Finn was so late. Not just a little bit late, but a 'my alarm clock didn't go off, my cab got stuck in traffic so I had to walk, then some kid threw up on me so I had to go home and change' kind of late. He ran down the crowded sidewalk, muttering apologies as he push through people. He glanced down quickly at his watch and groaned. He was over an hour late. Maz was gonna kill him. Finn picked up the pace, his foot catching on a baby stroller that was passing by and tumbled into the poor soul that just happened to be in front of him. They both went down with a crash, Finn landing on the stranger's rather toned chest. "OOPH!"
"Oh my God, I am so sorry!" Finn apologized, trying to push himself off of the man. He only succeeded in digging his elbow further into his ribs, earning a grunt of pain. "Sorry! I'm just making this worse, aren't I?"
"No worries, buddy." the man chuckled kindheartedly. "Accidents happen, right?"
Finn couldn't help but laugh along as the two of them picked themselves back up. Finn winced when the man leaned over to picked up a guitar case, brushing off the dirt from the street. "I didn't break it did I?"
"Nah, that's whats the case is for." the man assured him, patting the brown case to prove his point. Finn let out a sigh of relief, allowing himself to get his first good look at the person he had just run into. His heart sped up as he realized, oh shit he's hot.
The man before him looked like the human personification of the words ruggedly handsome. His dark hair was a beautiful mess of thick, luscious curls that Finn just wanted to tangle his fingers in. He was dressed in dark jeans, a tight-fitting, white t-shirt, and an old red and brown leather, pilot's jacket. With warm skin and bedroom eyes, Finn was nearly certain that he had just knocked over a Greek god in disguise. Said Greek god's smile wavered slightly as he asked, "You okay, buddy?"
"Huh? Oh, yeah. I-I'm good. You're good. God, you are really good." the young man's babbling caused his face to heat of with embarrassment while other man just grinned in amusement. "I'm just g-gonna go. Sorry, so, so, sorry about t-the thing." With that, Finn brushed past the other man, mumbled self-loathing curses to himself as he continued his run to work.
Finn rushed into Kanata Cafe an hour and a half late, panting heavily and sweating. Rey didn't even look up as he entered; she merely tossed him his apron and said, "You're late. Again."
"Sorry." he mumbled, joining her behind the counter. "This morning's been one train wreck after another. First, my alarm doesn't go off, then my taxi gets stuck in rush hour, and then this little kid threw up on me so I had to go back-"
"Finn, I'm not the one you're gonna have to explain yourself too." Rey smirked, handing him a cup and an order. "Fix this one up, will you?"
"Has she said anything? Do you know how mad she is? Should I be worried?" Finn questioned, filling the order of a large Salted Caramel Mocha. Rey shrugged.
"You know how hard it is to read Maz sometimes." she told him, halting briefly when she remembered something. "On second thought, she did do that left eye twitch thing when I told her that you were a no call no show."
"I'm dead." Finn groaned, popping the lid on the drink. He handed back to Rey, who smiled sheepishly down at the name scribbled on the cup with little hearts drawn around it.
"Jessika?" she called out to the small coffee shop. The petite Asian girl pushed her way through the line and took the drink from Rey with a small wink. Rey stared after her as she left with a smitten look. Finn smirked at her.
"Jessika Pava's been coming here a lot lately. You know why?" he teased, knowing that Rey had a huge crush on Pava even if she didn't want to admit it. Rey straitened herself and scratched at her hair, which was twisted into three vertical buns.
"Um, I don't know. Maybe she just really likes the Salted Caramel Mochas." she said nonchalantly, tossing her best friend another order. Finn snorted.
"Maybe she just really wants to salt your caramel mocha." he snickered, ducking just in time as Rey chucked a cup at his head.
"Finn! Rey! If you break something, it is coming out of your paychecks." a tired voice warned from other side of the counter. The two baristas leaned over the counter to see their boss staring up at them in disapproval. Her small eyes were magnified by her large bifocals as she narrowed her gaze to Finn. "How nice of you to join us today."
"I'm sorry, Maz. This morning was a nightmare. This little kid threw up on me on my way here so I had to go home and change and then I ran into this guy on the street and made a fool of myself." he apologized. Maz's hard expression softened quickly. It was always hard for her to stay mad at her beloved employees. They were like children to her. Maz Kanata was known for taking kids with promise off the streets and giving them jobs and a place to stay. What she lacked in height and body mass, she made up in heart and wisdom.
