Third Cup
Brewed Troubles
Draco Malfoy was dressed in an expensive dark blue suit. His coat was buttoned in the middle, opened at the top to reveal a black button-up shirt and silver tie. His slacks fitted his tall form and matched his suit. His hair was blonde and slicked back, his face aristocratic, silver eyes full of an annoyance that seemed to be hereditary.
"Fucking boss," was the first words Harry heard muttered by this impressive man. He wasn't muscular, far from how physically strong his Viktor is, instead having a slim figure, but it looked to Harry that Draco Malfoy knew his way around a gym. Though from the way he dressed, Harry figured that Malfoy had his own gym in a private suite or house. He reeked of money. Draco's eyes fell on Harry and he blinked for a minute. "Who's this?" he asked, pointing at Harry a bit rudely.
"Harry, my pretty little new apprentice," Blaise smiled, winking at Harry as he blushed. "He just got hired… five minutes ago," he chuckled, "and he's under my care until he learns the ropes. Harry, this is Draco Malfoy, a good friend of mine… he's a real sweat heart once you get past his icy and cruel exterior."
"Shut it, prat," Draco spat, which caused Blaise to laugh.
Blaise turned to Harry and smiled, "Like I said, cruel exterior. Now," he turned back to Draco, "what would you like?"
"The usual of course," Draco said, rolling his eyes.
"Right, one large pumpkin spice latte coming up," Blaise said with a huge smile. "Harry, can you keep Draco busy while I get it ready?"
"Huh?" Harry said, looking at Blaise a little confused.
"Making sure the customer is happy," Blaise explained. "That is a very important part of the job. The happier they get, the more likely they'll give you nice tips." He winked at Draco who scoffed.
"Oh, okay," Harry nodded. He turned towards Draco and thought for a second before asking awkwardly, "So… what do you do?"
"What do I do?" Draco chuckled, "Usually small sexy twinks like yourself… however I am certain you are not asking sexually," he drawled. Harry made a sound as his cheeks reddened. "As for my job, I work with my father unfortunately. He is the CEO for Malfoy Enterprises. Naturally that means I come from money, and I am forced to work for the bastard."
"You don't like your dad?" Harry frowned.
"Of course not, who would like their own father?" Draco sneered.
"I do… but I haven't seen him or my mum for over a couple of years now…" Harry said.
"Oh? And why not? Ran away from them or something?" Draco asked.
"No," Harry shook his head. "My boyfriend doesn't like them, and they don't like him."
"You have a boyfriend, do you?" Draco asked, leaning down on the counter.
"Yeah, I do," Harry nodded. "Here," he pulled out his phone and shown Draco a picture of Viktor that Harry has as his lock screen. Draco looked at him for a moment. "He's… big," he commented.
"He loves going to the gym as much as he loves me," Harry smiled. "He's going to be a model."
"Really?" Draco asked, raising a perfect eyebrow in disbelief. Harry nodded, "Yes," he said a little defiantly. "He is going to become a successful model and we will in an expensive apartment."
"You are too pretty for such false dreams," Draco drawled. "A man like him will never become a model in a city like this, he is much too… masculine, butch."
Anger overwhelmed Harry, his face turning red, he placed his hands on his hips as he said, "Excuse me—"
"Your order Draco," Blaise interrupted, sliding the large sealed up towards Draco. Draco took a sip and nodded before pulling out his wallet. "Potter, you would do well to remember what I just said," Draco sighed. "Thanks for the drink Blaise, I will see you later." And he walked out without another word.
Blaise turned to Harry curiously and asked, "So what did you guys talk about?"
"Life… my boyfriend," Harry said through gritted teeth. "He said my boyfriend would never become a model!"
