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Tim could only chuckle at Daren not wanting to untangle lights, but the tanned man went silent shortly after, so Tim stayed quiet too, staring at his shoes and watching his breath fade away in front of him. Tim had never actually seen the front of the bakery before and it looked really colorful.

But there was something in his mind, a detail trying to poke through, wiggle its way to the front. Was it the sickening sense of baked goods? He was going to get over that today. "I'll be fine. If I'm not I'll just curl up under the counter and cry." he joked, pulling on the door and walking in.

The smell punched him in the nose, bile trying to rise in his throat but he pushed it down. These were just baked goods. No one was going to shove these down his throat.

Tim gave his best, courageous smile to Anna. "I've been doing well. Been a bit busy, recently. I thought something sweet might perk me up." and kissed her cheek in return, hugging her back before letting go, forcing himself to look at the cases full of baked goods.

Calm breathing. These were harmless.

She certainly had a lot to display. "Coffee sounds good.' he called, looking at the apple donuts? he certainly wanted to try one. This entire section seemed apple theme. Well, partially apple partially pumpkin. Probably transitioning from Halloween to Thanksgiving. She did make good apple pie and apple tarts.

Maybe Tim could try some of these, cupcakes. It would help him get rid of his fear by eating them. Right? Maybe. He'd definitely get some of the donuts and some of the tarts. Maybe one or two cupcakes. But Mother Hen dragged him to a table, away from the sightseeing and he smiled at her, nodding. "That's true. And hello Tarte."

The conversation was fun, it helped ease Tim into the atmosphere of the bakery and the sweets. Work wasn't exciting, normal things. They were all working 12-12-12 hour shifts before Christmas so work could get done (Andy and Tim had the same times on and off so that only attributed to his previously growing drinking problem), it wasn't that hard, okay it was a little hard. And as expected, they ended up staying for dinner. The kids were certainly happy to see them but the children were forced to do homework before they could hang out with Daren and Tim.

And dinner was warm. It did make the red-head feel guilty. He hadn't eaten dinner with his own parents in a while. He'd maybe want to do that tomorrow. "I think I'll take some desserts before we head home. For midnight snacking and breakfast? I'll still pay for them." Tim said, ready to leave with Daren's jacket back on.

Tim looked into the fridges happily, decided he would get more apple flavored things. "Is it okay if I hav--" he had to stop talking due to the gag in his throat, man backing away from Anna far too quickly. He didn't even recoil, he backed away from Anna and was only forced to stop when something hit his legs.

He was going to throw up if he opened his mouth, his breathing had become erratic, no, no no please no. It had nothing to do with them. But he could see him walking home with that exact same box, seeing it open as that hand grabbed at them, not caring about the icing squeezing between his fingers and just shoving them in.

He closed his eyes, a mouth over his hand. "D-Do you have another box?"

He didn't want them anymore, he really didn't. Any appetite for them was gone.

Daren's and Tarte's movement made the man flinch, starting to hunch over. Halloween.

More images, but she was changing the box. It wasn't the same box. The pastries weren't bad and they most certainly weren't vodka or chocolate flavored.

"Better, thank you." he gave her a weak smile, trying to control his breathing and forcing himself to stand straight.

To make himself more vulnerable to hits...

"Those sound delicious." He needed support, and after a quick glance he shied away from Anna as she grabbed the treats and stood beside Daren, taking it upon himself to hold the man's hand tightly for support, to calm him down.

With a nod, the arm was accepted and he leaned into Daren's warmth, the feeling of being protected washing over her, but he refused to move now, looking at the box cautiously as it was offered. "It, no, it looks good." Shifting just a bit out of Daren's grasp he took the box and closed it. "Th-Thank you. Sorry. Sorry for, uhm, recoiling. Dinner was great."

Tim nodded. "Thanks, you two. That means a lot." he gave a small smile, walking out with Daren, gripping the box tightly. Part of him wanted to throw it, watch it get destroyed. Why did they have that box design? Designs should be similar to their storefront. Was it an old box design? It had been a month or two since the accident. They could have easily changed it without warning.

Shoving the box in Daren's hands, Tim shoved his own into the low pockets, breathing slowly through his mouth. "I-I'm sorry. I just, I can't. Not with those. I may not eat them now. I'll try but..."

The warm fingers in the pocket laced with his and he returned the grip. Timothy really didn't want to try one. Not today, not tomorrow, not the day after, but all he gave was a small nod. "Maybe later." he whispered, glancing around them, the sudden paranoia of Andrew being there coming forward in his mind. In the trees, the bushes, that man walking. Just waiting for Tim to be alone, kidnap him, force him back into those positions, but this time he doubted he'd be able to escape, and if he did, he wouldn't be alive for long.

Closing his eyes he rested half his face on Daren's arm. "Thank you." He didn't want to be outside anymore.