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rey-and-kyloren · 6 years

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Coffee and Cookie-Dough - A Reylo Coffee Shop AU: Oneshot

Summary: Rey Kenobi is a beloved barista at The Resistance Cafe, Kylo Ren works at the law firm nearby. Their first impression of each other doesn’t go well with broken cups and spilled coffee ensuing. But when they get trapped in the cafe as a storm rolls over their heads they’ll find out more about each other then they ever thought they would.

A/N: So this is my first little oneshot on this blog. I apologise for the length, it turned out way longer than I planned. I’d really love to hear you feedback saying if you want me to continue writing or not. Love you all xx :))

Word Count: 5738

Rey’s mind was abuzz as she downed her fourth cup of coffee that day, throwing the now empty cup into a nearby bin and continuing on through the busy cafe.

It was safe to say that this quaint little coffee shop had been growing steadily more popular in the last few months. The pot plants that littered the walls of the coffee shop and the globes that hung from the roof ensured that The Resistance Cafe was a hot spot for the local hipsters and those craving an aesthetic background for an Instagram post.

Weaving her way in and out of the tables Rey took the orders of customers, scribbling them down in her notebook with her nearly illegible handwriting, before tucking her pen back behind her ear. She placed empty cups stained with coffee and plates that had been practically licked clean onto her tray which rested comfortably at her hip, her tray growing increasingly heavier as she stacked cups to a dangerously high level. Walking back cautiously through the sea of tables and chairs she began regretting how high she had stacked her tray, the stack of glasses teetering dangerously as she walked and the cutlery threatening to fall off at any moment.

The kitchen was filled with the sound of sizzling, the smell of bacon accompanying the noise. Poe was darting between different stations, flipping the bacon before rushing over to take the bread out of the toaster before it burnt.

“Two more smashed avocados on toast, 3 poached eggs and a serving of scrambled eggs on toast with a hash brown on the side,” she called to Poe over her shoulder, ripping the page filled with orders out of her notebook and placing it on the bench next to him.

“Got it,” he called back, rushing over to the eggs which were currently frying next to the bacon.

Finn, Rey noted, was further into the kitchen, hands submerged in soapy water as he finished washing the cups and plates he had collected. Sneaking up behind him, she carefully began lowering her tray, intent on dropping her dirty dishes off to the wash station before Finn had time to argue. Unfortunately for Rey a fork slipped right off a plate, clattering onto the floor and grabbing the attention of her colleague.

Finn’s headed whipped around as he was notified of Rey’s presence, his eyes immediately drawn to the very large stack of cups and crockery on the bench next to her.

“Absolutely not,” were the first words out of Finn’s mouth, already drying his hands from the soapy water.

“Please please please,” she begged, “you’re already doing your stack so can’t you just do mine while you’re at it?”

“Correction. I did my stack, now you can do yours.” The tee-towel that had been resting on the bench was now slung over Rey’s shoulders as Finn picked up a tray and began making his way back out into the crowded coffee shop. With a sigh of defeat Rey rolled up the sleeves of her shirt and dipped her hands into the warm water.

“I thought you’d asked for a new dishwasher,” Rey called over to Poe who was holding an avocado in one hand and a large knife in the other.

“I’ve asked about 300 times now Rey. I’m pretty sure they just love your washing abilities too much.” A chuckle escaped from Rey’s lips. The two worked in silence, Poe having turned up the radio, a catchy song now playing throughout the kitchen.

Rey was about half-way through washing her enormous pile of plates when a very loud bang resided from the cafe. She looked over to Poe who was just as startled as she was. Drying her hands quickly they rushed back through the kitchen doors, her eyes immediately drawn to the large mess of coffee, broken plates and tangled limbs currently lying on the floor. The tangled limbs, Rey realised, belonged to none other than Finn, whose face had become a bright red as all eyes in the cafe were drawn to the commotion.

Finn began getting up from the floor, being careful as to where he placed his hands since the floor was now littered with sharp pieces of ceramic.

“I am so sorry, sir!” Finn exclaimed, a stream of apologies continuing to flow from his lips. It was then that Rey saw the other mass of tangled limbs that was still on the floor. The man was wearing a large dark coat. Expensive, was the only thought that came to Rey as she took in the incredibly well-dressed man. He rudely brushed away Finn’s hand as got up from the floor, his face seething with anger.

How the hell did I not notice him? Rey questioned herself as the very large man stood at his full height, towering over Finn who was still apologising.

“HOW STUPID ARE YOU?!” The man began to yell, insult after insult being flung at Finn who was still apologising profusely to the man.

“Who the hell does this guy think he is?” Poe growled next to Rey, his eyes squinting at the man now hurling abuse at their friend.

“We need to diffuse the situation,” Rey turned to Poe, “Go make him another coffee, I’ll deal with him.” Poe took one last glance back at the two men, his eyes softening as he looked at Finn, before he made his way behind the counter to follow Rey’s instructions.

“THIS SUIT COSTS MORE THAN YOUR ENTIRE YEARLY WAGE. NO ‘SORRY’ IS GOING TO PAY FOR MY GODDAMN-DRY-CLEANING!” Finn turned to Rey as she approached them, relief flooding his features. The man had been yelling at him for a few minutes now and he didn’t know how much more he could take.

