Crew of Cuties

It was finally the day to bring Juniper home for good. He was at the adoption agency, signing final papers when one of the ladies at the agency brought out little Juniper for him. She smiled when she saw him, eyes curling. Their other meetings had gone extremely well and Sam learned a lot about her.

The first time Sam met Juniper, she was very shy, just coloring as the other children played loudly with each other. All of the children in this group were about the age range that was ideal for him. Not too young and old enough to understand conversation. He didn’t know why, but he drifted towards her. “Hi,” he smiled softly at her as he knelt down. “What are you coloring there?”

“Peri,” her voice was small, smaller than Sam had anticipated, but he pulled up a chair next to her. He barely could fit in it. His knees almost hit his chest. The little girl looked up at him and giggled. “That chair’s not for you!” Sam couldn’t help but laugh a little too.

“I know, but I can’t sit anywhere else,” he leaned in to see her coloring book. “I’m Sam, by the way. What’s your name?”

“Juniper,” she put down her purple crayon and picked up another. She mumbled something in another language as she continued coloring again.

“Oh, you speak another language?” Sam asked, genuinely interested in the little girl sitting next to him.

She nodded, “Mhm! I moved here from Korea!”

“That’s awesome,” Sam smiled again. He didn’t remember the last time he had smiled this much. “I only know English. Maybe you can teach me how to speak Korean.”  They spoke with each other, comfortably until Sam’s time with the children was up. He learned that she was three and a half, her favorite TV show was Peri and Friends, and her favorite food was french fries.

“I have to go now, Juniper, but,” Sam stood up from the chair, stretching out his back a little. “I’ll be back in a couple days again.”

Juniper said something in Korean, waving. “That’s how you say goodbye. And also hello,” She grinned. Sam repeated it the best he could and Juniper giggled. “You just need practice. I’ll teach you more next time!”

He made it a morning ritual. He got up, took a shower, dressed in a new suit, and patted on some burnt wood and ginger smelling cologne. He left his loft, walked down ten blocks, and over seven, all to see the blonde professor and his emotionless face. He didn't care if there was a coffee place next to his building; Sam Lexington was worth the walk. There was something about Sam that Ashley just liked. He was attractive, undoubtedly, but there was something else. Even after learning he was a dad -- a married dad? A widowed dad? A divorced dad? A single dad? -- Ashley's crush had only doubled. Ashley had experimented in college, but nothing really stuck, and neither did any of the people. For most of his life, he had pursued people based on his group of friends. The girls he dated weren't anything special, except for maybe Hazel, who made him keen on blondes. And the guy his cousin had set him up with hadn't been anyone spectacular either. He was clingy and overly affectionate in a way Ashley couldn't stand. After high school and college, his mom had played matchmaker with family friend’s children, and Ashley couldn't stand any of them. After disappointing dinners and boring sex, Ashley decided to focus on just work. That seemed to please his mom more than any date or chance at marriage had. A year spent entirely single and Ashley got stuck behind a handsome professor one morning during a coffee run. He only knew Sam was a professor because of the school ID on his bag, and one day after weeks of staring at the sharp line of his shoulders, his occasional (movie star) profile, Ashley said something to him. Sam's voice was as flat as his expression, but Ashley found it oddly cute. Over weeks, and months, they exchanged small stories in their morning wait. It easily became the best part of Ashley's day. After learning Sam had a daughter, he realized he needed to know more about the professor in order to spare himself the embarrassment of a hopeless crush. Sam stepped inside Orellana's, and Ashley stepped in line behind him after pretending to read an email. “Hey, no daughter today?” Sam looked over his shoulder, spotting Ashley a whole head below him. “No, she's at her grandma's.” Sam's blank expression changed somewhat. “I'm really sorry about yesterday. She's never like that.” “Most kids don't like me.” He shrugged, remembering his little cousin Kimmy always trying to spit on him. “She's really cute, though. You guys must be real happy.” Sam's mouth did the funny thing Ashley grew to like more each day, a small smile that was barely existent but somehow managed to compliment all of Sam's features. It was entirely unfair. “Yeah, pretty happy. Not when she's a brat, though.” “It's fine.” They moved in line and Ashley felt bolder. “Is she a brat like that with Mom too?” Sam made a weird face ahead of him. “Uh, no. Juniper uh, she doesn't have a mom.” Ashley's stomach flipped. “Shit, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to--I'm sorry for your loss.” He was usually more eloquent than this. He blamed it being early. Sam made another weird face. “No, sorry, I didn't say that right. It's uh, just me raising her.” “Oh! Oh, oh,” Ashley didn't have a smooth recovery from that, not while his brain processed that and immediately translated it to single. Single dad. 

