004. Her blue barista

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Another day, another way of motivating herself with some caffeine to kickstart her revision.

Amy walked into her regular coffee house that morning, the familiar and delightful smell of fresh brewed coffee filling her nostrils.

"Hey Amy!" Tails kindly greeted her from the counter, "The usual?"

The pink hedgehog nodded with a smile and began dishing out her change from her purse. "Yes, thank you Tails!" She said, giving the barista her money, "Say, has Tikal been any better?"

"She's much better than before," the fox said, putting the money in the till box and grabbed a plastic cup, "The flu had her good though. Shadow's making her stay home for a few more days."

"Over concerned much?"

He laughed, shaking his head. "Yeah, that's Shadow for-"

"Tails!" A voice called from the back that Amy was unfamiliar with, "Boss is calling for you at eight o'clock!"

Tails gave her an apologetic smile. "...I'll be right back."

"No problem," she assured him, watching the fox disappear into the curtains. Amy then glanced around the place. Luckily, it wasn't so busy as it was the weekend. Whilst she waited, she pulled out her phone and replied to the missed messages she received last night.

"So sorry about that!" She heard the same voice say. Amy looked up from her screen to see a blue hedgehog wiping his hands with a towel before making his way to the counter, "Tails is usually good with the computers and stuff, so our manager needed him for some data checking."

Amy pocketed her phone away and shook her head in understanding. "No, that's fine."

He pulled out a black marker and held the plastic cup Tails had left him. "An iced latté, right?"

"Yes please," she said politely, her eyes somehow not able to leave him, "A-And um..."

He finally looked over to her and Amy immediately panicked, quickly shifting her eyes away from his. "S-Soya!"

Dammit!

"Oh, with soy milk?" He asked, a slightly amused smile etching his lips.

She paused but then nodded meekly. "Y-Yes, please."

"Not a problem!" He grinned and marked it on the cup, "And your name?"

"Amy..."

"Thanks for your order, Amy!" The blue hedgehog said and pointed where she needed to wait, "It'll be right up in a moment!"

Noticing the small line behind her, Amy nodded again and scurried over to the waiting area. She pulled out her phone again as a distraction but she couldn't help but peek at the blue barista as he took the other customers' orders. Tails came out from the back a few minutes after and helped him with the drinks, and she prayed that the fox would be giving her drink to save the evident embarrassment growing on her cheeks.

"Here you go. One medium soya iced latté!"

Though, not all wishes came true.

The pink hedgehog jumped lightly as her cold drink slid against the counter topped with its straw. She steadily glanced up at the blue hedgehog with a small smile, hoping that everything didn't look too obvious. "Thank you."

He gave her a wink in return. "You're welcome! See you around!"

Amy blushed and nodded. Behind him, she gave a small wave at Tails who smiled and waved back. She took her drink and before the blue male had turned away from her, she managed to catch his name from his tag.

Hastily turning and walking back to the entrance, Amy let out a breath of relief when she was outside.

Sonic.

She guessed the name suited him. Seeing how he was blue and how fast he managed to make her drink. He was... cute too. Energetic for someone who would be working early at this hour.

Stop thinking like this, Amy! He's a new employee. You don't even know him!

She sighed, taking a sip from her latté but paused when she noticed something written on her cup other than her name.

We have matching eyes! Except... I could get lost in yours. ;)

Amy nearly choked on her drink.

...

Amy was actually hesitant to go into the coffee house the next day. She planned to do her homework there, like she usually would do with the free time she'd have left after her classes.

However if Sonic was there, then she'd have to stay cautious and force herself to relax and she hated doing both of those things. It was unnatural of her and stressful! Hopefully his shift wasn't today then she wouldn't have to worry about her heart doing one hundred beats per minute.

When she entered, she immediately spotted a female orange echidna serving a customer their drink.

Amy beamed and quickly walked up to the counter as the customer turned to leave. "Tikal!"

Tikal closed the till box and looked over to her with a bright smile. "Hi Amy!"'

"Are you feeling okay now?" The pink hedgehog asked her friend.

"Mhm!" The echidna nodded followed by a small cough, "W-Well... almost. But I'm able to work fine!"

Amy felt a little unsure. "Don't try and push yourself, Tikal. Make sure to drink lots of water!"

"I'll keep that in mind," Tikal gently laughed out before taking a plastic cup, "Iced latté?"

"Yes please," she said taking out her money, "Is Tails around?"

The echidna shook her head as she dropped the money in the cash register. "He'll be here later on with Sonic."

Amy's eyes quickly widened, her grip on her purse almost loosening. "S-Sonic?!"

"Yes," Tikal answered with another laugh as she made her drink, "He just started working here."

"Oh..."