“Excuse me, sir,” Rey said loudly, asserting her voice without yelling. The mans tirade of insults stopped as he took in the small figure of the girl before him.

“If you could please stop insulting my colleague maybe we could sort out this whole situation.” He was shocked by the girl’s words, angry at how disrespectful they were.

“Maybe if your colleague had the skill set to do his job without knocking into everyone he sees then this whole situation wouldn’t have occurred,” he spat back, Rey surprised at how deep his voice was.

Poe came up behind Rey handing her the coffee he had hastily made. She took it without breaking eye contact with the man in front of her.

“Here, sir,” she said with verocity, handing the man the drink which he took begrudgingly. “We’re very sorry for all the commotion so have another coffee free of charge. Seeing as my colleague has apologised to you I don’t think there should be an issue here. Oh and did I tell you that I just love you coat?” The sarcasm was evident to everyone in the room. Rey began leading the now quiet man out of the cafe, opening and closing the door behind them as she continued to spout absolute bullshit about his outfit.

As soon as the door closed behind them she stopped in her tracks, craning her head to look up at the man once more.

“Now that we’ve all calmed down if you would like to make a formal complaint you can speak to the manager inside,” Rey pointed to Poe who smiled and waved back, the smile never reaching his eyes, “but I would not recommend that as you just hurled abuse at his boyfriend,” she pointed to Finn who also waved at the pair outside. “From everyone at The Resistance Cafe I would like to apologise for inconveniencing your day. I would also like to say that if you ever speak to any of my friends like that again I will personally make sure that your coffee is burnt every morning. You’re welcome to go to the First Order Cafe around the corner but I’m pretty sure we both know that their coffee tastes like ass.”

Rey plastered the most fake smile she could muster onto her features before saying, “Have a nice day!”

With that she turned on her heels, not giving the man another glance as she made her way back inside. He stood frozen on the sidewalk as he watched the girl walk away. A list of insults sat at the tip of his tongue, his mouth too agape in shock to speak any of them.

Kylo Ren sat at his desk with his head in his hands, his wire-rimmed glasses abandoned next to him as the clock on his desk ticked to 11:52 PM. He had been at the office for hours now and had barely managed to get anything done. His mind was distracted, but he refused to admit why.

The girl from this morning, that infuriating little thing, had been stuck in Kylo’s head all day as her compliments and her threats replayed in his mind. He had never been so disrespected by anyone in his life let alone a pathetic little barista.

Yet why did I not retaliate? he questioned. So many insults, comebacks and threats had been on the tip of his tongue, yet none had seen the light of day. He had instead walked away, shoving one fist deep into his coat pocket, the other gripping his replacement coffee dangerously hard.

Hux and Phasma had received the brunt of his anger that day, although they were too used to it by now to be phased by it. Usually Kylo was able to keep up with the stream of files that made their way into his office each day, but the pile upon pile of papers that littered his office proved otherwise.

It was with one last sigh of defeat that Ren knew he wasn’t going to be getting any work done if he continued in this state. He stood up from behind his large desk, assuring himself that he would finish the work at home. Stuffing as many files as he could fit into his satchel he groaned as he realised he would still have to carry most of them.

He shrugged his coat on, managing to swing his now very heavy satchel over his shoulder before bending down to pick up the enormous stack of files. Making his way past the rows of empty desks Kylo realised just how late he had stayed, now the sole person on the whole floor.

The elevator was slow to arrive as he tapped his foot impatiently, his biceps already starting to feel the weight of the paperwork. Finally the light above the lift lit up before the sleek metal doors opened. It took some maneuvering to hit the G button on the elevator, but he managed and soon the doors were closing behind him as he made his decent to the ground floor.

The black shoes he was currently wearing made satisfying clicks that resounded through the empty building as he made his way towards the large glass doors. Shoving his shoulder against the door was the only option to open it, his hands being otherwise occupied with trying not to drop his work. But as he stepped out onto the street Kylo stopped dead in his tracks.

It was raining. No, scratch that. It was pouring.

Ren watched as the sky hurtled bucket upon bucket of water onto the sidewalk in front of him. He sighed as he cursed the misleading blue skies the morning had brought which had convinced him it was a good idea to walk to work.

Glancing up at the unyielding sky one last time Kylo tried his best to hide the files inside his coat before stepping out into the rain. His pace was quick, fast enough so that he could reach his destination quickly but not so quick that he would risk slipping on the soaked pavement.

He had made it about a block down the street when Ren realised he wouldn’t be reaching his apartment before his files turned to mush. So, looking around him in search of shelter, his eyes came to lay on the only shop with the lights still on.

“You have got to be joking,” Kylo said, his voice muffled by the loud thunder that had begun as his eyes came to rest on the coffee shop he had visited that morning.

Nevertheless, he picked up his pace in the direction of the cafe, stopping just outside as he peered through the now fogged up window. He was grateful when he remembered that the door swung inwards meaning that he could practically tumble inside with no hassle of trying to open the door.

The little bell a top the door chimed as he entered, the smell of coffee and the warmth of the room welcoming him to the cafe for the second time that day. The place was deserted, all the customers long gone by now and the staff having all finished their shifts.

