Good day, fellow Sing fanatics! Hope you're all well and in the mood for the newest installment in my Ash x Steff series: a nice little piece of slice-of-life goodness.
Enjoy!
Brewtiful had only been open for under forty-five minutes and business had already taken off.
Half the tables were filled with satisfied customers. And once again, the Pearce family had rotated duties for the day. Steff was behind the cash register, happily taking any orders that came her way. Cassie, meanwhile, was busy preparing said orders whilst Andrea was on waitress duty. Just as Steff had handed a polar bear his change, her ears pricked up at the café door opening followed by a familiar voice.
"Morning, Steff."
Smiling instantly, the young skunk looked up to see her favourite customer approach the counter. Said favourite customer being her porcupine girlfriend, looking just as stunning as ever in her red punk rock attire. Since they had gotten together over a week ago, Ash had visited Steff at work every morning before her shift at Tunes Through Time began.
"Hey, Ash!" Steff replied, beaming. "How's the most beautiful girl in the world doing?" Immediately thinking of a response, Ash grinned to herself.
"I dunno, Steff." She said, cocking a flirtatious eyebrow. "How are you doing?"
Her cheeks quickly heating up, a flustered Steff covered her face with her hands and turned away, trying her hardest not to squeal.
"That was so smooth." The high pitch in her tone only made Ash smile more. Steff quickly recomposed herself and turned back to face her girlfriend again. "So what can I get you this morning?"
"I'll just have my usual to go, please. With a slice of carrot cake as well." Ash said without missing a beat. Typing the order into the register's screen, Steff glanced at the older skunk behind her.
"Did you catch that, Mom?"
"Already on it, Steff." Cassie replied, smiling over her shoulder. At this point, having had Ash come into their café multiple times, she knew exactly how she liked her coffee. She and her wife adored seeing the porcupine so regularly, knowing how happy she made Steff and vice versa. Their squeals of delight had nearly made their daughter go deaf when she'd told them about their first kiss.
"That'll be $2.50, please." The porcupine smiled warmly; Steff always charged her half price whenever she came in here.
"What?!" Both teens winced at the shrill voice from a beaver waiting in line behind Ash. "Why does she get special treatment?"
They both ignored her, Ash rolling her eyes as she fished her wallet out of her pocket. Her smile promptly returned as she found the appropriate cash inside and handed it to Steff.
"Keep the change."
"Care to add the final touch, sweetheart?" Cassie asked, holding up a decorating stencil in the shape of a heart.
"You got it." Taking it from her mother's hand, Steff delicately sprinkled some cinnamon though the hole onto the milk foam in the cup. Once finished, she placed the cap on top and picked up the bagged cake slice next to it. The skunk then walked round to the front of the counter where her girlfriend stood.
"Here you go." She presented the porcupine's order to her which she gladly accepted. "Plus a little something on the house." Leaning in, Steff gave her a tender kiss on the cheek.
"Well thank you for your service." Ash replied with a coy smile. "I think such a cute employee deserves a tip." She happily kissed Steff's cheek in return, earning a giggle out of her.
"Hey, would you two hurry up? I wanna order something!" The beaver's aggravated tone dug into the teens' ears yet again. Ash promptly shot her a glare out of the corner of her eye.
"Let me kiss my girlfriend, Karen."
"Wha-Why do people always call me that?!" The beaver spluttered. "My name is Helen!"
Grinning mischievously, Ash decided a little spite would make this morning even better. Cupping Steff's cheek with her free hand, she planted a kiss directly on her lips. Surprised at first, the skunk quickly melted into it while her moms looked on with smiles. The kiss lasted a solid ten seconds before Ash finally pulled away, making a loud 'mwah' sound to boot. Her smile only grew as she swore she could see steam coming out of the beaver's ears.
"You have a great day, Steff." She said, taking her hand away from her girlfriend's cheek.
"You too, Ash. Love you!"
"Love you too." The two never broke eye contact until Ash was out the door and making her way down the street. Steff's lovestruck gaze promptly shattered at the sound of Helen complaining loudly once more.
"This is the lousiest service I've ever seen!" She pointed an accusatory finger at the skunk's chest. "I wanna speak with your manager!"
Before Steff could say a word, Andrea quickly stepped between the two of them, hand on her hip, and stared down at the beaver. She and her wife had faced plenty of cranky customers like her over the years to know exactly how to deal with them.
"Lady, we are the managers." The porcupine said coolly, adjusting her glasses. "And we say let our daughter kiss her girlfriend." Helen was completely baffled. She looked around at Cassie, Steff and the other customers either at their tables or waiting in line, very clearly wanting someone to take her side. When no one did, she turned on her heel with an irritated scoff.
"Hmph! I'm never coming back here again." She muttered, storming past the waiting customers and out of the door.
"Promise?" Andrea called after her in a sweet tone just before it closed. Steff stifled a laugh before heading back to her position behind the counter. Although deep down, she wished that she'd had the guts to tell off the rude beaver herself.
It was half twelve by the time Steff left the café floor to have her lunch. After helping herself to a peanut butter sandwich and a juicy apple, she decided to use her last fifteen minutes of freedom wisely and head down the sunny street to Tunes Through Time. When it wasn't too busy, she always made an effort to pay Ash a visit at work during her lunch breaks.