Tikal paused in pumping some of the vanilla in her cup and stared at her with concern. "Is something wrong?"

Totally wrong. "N-No, nothing's wrong," the pink hedgehog reassured her with another smile.

Her friend didn't seem too convinced. She couldn't blame her though, that was a horrible attempt to back herself up. Though luckily, Tikal didn't question it and kindly smiled back at her and continued making the order.

Amy thanked Tikal once her drink was done and left her a small tip, before turning around to sit somewhere she would able to concentrate. Once she found a suitable spot, she proceeded to take out her textbook and comfortably seated herself as she opened her bookmarked page.

Tikal accompanied her a while later with another drink for free at the near end of her shift. The two talked about their classes for the next half an hour and their summer plans once final exams were over.

"Oh! Shadow's outside waiting for me," the echidna said, looking at her phone and then back over to Amy, "Are you staying here for a little more?"

"Mhm!" She replied and then flicked all the unread pages of her textbook with her thumb, "I want to get these done and I think I'll be able to finish it today!"

"Please take small breaks when you do, okay?" the echidna told her. Amy laughed and nodded reassuringly before they shared a hug. Tikal waved her a goodbye as she started to make her way out. "Take care!"

Amy smiled after her but it evidently dropped when she saw a blue hedgehog entering the shop, holding the door for Tikal. They shared a small greeting before parting. She immediately snapped back down at her textbook, ignoring her nervous knee bouncing and hitting underneath the table when he was making his way around the counter.

Gosh, she really needed to get over this. And quickly!

Curiosity killed the cat and so when she lifted her head up to take another peek, at that exact moment, his walking had slowed down and his green eyes caught her own. Like the clumsy person she was, Amy rapidly shifted back to her book, even though her brain wasn't processing any of the words presented in front of her.

Her ears twitched when she heard his faint laugh and so when she looked up again, she saw him going into the back with a grin.

Amy let out the breath she had been holding in.

He was absolutely suffocating her.

She shook her head and refocused on the page she was suppose to be reading. Only a few more and she was out of here.

Another few hours passed and Amy had finally finished. Closing her book, she glanced at the time on her wrist watch to see it was just past seven thirty. Feeling accomplished, she stretched her arms and legs out with a yawn before tidying her things away.

"You look like you've worked hard."

Amy stopped sorting out her scattered papers, her body freezing at the voice. Hesitantly, her eyes travelled up to the barista's attire until she caught his eyes again. Sonic grinned against his handsome features, sliding a drink down to her.

"Yeah, I guess..." The pink hedgehog trailed off, unsure of what to say next. She then glanced around to see that the place was almost empty. "Um... is Tails not in today?"

"Nope!" He answered making her look back at him, "He caught Tikal's flu so he won't be in for a couple of days," the barista then arched an eye, "Why? You need him for something?"

Amy blinked at him before waving it off. "Uh... no reason," she stammered lightly, "Tell him I said get well soon."

"Will do!" Sonic responded cheerfully, eyeing at her as she zipped up her bag, "By the way," he added in causing Amy to stare up at him, "I hope you liked what I said the other day," the blue hedgehog threw her another charming smile, "Enjoy your free drink, Ames!"

The blue barista gave her a cute peace sign and then jogged off, leaving Amy in a pile of bewilderment and then embarrassment as unwanted heat rose up to her pale cheeks.

As she stood up, she glanced down at the drink he had given her. Picking it up, she noticed another written message on the side of the cup.

You must be a magician 'cuz whenever I look at you, everyone else disappears. :O

Amy blushed throughout the whole walk home.

...

"So what do you major in, Ames?"

Without moving her head from the textbook, Amy shifted her eyes up at him. "History."

"Oh god!" Sonic shot her a sour expression, "How do you remember all that information?"

"P-Practice I guess," she answered bashfully, "What about you?"

He gave her a proud smile. "Chemistry!"

Didn't that require a lot of memory too? Or maybe he just found her subject to be boring. Which was partially true.

She threw him a supportive smile back. "That's nice."

"Thank you!" The handsome barista beamed before magically pulling out another iced latté from behind, "Here ya go, you need it!"

Sonic gave her a wink and disappeared off. Amy's eyes furrowed in confusion because where on Earth was he hiding that drink? She then traveled them down to the cup, again realising that something was scribbled on it.

Let's build some Chemistry before making History. :'D

Amy covered her cheeks for the remainder of the day.

...

Honestly, she couldn't tell if he was either joking around with the messages or being serious. It was hard to tell. Seeing how cocky and cheesy he was with them.

But... it was cute, adorably cute. Infuriatingly cute.

She was such a lovesick fool.

Though, she didn't want to feel special or excited about it. For all she knew, he could be doing this to any other girl he'd come across at the coffee house.