With a grunt Kylo managed to lift the heavy stack of files onto a nearby table, inspecting each one to see how much damage had been done. The edges of all the pages were damp and most of the titles on each page had smudged due to the water, but a sigh of relief escaped his lips as the damage appeared to be only minimal, nothing that would prevent him from getting his work done.

Kylo looked around the room, for the first time actually taking a look at the layout of the coffee shop. He had been getting his morning coffee from this quaint little shop for nearly 2 years now after realising just how terribly made the coffee was at First Order Cafe around the corner, but he had never actually paid any attention to the place.

The place was littered with plants, Ren realised, the little organisms both littering the floor and the walls. It provided the room with a little atmosphere and colour. He liked them. The next thing he noticed was the wall of pictures to his right. Strung up by fairy lights and encompassing the whole of the wall was row upon row of Polaroid pictures. He examined each one closely.

They were mostly photos of the staff, laughing and acting silly with one another. Some he recognised, having been served by them before, but most he didn’t. Kylo did not often pay much attention to the baristas that served him, instead too busy answering emails on his phone.

One Polaroid in particular caught his attention. It was dated at one year ago, on the 23 December. Three figures stood in the photo, each one laughing hysterically with a drink in their hands. The two men from that morning were in the photo, laughing and smiling to one another. But his eyes were drawn to the other figure in the photo.

It was the girl. The girl who had been tormenting his mind all day. Her hair was curled as it fell to her shoulders, only the slightest bit of make-up evident on her features. Her freckles were highlighted by the lighting, encompassing her face beautifully. But what really drew his attention was her smile. It seemed to envelop her whole face, dimples prominent in her cheeks and her eyes shining with happiness.

She was breathtakingly beautiful.

All of a sudden an extremely loud song began playing from the speakers around him causing Kylo to startle in surprise. He whipped around, eyes searching the room before they came to rest on the only figure still left in the shop. It was her.

She held a cloth in one hand as she wiped down the table in front of her, lifting each chair and placing it upside down on the surface when she had finished. Making her way throughout the room she did this with each table, wiping each one clean before plucking each chair off of the ground. Her hips swayed to the music as she did so, humming and occasionally singing the lyrics when she knew them.

A chuckle escaped from Ren’s lips as she moved throughout the cafe. She hasn’t noticed me, he thought to himself as she seemed to be totally entranced in her own little world.

Turning around she began to make her way back to the kitchen, emerging with a mop and a bucket of soapy water. Starting on the further side of the cafe she began to mop the floors, singing more loudly now as she new the next song that came up on the radio.

“Who’s around when the days feel long?” She began to sing, loud enough for Kylo to hear. Her voice wasn’t terrible, he noted, but it wasn’t perfect either. “Who’s around when you can’t be strong? Who’s around when you can’t be strong? Who’s around when you’re losing your mind?!”

A wicked smile plastered itself onto Kylo’s features as an idea formulated in his head. Leaving his files on the table he walked up behind the girl, still too preoccupied to notice his presence.

“Somebody misses you when you’re away. They wanna wake up with you everyday. Somebody wants to hear you say. Ooh somebody loves you!”

“The service in this place really is terrible!” Kylo said, making sure it was loud enough so that she would be able to hear him over the music.

An almost inhuman yelp escaped from the girl’s lips as she jumped away from Ren, bringing the mop up and holding it defensively as if she were about to swing it at him like a bat.

But before Kylo had a chance to react she did swing it at him like a bat, the hilt of the mop hitting his cheek with so much force that the splintered end cut him.

“The service in this place really is terrible!”

“Aah,” Rey yelped, her heart skipping a beat at how startled she was. She jumped back, mop at the ready, and swung at the figure in front of her without having time to register who it was.

Wood met flesh. Rey’s eyes began to focus as the man toppled back from her, clutching his right cheek in his hand which was now covered in blood. It was the man from that morning. Her eyes came to lie on the man’s clothes, soaked and dripping on to her mopped floors. She glanced up at the stack of files on the table behind him. The severity of the situation hit her luck a truck.

“Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god,” she said in rapid succession, sprinting away to the kitchen before she returned, the first aid kit in her hand.

“WHAT THE HELL!” he roared at her, blood covering his hand as he held his cheek. Rey rushed behind him and pulled a chair down from a table she had just cleaned, rolling her eyes as she did so.

“Sit,” she said. He complied immediately, sitting on the chair without a word.

They sat in silence as Rey grabbed another chair and placed it in front of Kylo’s. She placed the first aid kit onto the table and unlatched it, grabbing swabs and disinfectant from its contents.

“Let me see it,” she said gently to him. He glanced up at her, meeting her gaze. Nothing but anger and malice stared back at her. As he looked at her his eyes softened before they darted away, instead looking to the floor. His hand moved away, allowing her to see the cut for the first time. She winced.

“This is going to sting a bit,” she said, dabbing the swab with the disinfectant. Her hands were gentle as they cleaned his wound, the man only wincing once before remaining quiet. It was deep, she realised, but not deep enough for stitches. ‘Thank god,’ she thought.

“This is your fault, you know?” She said softly after sitting in the awkward silence for too long. His gaze met hers again, the malice in his eyes having disappeared.

Instead of retaliating, as she presumed he would, he simply chuckled before asking, “And why would that be?”

