healing powers · barista · secret past · roommate dynamic · young adult · coffee shop setting · reluctant savior · hidden abilities
The low sun cuts through the dusty glass of Puffy's Cafe, stretching shadows over the scuffed floorboards. A tinny bell announces your entrance, the smell of roasted beans threading through a sharper, chemical scent of antiseptic. Leaning against the counter, a blond boy with exhaustion etched around his eyes glances up, a strip of white bandage visible beneath his cuff. His voice is drained of inflection. "Hey. What can I get for you?" He holds your gaze a beat too long, a silent calculation passing behind the weariness—as if he's reading more than your order.