Blaise sighed and shook his head, "Don't let Draco get through you, like I said, he has a very cold exterior. Anyway, let's not think about him, let me show you our machine." Harry nodded and walked after Blaise towards a huge strange machine with many knobs and levers attached to it, along with various pots of coffee. Next to it was a long oven that looked to fill Harry's kitchen and living area. The two spend the next forty-five minutes going over every single part of the machine, how it works, which levers to pull just so, and which food goes with which item. Luckily for Harry there were a couple of laminated pages next to the machine and coffee pots that had recipes for everything on the menu. Lunch hour was slowly down, and the afternoon began to drift in when they were done going over the machine.
"So, I want you to handle the next costumer yourself," Blaise said. "Think you can do that?"
"Yeah, I think I can," Harry nodded. He moved to the register and both he and Blaise waited for their next customer. It did not take long for the doors to swing open and a woman walked in looking in a hurry.
"Hi, welcome to The Three Broomsticks, how can I help?" Harry smiled. The woman barely paid any attention to Harry as she began digging through her bag, "Need three medium expressos, one medium non-fat late, use the soy, a large iced green tea with lemon, no sugar, a large coffee two milks, one soy, one regular, and three sugars; a medium iced tea with sugar and lemon; a soy non-fat pumpkin spice latte made with the real pumpkin spice, not that fake shit other people uses and five broomstick pasties, a pumpkin pastry, and a box of chocolate wands."
Harry's eyes went wide as he heard her order. Why can't everyone just be simple? He panicked internally. He thanked God and every deity he knew that the register had both pictures and tags naming them instead of just numbers. He began to press buttons in a panic, doing his best to remember the order. Apparently, he pressed the wrong button down the line as the woman snapped, "No, no you idiot I ordered a medium iced tea not a large, and three expressos!"
"Sorry ma'am, this is my first day," Harry said through gritted teeth. I swear if I ever meet her in an alleyway I'll start swinging, he thought darkly.
Thankfully Blaise helped Harry correct the order and the two immediately went to the machine and oven to make her order after she paid. Five minutes in and the woman began muttering, her fingers drumming the counter as she waited. "How long does it take to make simple coffee?" Harry heard her mutter.
"Relax, don't let it get to you," Blaise whispered in Harry's ear. "Smile through and we make fun of her after." Harry nodded, and they continued to make her order. Once they were finished ten minutes later, they were both glad to see the backside of her as she left. "Okay," Blaise said, "That does not count cause she was a bitch. …Ah! Your real first go!"
A man walked in and smiled at Harry and Blaise as he walked up to the counter.
"Hello, welcome to the Three Broomsticks, how can I help?" Harry smiled.
"Hello," the man said. "Can I have a medium iced tea and a chocolate wand?"
"Of course," Harry smiled, easily ringing him up. "It'll be a moment."
"Take all the time you need," the man purred. Harry felt like he was being undressed with the man's eyes but ignored it as he began to work on his order. "Would you like sugar or lemon with your iced tea sir?" Harry asked, turning to look back at him.
"Hmm… oh lemon please, no sugar," the man said smiling. Harry nodded and made the drink, putting the pastry in a brown paper bag and handed them both to the man. "Is there anything else?" Harry asked, giving the man a sweet smile.
"No."
"Great, that will be six fifty-eight then," Harry said. The man gave him a ten and put the change in a large white cup next to the register that Harry did not notice. He left with a wink.
"That was a good first run I would say," Blaise said, "And don't worry about that guy, he flirts with all of us, he's harmless. But his tips are good. Here—" Blaise took a brown paper back and wrote Harry's name on it. "Tipping is, well, optional, and Sirius is such a bleeding heart that we don't need it to survive, thank god, but it is a nice little bonus. And it makes dealing with bitches like that woman earlier much more manageable."
Harry nodded and put his tip in the paper bag Blaise gave him. Blaise took it and placed the back underneath on a shelf with three other identical bags, all with the employee's names on it. The door opened again, and more costumers came in, this time a group of college-aged girls. Harry and Blaise took their orders and when they were done, the girls went off towards a nearby corner where beanbag chairs were gathered around a low coffee table. "Excellent," Blaise smiled when he saw this, "you remember how you and Sirius walked in on my checking the tables? That's another part of the job, and it's an excellent time to suggest more items for them to buy."