Squeezing past a leaving customer and into the store, it was just as charmingly rustic as the skunk remembered. Posters of various bands and singers spanning the decades covered every inch of the walls. Each shelf was packed with a mixture of CDs and vinyl records. She recalled how much Grandma Julie loved bringing her in here as a toddler.
"Well g'day, Steff!" Turning towards the source of the voice, she smiled at the kangaroo in a vintage dark green 60s shirt and cream pants stepping out from behind the counter. Nearing his mid seventies, Ned had been good friends with her grandma before her passing. Ash was certainly lucky to have such a jovial boss.
"So great to see ya!" Scooping Steff up into a tight hug, she graciously returned Ned's gesture.
"It's nice to see you too, Ned."
"Crikey, have you grown since last time I saw you?" He asked after setting her down.
"Maybe an inch or two." Steff shrugged jokingly, straightening her glasses. "How's business been?"
"Ha! Boomin'!" The kangaroo exclaimed with a wide smile. "Same for you an' your mums, I take it?"
"Yeah, it's been going very well. Customers just keep coming nonstop." Steff then remembered the key reason she was here. "Anywho, is Ash around?"
Ned took notice of the small taped-up paper bag in the skunk's hand, a trio of hearts scrawled on the side. A knowing grin spreading across his face, the kangaroo turned to the door leading to the back and cupped his hand to his mouth. "Hey, Ash! Your sheila's popped round for a visit!"
"Be right there!" On cue, Ash came into the store from the back, a nametag pinned to her left lapel and carrying a box of Clay Calloway CDs in her arms. "Hi, Steff."
The skunk bounced on her toes as she hid her hands behind her. "Hi, Ash. I figured since I'm on break, I may as well use this time wisely and bring my girlfriend a little treat."
The moment the word 'treat' left her Steff's mouth, Ash instantly took a whiff of the air. A chocolaty aroma filled her nose, her mouth already beginning to water. A knowing smile crossed her face.
"Brownies?" Smiling in return, Steff proudly produced the paper bag from behind her back.
"I may or may not have prepared them for you last night as a little something extra for your lunch." She said coyly. "Or when you get home, whichever you prefer."
"Seriously, Steff, you spoil me." Placing the box down at her feet, Ash took the bag from her girlfriend's hand and gave her a loving peck on the cheek. All the while, Ned watched the romantic scene unfold with a grin.
"Okay, you two lovebirds, I'm gonna head out back to take care of some finances." He said at last. "Remember to keep an eye out for customers, Ash."
"You got it, Ned." The moment the kangaroo left through the back door, Ash placed the bag of brownies behind the counter before picking up the box of CDs again.
"So how's your day going?" Steff asked, following Ash as she made her way to the middle of the store.
"Yeah, pretty steady." The porcupine replied, setting the box down and flicking through the CDs inside. "Plenty of sales and no unpleasant customers so far."
"Speaking of which, nice job on talking back to that rude lady earlier, Ash." The skunk said as her girlfriend started filling some empty spaces on the shelves.
"No problem." She responded. "I'm just sorry you had to deal with someone like her so early." Steff waved her hand in dismissal.
"Honestly customers like her are a rarity for us. Nine times out of ten, the customers are pretty friendly." She began to frown slightly, casting her gaze down at the floorboards. "And even then, my moms are better equipped at dealing with the ones who aren't than I am. Wish I had your courage to stand up to rude people instead of steering clear of them."
Pausing her work, Ash pursed her lips in thought. She recalled Bridget teasing her in the bathroom back in high school, as well as Mike mocking her involuntary spraying on their first day of rehearsal. Both of those times, she had always been the one to come to Steff's defence.
But then her heart fluttered as the more recent memory of their last encounter with her ex came rushing back. The way Steff didn't even waste a second to clock Lance in his smug face before that slur directed at Ash even left his mouth. That rare moment of protective anger truly astounded Ash that evening.
"Don't sell yourself short, Steff. You can be assertive when the situation calls for it." She said, placing a hand on her girlfriend's shoulder. "After seeing the way you decked Lance when he nearly called me that word, I'd hardly call you passive." When the corner of Steff's mouth curled up a bit as she too remembered that evening, Ash pressed on.
"You definitely have the capacity to stand up for others, Steff. And if you ask me, with enough practice, I know you'll have the confidence to stand up for yourself when you need to."
By this point, Steff's smile had fully returned as she blushed warmly. "Thanks, Ash. Though I'll, uh, try not to punch every jerk I stand up to in future. My fist still hurts from the last one."
"Well hopefully none of them will be dumb enough to call you or me a slur." After sharing a laugh with one another, Steff glanced up at the clock above the store counter.
"I'd better head back. My break's nearly up."
"Yeah, and mine starts in about fifteen minutes." Ash nodded after looking at the time herself. "Can't wait to try those brownies."
Tilting her girlfriend's chin up to look into her gorgeous blue eyes, Steff brought her in for a lengthy kiss on the lips, topped off with a boisterous 'mwah' when she pulled away. The skunk giggled at Ash's surprised look. "You gave me a long one earlier. It's only fair you get one in return."
"Bold move." The porcupine chuckled, placing her hand on her hip. "Love you, Steff."
"Love you too, Ash. I'll see you later!"
"See ya!" The moment the door closed behind Steff, Ash turned her attention back to the shelves and resuming the restocking. The smile never left her face for the rest of her shift. Even now, neither of them knew how they'd been so lucky to end up with such an amazing girlfriend.
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The movie Sing belongs to Illumination Entertainment. I only own my OC, Steff Pearce.