasper a kiss on his exasperated face.
Smiling amusedly, Jasper ruffled her hair before muttering in her ear, "Don't come on too strong. You might give the poor man a heart attack."
Sticking a tongue at Jasper's retreating figure, she subtly began moving to each table to refill the water, her eyes searching out for his.
Brown met blue.
Alice felt her breath momentarily leave her before it returned with a vengeance, leaving her light headed and her mouth dry. Not wanting to seem too obvious, she gave him a small smile before returning her attention to the table she was at and making banal conversation. She did this for the next three tables, her toes impatiently curling in her heels. Finally she reached his table and as she began pouring water into his glass she tried to maintain a steady hand.
"Alice, how are you?"
His voice flowed over Alice and left her flushed. Holding the pitcher tightly to her chest, she gave the man a brilliant smile.
"I'm good. How are you?"
Conversation so similar to those of the previous tables, but it left Alice tongue-tied nonetheless.
"Good. It's beautiful today, isn't it?"
He smiled then, and Alice stared in yearning at the sweet curve of his lips and the mischievous glint in those sky blue eyes of his.
"Absolutely," Alice smiled back, heart on sleeve for the whole world to see.
The two continued to converse, unaware of the two pair of eyes gazing at them critically from inside of the café. Rosalie took in Alice's flushed cheeks and her uncharacteristically shy demeanor and let out an amused chuckle. Jasper turned towards Rosalie in confusion.
"What's so funny?"
Rosalie shook her head, "God, she's so obvious. It's amazing he hasn't noticed that she's completely in love with him."
Jasper paused, staring at the pair in scrutiny, before letting out a breath.
"No, that's not funny. It's sad if you ask me."
From the corner of her eyes, Rosalie gazed at Jasper's tight mouth and unwavering gaze before looking away.
"You're right. It is rather sad."
Gasp! Who could this mystery man be? :O