There she was again. That beautiful blonde with those bright hazel eyes that almost looked golden. Cullen frantically ran his fingers through his hair, and brushed his hands down the front of his apron, hoping he looked immaculate. He pushed his glasses up on his nose and put an easy confident smile on his lips. Her hair looked like a wild mane that had been blown around by an absolute maelstrom. The barrage of recent storms had been driving more and more people into the café out of the cold. It was good for business, but Cullen was run off his feet. He had the pleasure of being assistant manager. That didn't stop him from being a barista too, unfortunately. His days were hectic, but the new regular hadn't escaped his notice. She was making her way up to the counter now. Cullen honestly didn't know why she made him feel this nervous. He had a job to do. He often forgot that he was still a person outside the job. He was allowed to connect with people, wasn't he? He knew he took the job far too seriously, but that was just the way he worked.
"Hi. How are you?" he asked in a friendly tone. It was just good business, but he was genuinely interested in her reply. Those big honey eyes locked with his, and it took every ounce of self-control in him to not sigh like a schoolgirl in the throes of her first crush.
"Hey, I'm good thanks. Can I have the largest hot chocolate you can summon please? I'm bloody frozen." Her delicate voice had his stomach doing flips.
"Certainly! That'll be..." His mind wandered during the familiar task of charging her. He surreptitiously studied her face instead. He didn't think such an excellent bone structure should be allowed. Those high, sharp cheekbones with that beautiful straight nose and defined, yet feminine jawline...
"If you'd like to take a seat, I'll bring it down to you." he offered, with a bright smile. She blinked slowly at him a couple of times, quite slowly, before seeming to snap out of a trance.
"Uh! Yes! Thank you! That's awfully kind of you-" She squinted to look at his name tag. "Cullen." She smiled shyly then disappeared. He couldn't keep the grin off his face as he grabbed the largest mug and set about making her a hot chocolate.
"Hey, boss. Isn't your lunch break? I can take care of that order if you like..." Josie was just arriving in behind the counter. She was a sweet girl, the customers loved her. He had actually forgotten all about his lunch break when that beautiful creature had walked in. But he was starting to feel a little bit daring now.
"Thanks, Josie. I got this one."
"It's for that girl isn't it?" He just caught the wicked smile on her face. "That girl you've been giving goo-goo eyes all week. I have you pegged, Rutherford." He blushed furiously and stammered a denial, his hands fumbling for just a second. He nearly dropped everything. He heard Josie laugh. He shot her an evil glare. He placed the massive mug on a tray, sprayed a dollop of cream on top of it, sprinkled chocolate flakes on it. He put a tiny jug of milk beside it, then took a minute to compose himself. He took his apron off, folding it neatly and ran his fingers through his hair again. He rolled up his sleeves, and pushed those damnable glasses up on his nose again. "You look lovely. Now go get her!" Josie muttered, giving him a little shove.
He picked up the tray and went looking for her. He found the woman in a quiet corner, with books and papers surrounding her. He saw what looked like complex mathematical formulae and graphs. She was probably far too intelligent to let him sit with her for even a second, but he knew he'd be doing himself a disservice if he didn't at least try.
"Large hot chocolate, with cream, flakes, and a small jug of milk." He fixed a warm smile on his face as she looked up, trying to mask his nervousness. She looked exasperated when she looked up initially, but her face transformed with what could only be described as child-like glee.
"That looks pretty damn good... Thank you, Cullen." There she was, saying his name again. He set the tray down carefully, taking a breath to consolidate his courage.
"I don't mean to bother you, but would you mind if I sat with you for a minute...?" That look of surprise on her face had his heart racing. This was where she told him to leave off and stop being a creep.
"Uh, sure. Of course. Shit. Sorry about the mess. Let me just..." She hastily gathered up papers with scribbled numbers all over them, but he honestly couldn't focus on them. Had she just said yes? Okay, he hadn't planned for this. What was he meant to do now? He sat down, perhaps a bit woodenly. She stuffed the papers into a book on quantum mechanics and smiled nervously at him.
"I'm sorry... I hadn't planned this far ahead, I have no idea what to say. I thought you'd tell me to sod off, if I'm being honest." Cullen blurted. He rubbed the back of his neck, and tried to smile, but honestly, he was flustered. The blonde gave him a shy smile, but she honestly didn't seem put off by him.
"Well... Cullen's an odd first name to have. What does it mean?" She was trying to make conversation, but he blushed furiously.
"Uh... It means... Handsome." He laughed, trying to dispel how awkward he felt. It wasn't working.
"Well, it's certainly a fitting name..." she said coyly, as she took a sip from the hot chocolate.
"I'm sorry, I haven't asked your name... Terribly rude of me." He was trying to move past his awkwardness and reclaim what little confidence he'd gained over the years. He was a little bit more pleased than he should have been to see a blush in her cheeks.
"Dragana Trevelyan. I work with the bio-tech lab across the street."
"Quantum mechanics, right?" He gave her a crooked smile that had her grinning back foolishly at him.
"How'd you know? Wait do you recognise the formulae?!" He laughed at that, a rich, hearty sound.
"Nothing as fancy as that, I'm afraid. Your book indicates as much." She blushed even further at that.
"Of course..." They sat in a companionable silence for a time, each of them shooting coy looks at each other. Cullen couldn't help but feel like a teenage boy again, who had his first serious crush. She was absolutely beautiful and it appeared he was able to make her blush. He didn't quite know what that meant, but he was sure it must be a good thing. Right? "Would... Would it be a bit presumptuous to leave you my number? I mean, I know mother always said don't hassle the help, but..." She bit at her lip nervously. He had been too busy, staring into her eyes, completely lost that it took a minute for his brain to catch up.
"What? I mean, of course yeah." He cleared his throat, and made himself say something that didn't sound completely unintelligent. "I'd like that." At least he tried. She laughed in relief and quickly penned her number and passed a small slip of paper to him. "I'll uh... Call you sometime. Maybe take you out?" He cursed himself for being so damn awkward, but he supposed she was more than worth the torture he was inflicting upon himself.
"I'd like that." she teased with a wink. He laughed good naturedly at his own folly. He knew not to take himself too seriously.
"Enjoy your hot chocolate." He decided it was best to make a tactical retreat before he embarrassed himself further in front of this bright, beautiful, and rare woman. And he really was on his lunch break, hence the need to have an actual lunch. She gave him a flustered goodbye. What he didn't see was the look of longing on her face when his back was turned.