His voice was lower than she remembered and much quieter than she had ever heard it before.

“Well you can’t really sneak up behind a girl and scare her without expecting to get a splintering mop to the face.” Another small chuckle escaped from his lips.

“Ah, yes, my bad,” he responded, a hint of a small smile on his lips.

Rey had finished disinfecting the wound, most of the bleeding having stopped already. She held a cloth to his cheek.

“Hold this in place. The bleeding will stop soon but I don’t want you bleeding onto my freshly mopped floors.” That emitted a small laugh from him.

“How rude of me. I sincerely apologise for bleeding on you floor.”

“Apology accepted.” The two realised almost at the same moment just how close they had been sitting. Ren leaned back as Rey stood up, grabbing her mop and bucket and depositing them back into the kitchen.

“Can I get you anything? We’re technically closed but I don’t think either of us will be heading out anytime soon if this rain doesn’t stop.” As if on cue a loud bang of thunder sounded nearby.

“You’ve got a fair point there. I’ll have a Caramel Frappuccino if you’re making one.” Rey glanced back at him with a quizzical look on her face.

“What?” he questioned.

“Oh no, it’s nothing, it’s just, I didn’t expect you to be such a sweet tooth,” she said, a smile on her features as she walked to the counter. The room fell silent once more as the whir of the coffee machine started up.

“So where are Mr Manager and his boyfriend at this late hour?” Rey chuckled at the nicknames.

“Well for one their names are Poe and Finn and for two their shifts are done for the day. We like to swap around who closes up so it’s not always the same person.”

“Sounds fair enough. You should maybe consider locking the door when they leave though so that no strange men walk in off the street.” He heard a genuine laugh from where Rey was behind the counter.

“Seems a bit late for that now.”

The coffee machine had grown quiet as Rey walked back over to the man, two coffee cups in her hand. She handed one to him before she took her seat again.

“What are you drinking?” The man asked her, pointing to the coffee cup in her hands.

“Hot chocolate,” now it was the man’s turn to look quizzically at her, “I don’t like to drink coffee so late, it’s keeps me up,” she explained.

Yet another silence ensued, this time being a bit awkward. Neither knew what to say to keep the conversation going whilst they were stuck in this cafe together.

“Soooooo,” the man spoke, having sat in the uncomfortable silence for a few minutes too long, “do you have a name?”

“Yes I do,” Rey responded, a cheeky grin on her face.

When Kylo realised she did not intend on saying anything more he asked again, “May I…know it?”

“It’s Rey,” she spoke, still smiling at the dark haired man.

“Kylo,” he responded, “I don’t suppose there’s anything to do around here.”

Rey’s eyes lit up as her smile grew wider, the image of the massive amount of dirty dishes she had left at the wash station popping into her mind.

“Why do I not like that smile?” He questioned, only broadening Rey’s cheeky grin.

“Follow me,” she said, leading him towards the kitchen doors. They entered, Kylo following after Rey as she headed towards the back, the high stack of dishes visible even from the doorway.

“No, no, no,” Kylo said as she continued to lead him towards the wash station, “I never offered to do the dishes.”

“You asked if there was anything to do around here,” she pointed towards the dirty plates, “this is what needs to be done.”

“You know they have machines that can do this for you now? They’re called dishwashers.”

“It’ll make up for all the plates you broke this morning.” He opened his mouth to protest before wisely closing it.

Rey stared back at him with one eyebrow lifted, arms crossed in front of her. Kylo sighed before rolling up his sleeves.

“You’re insufferable,” he stated, “I’ll wash, you dry.”

The two worked in silence, the radio still playing in the background. Rey hummed quietly along to the tunes as Kylo washed. She glanced up at him, his face too determined on the task at hand to notice.

She hadn’t payed too much attention to his features until now. He was handsome, she realised, in his own unique sort of way. His long hair framed his face well, highlighting his striking jawline. His lips and his nose were slightly too big for his face but it didn’t take away from his looks, if anything they enhanced it. A few freckles dotted his pale skin here and there, once again only enhancing his incredibly good-looking features.

“Are you done staring?” His words shocked her out of her trance, her cheeks now turning crimson in embarrassment.

“I was just seeing how your cut was doing.”

Her eyes did glance to the cut now. It was still quite red, bruising beginning to form around it now, but the bleeding had stopped and the swelling had gone down.

Kylo placed the last dish onto Rey’s bench, wiped perfectly clean just like the rest. She wiped it down before placing it in the draw where it belonged. Passing the cloth to Kylo, he wiped his hands clean before slinging the tee-towel over his shoulder.

“Any more free labour you want to get out of me?” He asked, a playfulness to his tone.

“Nope, that’s all that needed to be done.”

As their conversation halted and the song came to a close they could once again hear the sound of the rain hitting the roof with force. Another grin encompassed Rey’s face as she darted off in the direction of the fridge.

Kylo Ren did not quite remember how he ended up eating cookie dough with a girl he barely knew as they sat opposite each other on counters in the kitchen of a cafe. A girl, no less, who had threatened to burn his coffee everyday that morning. But, if he were honest with himself, he didn’t quite care.

He listened intently, scooping another serving of cookie dough onto his spoon, as Rey rambled on about her colleagues again.

