After three years of dating, Mary was more or less familiar with Matthew's various quirks and eccentricities by now.
Some she found adorable, like the way he made sure to clear his schedule so that his Saturday nights were free to watch Doctor Who or how he loved Nutella and peanut butter sandwiches. Others, like the way he took his coffee with a sprinkle of cinnamon or how he always hummed while brushing his teeth, were a little harder to figure out. But one of the most amusing, to her anyway, was the way that during the autumn months, he was obsessed with Starbucks pumpkin spice lattes.
It went far beyond the obsession with the sweet, spicy drink that the rest of the world seemed to have. Mary herself liked them (although she was more of a gingerbread latte sort of person if she was being honest), but Matthew was a pumpkin spice fiend. A few days before the start of September his eyes would begin to sparkle, and a reminder would go up on the calendar on their fridge in his careful block letters. He would take the giftcards and coupons he had carefully stockpiled all year and go first thing on the first day they began offering the drink. Their garbage can in the kitchen would be full of empty cups within the week, and the flat forever smelled like a pumpkin patch—not that Mary minded that much. When he was cramming for a big test, Matthew would sometimes require multiple pumpkin spice lattes to get him through the night. Mary would tease him when he'd send her out to get another one for him ("You're like a pregnant woman with cravings!") but he never cared just as long as he got his fix.
Now, Mary struggled to balance the cup in her hand as she unlocked the door to their flat. She found Matthew sitting exactly where she'd left him, lost adrift in a sea of heavy law books and papers and highlighters and notebooks, tilting his head back to drain the last few sips from the current latte in his hand. "There you are," he said, his eyes lighting up at the sight of the steaming cup in her hand.
"Here I am," Mary agreed, pausing in the doorway to kick off her boots and unwind the scarf from around her neck. "The baristas are starting to recognize me. They gave you a coupon for next time." She handed the slip of paper to him along with his coveted latte, which he sipped eagerly. "I wonder if there's some kind of rewards card you can sign up for. It would certainly pay for itself, the way you've been carrying on."
"I know you don't understand why I love these so much, but you're a saint for putting up with me."
"I know." Mary grinned and stood behind his chair, her arms coming around his shoulders to embrace him from behind. She trailed her lips along his temple, her eyes skimming over pages of notes and highlighted passages of books. "But you're right, I don't understand it." She nipped lightly at his ear as he took another sip, grinning as he smiled over the rim of his cup.
"I drank one of these the night before my first big exam in university," he explained, reaching to pull her down onto his lap. "I got full marks. Ever since then I just need them in order to study. I think it's as much of a good luck charm as it is that I just love the taste."
"You don't have to explain," Mary said softly, stroking his hair. "I think it's sweet."
"Not as sweet as you."
"That might be up for debate."
"Really? I don't think so. Perhaps I should do a comparison."
"I don't want to distract from your studying."
His blue eyes danced mischievously as he looked up at her. "I can take a break."
When she bent her head to kiss him, his lips tasted deliciously of pumpkin spice latte.
