Bakery love

The harsh winter wind nipped at his skin as he hurried to the quaint bakery/cafe at the end of the street. His breath came in little cloud-like puffs as he forced himself to walk faster. He arrived, pulling out a bunch of keys from his wallet and opening the door.

He quickly ducked into the warmth that the bakery/cafe offered, shutting out the frigid air by closing the door behind him. He glanced around the dining area, feeling a rush of pride. After all, this bakery/cafe, small though it was, was his dream come true. He walked to the kitchen, tying his long black hair, to start the food prep for that morning.

The special for today was chocolate chip muffins, his personal favorite, but don't tell anyone that. He went through the actions that had become second-nature to him, leaving his mind free to wander amongst the many speeding thoughts in his mind.

He was really excited. This winter, he was hosting his first-ever cookie exchange. It was thrilling to think about it. Granted, he had never hosted or attended a cookie exchange, so he had absolutely no clue on how he could even begin to host one. He was a bit nervous about it, but he figured he would learn as he went.

Though, there was another reason for the exchange, one that made him so nervous he could crap his pants. He couldn't even begin to think about it. His only hope was that for once, things would go his way.

###

The distinctive tap of his freshly polished, black, leather shoes could be heard all over the office. This was only due to the fact that the office had gone deathly silent at his arrival. The silence and tension he caused were so thick, a knife would have had quite the issue trying to cut it.

"Mr. Hardwin sir? " The shaky voice of his assistant, Jennifer, spoke out, breaking the heavy silence.

"What is it, Jennifer? Out with it."

"Oh, yes, of course, sir. The design team you hired to renovate your house arrived this morning and is awaiting your instructions. Also, you have a strange letter from Mr. Leo Martinez. Lastly, you have a meeting in the next ten minutes with the small fir you were taking over."

"Alright, let me find the letter on my desk in two minutes Jennifer. Don't make me wait." On that note, he headed off in the direction of his glass-paneled corner office.

The letter arrived exactly one minute after he sat at his desk. He still couldn't believe it. Leo? After all these years? This might be interesting.

After reading it, he couldn't help the chuckle that erupted. Him? Go to a cookie exchange? He could see that Leo hadn't changed a bit, even after 10 years of not having seen each other. He checked his schedule. The exchange was for the coming week. He could work with that. He pressed the intercom on his desk.

"Jennifer, I want you to clear my schedule from today to two weeks from now."

"But sir, your so booked and-"

"I said clear my schedule. Do it. "

"But sir-"

"Now. Jennifer." He barked, effectively shutting his assistant up. As he stood up and walked toward the scheduled meeting with the small fir he was taking over, he couldn't help but let one thought slip through his cold demeanor. Looks like he was going back home.

###

He was hurrying again, for entirely different reasons this time. He was late and his sister was gonna kill him. The thing is, his sister, who is seven months pregnant, was hosting a baby shower and had invited him to attend and, he was late.

In all honesty, he was swamped by the customers today (It was because of his famous red velvet cupcakes that caused all this.) and by the time he remembered, he was already a good fifteen minutes late. Welp, his life was good while it lasted.

He knocked on the door, trying to sleek his hair back as much as he could with one hand, as the other one was otherwise occupied, carrying about a dozen of his famous cupcakes. The door opened, revealing his lovable but incredibly angry sister, Isabella. He grinned sheepishly at her, mentally preparing himself for the verbal onslaught that would assault his ears.

"Leonardo Mateo Santiago Martinez, what time did I tell you the baby shower started?"

"Uhh... 8:00? " He sheepishly rubbed his neck, dreading where this was going.

"Exactly. Would you care to explain why you are an entire half-hour

late?" Oh no. This was bad. She was in sickly sweet mode.

"I uh lost track of time?"

"That's your excuse? Dios mio! You couldn't even try to make a good excuse?"

"Look Isa, yelling is not good for the baby, alright? Why don't we go inside, and you calm down. Doesn't that sound good?"

