Orejas

"Every morning you walk in and inhale deeply and then walk out again just buy something already" bakery AU. Writing this to keep my hands busy so I don't do something dumb.

Oopsidied: Well thank you so much! And I did read yours, and I really enjoyed it!

Shouldercookie: Oh absolutely.

FallingNarwhals: My personal theory is that Toffee cut off his own finger and didn't regenerate it so that, if he did die somehow (perhaps from an exploding wand), he would be able to regenerate from that piece of finger.

Ellie: No, I still don't think he'd accept without thinking. Marco genuinely has a crush on Jackie, and would be ecstatic if she asked him out. But I think he has a crush more on the idea of Jackie than Jackie herself, kinda like Isabella with Phineas.

I don't own Star vs. the Forces of Evil.

GENERAL POV

She came in to Marco's family bakery every single day, spider backpack slung over her shoulder, took a deep breath, and then walked out again. That was it. She never bought anything, never said hi to everyone, never even looked at the bakery display cases.

It was getting on Marco's last nerve.

He worked there around his college classes, taking over for his mother so that she could take some time off every day. His dad was the baker of the group, making incredible Mexican delicacies that made everyone's mouths water to the point where they had an immense need to buy something. The air was filled with the aroma of fresh bread and strawberries and pastries daily, and alongside the Mexican desserts Mr. Diaz also baked "traditional" American sweets to appeal to the older generation of customers.

Marco worked as the cashier and, when the bakery was quiet, cleaned up after the customers in the tiny sitting area they had by the front windows.

That girl, though. She came in every single day, save for Sunday when the Diaz Bakery was closed, always exactly at 10:32 am, breathed, and walked out again. And after nearly three weeks of this behavior, Marco was determined to make it stop.

He was wiping down the counters when she came in that Thursday. The bell above the door jangled as she stepped inside, and his head shot first to the clock and then to her.

Right on time.

He studied her closely, watching as she smiled, shut her eyes, and sucked in a breath of warm air. When she had gotten her fill, she turned and put her hand on the doorknob.

"Oh my gosh, would you just buy something already?" Marco spit out in exasperation.

She froze in place, glancing back over her shoulder at him in confusion. "Excuse me?" she asked indignantly.

Marco pursed his lips and set his rag down on the counter, storming out from the back and striding over to her in three quick steps. He crossed his arms over his flour dusted red apron and scowled. "You heard me. You come in here every single day and don't even buy anything. What the heck is up with that?!"

The girl spun around, her light blue eyes flashing with annoyance. She swept her hair from her eyes, momentarily distracting Marco with the incredible golden color, and tightened her grip on her backpack. "What, is smelling illegal now?" she retorted.

Marco pouted. "No," he admitted, "but loitering is."

The girl's eyebrows shot up. "Um, hey bozo, I'm only in here for like five seconds every day. I'd hardly call that loitering!"

They continued their glare off for nearly a minute before Star glanced away to check the clock. "Gah, I'm going to be late to psych! Fine, I'll buy something if it'll get you off my back!"

She stomped over to one of the display cases and studied it for a second, leaving Marco to stand in surprise in the middle of the floor. The girl glanced over at him impatiently. "Well? You're the one who wanted me to buy something."

Marco shook his head and hurried behind the counter, tapping his fingers anxiously against the register as he waited for her to make a decision. "The uh…the orejas are really good," he commented, his accent shining through like it always did when he said the names of the Mexican desserts.

The girl glanced up with a puzzled look. "My fourth grade Spanish is a little rusty, but aren't orejas ears?"

Marco gave her a smile and pointed to the ear shaped pastry behind the glass. "You would be correct. They're basically just cinnamon, sugar, and puffed pastry. My dad also brushes butter on them."

"I'll take one," the girl decided, brushing a strand of hair behind one ear. "Your dad owns this place?"

"Yup," Marco said, popping the 'p' as he grabbed a sheet of plastic wrap and slid the biggest orejas into his grasp. "I work here to give him and my mom a break every now and then."

He shuffled the pastry into a bag and shut the glass door that encased the desserts. He straightened up and folded the top of the bag over to seal the warmth in, handing it over to the girl. "I'm Marco, by the way," he told her.

She smiled as she took the bag from him. "I'm Star," she said, reaching around to grab her wallet from her backpack. "I uh….I always just come in here cause it reminds me of my grandmother's cooking. Her house always smelled this good. Of course, she was German, not Mexican, but still."

She finished rambling and pulled out her wallet (with a unicorn pattern on it, her favorite animal) to pay Marco, but he held up a hand. "Consider this one on the house," he said sheepishly.

Star just stared at him for a second, the wallet loose in her grasp. "Huh?"

Marco chuckled, leaning against the counter. "Well, I hate to say it, but you walking in here every single day makes people think that there's really good stuff in here. Which there is," he assured her quickly, "but most people see a tiny little bakery and don't give it a second glance. I've gotten more customers since you started walking in every day than I ever did before. So I guess this is my way of thanking you."

Star burst into giggles. "I thought you hated me?" she laughed, stuffing her wallet back into her bag and clutching onto her pastry bag with both hands.

Marco smiled, running a hand through his hair. "Nah," he said with a shake of his head. "Irritated that you never bought anything, but I couldn't hate you when you brought in half of my customers."

Star grinned and glanced at the clock with a wince. "I have to go, my psychology class starts in five minutes. But thank you, Marco."

She strolled to the door, reaching into her pastry bag as she did so and pulling out the orejas to take a massive bite. Marco watched with a smug smile as her face melted into pure bliss, her eyes shutting for just a moment as the flavors overwhelmed her. Every customer had that reaction to his father's baking.

When she had regained her senses, Star glanced back over at him with a wink. "See you tomorrow?" she asked.

Marco stammered out a response as she exited the bakery, and slowly went back to wiping down the display cases and the counters. He would never have imagined that this girl that had annoyed him so often would turn out to be so awesome.

Maybe one day he'd get the guts to ask her out.

I read this AU on Tumblr and really wanted to do it. I had to look up the orejas, and now I really want to make some because DANG they look good.

Review please!