-- BETTER DAYS [Artemis]

[DEVIN JAMES THATCHER]

The sidewalks were busy with life today; even though the weather was ever getting chillier and snow was imminent, people still hustled about in the Hollow, clearly trying to prepare for the upcoming holidays and other family matters that always lingered around this time of year. Devin’s shoes scuffed the pavement as he sauntered past the shops, clearly focused on his destination. It was about lunchtime, and the boy was craving Timmie’s. A sandwich and a soda sounds delicious, He thought to himself with a faint smile on his boyish features. It had been a while since he visited Timmie’s. Today was just one of those days to escape the academy and home for a while and just relax. Although, it was hard to relax when one had so much on their mind. Devin could see the coffee shop in the distance, so continued forward with a determined stride. Not only was it cold, but he was hungry, and wanted to be warm and full instead.

The past few days had been hell. It seemed somewhat of a blur now, as Devin so often like to block out negative memories or anything dealing with his dad and step-mother, Lauren. Unluckily for him the memory was negative and pertained to the said couple. Devin’s face remained stoic but on the inside doubts and insecurities ran full force. It made his heart race and an uncomfortable speed, and it was hard to keep under control. Within the next week or two, the blonde would find himself at his dad’s doorstep with luggage in two. Athena would be off with his Aunt Judith—it was Devin’s request that she take his little sister so she could avoid the drama that would ensue at their dad’s house—so at least she would be safe. Now, for his own well-being…that was left up in the air for now. With Lauren, Devin could never tell what was going to happen. No matter though, he was going to do what it took to stay with Josh, Nell, Autumn, Harley, and Artemis. He had other friends, sure, but they were the only ones he felt any need to count on. Soon Devin came to stand before the coffee shop, glancing around for a moment before entering the building.

Coffee wafted over his senses instantaneously, almost as if he walked into a wall of the strong aroma. He was not overtly fond of the substance, but the smell was at least enticing and somewhat calming to the nerves. Even caffeine in its most basic form—smell—was enough to keep your hands from shaking profusely. Smiling to himself, Devin approached the counter; there was a kind looking woman on the other side of the counter with a smile to match his own. It was nice to meet people who liked to smile at their place of work, because it always managed to cheer him up for reasons unknown to him. “Can I help you sir?” She asked sweetly, tilting her head. Devin tossed up a half smile; she was a very attractive young woman too, and anyone who knew the boy knew that he could not help but flirt. “Maybe…” He said, winking at her. She giggled a little and bit her lower lip, brushing a strand of hair out of her face. After a moment, Devin smirked a little and looked up at the menu. “Let’s see. I want a turkey sandwich, a Dr. Pepper, and your number.” His facial expression remained neutral after giving the girl his order, eyes trailing from the menu board and back towards her. She offered a smirk of her own and wrote down her number, sliding it across the counter before ringing up his order. “That will be $8.50…” The girl replied, Devin giving her a ten dollar bill. “Thanks beautiful. Keep the change.”

He left the girl to stare after him as he walked away from the counter and waited on his order. After a few minutes of watching people come and go from the shop, they called him to pick up his food and drink. Devin felt ravenous by this point, and so he quickly grabbed the food and found himself an empty booth next to the front window. It was nice to be inside the warm coffee shop, and to escape the stresses of the day. Eventually he would have to go back, but Devin strived to focus on the moment at hand.

[arte]

WHEN JULY BECAME DECEMBER
T H E I R A F F E C T I O N F O U G H T T H E C O L D

a sour look accompanied the wind element's face, though not for a particular fowl mood. with an icy wind blowing, artemis wished for nothing more than to control it so that it avoided her, except for wondering eyes. it would be dangerous for her to attempt something so stupid. after all, who would not notice a girl walking down the street with not even the strands of her hair moving in the direction of the wind? only the unobservable. nonetheless, the cruel realization did no relieve the sour expression and feeling her cheeks become red with the cold gusts, her mocha eyes glanced for tim hortons in the distance. curse her love for the place, despite its obvious contradictions with her likes and dislikes.

on any given day, artemis would avoid coffee because of her fond dislike of the substance. however, like many fast food restaurants for certain people, timmies had a way of transforming coffee into something that was enjoyable, instead of harshly bitter. though arte would never buy a straight up coffee, for fear that the bitter taste would be hiding somewhere deep in the warm liquid's depths, arte was religiously in love with iced caps. no matter the season, whether it be summer or the rigid winter of canada, arte drank the cold substance with a hint of coffee in the tastes. told she was an addict to the things, arte never went long enough without the drink to find out if she had withdrawal systems. after all, she only lived one life and she would be damned if she worried over a silly addiction to iced caps. despite their less-than-healthy ingredients, they would surely not be the thing to kill arte.

with the fresh memory of the last time she had gulped an iced cap down, artemis nearly screamed in joy as the door to tim hortons came into view and stretching out her arms, she reached the warm embrace of the handle with grace. opening it up, the aroma of coffee, baked goods, and soup filled her nostrils. although tim hortons could be classified as a café, artemis thought of it as a second home. with even strides, she made it to the counter in a timely matter and smiled brightly at the cashier. "good morning!" she said cheerily. "good morning arte. what would you like today?" the cashier replied and artemis felt warm inside. if being an addict to tim hortons meant that most of the people working there knew you and expected you to come regularly, arte was ok with that. "i'll get an iced cap made with half white milk and half cream. i'd also like an everything bagel with herb and garlic cream cheese, toasted." she stated her order as if it were second nature. clearly, a sign arte needed to chill on the timmies.

