Damian buried himself nose deep in his book, quickly getting invested in the story. It was something he'd swiped off his mom's bookshelves right before he left, one of those pulpy old bodice rippers. Completely stupid, but also weirdly entertaining. It almost let him forget how hungry he was.
juniper approached damien's table again, setting down the coffee and food with two quiet thumps.
"here you are. go to the counter when you're ready to pay, love. meet me outside when you're finished." he turned quickly, stopping to mention, "the burger's a freebie, by the way." before exiting the restaurant to wait outside.
Damian smiled gratefully at him as he left, digging into the burger after a few minutes. It was delicious, so much more filling than a coffee would've been, and he decided to hang around here more often. There weren't many places he could safely hang around, but this was quickly becoming one of them.
After about ten minutes of frantically scarfing down food he left to see if Juniper had decided to ditch him or not, taking his still warm coffee with him.
juniper was leaning against the wall, and looked up when damian came out.
"hey, you. how was it?"
Damian smiled, small but genuine, and walked over to lean next to Juniper. "The name's Damian, actually, but you can call me anything you like," he said with a smirk that seemed strangely self-deprecating. Like he hated himself for being so cheesy. "And the burger was delicious. Best thing I've had all week."
"glad to hear that, damian." he tried, getting used to the newly-revealed name. "i'll let the cook know, he's sure to appreciate it."
Damian's smile widened when Juniper said his name and he ducked his head to hide it. He hated the way he smiled, it made him look like a dopey idiot. "Good, give him my compliments. Do you have a name, or will I get to keep calling you sweetheart?"
"ah, fuck. i forgot to tell you. while i'm pretty okay with being called sweetheart, my name is juniper." he turned slightly to look at damian.
"yes, i'm named after a tree. my dad's name is even worse, poor fucker's name is magik."
Damian muffled a laugh into his hand, keeping his face turned away while he fought to dim his smile. Once it was manageable and he didn't look like an idiot, he turned back to Juniper. "I like your name, it's almost as pretty as you are. I think your dad's a lost cause though; who fucking names their kid Magik?"
"our weird ass parents, i guess. thank god i got off with juniper, and not something closer to mag's name." he chuckled, looking towards the sky. the sun was beginning to set, and juni particularly liked around this time.
"and before you ask, 'our parents' mean my grandparents. mag's only 9 years older than me."
he did not elaborate further.
Damian blinked at the unusual age difference but didn't comment. If the sun was setting, that meant he had a few hours until it was too dark for him to have an excuse to stay out and this was probably the best thing that'd happened to him all month.
"So, Juniper, what made you decide to flirt with me? I know I'm not exactly the cutest kid on the block, I mean," he gestured at his clothes with a sweeping gesture. "And I'm not all that… well-liked."
he arched an eyebrow.
"well, monsieur, i'd say you're my type. you also looked quite lonely, i thought i'd help with that. we also dont get a lot of young faces around the diner nowadays. mostly just… family."
Damian raised an eyebrow in return. He wasn't the most involved in the more seedy parts of the community, but he was known to dabble when things got bad. He knew that this wasn't the nicest part of town, and he knew that 'family' automatically translated to 'mafia'. "Oh, family, is that what you call it now?"
(bump)
"yeah," he chuckled, crossing his arms low over his waist. "the diner's always been the 'family business'. go figure, i'm hardly blood related."
he wasn't worried about damian ratting them out, surprisingly. just from looking at him, juniper could tell he'd been there. you know, mildly. if you got more than mildly involved with anything around here you ended up joining a syndicate.
Damian laughed with him, nodding. "At least I know why you can price your food so cheap. How's family business… Is the big man doing well?" It was a careful question, one he asked with as little emotion as possible. Some still managed to leak through. The big man helped Damian's pops' gambling debts, but he'd gotten sick recently. Deathly sick. If he died, if someone else took over, Damian's dad was toast. And so was Damian.
"we're a branch, we don't talk to the big boys much. i can say i've heard he's… taken ill, though." he shrugged. "you know 'im personally?"
(bump)
(Sorry, I just got home from school)
Damian sighed at the answer and shrugged in return. "As personally as you can. He's…" What was he? More than his dad's friend, less than a father figure. Too old to be a friend and too distant to be a mentor. "He's been part of my life for a while now," Damian finally settled on. "I miss seeing him around."
(its ok!!)
"awh," juni looked sympathetically at damian. "that's rough. i'm sure he'll be alright, he's definitely got enough saved to pay for healthcare."
juni suddenly looked at the sky, pulling out his phone to check the time.
"nearly 8:00. closing time is soon. i've got some business to attend to, but hold on a moment, love." he pulled his pad of paper from his back pocket and scribbled his number down, tore it off, and held it out to damian.
Damian frowned at his tone, uncomfortable under the sympathy. He shifted his feet, fidgeting under the look, but his nervousness shifted into disappointment when Juniper said he'd have to leave. He took the paper with a hesitant smile, looking over the number like he was trying to memorize it. "Are you sure you wanna give me your number? It's only been an hour, I could still turn out to be a total freak."
juniper's lips quirked into a rare half-smile, and he pushed off the wall to stand normally facing damian.
"i can deal with a little bit of freak. and if you're totally gross, the block button exists for a reason. and if all else fails, well." he tipped his head. "the family is sure to know your address. hasta pronto, damian." he brushed past damian, disappearing into the trees that grew thickly around the diner.
Damian smiled back, something softer than the usual smirk, and watched him go with a happy sigh. He pulled out a pack of cigarette's once Juniper was gone, taking a drag from one thoughtfully as he stared at the number. This was a first, but it was also… nice. He'd have to text tonight, if his dad wasn't too pissed.
juniper entered his house with a happy sigh, walking to his room to change. but upon entering the room, he gave the sugar skull mask on his dresser a hard look as well as the baseball bat leaned in the corner.
this was gonna be a hard afternoon. you and dad will watch a movie after it, and maybe damian will text you. it's okay. just the family business.
Damian was in no rush to get home, but the streets were getting darker and his cigarette was almost gone. By the time the moon ws the only thing illuminating the walk home, he dropped his cig and stomped on it to put it out.
Once he opened the door, he could hear his father getting up from the creaky old armchair in the livingroom, and he braced himself for the inevitable pain. Dad got tired around 10:30, so Damian was free to slink up to his room, nursing a newly bruised cheek, and put Juniper's number in his phone.
Hi sweetheart (or do you prefer Juniper?), it's the absolute hottie from the restaurant. Any regrets about giving me your number yet?
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