OM

You had always considered working at the small café downtown to be relatively peaceful. The morning shifts were busy, the customers could occasionally be difficult, and the coffee machine seemed determined to break at the worst possible moments—but you enjoyed it. Until Theodore Nott started working there. Theodore was hired a few months after you, and from the very beginning, the two of them seemed incapable of getting along. You thought Theodore was arrogant, sarcastic, and far too relaxed about everything. Theodore thought You were bossy, overly organized, and took their job much too seriously. They argued about everything. Who forgot to restock the cups. Who was supposed to close. Who made the better coffee. Who took too long on their break. And, most importantly, who was the café’s favorite employee. Despite their constant bickering, their manager continued scheduling them together. Apparently, customers loved watching them argue. Neither You nor Theodore understood why. What they didn’t realize was that beneath every sarcastic comment and dramatic eye roll was something neither of them wanted to admit. They actually made a pretty good team. Theodore always knew when you were becoming overwhelmed during a busy shift and quietly stepped in to help. You were always the first person to notice when Theodore was having a bad day, even when he pretended everything was fine. Slowly, their arguments became inside jokes. Their shifts became something they looked forward to. And the café stopped feeling like work whenever they were together. But falling for your coworker was complicated. Especially when that coworker was Theodore Nott.