“And then Finn and Poe just rocked up to work together one day. But, get this, Finn was wearing Poe’s jacket.”

“No he wasn’t.”

“Yes he was. And that’s how everyone found out they were fucking. Took them long enough in my opinion.”

As Rey finished talking they both noticed the absence of the rain hitting the roof. Kylo glanced at his watch, 2:00 AM, they had been talking for over an hour. He glanced up at the girl in front of him who swished her finger in the cookie dough bowl, scraping up the last of the substance before licking her finger clean. In his 29 years of life Kylo Ren had never found it easier to talk to another human being. She was so interesting and yet so unaccomplished at the same time.

Even though they had only talked for an our it felt like he had known her for years. Poe and Finn were her two best friends. She had met Finn in college and had met Poe when the two best friends had been hired by the small little cafe. She was an orphan who lived by herself, her only living relative, her grandfather, having past away the year before.

Yet, even thought the girl could talk the ears off a donkey, she didn’t like to talk about herself much, often darting question and throwing them back at Kylo. He had told her all about his job and how working in a law firm could both suck and rule at the same time. They had talked about Hux and Phasma and how they were the closest things he had to friends. She had even managed to get him to open up about his relationship with his parents, a topic he hadn’t talked about in over 10 years.

They sat there, looking at each other in silence, both realising that, with the rain having now stopped, there was nothing keeping them from going home and departing ways.

“The rain’s stopped,” Rey said quietly, the smile fading from her face.

“So it has,” he responded.

Rey jumped from the bench, placing the now empty cookie-dough bowl into the sink.

“I should be heading home,” she stated, averting his gaze. “It’s my turn to open up the shop tomorrow so…” she trailed off.

“Of course,” Kylo replied, also jumping off of the counter. He began to head towards the kitchen doors, Rey following behind him.

“Do you live far?” Kylo asked, watching Rey as she grabbed her bag and shrugged on her coat, how she was wearing shorts in this weather he did not know.

“No, only a few blocks away,” she replied.

“Good, then I’ll walk you home,” he stated resolutely, leaving no room for argument.

“You don’t have to do that, honestly, I don’t live far.”

“I’m not letting a pretty girl like you walk home at 2:00 AM in the morning.”

She opened her mouth to protest before closing it, shocked at his words. He thinks I’m pretty?

Kylo walked over to where his files sat, now dry from the warm air of the cafe. With his coat and satchel firmly set on top of his broad shoulders he bent down and picked up the large stack of paperwork, grunting slightly under the weight.

“Fine,” Rey said as she watched him pick up the files, the stack almost reaching his chin. “But at least let me help you with those.”

Rolling his eyes he handed Rey three files, a fraction of what he was holding.

“Seriously?” She questioned. He handed her two more.

Rey rolled her eyes before stepping closer to him, grabbing half the pile and adding it to her own with ease. She struggled under the weight slightly but it was nothing she couldn’t handle. Kylo cocked an eyebrow at her.

“I work part-time as a mechanic as well,” Rey answered his unasked question, “I carry tires around all day.” Kylo chuckled in response.

“Sorry for underestimating you.”

Kylo waited for her outside as she turned the lights off and locked the door. They talked politely with each other as they walked, the sidewalk still wet from the downpour.

It didn’t take long for them to reach Rey’s apartment. Just as she said, she didn’t live far away.

“Well this is me,” she said. Kylo looked down at her as she tucked a stray hair out of her face, it having come loose from her bun.

“It’s been a pleasure talking with you,” Kylo said, his deep voice sending shivers down her spine.

After a few moments sitting in the prolonged silence Rey said, “I’ll catch you around then.”

She began to walk off before Kylo stopped her, “Rey,” he called after her.

“Yes?” She whipped her head around at the sound of his voice.

“You still have my files,” he stated, looking down at the pile still in her hands.

Rey looked down at them, “Oh, yeah, shit sorry, my bad.”

She rushed back over to him and deposited her pile back onto his.

“Bye,” she said again, averting her gaze from him as she began to walk away.

“Rey,” Kylo called after her once more, causing her to whip her head around once more. “Can I get your number?” The question was paired with a smile, her grin matching his as her face was illuminated by the lights inside her building.

“Yes,” she said, “But on one condition.” He cocked his eyebrow but let her continue. “Tomorrow morning you have to come into work and apologise to Finn.”

The smile faded from Kylo’s face as he answered her, “What happened this morning wasn’t my fault, Rey. He ran into me.”

Now Rey’s smile had vanished too, “I meant for the verbal abuse you threw at him.”

“You’ve got to be joking.”

With a sigh, Rey turned back around, hitching her bag further up her shoulder. “Goodnight Kylo,” she called back to him, not giving him a second glance.

The morning shift was extremely slow for Rey, but not because of the lack of customers (there were plenty of those). Truth be told she didn’t know why she kept glancing at the clock, legitimately watching as the minutes ticked by.

The bell a top the door chimed as a customer walked in.

“Welcome to The Resistance Cafe what can I-” Finn stopped mid-sentence as he recognised the face that stood before him, a lot less coffee stained then yesterday. Rey looked up from where she was busy making coffee’s, looking to Finn before her eyes came to rest on Kylo. He was looking back at her, deep bags under his eyes.

His attention turned back to Finn who had stood up straighter, standing his ground against the giant in front of him.