"Really? How so?" Harry asked.
"Use your looks to your advantage," Blaise smirked. "Everyone knows that the Three Broomsticks is owned and operated by gays, they have a certain perception of us in mind, that we all dress smartly and look awesome, which we do, and we can use that… I use that to get them to have just one more cup or another pastry. Ron and Seamus are both too kind to do that," Blaise pointed towards Ron and the other worker, who was an Irish guy around their age with black hair and a sweet smile.
"And you think I can do that?" Harry asked.
"It won't hurt to try," Blaise said. "Let's give them a few minutes and see what you can do."
Harry nodded. The two watched the group of girls as they dealt with other costumers. After a while, Blaise nudged Harry, and he want to the corner where the girls were gossiping. "Uh, hello," he said, giving a softly sweet and shy smile. "I just wanted to see how everyone is doing…"
"That accent!" One of the girls gasped, "Are you British?"
"Err yeah, I am… though my family moved here a few years ago around when I started college," Harry said.
"Ohmigosh!" the girl said in one word, "I just love British people, your accents are just adorable, isn't that right? You sound like Liam!" Harry frowned momentarily as he had no idea who the girl was talking about.
"Right… anyway, I just popped in here to see if any of you ladies would like another refill? Or perhaps a chocolate wand? Or Cauldron cake?" Harry asked.
"Ohmigosh, can you say that again? It was so adorable," the girl said.
"I'm sorry," Harry frowned, "what word?"
"'Chocolate wand,'" the girl said.
"I bet he's already enjoying a chocolate wand of his own," one of the other girls whispered, which caused all the girls to giggle together as they looked towards Blaise.
"I'm sorry… but I actually have a boyfriend," Harry said. "Today's out five year anniversary."
"Aww that's adorable… but why are you working here thing?" the first girl asked.
"Money is tight, and I needed a job," Harry shrugged. "He's going to be a model, you know, my boyfriend."
"That. Is. Just so fetch!" one of the girls said. "Anyway yeah, we all would love a refill, and I really want a cauldron cake—"
"I want to see his boyfriend, I bet he's as hot and cute as he is," the first girl said. Harry frowned and looked around.
"I uh… don't know if I can show you him," he admitted, "this is my first day here, you see, and I'm not completely set on the rules yet."
"Ohmigosh no wonder I don't recognize you," one of the smiled, "I go here a lot whenever I need a pick me up, I don't know, the gay energy here just vibes me. Wig, you know?"
"No… I don't know… anyway, I will be back soon with your coffees and cauldron cakes. …And I'll ask Blaise if I can show you guys Viktor," Harry said.
He made his way back behind the counter and towards the machine. "Well, how'd it go?" Blaise asked.
"Good I guess, one of them fetishized my accent, another is trying to speak English but forgetting how it works, like what does a wig have to do with anything, oh and they want to see a picture of my boyfriend, refills, and a cauldron cake," Harry said.
"Excellent! You've done brilliantly then! As for the picture, why not, just don't let Sirius catch you," Blaise said. "He is strict about us using our phones."
"Okay… how about this one?" He took out his phone and immediately opened a picture of Viktor. It was in black and white, Viktor was wearing a black sleeveless shirt, leaning against the brick wall of their apartment flexing his muscles casually as his hands were in his jeans' pockets.
"Very sexy," Blaise purred, "how isn't he a model yet?"
"The companies all want pretty-boys right now, you know, the dainty-looking ones," Harry said.
"Ahh, shame," Blaise said. "I'd let him do anything to me… and I don't bottom." He gave Harry an easy smile which turned into a laugh as Harry gave him a sharp look. Harry finished the refills and got a cauldron cake.
