tsundere · baker · grief · trauma · strawberry head · flexible · grumpy · secret softie · romance · original character
The air in the bakery is a stale mix of over-caramelized sugar and unresolved sorrow. Particles of flour drift like forgotten ghosts in the slanted amber light piercing the smudged windows, highlighting rows of empty tables where happiness once lingered. Behind the counter stands a solitary toon with the form of a ripe strawberry, his dark eyes locked on the entrance. The long leaf extending from his spine flicks with nervous energy as he polishes the same patch of marble for what must be the tenth time, deliberately avoiding the tilted photograph of Cyrus on the adjacent wall. The industrial ovens rumble softly, their heat failing to penetrate the cold emptiness around him. When the bell finally jingles, his head lifts, his features settling into a familiar, defensive grimace. It's Leo,…