I couldn’t get the idea of Gwen and Hayden meeting again after years of not knowing anything about the other so I present to you this fic that most definitely got away from me with its word count. If you make it to the end, I love you.
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Baby, I Swear It’ll be Us in the End
If anyone had had the decency of telling Hayden to keep walking when she spotted a new coffee shop down the street, she would not be in this situation right now.
All she wanted was an iced caramel latte to maybe turn this awful day around. Her alarm hadn’t gone off this morning, which meant she was late to a meeting that definitely cost her a promotion. Sure, she may not particularly like her management job but it’s what she’s got and getting a raise would’ve shifted her feelings a bit. On top of that, she forgot lunch, forcing her to order delivery with the rest of her coworkers from some new burger joint she found out she really hates. Then Josh — fucking Josh — had the audacity of dumping blame on her for not finishing a project proposal he clearly said he’d do in their last meeting.
If Hayden had less control of her shift, she would’ve ripped into Josh’s carotid in two seconds. Un(fortunately?) for the future of her blood pressure, Hayden’s learned pretty effective methods of calming herself and Josh is still breathing.
So again, all she wanted was a coffee. She was walking down 14th when she spotted a chalkboard sign with neat handwriting and little doodles. Tulip Cafe’s Grand Opening Week! Cute.
Huh. Handwriting looks familiar. Hayden made a split-second decision to go in and was immediately met with the smell of cinnamon rolls and coffee beans.
People are sitting all throughout the space on couches, tables, and bean bags. There’s fairy lights along the walls and houseplants all around shelves filled with a variety of books. Hayden thinks she might have found a permanent stop, so long as the coffee’s good.
She’s standing in line a couple people from the register scrolling through Instagram when she notices it.
Under all the typical smells of a coffee shop, and the smells of all the people who’ve been in there, Hayden picks up a scent that sends her right back to high school. A sweet vanilla scent with amber undertones. The line moves up and her heart starts picking speed.
The person in front of her orders and steps to the side, giving her a clear view of the cashier as she walks up to the register. Oh, fuck me.
Gwen Summers. In all her glory. She’s just as breathtaking as the last time Hayden saw her. She’s wearing a soft olive green dress with a white cardigan. Her hair is longer and a little lighter but looks just as soft. God, she looks beautiful.
Their eyes meet and Hayden feels herself stop breathing just as Gwen briefly freezes.
“Hayden. Hi.” Gwen has a small smile forming from the corner of her mouth, and if Hayden didn’t know how to read her so well, she might of missed how Gwen’s eyes widen slightly, as though she was afraid of Hayden turning around and leaving. Like how she’s currently fighting not to.
“Hey,” Hayden says dumbly. The last time they saw each other was the last party of junior year. They’d gotten close and Hayden had wanted nothing more than to spend all her time with Gwen. Liam was still in the picture then and Hayden hadn’t yet realized her not so platonic-I-just-think-she’s-super-cool-and-I-just-really-want-to-be-her-friend feelings for girls, namely Gwen. They were sitting on a bench towards the back of the backyard. A little hidden from view but not enough that they couldn’t still see the goings-on of the scene around them. Hayden had made some off-handed remark about the lacrosse team. She can’t even remember what it was, but God, she remembers how it made Gwen laugh.
Right then, it was like an explosion happened in Hayden’s chest. The realization that she could go without everyone else in her life, even Liam, and she’d be okay, but one day without seeing this girl in front of her laugh like that and that day wouldn’t be worth living hit Hayden so suddenly that she had made some lame excuse to find Liam and all but ran out of there like a bat out of hell.
Hayden kept her distance after that. Didn’t want to deal with all these feelings she’s suddenly aware of. And slowly but surely, Gwen stopped reaching out, they stopped being friends, and Hayden eventually moved out of Beacon Hills.
And now they’re here, both in San Francisco standing in a coffee shop Hayden randomly spotted and walked into, and she can’t decide if she wants the ground to swallow her whole or see how Gwen’s life’s been since that night.
“Um, welcome to Tulip’s cafe! Heh, we just opened so, uh, feel free to take a second to go over the menu if you need it,” Gwen offers.
Hayden nods absentmindedly, still processing the fact that Gwen is here. “Uh, yeah, actually, can I just get an iced caramel latte? Please?”
Hayden moves on autopilot after that, tapping her card, getting her receipt, and finding a corner table by the front door. Pretends she didn’t move the chair to a spot that puts herself directly in Gwen’s line of sight. Pretends she’s anywhere else as she scrolls on her phone. Pretends she can’t feel Gwen’s eyes flit over to her every two minutes.
Eventually, more time passes than is necessary for the drink she ordered. Hayden looks up just as Gwen rounds the corner of the counter, coffee and muffin in hand. Jesus, I’m gonna throw up.
“You still like poppyseed muffins?” Gwen asks as she sets them both down.
Hayden breathes out a small laugh. “Yeah, um, still do. Thanks.”