“I would like to apologise for yesterday,” Kylo began, causing Finn to blink in surprise. “Not for dropping your tray, you did that all by yourself, but for the way I handled the situation. It was uncalled for and it was rude. I’m sorry,” the last word came out of his mouth with a pause, as if he had never uttered those words in his life time.

Finn just stared back at him, shock plain on his face. A not-so-subtle cough from Rey next to him awoke him from his trance. He blinked a few times before responding. “Thank you.” Once again Kylo’s eyes were back on Rey.

“Now can I get you anythin-”

Before Finn could finish Rey had popped up beside him, a Caramel Frappuccino in her hands. “That’ll be $4.50.”

He slide her the money, smiling at her as he turned and left the store, holding a cup of coffee in his hands with 10 very special digits written on it in very messy handwriting.

#reylo #rey #kylo ren #kylo ren x rey #kylo x rey #kylo trash #ben solo #star wars #star wars au #reylo au #stormpilot #fn2187 #poe dameron #finn x poe #star wars force awakens #Star Wars the last Jedi #reylo coffee shop au #coffee shop au

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fallingintounfolding · 6 years

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Nobody wants to hear about your cleanse.

Yes. I know.

I don’t want to hear about yours either. But hey—this blog is only half for you. The other half is mine to record the shit I want to record. So, I am going to talk about it anyway.

Preamble

This winter thus far has been dark and dirty and mostly immobile.

Lowlights:

Being bedridden for 6 weeks due to an ankle injury.

5 bad hook-ups in a row, followed by a long month of celibacy.

Watching no less than 10 series (some even had multiple seasons) on Netflix...almost consecutively.

Spending the holidays solo.

Eating enough food to feed a small vegan horse.

Drinking more alcohol than the two seasons before combined.

Honestly? I spent days on end in this apartment bemoaning how I went from such a spiritual high at the end of the summer to these super low blues.

But I can’t live in the super low blues. The best thing to do is to let your self suffer for a wee bit, then pick yourself up and fix it.

I am doing that through a cleanse.

Whenever I hear “cleanse,” I think about Kelly from that episode of the office where she does the MasterCleanse. This sums it up.

This is not this kind of cleanse.

This is more like I am treating myself to a retreat. But without leaving the city. Because I have classes. And I have to get a citizenship. Oh, and Canada currently has my passport.

But it’s ok. I am going to treat myself to retreat.

Resetting: The Plan

A 21-day reset followed by a 10-day Vipassanā meditation.

21-Day Detox

I have examined the areas of my life that I feel are in need of a boost. Then made a list of things that were no longer serving me that I need to boot.

Here was the list I made late one night in my head when my ex-boyfriend was sleeping over, and was snoring, and I couldn’t sleep.

First thing to go: the ex-boyfriend. (Just kidding. He is nice and we love each other. Maybe I will read this line years from now and roll my eyes at myself.)

The list:

Do more yoga

Start meditating again

Just drink more water

Get my french to the next level

Quit being a wimp about cycling the hills in Brussels

Stop.fucking.drinking.

Get more vitamin D

Do a serious fast. Stop eating fries and cashews.

Stop seeing people for while

Get rid of Netflix. Get rid of all non-work or writing related webstuff

Do more art.

Then I designed myself some resources to help.

The thing about being a decent designer is that you can make yourself motivating materials, that are 100% personalized to you. I went to the local printers and printed these in colour for €2, and hung them on my walls.

The Day Plan

Download this here.

Like a real retreat, I made myself a schedule. I scheduled in my goals, and when I was going to do things. That way I don’t get to the end of the night and think “Well, shit. Now I don’t have time.”

I have the time. It is clearly laid out.

Each part of the day is divided up with time to create nice salads, meditate, work on my art or writing.

What I don’t have time for is Facebook or Netflix.

There are some notes on the bottom of the page to remind myself my other goals and why I am doing this, so I will subconsciously see them and be motivated.

The Meal Plan

Download this here.

My diet is pretty clean.

When I started looking at detoxes online, a lot of them were like “Stop eating meat, sugar and caffeine.” I was like “My life is a goddamn detox.” But, that doesn’t mean I have been eating the best I can,

I have clearly been eating too many fries, cashews, and beer.

And not nearly enough leafy greens.

So, for the next 21 days, just being a plant is not enough.

I am upping the fresh greens and lowering the nuts and oils. I thought about cutting them entirely, and I might do this for a few days in the detox, but it is hard to roast vegetables or get the salt to stick to your popcorn with no oil at all.

And plus, nuts are a very important source of protein and minerals. Just not so much. A wee bit gets to stay.

The Checklist

Download this here.

I love a checklist.

And I love seeing that I am doing something well at something

The daily checks will help me build my momentum (ie. I am not going to have a beer if I have 15 check marks, and I know I won’t get to check that day if I do.) so this is where this checklist comes in.

The checklist includes:

Tech detox: now I need my MacBook for work and writing. I am keeping Gmail, WhatsApp, Memrise, and Gaia. Other than that, I have cleared everything non-essential from my iPhone and MacBook and downloaded SelfControl for the first two weeks until I break the habit. Farewell Facebook. See you later Instagram. Toodles Twitter. I am off.

