AN: Sequel to If Pies Were Books, Yours Would Be Shakespeare's Letters

Stacie tried to avoid walking by the shop, even driving by it. Not because she didn't want to see Aubrey, but because she was afraid she would. That she'd see her and want nothing to do with her. Because the fact was that she still had feelings for her, she still missed her, and given half a chance she knew she would try to get Aubrey back.

There hadn't been a big fight that ended it all, or one big moment that changed everything. They had drifted apart until one day Aubrey had decided for the both of them that it just wasn't worth it. They'd barely seen each other in weeks, they were too independent, and Aubrey argued that if neither of them had tried to make an effort it was a clear sign that they were just not that invested.

Stacie owned her part of the blame. She'd gotten complacent, took Aubrey for granted sometimes. After all the effort she'd put into starting the relationship, she'd neglected to put in the effort to continue it. She just wished Aubrey would have given her a chance to try. Maybe she didn't deserve it, but Aubrey had unilaterally decided that there was nothing left to do but to end it, and it had hurt Stacie that whatever they had had meant that little to her.

So she avoided the shop, and all things baked, because after you'd tasted an Aubrey Posen pie, nothing else came close.

Beca had been surprisingly understanding given her initial reticence about Stacie pursuing Aubrey. She did seem a little relieved that the expected demise of said relationship hadn't had an impact on her own relationship with Chloe. Still, she had avoided mentioning Aubrey even though Stacie was sure she'd seen her a few times, and the occasional hand pies she brought for lunch mysteriously vanished. Even office birthdays had been devoid of the traditional birthday cake and had been traded for birthday subs.

She knew it was stupid, massochistic even, to be walking down this street on this day.

She knew Aubrey would be in the shop and that she'd be busy. Being the nerd that she was, Aubrey had once made fun of her, accusing her that she was probably one of those dorks who made March 14 her biggest sales day. And she was. Or she used to be before she'd sworn off all things pastry.

So maybe she'd be too busy to see her. Maybe she could convince herself that whatever reaction Aubrey had today was due to the fact that she just had a lot of work, and that it wasn't because she didn't care or didn't want Stacie back.

Stacie stopped when she spotted the red awning over the shop window. She could still turn back, walk away, claim temporary insanity and go back home. She was still too far from the shop but seeing the familiar facade had triggered something in her brain and she swore she had started to smell the scent of baking that used to assault her as soon as she opened the door.

She smiled. Aubrey smelled like that too, like freshly baked pies and sugar and berries. She remembered how happy Aubrey was when she baked, how much feeling she put into everything she made. She'd told her that baking had been her way to escape from all the stressful things in her life. Her mom had taught her how to bake and they'd hide away in the kitchen after Aubrey had a bad day at school or the pressure to keep her grades up was too high.

She went to college, got a business degree and started to climb the corporate ladder, as was expected of her, without much joy or conviction. She'd started spending more and more time baking until Chloe practically forced her to quit her job and open the shop when she got tired of arriving at their shared apartment to find a bevy of bread and cookies and not knowing what to do with them.

And so the shop was born, and Aubrey was happy, and Stacie realized that showing up here, at Aubrey's safe space, in the middle of her busiest day, was probably not the best idea if she wanted a chance at getting her back.

Stacie shook her head, ridding herself of the scent, and turned around, almost immediately crashing with someone coming the other way.

"Shit." She grabbed the person's arm, recognizing the redhead stumbling backwards. "I'm sorry."

Chloe looked up. "Stacie? What?"

Stacie tried to smile and look innocent, like she was just passing by for no particular reason and this was all a coincidence. "I was just-" Chloe narrowed her eyes, daring her to lie, and she sighed defeatedly. "I don't know. It was a bad idea. I'm gonna go."

Chloe arched an eyebrow. "So I shouldn't tell Aubrey you were lurking outside the shop?"

"I wasn't-" Chloe's eyebrow shot higher. "Don't say anything to Aubrey, please."

"Alright," Chloe said, moving past her. "We're really busy today anyway."

"I figured." Stacie sighed. "It was nice seeing you, Chlo."

Chloe waved without turning back and disappeared inside the shop, making the bell over the door jingle. The sound triggered a pavlovian response in Stacie making her smile. The chime of the bell had always been followed by Aubrey coming out of the back room to greet her.

Stacie's smile fell as she gave one last longing look at the shop before turning and going back the way she came. She figured she could try texting Aubrey or maybe she could try getting over it, get over her.

She didn't fully understand why she was still clinging to this idea, maybe she was just being stubborn. When she'd met her, she'd decided she and Aubrey were meant to be, that they'd be good together, and her brain refused to let go. This idea wasn't even founded on something rational it was just-

"Stacie?" Stacie whirled around and there was Aubrey, looking adorably disheveled. Her hair was barely held back in a ponytail, there was a streak of flour on her cheek, and she looked agitated, as if she'd rushed to catch up to Stacie. "Hey."

"Chloe said-"

"I wasn't lurking," Stacie hurried to say.

Aubrey paused, frowning in confusion and finally chuckling. "She just said she saw you outside."

"Oh." Stacie exhaled a laugh.

"Happy Pi Day," Aubrey said.

"Happy Pi Day." The attempt at levity despite the awkwardness made Stacie smile.

Aubrey mirrored her smile for a few seconds and then shook her head. "Did you- Were you-" Aubrey bit her lip, clearly at a loss for words. "I haven't seen you in a while."

Now it was Stacie's turn to not know what to say. Aubrey knew why Stacie had stayed away. "You broke up with me."

"I know, I-" She shrugged and looked guiltily away then looked back at Stacie. "I just thought you might show up anyway?"

Stacie realized that there were a number of reasons why Aubrey would think she'd go back, she had been about to do just that, but it had never occurred to Stacie that Aubrey might've been waiting for her to do it. "I didn't think you'd want to see me."

Stacie realized how stupid that sounded considering Aubrey had seemingly run out of the shop on her busiest day just to see her.

"I miss you." Aubrey's admission made Stacie's heart soar. "I'm sorry about the way I ended things."

"You miss me?" Aubrey nodded shily. "Does that mean-"

"Do you want some pie?"

Stacie smiled. "I'd love some."