Day 1: Beau

Starlight City: 2020

This city is filled with dreams that many wish to achieve, yet there are also nightmares that people get stuck in. During this time, people struggled with either themselves or others, nevertheless, it was just a human problem that many were used to. It was a reality that everyone was used to as well as being built on being anything they wanted to be...

Some were less unfortunate and some were fortunate. An illusion built off the protection of parents or built off a false hope, but still, there were some rewards in both of those things. Especially in a place called Starlight City.

It was a time when many either crawled from rock bottom or just hoped for the best. Especially when many showed their true colors, it was the best time because many were able to reveal their true talents. Even those who were in need got rid of their own childhood experience to provide for their younger siblings, it was a sign of both improvement and sacrifice...

And for others, well that's even a more complicated story for this urban city that we call home. It's a city filled with many complicated stories for the human mind to process. Most of them untold yet want to be told--Striving to be told... Although, some cannot find the embracement of others to let their stories be told.

Nonetheless, some stories are told over family gatherings or simply over random strangers' recollection.

In one of the many buildings in Starlight City, there stands a coffee shop in the back. Just a simple little three-story building in the back that was painted red with multiple windows to get the view of the city life waiting outside of it. The first floor was just as a coffee shop should be with stools and bars. The second story although was filled with shelves filled with endless books because the owner loved books and shared her library only with her finest guests. And finally, the third floor was where everyone wanted to go, the Cherry Room, that's where guests would enjoy themselves with just a simple drink and do whatever they wanted, especially when the night sky was overcasting the building.

This was a place that was only opened at night for guests that worked hard nights or just needed a comfort spot. This was a place where stories were shared with others so they could relate to one another. And these are their stories...

~~Tuesday, October 27, 2020, ~~

It was surprisingly raining today in Starlight City, especially since Halloween being a couple of days away. However, in the little coffee shop named Cherry Bomb Cafe was the owner that had barely opened up the shop. She had hazel eyes as bright as the ocean sea along with short black hair to her neck, but at the moment was sticking to her like glue since of the heavy rain. She was surprisingly a skinny girl considering all the sugary snacks all around her. Her red-colored lips had brought out her light complexion in the dim lights when she put her black apron on that matched her black pants. This was always her favorite part of her job. Opening her shop to a new day.

She had clicked on the neon light above her sink that read "Cherry Bomb Cafe" and got to work by starting on preparing the coffee machine and started to bake scones and donuts. Many guests loved her simple maple donuts. When she was done lifting the chairs off the single bar she had, a customer walked in as the bell ringed to life.

In a frenzy, she didn't look up to who it was but continued cleaning the counters from the leftover dough.

"Hello, welcome to--" She looked up finally to catch light blue eyes that symbolized the sunny blue sky, "oh, it's just you, Beau."

"What's up, Acey?" He flipped his long jet black hair over his pale shoulders since raindrops from outside had landed on his hair. "How's the night so far in the Cherry Bomb?"

Beau was a regular customer for Lady Ace, he tended to come here every day when he can't get inspiration for either his books or just too bored to do anything, but go here. He had gentle facial figures when he laughed or just listened in to anyone. And it was the dull red lipstick that he always wore smeared that made people question him. But the most habit he had of, was wearing black, over-sized kimonos or just purple ones even in the coldest weather, many would find him wearing his over-sized kimonos that revealed his left shoulder of a cherry blossom tree and a silver ring on his ring finger. It was a sign of serenity.

"The name's Lady Ace, and you know that." She said. Beau was the only person that was allowed to call her Acey. "And you know that I barely opened the shop, besides I saw you in McDiabetes on the way here."

He rubbed the back of his neck, smiling nervously. "What can I say? Their fries are to die for. I might even have an addiction."

Lady Ace shook her head, Beau had a tendency to eat greasy food a little too much, even if he was skinny, it was something that was concerning. Anyway, she pulled out a brown mug, the Hot Cocoa mug as he called it, and when she looked up, Beau had the eyes of stars.

"Is that for me?"

"No, it's for the president," She started the Hot Cocoa machine up.

He looked like a defeated puppy. "I paid my taxes, so what's his is mine."

Lady Ace had to stop herself from laughing. No matter what she threw at him, he always had a comeback as if he planned his every word.

"Any French vanilla and cinnamon?"

He nodded, pulling out a blue, worn journal, and clicked his pen. That usually met he had an idea that he had to write down before his imagination wiped it clean from his memory. His writing isn't planned, so when Lady Ace first asked him his process, he just shrugged and said, "I hope for the best." Beau was just a care-free writer that worried her when it came to his defeats.

The machine beeped and she took the mug away from the machine and added a little of french vanilla and a tad of cinnamon. This was called Beau's Beauty Cocoa. She set it down in front of him while he paused in his writing and scrunched his face then stopped as he smelled her Cocoa.