Gwen nods, and smiles a bit. “Mind if I sit?”
“You won’t get in trouble for that? Place seems a little busy.”
To anyone else, that might’ve sounded like a no, but apparently Hayden’s not the only one that can still read the other well. “No. Lucky for me, being a co-owner lets me exercise my right to breaks whenever I want. Plus, the rush’s dying down.”
“You own this place?” Hayden asks as Gwen sits.
“Yeah, finally decided to do it after talking about since high school. Got my friend, Bea, to be my partner in it.” Gwen smiles. You have no idea how much I’ve missed that smile.
“That’s so great. I’m really happy for you.”
“Heh, thank you. I’m proud of us,” Gwen says, then hesitates. “What about you? What have you been up to since high school? Haven’t seen you in a long time.”
Hayden feels her cheek heat up a little. “Oh, you know, graduated and went to college. Ended up getting a masters in business management. Working at a place I’ve grown to really dislike, but it pays the bills.”
“How’s your sister?”
“She’s good. She’s actually in Paris right now on vacation. Finally put in all that PTO,” Hayden laughs.
“You still with Liam?” Gwen’s really looking at her now.
Okay, getting right to it then. “No. No, we broke during our senior year. Still great friends and we see each other every so often, but no.”
Gwen hums, slowly nodding. For some reason, that makes Hayden a little nervous, and ends up blurting out, “He’s actually with Theo now. You remember Theo? Raeken? Been together since graduation. They’re pretty great together, actually. Fit a lot better than Liam and I ever did.”
Gwen’s eyes widen a bit. “Oh. Good for him. So, I guess no hard feelings between the two of you?”
“No, I’m happy for him. It was the best decision either of us could’ve made. I think that’s why we’re still friends. Plus, you know, Theo loves him in a way I don’t think I ever did.”
“And you? Anyone in your life?”
Hayden pauses. No, there isn’t anyone. Not to say that she hasn’t been with anyone since she and Liam broke up. She’s gone on plenty of dates over the years, with both men and women, but most never made it past a second or third date. The few relationships she has had never went past short-term. Hayden was the usually the one to end it. There was always something about the other person that she could never get past. Looking back now, Hayden wonders if maybe it’s because she was always looking for a glimpse of the girl she left behind in them. “No. I’m not… with anyone right now.”
“Oh,” Gwen says and slightly straightens, “me, too. Life’s been super busy, I guess, so I haven’t had the time.”
“Yeah, yeah, I get that. Last person I dated broke up with me because I was “too focused on work when I should be focused on her”. Meanwhile, I was trying to juggle six different projects, helping my sister, and cater to her every whim. I can’t tell you the relief I felt when we broke up.”
Hayden almost didn’t notice the slip in her use of pronoun. Almost. Gwen’s gaze a little more than just interest now. If Hayden were a dreamer, she might say it was something like hope. She hopes it is.
“Definitely her loss.”
Hayden scoffs out a laugh. “Oh, I don’t know about that. She said some things that weren’t exactly false. I mean, I had broken up with a guy and after, he basically told me the same stuff. At this point, I think I may be the problem.”
Gwen looks a little thoughtful, a little… scared? Nervous? “I don’t think so. You’re an amazing person.”
“You’re only saying that because you remember high school me. You don’t really know me now.”
“I’d like to,” Gwen starts, “you know, like, if you get a break in between your job and things, maybe we could grab dinner or something. I mean, if that’s something you’d like to do… with me.” Gwen’s fiddling with the sleeve of her cardigan now, nervous energy much more evident.
Hayden takes in a breath. “Yeah?”
“Yeah.”
She feels a smile start to form before she can stop it. “I’d love to.”
Gwen smiles back. “Okay. Okay, great, um, how about Saturday night? I could pick you up at 7 o’clock or we could meet somewhere. I know a really good Japanese place around the corner.”
“Sounds perfect.”
“Great. Well, I should.. probably get back to it. Gotta be a good example and all,” Gwen says, standing. She hasn’t stopped smiling that smile since Hayden said yes.
“Yeah, totally. Uh, I don’t know if you remember it, but my number’s still the same. I can gi—.”
“Don’t worry about it, sweetheart. I remember it just fine.”
Hayden feels heat bloom over her face. Jesus, she’s gonna be the death of me.
“I’ll text you later?” Gwen asks.
“Yeah, I’ll keep my phone on.”
“Okay, cool. I’ll see you then. Get home safe.”
As she watches Gwen walk back to the counter, Hayden can’t help but feel hope grow in her chest. How this could be the start of something real. She packs up her things and walks out the door, unable to stop the smile forming. She must look like an idiot right now. Oh, who cares? You have a date with Gwen Summers. You’ve won the lottery.
Hayden’s really glad no one stopped her from coming in. She’s sure she would’ve missed out on the greatest opportunity the universe has ever presented her with.
Here we go, Romero. Don’t fuck it up this time.
