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 Posted: Thu Nov 16, 2006 8:10 pm
{[ Intended as a private box-giving RP between myself and Sakoiyi ]}
It was supposed to be early, early morning when sun was just waking and that was how the world was meant to be, but as summer was closing out it seemed that it was less and less early by the time the sun woke each day. Sleepy sun, Audley chastised as he moved with mechanical precision through the opening ceremony that running a bakery committed him to. How would he run his bakery with the same sort of cheer when the weather turned sour and grey? He supposed Annette would get him through the winter.
Thinking of her, she was still tucked away. Audley did not think it necessary to wake her when there were so few customers and he could handle the shop on his own. And it gave him a sort of comfort to know she was dreaming happily while he worked to provide for them both, to know that he could care for something without the help of anyone else. (Save Laurence, of course.) And he thought he was doing a fine good job at it also. Running the bakery, raising Annette, finally being free of the past... For the first time in his life, it seems that things weren't crumbling apart in his hands.
As part marketing part necessity, Audley already had several sweets in the oven with the door to the back rooms left open so that the scent would waft out and attract any hungry pedestrians who just so happened to be passing by, as well as to please the regulars he enjoyed speaking with so much. Thinking of regulars, he had a gift for one of them. Hopefully today would be the day she dropped by to unknowingly pick it up.
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Posted: Thu Nov 16, 2006 9:45 pm
The muted shuffle of high-heels on pavement could be heard in the morning's quiet. Precariously perched on top of the three inch spikes, the willowly female carefully made her way down the stairs carved into some of the city's sidewalks. Her short, honey-colored hair was still damp from her shower only half an hour before and the wet tips clung to her face as if framing a picture. In fact, she was as pretty as a picture- taking into account her flowing fish-tail skirt, neat blazer, and nice tote. Except for her haggard face. Beneath Marie's hazel eyes were dark bags, a tell-tale sign of days without sleep.
As she swayed her way onto the final step before the pavement evened out in front of the bakery, she stifled a yawn, almost tripping in the process. "Whoa," she murmered to herself, reaching out with one hand to steady herself. A large, blank canvas, that she had been clutching tightly, slipped out of her grasp, falling face down. A second later she was crouched beside it, tenderly brushing it off. Worry replaced drowsiness in her eyes.
Nevertheless, swallowing another yawn, Marie turned into the bakery, a small smile instantly appearing, despite her mood, on her lips as the delicious aromas washed over her. "Hello," she called out, spotting Audley. Gingerly she leaned her canvas against the bottom of the counter, her fingernails daintly resting on its crest.
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Posted: Sat Nov 18, 2006 7:23 pm
Rather than follow through with the polite thing to do, which would be to say hello back and ask about her morning and perhaps what she planned to do for the rest of the day and maybe if she'd be interested in lunch... Audley's reaction to her friendly greeting was simply,"Ah, how perfect!" And in his usual, nonsense-manner he immediately left her just standing there at the counter as he traveled into the back room.
This was probably a tiny bit confusing for a tired, stumbling young woman such as herself. Really, it looked like she needed a good long nap. Audley, being who he was, would offer her one here in the bakery if she liked but he did find that most often the common person still in their sane mind found this to be an awkward offer. Understandable. Sleeping in public was usually reserved for bums or very tired children.
But that didn't matter. It was time for more important things!
"I have something for you!" he called from the back room as all manner of things crashed into walls and flew through the air behind him as Audley searched with the grace of a drugged money, "if only I could remember where I put it! Forgive me, Miss Orbase, but I must give it to you today! I do not know when I will next see you, after all."
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Posted: Sat Nov 18, 2006 9:37 pm
“Sure, Ah-ah-Audley,” she said sleepily, not managing to suppress another yawn. Her head drooped a few inches, her neck gracefully bending like a tree branch supporting one foot too many of snow. In a different world, she acknowledged the sound of his fading footsteps and urgent words. ‘Now what might be that?,’ drifted across her mind, but fragmented rather quickly.
Crash! The female heard the sound of something breaking and jumped, her sleepy demeanor being thrown off in alarm. Blinking as if waking up from deep sleep, she looked up, craning her neck as if to spot the other. Her hands moving to the counter top, fingernails nervously tapping the spotless surface. With the sounds of more fevered destruction, Marie began to eye the entrance to the backroom with a worried glance.
“Are you okay?,” she called hesitantly. “If you want I could try to stop by later?” A shiver ran up her spine at the sense of commitment she was offering. Silently she scolded herself for potentially adding another item to this day’s busy agenda. As much as she liked the bakery, and she absolutely loved the quaint place, she had zero interest for a return trip.