"What are you writing?" She questioned once he had taken a sip which left a milk mustache that he licked off.

"An idea to promote to my editors." He sighed as his shoulders slumped forward. "It's been two years since I released a novel, so I'm trying to think of a good story to tell."

"No more short stories?"

"Unfourtantly, no." He took another sip. "The editors are on my ass, and that made my writers' block kick in."

Lady Ace leaned against the sink and tilted her head. She never had dealt with editors nor writers' block, but maybe a simple suggestion was what Beau needed before he unraveled himself in front of her. She didn't need another Writers' Block pity party in her Cafe again.

"Maybe write about people close to you," She suggested.

He froze mid-tapping his pen as if she had just suggested she found the cure for world hunger. He quickly flipped through pages of his journal and wrote things down fastly. If godspeed were something, he would be it right now. Maybe her suggestion should've been to herself.

"You got a brilliant mind, Acey." She sighed. He was never going to call her Lady Ace. "By the way, remember the company I work for?"

"Zelda Media, right?"

"Yeah, anyways I heard this famous book publisher was in the building at the time I was and I ended up right next to this big fancy dude in the elevator down." He took a minute to pause and read what he wrote then crossed some things out. "He knew Alistair, so I was able to buy myself more time to write this novel."

Lady Ace seemed more interested in this conversation since Beau was actually talking about his life and job rather than just coming in just to order and go disappear to the second-floor of her cafe.

"So, how'd Alistair get you more time?" She questioned before a beeping went off. "Go on, I'll still pay attention while pulling these bad boys out."

"Well..." Beau fumbled with his black hair a bit. "The publisher was there at the funeral, and basically felt sorry for me."

Lady Ace poked the donuts and scones and seemed ready to pull out while she thought about what he said. She remembered Alistair being the first customer in her cafe, and now it was Beau. She shook her head. At least he's still looking out for others while being missed.

"So, this is good for you?" She put a hand on her hip. "How'd your editors take that?"

Beau instantly paled and just sipped his cocoa and mumbled,

"Let's not talk about that."

Now, she couldn't help but laugh out loud. She knew when he paled that it was bad enough that he was shit scared of his editors. Sometimes they were the only ones that could drag him out of bed. But, to him, he just pouted and went back to writing mumbling things as he went.

"Come on, it was funny." She ruffled his black hair.

"To you." He fluffed his hair back down and just threw his head down onto the bar counter. "They gave me hell for talking to the main publisher as soon as he was gone."

"Should've just given them the hardball," She shrugged her shoulders.

"Yeah, and lose my job." He looked like a teary-eyed author, who wanted to give up. "Sometimes I think you're the devil on my shoulder while I'm the angel."

"Baby, we both know you're not an angel," She chuckled. "Also, what is your character process this time since how much time do you have?"

"Originally a week, now a month," He rubbed his temples. "I have until next month of November to write both my character and book process, so whoever walks through that door is my next inspiration."

Lady Ace nervously laughed. Beau was becoming desperate and it was a sad sight to see. He had a pen in one hand and his journal in another. She really wanted to say it wasn't going to work, but didn't want to burst his bubble, so she turned around and got back to inspecting her deserts.

"I can feel you judging me." Beau turned so a devious look could be seen in his eyes. "Don't judge a book by its cover, Acey because this next person has to be the one."

"Or you could be named the world's creepiest customer." She mumbled under her breath.

It was silent within the next few moments, and Lady Ace could feel the desperate energy coming off of him. It was actually amusing that his grand plan wasn't working. She was about to go against busting his bubble, though it seemed the writing god was with him today.

A woman with brown, fluffy wet long hair entered the cafe with enchanting purple eyes as if they were from a lavender flower. She looked as if she had gotten back from a busy day since her black shirt was covered in paint as well as her cut jeans that were a little drenched from the rain. She walked up to the bar where Beau was trying to hide his excitement while Lady Ace just chuckled lightly at the scene before her.

"Welcome to Cherry Bomb Cafe," Lady Ace dipped her head as a kind gesture.

"Hiya," The purple-eyed girl smiled before advertising her attention to Beau. "Hello."

"Hello, M'lady," He grinned before writing down something... Well, more like jotted down.

"For here or to go?" Lady Ace questioned, still leaning against the counter after abandoning her deserts to cool down some more.

"Umm..." The woman looked down at her phone before sighing, "for here. What do you recommend here? It's my first time here actually."

Lady Ace put a hand under her chin while she looked in deep thought. "It depends on what mood you're in. Mind if I ask what you're here for?"

"I'm here to meet my girlfriend." She looked down as she smiled a little. "I'm planning on pulling an all-nighter later since I have a few projects I have to finish, so maybe something caffeinated."