She tried to not let it get to her, since she barely knew Sonic. However, if she was going to see him almost everyday she went in, then it would be hard not to be slightly, if not mostly, interested in him. He was definitely the most good looking guy she had come across with.

A crush? Most definitely.

Amy huffed at her own thoughts as she walked over to the counter with her laptop in hand.

"You must really like caffeine, huh Ames?"

She flinched back and stared over to see Sonic's dazzling grin greeting her once again, a small wave following after.

Blinking her eyes away, she laid her laptop onto the counter before getting out her purse. "It keeps me going for the rest of the day..."

Sonic hummed, sliding a cup from the pile. "Ya know, you get twenty percent off your order if you reuse your plastic cup once."

Amy instantly thought of the plastic cups he had served her, of which she kept. "O-Oh, really?"

The blue hedgehog suddenly threw her a cheeky smirk, dropping her coins down into the register. "Really."

She cleared her throat, trying to resist the blush rushing up to her face as she watched him work on her drink. "I'll keep that in mind, thank you."

In record time, her order was made and the blue barista held it out to the pink hedgehog. "Not a problem!"

Amy cracked a shy smile before taking it, but the brush of their fingers froze her into place. She snapped her gaze to Sonic, who only grinned again in a teasing manner. She pressed her lips together and hastily took her drink, mouth fumbling when she turned around and walked away, hugging her laptop tight against her chest.

Get it together, Amy!

She didn't look at her cup until she was outside.

I lost my phone number. Can I have yours? :p

Amy anxiously chewed on her straw for the entire day.

...

She reused her cup like he suggested her to in the following few days.

And the cheesy pick up lines kept coming.

Do you believe in love at first sight? Or do I need to pass by again?

Did the sun come out? Or was it just you smiling at me?

Did you know our ship name is SonAmy? It sounds a little tragic if you ask me, since it sounds like Tsunami. I'd save you from one though!

It was odd giving him a reused cup over and over again, because that knowing grin he had was there whenever she'd give it to him for a refill. It was also uncomfortable knowing all his flirtatious notes were on there too, and she'd even have to try and hide them with her hands whenever she was with her friends.

It was still cute. Yet, embarrassing. And needed to confront him about it. Now.

After her class ended, Amy hurried to the shop with confidence and determination. When she stepped in, she was greeted by Tails and Tikal who were wiping the tables. She said a quick "hi" to them before spotting the blue barista standing in front of a table with a bunch of girls. At first, she thought nothing of it but as her walking slowed down, Amy noticed the familiar flirtatious attitude he was giving towards them. Her look then regrettably travelled down to their paper cups... which also had something more than just a name written on them.

Her heart dropped.

Sonic caught her appearance from the corner of his eye and smiled at her. "Oh, hey Am-"

He stopped abruptly when he saw her face.

And without delay Amy fleetingly turned around and hurried out, unwanted tears brimming her eyelids.

"Amy!" Tikal worriedly called out to her friend before quickly looking at Tails, "W-What happened?!"

Tails didn't know either. Though, when he turned his gaze over to his blue friend, a small frown went up his lips. "...What did you do?"

Sonic looked at the both of them, a guilty expression surrounding his features. Without responding, he undid his apron and sped off after her.

...

She was right! She was absolutely right! Getting a Prince Charming was an absolute fairy tale and would never exist in her life. Perfect! Just perfect!

"Amy!"

She clenched her teeth and kept walking, blocking the sounds of his running footsteps across the pavement.

"Amy, wait!"

He took hold of her arm and Amy hastily whirled around to face him, angry tears dribbling down her face. "W-What do you want?!"

Sonic looked remorseful. "I can explain-"

"Explain what?" Amy yanked her arm away from his hold, "That you just flirt with random girls whenever you feel like it?!"

The blue hedgehog's eyes widened. "No! That's not-"

Her patience was being tested. "Th-Then what is?! Is giving someone false hope one of your talents?!"

"Hear me out-"

But Amy didn't want to hear anything from him.

"You're just a jerk!" She cut him off once more sobbing this time, "A stupid jerk!" Amy then took out all of the empty plastic cups he had served her from her bag and shoved them into his hands, "Here, take them! I-I don't see the use anymore!"

"You kept them..." Sonic trailed off, surprised that she did but snapped his head back at her, "Does that mean-?"

"Y-Yes!" Amy hiccuped out, vigorously wiping her tears from her red cheeks. She felt pathetic and helpless at that moment, so she turned back around and stomped away. "But it doesn't matter now, so don't follow me!"

And he didn't.

...

Amy avoided Sonic at all costs whenever she stepped into the coffee house. She made sure it was either Tails or Tikal or some other person who'd make and serve her drink. There were times where they accidentally connected each other's gazes, but she would snap away the second it happened.