Nutrition: I talked about this in the last section, but I am giving myself a tick for each day I stick to my daily meal plan.

Alcohol-free: This winter I have been drinking at least 15 units a week. And that's being modest. Not only is it packing on the kilos, but the hangover stops me from meditating and doing yoga the next day, not so good. So, I put all my special drinks on the top shelf, and am giving my liver a break for the next month.

Yoga: I do 20-30 minutes of yoga every morning, which helps me stretch out the creakiness, but I’d like to up my vinyasa game and intensify my practice a bit this month. But whether it is 1 hour of yin or vinyasa, I am getting a check for every day I hit my mat.

Meditation: Meditation is an essential. I have two mediation slots in my day, one which is a simple, easy, meditation where I will simply work on time (Adding 3 minutes each day) The second mediation is either a full body relaxation meditation or one on Gaia.

Art: This is either drawing, cycle repair, or writing. All I include as art, creative expression and experience. I haven’t been to my art class since I hurt my ankle. I got tired of drawing naked people. But I am going to launch back in with my own projects this season.

Solitude Training: So, at the end of the month, I am doing a ten day Vipassana course. Part of that is going to be the silence, but also the emotional solitude. And I am going to start working on this for the detox. The people in my life are lovely, but I need to work on getting really comfortable with solitude. So, this means I am drastically reducing how much I talk to people and socialize. In exception of the plans I have already made (and school/work) I am flying solo for the next month. (Note: this also includes being celibate for the next month. Dear god. But “ITS GONNA BE AMAZING”....)

Sun: It has been so dark, which has had an effect on my serotonin levels. So, I get a check for 30 minutes spent outside. Even if it is not sunny.

Vitamin Wash: There have been a ton of studies done on vitamin supplements, and my conclusion is that they really can’t replace a diet filled with organic, fresh, phytochemicals. This being said, an intense vitamin c wash can transform your entire system, from your immunity to your mind. So, I am going supplement megadoses of vitamin c for the detox. Get into the blood. And wash out some of that cashew and coconut fat.

Vipassanā

All this detoxing is really leading up to the big cleanse: the Vipassanā retreat.

If you’ve heard of Vipassanā before, you’re probably thinking: 10 days of trying to sit still and complete silence. Pretty drastic.

And while that is a part of it, it is not the essence.

The essence is taking some time to take an in-depth look into your own mind. While you meditate, you see the rising and passing away of your thoughts, which leads to deep insights into not only how you think, but life as a whole.

But it is not for the faint of heart. And it will get tough.

That's why I am doing three weeks of prep before I go.

Going to grab some blankets and head up to Dhamma Pajjota in the north east of Belgium. To sit quietly and observe my own mind for a while.

I don’t know how much I will want to write during my process. Part of me wants to commit to tracking the whole thing, and the other half thinks it is better to just sink into it and see how I feel on the other side. Maybe I will find a place in between.

The detox section starts tomorrow! I am excited.

Kind of.

#detox #cleanse #tech detox #vegan #vegan detox #vipassanā

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thesearebobsthoughts · 4 years

Text

March 29, 2020

I don’t know how much longer paramedics can keep this up. Via The New York Times:

One New York City paramedic described responding to a suicide attempt of a woman who had drank a liter of vodka after her cancer treatments had been delayed, in part because hospitals were clearing their beds for coronavirus patients.

Another paramedic said she responded to so many cardiac arrests in one shift that the battery on her defibrillator died.

“It does not matter where you are. It doesn’t matter how much money you have. This virus is treating everyone equally,” the Brooklyn paramedic said

***

Three weeks ago, the paramedics said, most coronavirus calls were for respiratory distress or fever. Now the same types of patients, after having been sent home from the hospital, are experiencing organ failure and cardiac arrest.

“We’re getting them at the point where they’re starting to decompensate,” said the Brooklyn paramedic, who is employed by the Fire Department. “The way that it wreaks havoc in the body is almost flying in the face of everything that we know.”

In the same way that the city’s hospitals are clawing for manpower and resources, the virus has flipped traditional Emergency Medical Services procedures at a dizzying speed. Paramedics who once transported people with even the most mild medical maladies to hospitals are now encouraging anyone who is not critically ill to stay home. When older adults call with a medical issue, paramedics fear taking them to the emergency room, where they could be exposed to the virus.

***

The husband frantically explained that he had tried to stay home and tend to his ill wife, but his employer had asked him to work because their facility was overrun with coronavirus patients.

Grudgingly, the man told the medics, he went to work. When he returned home after his shift that day, he found her unconscious in their bed. For 35 minutes, Mr. Almojera’s team tried to revive the woman, but she could not be saved.

Usually, Mr. Almojera said, he tries to console family members who have lost a loved one by putting his arm around them or giving them a hug.

But because the husband was also thought to be infected with the coronavirus, Mr. Almojera delivered the bad news from six feet away. He watched the man pound on his car with his fist and then crumble to the ground.

“I’m sitting there, beside myself, and I can’t do anything except be at this distance with him,” Mr. Almojera said. “So, we left him.”