"Just make sure to call next time something like this happens." she decided, heading back to her office in one of the backrooms. "For all I knew, you were dead in a ditch somewhere."
Rey and Finn chuckled at her, returning to their duties. "You know, if you just moved into one of Maz's rooms upstairs, like me, you wouldn't have crazy morning like this."
"I want to but I have to wait until the lease on my apartment is up." Finn explained, grimacing at the thought of his crappy apartment. There was no way his apartment building met health code standards, but it was the best he could afford at the time.
"Why don't you just move into my room until then? I hate knowing that you're living in that dump. That place is a fire hazard. I'm serious." she argued. Finn shook his head at his best friend's constant worrying.
"I'll think about it, Peanut." he told her to ease her mind. She grinned and punched his arm playfully.
"You better, Peanut." she replied, taking down the next costumer's order. For the next few hours, they went about their normal work day routine until it was time for their lunch break. Maz took over the orders as they sat at their favorite table by the window.
"So Maz is talking about hiring a full time musician to try to bring in more customers. Apparently live music is the new rage among the hipsters today. I think it could be cool as long as its acoustic stuff, you know? Like guitar and piano, nothing too obnoxious." Rey commented, sipping at her White Nut Cappuccino. The mention of guitars made Finn briefly think about the man from that morning. He stared out of the window, remembering the way his dark eyes sparkled when he laughed. Finn was brought back to earth by Rey's fingers snapping in front of his face. "Hello? Earth to Finn? Are you even listening to me?"
"Sorry, I was just thinking about this guy I ran into this morning. Literally." Finn mumbled, drinking tentatively at his German Chocolate Mocha. Rey wiggled her eyebrows and leaned forward in her chair.
"Was he cute? He had to be cute if you're still thinking about him. Did you get a name? A number?" she shot off, desperate for details. Finn never talked about his love life, mostly because he didn't have one.
"I was too busy physically assaulting him and making a fool out of myself." he reminisced bitterly, shaking his head at how utterly ridiculous he had acted. Rey frowned and patted his hand sympathetically.
"Oh, come on. It couldn't have been that bad." she tried to assure him.
"Rey. The words 'God, you're really good' came out of my mouth." he told her. Her eyes widened as she tried to contain her laugh for his sake. Finn sighed. "Its okay, you can laugh. It was embarrassing."
Rey exploded into a fit of giggles that drew the entire coffee shop's attention. Finn just sat back and let her have her moment. When she finally composed herself, she wiped tears from her eyes and sighed, "Oh, Finn, that's so bad."
"Yep, I'm aware." he agreed with a smile.
"So what did he look like?" she asked. Finn sighed and slid down in his chair.
"Rey, he was so hot. And not the normal, dime a dozen, kind of hot. He was a rugged, ruffled, Latino kind of hot." he told her. Rey's smile grew, loving the way Finn looked when he talked about this guy. "His hair looked like it was made from the finest silk in the world and washed in holy water. I'm not fucking kidding, Rey. I swear to God, I think his hair alone could cure cancer."
"Oh I believe you." she smiled, her eyes darting over Finn's shoulder to the door behind him as another customer came in. Her eyes stayed on this particular costumer as he made his way to the counter, carrying a guitar case by his side.
"And his eyes. God, he had these beautiful, dark, bedroom eyes." Finn continued as Rey squinted her eyes at the man at the counter, instantly recognizing his hair. "Rey? Rey, are you listening?"
"Yeah huh." she nodded, a giddy smile stretching across her lips. "Hey, Finn? Was this guy wearing a red and brown leather jacket?"
"Yeah, how'd you know?" Finn asked with wide eyes. Rey bit at her lip and pointed over his shoulder.
"Cause he's standing right behind you." she giggled. Finn looked horrified as he turned slowly in his seat to see the same man from that morning talking quietly with Maz. He slid even further down in his chair, hiding his face with his hand.
"Oh my God. Oh my God. This cannot be happening." he repeated over and over, wishing the earth would open up and swallow him to save him from this embarrassment. Rey, on the other hand, couldn't be more pleased.
"Damn, you were right, Finn. He does have good hair."