One day, noticing the shop was closing up and she was the only customer left, Amy promptly gathered her things. Before she stood up though, a drink was slid across to her. The pink hedgehog blankly stared at it and then looked up to see that Sonic had given it. She was about to decline but he walked back before she could utter a word.

Amy shook her head with a huff and strapped her bag around her shoulder. She got up and pushed her chair in, fixing her skirt as she did so. As she grabbed her textbook, her jade eyes lingered on the drink.

A message was written on it. A long one.

She steadily glanced around before taking it with her, curiosity getting the upper hand as she hurried out without a word.

When she stopped in front of her apartment, Amy finished the drink and finally gave the note a read, albeit, with her heart skipping a beat.

Amy,

I like you. A lot. I mean it. The other day was a complete misunderstanding! I only wrote a 'Thank you, please come again!" on their cups 'cause it's mandatory to do that! But... I understand if you felt uncomfortable with the way I was acting towards them. It wasn't intentional! I'm really really really sorry, Ames. Please let me make it up to you.

It didn't take a second for Amy to go rushing back, feeling like the most horrible person on Earth.

...

With seconds to spare Amy rushed into the empty coffee house, hands on her knees as she breathed heavily.

She saw Sonic wiping off the counter tops before he turned around. "I'm sorry, but we're clo-"

The barista's words were cut short when he saw her, causing his feet to be glued on the floor. "A-Amy...?"

Amy stood properly and suddenly smiled at him, eyes glistening as she blushed openly in which Sonic was taken aback by the sight. He was about to say something else but she dropped her bag and ran up to him, immediately wrapping her arms around his neck and pulled him down to connect their lips together.

"I-I like you too," she finally said, pulling away with another smile, "A lot."

Sonic still hadn't said anything and kept blinking, a tint of red blooming on his cheeks.

Amy began to worry. "S-Sonic?" she blundered, beginning to think her actions were a mistake as she searched his eyes, "Are you-"

He swallowed down her words as he smashed their lips back together. She yelped tensing up, but slowly relaxed and closed her eyes, kissing him equally in the same passion.

The barista pulled away but kept their foreheads touching. Sonic plastered his signature grin that Amy learned to love, murmuring a soft, "Finally."

...

"Are you the only one here?" Amy asked Sonic as he put down a glass cup of warm latté in front of her. She quietly thanked him and took a pleasurable sip.

"Yup!" He replied sliding into the opposite stool, cupping his hands around his own cup, "I usually close the store down on Fridays."

She nodded before stirring her drink. "Uhm..."

"Hm?"

Amy cleared her throat, averting her eyes, "S-Sorry about the other day..."

Sonic tilted his head and let out a free laugh. "Don't worry about it, Ames! It was just a misunderstanding is all."

He was forgivingly sweet and that made her smile even more. "Yeah."

"But ya sure do have a temper..." He added in, scratching the back of his head.

She pressed her lips together, her skin flushed with embarrassment. "Sorry..."

"Oh! I kept your cups in the back by the way," Sonic told her, "You still want to keep them or...?"

"Y-Yes!" The pink hedgehog answered immediately, "Thanks."

He playfully rolled his eyes. "As if I'd throw 'em out. They're a work of art! You should probably keep them this time though, and just buy a reusable cup since we're cutting down a lot of the plastic. Better for the environment, ya know? Then I'd fill it in with so many other puns!"

She laughed gently and nodded. "Yeah, will do."

There was a comfortable silence between the two as they sipped on their drinks, the ticks of the clock nearby accompanying them.

"So," Sonic broke it off putting Amy's attention on him. He stared back with a teasing arched eye. "Kissing before the first date? Bold."

She took a second to process his words before bashfully pouting at him. "I-I could say the same thing to you... writing down cheesy pick up lines on my cups."

"Cheesy?!" The blue hedgehog pretended to be offended, "I'm truly hurt, Ames!"

Amy stifled a giggle. "...They were cute though!"

"Of course they were!" Sonic exclaimed and then curled his lips into a smirk, "Because I like you a latté."

She couldn't help but roll her eyes at that one. "You're lucky that you're cute."

He smiled and held one of her hands up to his lips. "Nah, I'm just lucky that you're beautiful."

At that moment she felt incredibly hot and weak, watching him brush his lips against her knuckles. "Sonic..."

Sonic clasped her hand against his, leaving a soft peck on her fingers before cheekily grinning at her. "Kiss me if I'm wrong, but I'm assuming you're busy tomorrow night, right?"

Amy blinked and then laughed softly, her blush reddening as she gently wrapped her arms around his neck. "No," she whispered sweetly before indulging his lips once again.