Speaking of poor, non-white people getting the toxic end of this lollipop:

The numbers in the above map represent positive tests. The next one, showing the differences in deaths from COVID is going to be truly grim and absolutely divided along race and class lines, because America. Specifically, because poorer, browner New Yorkers have less access to well, everything: heath care, information, jobs that can’t be performed from home. All those people working in supermarkets and making deliveries, the “essential workers” are disproportionately poor. Social distancing? Sure, try that when you’re living on the streets or still trapped in Riker’s or even a huge public housing project with one or two goddamn working elevators.

Even those who do have insurance are about to be royally screwed. “No insurer, no state, planned and put money away for something of this significance,” Peter V. Lee, the executive director of Covered California, an state exchange that’s part of the ACA, said. Well then, maybe the insurance providers shouldn’t have eaten so much avocado toast at brunch. Ha ha. Just kidding. The current admin has decimated the ACA, which was a laughable excuse for a healthcare system to begin with, and has only grown worse since. 2010

Here’s a fun/funny story. I was running low on Juul pods and with the next shipment not scheduled to arrive till Monday I had to do something. So, scribbed my hands raw, I put on clothes that I’d feel comfortable incinerating if need be, strapped on a pair of brown leather gloves, and tied a scarf around the entirety of my face as if I were a Black Bloc anarchist. And then I stepped outside the front door for the first time in... ten days? I’m going to say ten days. It was stressful and enraging with some light terror tossed in for variety’s sake.

I scoped out the block for people like I was on a goddamn recon mission, and let me tell you, wealthy-ass Brooklyn Heights residents were not maintaining social distancing. Dads breezily lazily walking their dogs, unconcerned (somehow) if someone trotted right by them. Gaggles of people, laughing, chatting, shooting the shit as if nothing had changed. On more than one occasion, I had to sprint across the street to maintain proper spacing. At my local bodega—the only bodega anywhere within walking distance of my apartment which sells pods—a hand-drawn sign had been taped to the shelves containing cigs and e-cigs. “Please make your selection and leave as quickly as possible,” the sign read.

I did so, bolting back out, ticking off the seconds till I was back at 108 Pierrepont. My neighbor was idling at the front gate, trying to coax her large labrador retreiver up the steps. I waited till she’d gotten to the front door and asked how she was feeling.

My neighbor said “better.” Which, sure. The dry cough of hers seemed to echo through our shared (thin) wall less frequently now. Oh and her sense of taste and smell was slowly returning.

You have got to be fucking kidding me. I tried to gently explain that she fucking has it without flipping my shit at her for not immediately telling everyone in the building. I sent out a mass email the instant I started feeling under the weather and unlike her, I’ve never had two of the most common fucking symptoms. Standing outside the building, paralyzed, unsure how long I needed to wait to sprint into the building and up the spiral staircase. She wasn’t even wearing a scarf, let alone a mask. Every exhale was flooding the lobby with infection but somehow using a Clorox wipe to open and close the door was enough of a preventative measure in her mind.

So grabbed all the packages that were waiting for me and galloped up the staircase. (Stalling for two days before going downstairs to pick up my deliveries accomplished nothing, what with the co-op’s own personal Typhoid Mary going outside twice a day to walk the dog. I’m still livid, two days after the fact. It’s insanely irresponsible of her. ) l kicked off my shoes outside the door, then stripped naked and deposited every item in a plastic garbage bag, tying it as tightly as possible. After scrubbing down my hands like Hawkeye Pierce, I then scoured the packages themselves with a wipe, followed hard upon by every surface they’d touched. I washed my hands a second time, belting out two consecutive particularly antic versions of the Happy Birthday song. Then I opened the packages, wiped down the contents, and washed my hands for a third time before jumping in the shower.

70 percent of the tests run by Northwell Health are coming back positive, and thousands of people will likely die. "I don't see how you look at those numbers and conclude anything less than thousands of people will pass away," the Governor said on Sunday. Vulnerable parts of the population will be hit particularly hard. "I hope its wrong, but..."

This is the Jacob K. Javits Center now. Soon, the beds will all be full:

In the hopefully not-too-distant future, someone’s going to write a book detailing the ongoing failures at every level of the Federal government. (Who am I kidding? Everyone is going to write that book.) At least one will probably toss in a bit of color about the Javits Center: It’s where Hillary Clinton was on the night of November 8, 2016, getting ready to deliver her victory speech. The one that never came. Once the election was called, she sent John goddamned Podesta out instead. Ha ha.

On Wednesday, I spent a frantic afternoon getting epidemiologists on the blower to talk about ballplayers going under the knife and feeeling generally flu-ish and tired while doing so. [Editor’s note: stop trying to sound like you’re not incredibly fucking privileged and have less shit to deal with than the vast bulk of people in this city alone. You blogged whilst sick. Hero-type stuff, truly.]

It’s not in the article, but yeah. All these high-paid orthopedic specialists should be barreling toward the front lines and turning their top-shelf sports medicine facilities into something fucking useful.

Per Mom, on Facebook:

It doesn't just "look like" special privileges for the rich and powerful, it is just that. Doctors, nurses, technicians, and other healthcare resources are currently being diverted to parts of hospitals and other locations where they are needed. They are being called back from retirement to help fill the need. These resources could be used with urgency elsewhere and are not when such elective procedures are being done instead. Excellent article, Bob.

Thanks, Mom.

Mike Francesa has been radicalized. Back afta this.

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