Sam was a single dad. “That must be stressful.” “Not really.” Sam put in his order and offered to pay for Ashley's. “For yesterday.” “Thanks, because your three year old really tore me apart yesterday when she called me a meanie." “A bad guy." Sam corrected. Their conversation drifted back to work -- Sam had the stupidest students -- and they left together, before going separate ways on the sidewalk. Almost to his crosswalk, Ashley stopped chewing on his bottom lip and turned around. “Hey, hey Sam!” Ashley was absolutely not running to catch up to the hot professor. Only, he was, because he had it bad. Real bad for someone he barely knew. And he knew a way to remedy that. Sam slowed ahead of him, eyebrows raised. “Wanna get drinks sometime after work? There's a bar,” Ashley pointed over his shoulder, down the street, “that way, with happy hour prices I think even a professor can afford.” “There's no way that's true.” Ashley laughed. “Yeah, sorry, they're not free.” Sam squinted, reminding him of Juniper yesterday, and Ashley had to stifle another laugh. “I'm free later today.” “Around 7?” Sam nodded. “Nice. It's called Wilson's. Right,” he pointed again, with his coffee in hand, for emphasis, “down there. Professor friendly prices.”  They parted ways after that, and Ashley couldn't calm his excitement the rest of the day. His secretary Jessica tossed him worried glances every time he answered the phone before her, voice cheery. They met up for drinks, like they had said. The bar was loud at happy hour, people in business suits sprinkled throughout the bar. They found a quieter spot farther from the door. They were two drinks in when Sam asked Ashley about high school. “I was such a douchebag.” Ashley laughed, rolling the bottom of his beer in a circular motion. “Threw those weekend parties like in the movies." “With like blacklights and stuff?” “Yeah. I got my older cousin to order strippers one time.” Sam laughed at that, a sound Ashley hadn't ever heard before, and he watched Sam's shoulders shake. “What about you?” Sam played with his beer, wiping at the sweat absently with his thumb. “No strippers.” Ashley muffled a laugh against his palm, leaning into it. “I was uh, on the robotics team in high school. So.” Ashley cracked up next to him. “You would be on the robotics team.” Ashley took a sip, smiling against the brown glass just picturing it. Sam, but with bigger glasses and a terrible haircut. He was probably still cute. “So, virgin until college?” “Asshole.” Sam smirked, looking down at his beer. “I don't know what crazy parties rocket scientists go to. Do you guys talk about the periodic chart of atoms or whatever?” Ashley leaned closer, grinning. He was shamelessly flirting but he hadn't been out with someone in a year. He'd been too busy helping run Park Manufacturing to focus on relationships, let alone friendships. “There's so much wrong in everything you said.” Sam's blue eyes lifted from his drink to Ashley, finally. Sam didn't smile like anyone Ashley knew, not big and bright. It was faint and easy to miss. It was subtle, and handsome, and suited Sam's face, only Ashley's eyes lingered too long on his mouth and the smile disappeared. The atmosphere between them shifted and Ashley straightened himself a bit. “I got an anthropology degree, and now I run a huge manufacturing company.” He swallowed more beer. “I know shit about science, okay.”  “I didn't know anthropologists ran companies.” The tension cut and Ashley relaxed again. “This one does.”  They both finished their drinks and walked down the street together. “Wanna get a drink next week, same time and place?” Ashley smiled at Sam and he considered. “There's another place, closer to the university. It's cheap enough for students.” Ashley's smile dug into his cheeks, numb from the beer and a night spent smiling. “Sounds good. Hey uh, I'll give you my number.” He motioned at Sam, who took a moment to reach into his back pocket and pull out a phone. He unlocked it before handing it to Ashley, and he keyed in his name and number. Sam took it back and stared at the name. “‘Ashley with a money sign, CEO, looks like a villain'. Very professional.”  “I know.” Ashley shrugged casually before laughing. “I'll see ya next week.” “Yeah. Have a good weekend.” Ashley smiled as he backpedaled, turning to head back to his loft. He had left work early with a stack of papers on his desk and an inbox of unread emails, but he wouldn't worry about it until tomorrow. He was in the elevator to his apartment when he realized he never got Sam's number and groaned, “you freaking idiot.” Two minutes after slumping onto his sofa, his phone vibrated where he had left it on his chest. 1-555-555-0117 [09:10 PM]: hey, this is Sam, no money sign, not CEO. Thanks for getting drinks Ashley stared at the message, sprawled on the couch in his quiet loft, and laughed. He rolled inward, face pressed into a decorative pillow. A$hley, CEO, looks like a vil... [09:13 PM]: hey! No prob A$hley, CEO, looks like a vil... [09:13 PM]: but mayb dont tell juniper u hung out with the bad guy today Sam, no money sign, not CEO [09:14 PM]: Yeah, I'm sure she would have even meaner names for you. Like 'super villain.' A$hley, CEO, looks like a vil... [09:15 PM]: u should really teach her not to b so mean Sam, no money sign, not CEO [09:15PM]: I'll try my best