punching the order in, artemis handed over the exact change, another clear sign of her timmies addiction. only a couple minutes passed before her order arrived at the counter and eagerly, artemis picked it up, turning to face the tables in the process. swiftly glancing around the café, there was no doubt that artemis naturally knew the layout of the place. spotting a familiar dirty blonde head, arte smiled and bounced over to none other than devin. without asking to join him, she sat down easily, unwrapping her bagel as soon as her butt hit the chair. "good morning my fellow tim horton's goer!" she stated as an introduction before taking a bite from her bagel, followed by a sip of her iced cap.

glancing up to devin, artemis remembered the days she had wished to be held in his arms, before she learned of his compulsive flirting problem. though, as the thought more, not even that flaw stopped artemis from growing some sort of feelings, though she had never verbally confirmed them to her friend. now, a couple years later, she still refused to. not out of fear or out of the lack to even face those sort of romantic feelings, but arte knew some people were destined for friendship rather than relationship.

"so how are you today dev?" artemis finally asked the famous small talk question before indulging herself in another bite of her bagel and iced cap.

TAG - mister devin.
WORDS - seven one four.
CLOTHES - chocolatey.
NOTES - woot, got this up!

[DEVIN JAMES THATCHER]

Timmie’s was always busy. Being one of the more popular coffee shops in the area, it served as a central hub for caffeine lovers all over. Devin was a caffeine lover himself but preferred to avoid the taste of coffee; it was not his preferred drink, thus the Dr. Pepper nestled in his hand on the table. He unwrapped the sandwich and began to bite down when he thought he heard a familiar voice. Glancing around in his line of sight, there were no faces that caught his eye; none of them looked to be remotely recognizable. That, and he was too lazy to turn around and look around the rest of the shop so it was possible a fellow academy student was also lurking around Timmie’s. No surprise of course; a lot of the students enjoyed coming by the place to enjoy their dose of caffeine and delicious food. Better than the mess hall. He thought in passing as he savored the sandwich. It was just the way Devin liked it. As he swallowed and took a drink of his soda, the presence of another person became very aware to him. Looking up he saw the source of the familiar voice sitting across from him at his table. She was quick to make herself comfortable as she tore into her bagel. Devin grinned.

“Hey there gorgeous,” He replied, taking another bite of sandwich in his mouth. It always sounded so flirtatious and questionable, but in all reality he found Artemis to be a very pretty girl with a great personality to match. As always, Devin never offered up complements unless they were entirely true. Lying never got people anywhere they wanted to go. Honesty was the best policy. It was so amusing to see Artemis with so much energy—it seemed to engulf her being, seeping into Devin’s skin as he sat there looking at her thoughtfully. He could not help but feel a bit better about the day already. I’ll have to thank her later, when it’ll actually make sense. “They always have the best food don’t they? I would skip out on mess hall every day to have this sandwich right here.” Devin pointed to the sandwich as he swallowed and drank his soda again before glancing out of the window. Those people had no idea what they were missing out on! His attention was drawn back towards his friend at the inquiry about his day. He partially frowned.

At home, things were a little less than amazing. He was going to be moving in with his dad and step-mom because Judith had to move to the states for her job. It was not her fault of course—it was either that or she loses her income. Jobs were hard to come by in any economy, so to expect Judith to drop it all for Devin and Athena was asking for quite a bit. It still pained the boy to know he had to deal with Lauren on a daily basis again, instead of the fleeting moments they would run into one another around town. Now her physically aggressive tendencies would probably show out tenfold simply because she could try and have control over Devin again. That was the exact reason he told Judith to take Athena with her, no matter how upset his sister would be with such a decision. He refused to see her suffer again. I’ll be eighteen in no time, He continued to tell himself over and over again, knowing that it was running slower than molasses in winter. Instead of dwelling too long on these thoughts and leaving Artemis hanging without a proper response, he sighed and smiled at her sadly.

“I’m uh…I’m…I could be better.” Devin admitted, twirling the cup between his fingers. The sandwich was beginning to look less and less appetizing the more he stared at it; Lauren always managed to make him sick to his stomach. “I have to move back in with my dad and step-mom within the next week or two. Aunt Judith is leaving for the states because of her job…and I had her take Athena for safe keeping.” It was strange, spilling all of this to Artemis, but she was a trusted friend and there was no sense in hiding away from the facts of life. He was very unlike Josh in this way. Then again, he did not want to continue dwelling on the conversation for more than necessary so he forced himself to take another bite of his sandwich with a shrug. “But hey, I’ll live right? Always gotta look on the brighter side of things if you can.” A few people shuffled by their table to find a seat, drawing Devin’s attention away for a brief moment before looking back at the girl sitting across from him. His smile became more natural and cheerful as time went on. “What about you? How are you doing today? School going well?”