Waves of Green & Checkmates || Larry Stylinson

Chapter 1: Segunda Vida

hiii peeps!

this is a little scary... but here is my (first) fanfiction *ahhhh*

I'm really excited for you to read it! I put so much thought into it and i love this story, i hope you will too. It is still a work in process, so updates are still coming. I hope I can update regulary, I'll try my best but I can't promise fast updates as i still have a job and everything but I try my very best.

Some parts have been beta read already (thank you so much to those people, especiall kay and mar ily <3) some might not. English is also not my first language, so if there are and grammatical or spelling mistakes, you can either ignore them or contact me for correction.

Additional tags might be added as I go along, and beta readers are still welcome hehe. as always you of course contact me. my twitter (and insta) are @/28chelli

This story is also published on AO3 by me aka @/28chelli

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When you enter the boutique Segunda Vida which is located in the east of Amsterdam between a flower shop and a coffee shop you - depending from which direction you're coming - either first smell the combination of different flowers which now started blooming in early spring. The sorts range from hyacinths and daffodils to tulips and muscaris.

But if you're coming from the left side, you first smell the freshly brewed coffee from the café Koffie-Kat and especially early in the morning the freshly baked bread and buns. Here's where Louis always gets his coffee first thing in the morning. Even though it is faster for him to come from the left. Whenever he's not in a hurry though he takes a little detour only to first smell the flowers (daffodils are his favourites), and then he usually orders a black vanilla coffee with a milk foam and a café latte for his boss.

After you register the smell coming from outside you step inside Segunda Vida and notice the creaks of the wooden parquet and hear the chimes which make a dreamy sound as you open the door. Then you smell a rather special odour, it doesn't smell bad but second-hand clothes always have this thing about them, where sometimes, when you stroll past clothing racks, you like to imagine who the previous owner was, how they looked like and why they parted with this specific piece. Despite the clothes all being freshly washed, you sometimes can make out they are not exactly new. But the staff of Segunda Vida always carefully inspects the clothes they get delivered to make sure they don't sell worn out stuff, which people occasionally also donate. Thrifted stuff, in contrast to new pieces, already experienced a life outside the glass windows, already felt skin while wearing and water while washing. Thrifted stuff is just so much more personal and much more environment-friendly than buying new pieces.

That's why Louis loves working at Segunda Vida. Not only does he work in a shop that helps the environment, he also can help lonely pieces find a new home. Another reason he loves his work place are his colleagues. The boutique is owned by the charming Heléna Martinez, who has put her heart and soul into this place. You can see it in the way she intentionally chose the flower wallpapers which fit perfectly to the small posters she carefully selected. They show vintage illustrations of cars and diners, motivational quotes like 'You can try again tomorrow' or 'It's okay to not be okay'. One can find it corny but Louis loves reading them. Some posters announce soon-taking-place events some friends and colleagues of Heléna asked to hang up. This weekend the band 'Los pelícanos' are playing live music at the SoundGarden pub.

The placards hang on the walls between beautiful vintage mirrors and shelves filled with busts that are draped with necklaces and sunglasses. Even the edges of the vintage couch match perfectly with the silver in the chandelier and the sapphire blue fabric is exactly the same shade of blue as the changing room curtains.