Placing them all on a tray, he carried it back to the girls and handed out the drinks and pastry. He looked back at the counter to see Blaise giving him a thumbs up and smile. Smiling back, Harry reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. He opened to the picture he shown Blaise and shown it to the group of girls, "This is my boyfriend, Viktor," Harry smiled. "I took the photo myself."
The girls gushed over the photo but Harry couldn't help but notice that none of them mentioned any model-like qualities. When they had their fill of complimenting the photo of Viktor, Harry pocketed his phone and returned to the counter with a bow. Both Ron and Blaise walked up to him and patted him on the back.
"So far mate, you're a natural at this," Ron said. "What'chu do to have them order refills?"
"He just gave them a bit of charm, didn't you Harry?" Blaise smiled. "You'll be getting a big tip, I can feel it."
Blaise was right as, half an hour later when the girls left, Harry found a twenty dollar bill on the table under the sugar shaker. Smiling to himself, Harry pocketed it and returned to the counter, slipping it into his tips bag. And so his first day went until the light outside started to set as night started to come. The café was empty and Sirius came out of his office. "Alright boys, gather round," he said after he locked the front doors.
Harry, Ron, Blaise and Seamus gathered around Sirius as he spun a ring of keys around his finger. "Right, well, good work today boys, I know we're usually open till ten and it's… six twenty-five, but I've decided we're closing up early. So, everything say 'thank you Harry' and welcome him, because today is our newest member's anniversary! And we wouldn't want him and his boyfriend waiting now, do we?" He smirked.
"Congrats mate, how long?" Ron smiled.
"Five years," Harry said.
"Sweet, me and Dean are only on four years now," Seamus said. "Don't think I properly introduced myself yet though, we were so busy. Name's Seamus Finnigan. Yes my accent's real, and yes I am from Ireland." He stretched out a hand which Harry shook.
"Harry Potter… my accent's real and I'm from England. I moved here a few years ago with my parents," Harry said.
"Wicked," Seamus said. "Well, have fun tonight on your anniversary, see you tomorrow Harry."
"Yes, yes, see you all tomorrow," Sirius said, nodding. "Harry, we open at six thirty, but everyone is to be here by six to prepare."
"Okay," Harry nodded. He went into the employee room and took out his phone. "Shit," he cursed, seeing he missed a couple calls and texts from Viktor. He quickly sent a response and searched for directions back to his apartment. It was surprisingly only a twenty minute walk, which made Harry glad. Guess I took the long way to get here, he thought to himself as he changed into his regular clothes.
"You know, usually my employees have a few pairs of the uniform," Sirius said, making Harry jump.
"Sorry, Sirius, I'll be right out—"
"No, don't worry, I wanted to talk with you anyway, have a seat," he motioned to the nearest couch. Harry followed the older man into sitting down. "So, how was your first day? I spied on you from time to time, it seemed that you and Blaise were getting along."
"Yeah we are," Harry nodded. "And I think I can handle working here. I mean, I know I haven't gone through any rush hours—"
"Those will be interesting," Sirius chuckled.
"But I know I can handle those too," Harry said.
"I'm glad to hear that," Sirius said. "Now," He patted Harry's knee, "have a fun night tonight, and I will see you in the morning."
The two stood up and left the café. Harry kept his phone out, following it's direction back to his small, dingy apartment. He was lucky once he returned not to run into Mrs. Lestrange as he walked up the flight of stairs to his floor, and unlocked his door. "Viktor I am so sorry I'm late, but there's some good news I need to tell you," Harry said, riding off a high from actually working and deciding to get this part over with.
"I have wonderful news too princess! Come in the bedroom," Viktor's voice called out.
Harry followed only to gasp as he walked into the bedroom. Viktor was dressed in what looked like a newly brought black button down shirt and slacks, a black tie made perfectly around his neck. A similar outfit in baby blue (Harry's favorite color) was laying on the bed next to a small stack of money. Harry had never seen that much money before. "Viktor! Where… where did this come from?" he asked, staring amazed.