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Posted: Mon Nov 20, 2006 7:04 pm
"No no!" His reply was frantic, as if he feared that she might never come back again if he let her go now. It was urgent, oh yes, life changingly urgent. If he didn't do it now he may as well never do it, or so it seemed. "I have it here somewhere! I only made it the other day; you wouldn't believe how much stuff gets moved around in such a short time though."
Audley wondered how he could have misplaced it so easily, but thankfully above his head he caught the sound the of light, quick footsteps - a sign that his awkwardly pink angel was awake now. "Annette!" Audley called into the bakery, the girl answered his summons quickly.
"Annette, did you see where I put Miss Orbase's gift? The one I made the other day." He did not pause in his searching as he queried her and soon after the noise made by his searching was made louder as she joined in. At last it all fell quiet, halted by Audley's relieved, proud voice as he announced: "Finally!"
Reemerging from the back room the blond boy brought with him two things - a bag of sweets, and a small music box barely large enough to take up the space in his palm. Unceremoniously he placed the two on the counter before her, a crooked smile in place upon his lips. "These are for you. Forgive me for taking so long."
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Posted: Mon Nov 20, 2006 7:32 pm
"If you say so," Marie responded, still warily watching the entrance to the backroom. She silently breathed a sigh of relief, however, at the knowledge of not having to make a return trip.
As Annette joined Audley and the cacophony seemed only to increase, the female could not help but fidget by the counter-side. Every so often now, one hand would quickly reach up as if to brush a lock of hair back behind an ear. Yet, the honey strands were at such a tame level, despite natural appearances, that the repetitive motion could easily be diagnosed as nothing but anxiousness.
“Finally,” Audley said, and ‘Finally,’ was mirrored in Marie’s thoughts. She recognized the candy for what it was but blinked once or twice at the object on the countertop. Then, a small gasp of surprise burst from her lips at such a petite, but pretty, music box. “It’s lovely,” she exclaimed, carefully, running a finger down the top. The tip itched to turn the mechanism, to release whatever sound may be trapped inside. Yet, she resisted the notion, tucking it away in the back of her mind.
“Thank you,” the female amended her first statement. “And don’t worry. The wait was nothing for such a gift.” Slightly traces of rose appeared on her cheeks as she realized how childishly eager she sounded. “And,” Marie did a slight topic change, "If you don’t mind, could I please buy a mocha latte?”
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Posted: Wed Nov 22, 2006 6:55 am
Audley mirrored her happiness with a smile. "I am glad you like it now. I hope it will bring you some happiness in the future."
How wonderful, this encounter was a much more pleasant one than the last. When he had a particularly fightening gay man who looked ready to tear his head off. He wondered how well that one would fare...
"Ah," he blinked himself out of his wandering train of thought, "Of course. Annette, would you?"
She gave her quiet consent and smiled, setting off in her usual hurried manner running about to prepare what the customer had asked for. There was no need to rush about with Marie being the only customer in the store, but doing something without an air of urgency seemed beyond Annette when she was working. But Annette could not make the coffee go any faster than it was and sat waiting for the magic of commercial appliances to complete itself. Audley put the lid on the cup for her, since that was the one thing she could not yet reach.
"$3.25," he said needlessly as he set the drink down on the counter.
{[ Sorry for the bad post, had a 4 hour night and have been flying the whole time, but didn't want to put it off in favor of more rest. x.x; ]}
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Posted: Wed Nov 22, 2006 11:50 am
"Thank you," replied Marie, carefully lifting the music box and spinning it in the palm of her hand, examing item from every angle. Out of the corner of one eye, she watched Annette as the pink-headed female prepared her drink.
At the arrival of the latte, she nodded her head gratefully to Annette and then Audley. The sweet aroma threatened to make her stomach gurgle in delight (and hunger), but she swallowed down the notion. Placing the music box back on the counter, her hand disappeared into her tote bag and a symphony of clinking could be heard before it was withdrawn, a battered leather wallet held between two fingers.
Slowly, she opened it and fished out three dollars and quarter. The crinkled money, for the dollars seemed to match the wallet in age, was placed on the counter beside the latte. Just as she moved to return the wallet, a noise that made theatergoers groan in the middle of the show, went off.
"I like," was all the cellphone could choke out before Marie snatched up the device, murmuring apologies to Audley and Annette all the while. With a glance at the incoming number, her face turned a shade pale.
"Luc?," she answered hesitantly. "I'm sorry i'm running late. I'll be there in a minute! Okay? Goodbye." She had left no room for the said Luc to input a word.
"I'm so sorry," Maire exclaimed, as she dumped the candy, her cellphone, and her wallet into her tote. The music box, she handled much more gently, wrapping it in a few spare tissues before tucking it into a side pocket of the bag. Then, she grabbed the dirty canvas in one hand and the latte in the other, not running, but certinaly walking extremely quickly en route to the door.
"Goodbye," she said, before vanishing outside.
((It's fine. :3))
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