"And whose fault is it exactly that I'm this high strung?" She snapped, glaring fiercely at him. He gulped, trying another approach.

"Calmate. I made some of my famous red velvet cupcakes. Would you care for some?" He sincerely hoped that this would work, he was kinda winging it here.

"Is that why you were late?" She asked. He nodded in response. Suddenly, she smiled warmly at him.

"I understand. Come in! Come in! Wouldn't want my little brother to catch a cold, now would we?" He blinked lazily at her, not quite processing what exactly took place, but followed her in nonetheless, setting the cupcakes down in the kitchen. He shuddered. Pregnant women were scary.

###

He stepped off of the plane, shielding his eyes from the glare of the snow. He checked his watch, he was precisely on time, as he planned. He walked out of the airport and boarded a taxi to the town he grew up in. After about a two-hour journey, he had passed the welcome sign. Since he had skipped breakfast that morning, he naturally asked the driver to drop him off at the nearest breakfast place to eat.

He was dropped off in front of a quaint little bakery/cafe that gave off a warm and welcoming feeling. He walked in, seating himself at a table and placing the travel bag he had packed on the floor beside him. He browsed through the menu as he waited, basking in the toasty warmth of the bakery.

"I'm so sorry for the wait, what can I get for you?" He didn't bother to look up at the voice's owner as he spoke.

"I'll have a latte and two red velvet cupcakes. Please make it quick."

The person grumbled, doing as he said. Ten minutes later, his order was ready.

"Here you go, one latte and two red velvet cupcakes." The food was placed in front of him and he sighed.

"Took you long enough." He picked up one of the cupcakes and took a bite. He almost couldn't believe what he was tasting. There was only one person he knew who made red velvet cupcakes this delicious. He looked up.

"Leo?" He asked, staring at the man in front of him.

"The one and only. Nice to see you too Damon" He blinked and chuckled at Leo's response.

"I knew you were the only one who could make cupcakes that good. Vanilla frosting?" He asked. Leo laughed.

"It's your favorite, isn't it?" It was Damon's turn to laugh.

"Can't believe you remembered. So, what exactly is this cookie exchange about?" Damon asked, gesturing for Leo to pull up a chair and sit. He did exactly that.

"If I'm being honest, I have absolutely no clue. I kinda figured that I'd know what to do when the time came." He rubbed his neck sheepishly. Damon sighed then smiled. This was so typical of Leo that at this point, he was no longer surprised. He laughed again.

"How typical of you. Okay, how exactly do you plan on learning on the fly?"

The blank look he got in response told him all he needed to know. This adorably clueless person was too cute.

###

The time for the cookie exchange had finally arrived, and with Damon's help, it went off without a hitch. Leo could not calm down after that, he was like an excited puppy, much to Damon's amusement. After the guests had gone back to their homes, Damon and Leo remained in the bakery, just basking in the afterglow of the exchange.

"Hey, Damon?" Damon turned to Leo.

"Yeah?"

"I have something I wanna say."

"What is it? " Leo took a deep breath as if preparing himself for what he was to say.

"Okay, so the thing is...I love you. I have for years now. The only reason I invited you to the exchange in the first place was that I wanted to see you one last time before I decided to give you up for good. I know you're probably disgusted by this but I just wanted to get it all off my chest for good. I'm really sorry that I fell for you. I promise to get rid of my feelings as fast as I can and as soon as possible okay? You don't even have to say anything in-"

"Leo, you're rambling again." He flushed pink in embarrassment.

"Also, for one, I'm not disgusted and two, I love you too. Three, I think your rambling is cute and I was just concerned that you wouldn't be able to breathe if you continued. Lastly, don't decide things on your own okay?"

Leo could not believe what he was hearing. I mean if you discovered that your ten-year-long love wasn't as hopeless as you thought it was, anyone would be surprised.

He laughed.

"I really am hopeless, aren't I?" Damon smiled at him, taking one of Leo's hands in his own.

"Yes, you really are"