"I have a new job!" Viktor smiled. "You remember Crabbe? From the bar?"
"Yes… I do," Harry said, his distain showing slightly.
"Well, he offered me a chance to work for his boss, Mr. Riddle," Viktor continued. "So I went for an interview with the man and I got hired! He's even going to help me with my modeling career! The money is just a small gift for our anniversary. Harry, my princess, things are looking up for us!" With a huge smile he lift Harry easily and twirled him around. "I already have reservations at that restaurant Mrs. Lestrange always taunted us with, the fancy one, so get dress! It is in half an hour."
"Okay," Harry nodded. "But before that… I need to tell you something."
"Yes Harry… what is it?" Viktor asked as he set Harry on the floor.
"I got a job today too working at a café and I'm going to continue working there," Harry said quickly.
Viktor's face darkened immediately. "A job," he repeated. "Why did you get a job after I told you that I am the one who will make the money for us?"
"Because I did not know that you've gotten this new job and we need the money Viktor," Harry said heatedly.
"Well now I have a well-paying job, better than that in fact," Viktor said. "So you can just quit that café—"
"I most certainly will not—"
Harry knew it was coming the moment Viktor's mood shifted. He only caught a brief glimpse of the open hand before a hard stinging cried against his cheek. His own hand going to where Viktor struck him, he glared at his boyfriend, "What the fuck?" he cursed, using his free hand to slap Viktor back with as much strength as he could, which was barely half then what Viktor hit him with.
"I told you to quit that job, we don't need it," Viktor said.
"Well I do," Harry said. "I'm tired of being cooped up in this shitty apartment! I love you Viktor, and that is why I've gotten the job in the first place!"
"Well, I don't need it, I have my job with Mr. Riddle and soon my modeling career will go off," Viktor said.
"Well I need it! I want my own money! My own friends! What do you think I do when you head out to the bar? Hmm? Think I just call up one of my friends from college? No! I just sit here alone and bored debating heavily if it is worth turning on the television on," Harry yelled. "I need this job! I need to socialize!"
"I'm not saying you can go out and make friends Harry, but you need to quit that café job. My princess will not be seen working!" Viktor said.
"Your princess will do whatever the fuck he wants—OW! Don't fucking hit me again asshole!" Harry yelled and he curled his fist and punched Viktor in the face for slapping him again.
A murderous glint appeared in Viktor's eyes and any fight in Harry left him as Viktor pushed him against the wall, his arm pressed against Harry's throat. Not choking him, but keeping a steady pressure. His face resembling more of an angry bull than human, Viktor shuttered as his nostrils flared.
"Do not, hit me like that… ever again princess," Viktor seethed angrily. "You understand?"
"Viktor… hurts," Harry struggled. He tried to push Viktor's arm away but the older, stronger man just took his arms and slammed them on the wall above Harry's head. "Answer me princess."
"Yes… Viktor please… it hurts," Harry whined. Viktor's expression softened and he pulled Harry into a hug. "I'm sorry I have to be rough like that, you know I hate disciplining you Harry," he whispered. "I love you."
"I love you too," Harry murmured. "I just wish you wouldn't hurt me so much…"
"I'm sorry princess, here… let me dress you and we can forget about what happened over dinner," Viktor whispered. "Afterwards, I'll fuck you until we're both unconscious. Sounds good?"
"Yeah…" Harry nodded. Feeling defeated, he allowed Viktor to change him, taking his clothes off gently, religiously revering his body, placing small kisses here and there as he undressed and dressed Harry in the suit. It felt nice… yet also wrong wearing it. Harry did not understand why it felt wrong, he couldn't place the source of this odd feeling, but it just seemed like he did not earn to wear such a beautiful suit. However, he did not voice his concern to Viktor. He just wanted to forget about their argument, forget about Viktor hurting him again, and focus on the sex that will come after dinner. For some reason, the sex was always better after they argue like that.