"How about a Spicy Lady?" Beau suggested while jotting down more notes. "It's perfect for the weather and if you aren't lactose-intolerant, you should be fine."

"That sounds amazing, actually. Thank you for the suggestion." She grinned widely at him, while he returned the smile before getting distracted again. "I'll order that, and one of those maple bars, please."

Lady Ace nodded and got to work while the woman went on her phone and Beau continued to write. She opened her mini-fridge underneath the sink to pull out a cartridge of milk to then pour some into a red coffee mug and put it in the microwave to warm. While that was warming, she turned toward her freshly made donuts and picked out the maple bar the woman wanted to put on a glass tiny plate. Awe, she loved the smell of donuts.

The microwave beeped and when she pulled the mug out; it was a perfect warm temperature. She set the mug to the side before putting a chocolate ball inside the mug, which collapsed and the ingredients inside merged with the chocolate. It was chocolate mixed with a little bit of ginger as she mixed it with a spoon before putting whipped cream on the top and sprinkled just a bit more ginger on the top. It was different from Beau's Beauty Cocoa, his only contained chocolate, water, and cinnamon. This, the Spiced Lady contained the following.

"One maple bar, and one Spice Lady," Lady Ace said, setting both items down. "Enjoy."

"Thank you." The woman smiled slightly before taking a sip of her drink before she sighed in delight. "This is delicious."

"So..." Lady Ace started to put donuts in her display box. "You're still waiting for your girlfriend?"

"Yeah." The woman took a huge bite of her maple bar. "She should be here soon."

"Look at you, Acey." Beau chuckled suddenly interested in the conversation. "You went from me to two other customers. I'm hurt."

"Ignore the psychopath over there." She smirked. "He's escaped the ward, so now he depends on me."

Beau let out an exaggerated sigh while the woman chuckled at the two. "I actually thought your cafe would be more populated since it's open at this time of night."

"It's because it's in the back of a huge building." Beau wrote down something in his notes again. "Only some take knowledge of this place."

She nodded. "Now that I noticed it, is your cafe even running a good business for only running at night?"

Lady Ace nodded as she thought about the question before Beau beat her to the punch.

"Although it seems like a ridiculous idea, it's actually pretty smart."

"Yup, in the end, it is," Lady Ace agreed.

"Why though?"

"Because I love the experience, M'lady." Lady Ace thought about her past experiences vs now. "There's always someone out there to help this time of hour that wants a warm drink and I'll provide such that even if it's a homeless person with no money."

"Extraordinary." The woman said. "But still, how can you survive in this economy so easily?"

"Now, that's a secret, my dear. " Lady Ace smirked again. "Only those who work in the business know."

"Yeah right," Beau said as he set his now empty cocoa down. "You're rich from your endeavors."

This seemed to strike a chord with the mysterious woman. "Really? Where have you been?"

"That doesn't really matter right now." Lady Ace glared at Beau, who innocently went back to his note-taking. "Anyway, I manage how I manage because of experience. Cherry Bomb Cafe will be here until the day I die, so until then; you'll have this place to come too whenever you'd like too at night."

"That's good to hear." The woman traced the edges of her mug. "This place seems like a place to come to either relax or just to get away... Oh, yeah. Are you a regular here, Beau?"

"Well, if you consider me that, yeah." Beau looked at her, finally tearing himself from his imagination. "I'm here because it gives me inspiration since I'm an author by day and night. So, this is the right place to keep me at bay with everything."

"Understandable."

"Although he's a work in progress, he's a fantastic author for many short stories on Zelda Media." Lady Ace commented, which made him smile a bit. "Even if he's only made one novel."

Beau looked at her solemnly. "Why, Acey? This could've been a tender moment."

She stook her tongue out and snickered. She loved playing with Beau's emotions sometimes. Especially when he needed inspiration on some of his short stories; him getting angry or sad is a good thing since emotions are what run his books. It's actually a process that is considered funny to her since that was only her job.

"I should look you up." The woman said as she pulled out her phone. "What's your full name?"

He twiddled with his hair again before saying, "Beau Rose, I cover multiple things. I hope you like what you see."

The woman nodded and smiled. "I know that whatever people create, somebody will like it, and I know I'll like what you make... You have a fun personality, Beau."

"Thank you for saying that." Beau picked up his pen again. "It gives me inspiration that I'll finish this godforsaken novel."

Lady Ace chuckled at Beau's introverted personality vs the woman's extroverted one. It was a sight to see that he was actually holding a conversation for so long. Even if it had lasted for just a few moments, Beau was able to talk to someone without going in and out of his imagination. She smiled lightly. And before she knew it, she had yet another guest as the door open to reveal the very person the woman was waiting for.