zenosyne | johnnyboy one shots

coffee cups

"mornin'!" soda piped up, making darry look up from the newspaper he was reading and at pony who stood almost hugging the doorway. pony mumbled a good morning back as he sat down in one of the seats of their old wooden table. rubbing his eyes, he noticed that both his brothers had half empty plates in front of them. pony came to the conclusion that he had unfortunately woken up later than usual. a soft smile planted on his face, darry cautiously placed two already decorated pancakes on a single white plate in front of the boy, ruffling his hair shortly afterward. pony then grumbled a short thank you, ready for the daily questions his brothers usually asked him.

"you doin' okay this fine mornin'?" soda asked. ah, the first question has been initiated.

"yep," currently, this wasn't a lie. he was feeling quite alright.

"up for work today?" darry followed up.

"uh-huh," for once, that wasn't a lie either. he wanted to get out today.

"good. make sure to take your anti-depressants, okay? darry will probably stab you if ya don't. you know how stabby he gets," soda spoke, calmly placing his chin in the crook of his palm, a sly grin plastered on his face. darry shot him a look. pony smiled. taking one last bite, he pushed his chair back and away from the table. without hesitation, darry took all their dishes into his arms and went to put them in the sink. as soon as the water started running, the other two got up and went to their room to get ready for work.

pony honestly loved the cafe. it was like his second home. darry had gotten a part-time job there during his third year of college. when he finished school, it turned into a full time job. soon enough, darry was one of the most well-known employees there. everyone loved him. he was naturally friendly and could work everything well, from the machines to handling the customers needs. but, as years went by, the owner of the cafe, a very nice old lady, was diagnosed with cancer. the woman knew darry well, and could trust him with her life. so, since she had no children of her own, she passed it on to darry. darry gladly respected her wishes and now visits her at least once a week in the hospital.

pulling a loose grey hoodie on, he turned to look at himself in the mirror. ripped up black jeans, grey hoodie, white beat down sneakers. that was okay enough, right? staring at himself further, he noticed further his other features. messy hair, dark circles under his eyes, pale skin. he shrugged. he could care less. it seemed liked forever since his brothers found out what he had been going through in silence. every since then they had gone to a therapist and a doctor. anything to help him with his depression. that's why those two questions are always asked every morning. pony doesn't blame them for being worried. and every since then the voice inside his head has quieted down. maybe it's because of the drugs. pony really doesn't know. nor does he care.

"hey, if you stare at yourself any longer that's all you're gonna see for the rest of your life," a voice chuckled softly. pony whipped his head around to see soda properly dressed, halfway out and halfway in the room. had he really been standing there that long? pony only weakly smiled in response, glancing at himself one last time, and then quickly made his way towards his brother. once shoes were on and they were all settled in the car, darry drove them all towards the stay gold cafe.

the morning went by quickly. business workers made up most of the morning rush. pony greeted each and every one of them with a forced smile and made sure he got their order down right. he then gave the cup to soda who efficiently worked the machines and called out their names for pickup. soda did very well at his part. darry usually stayed in the back, doing paper work, occasionally popping his head out once in awhile to say hi and chat with his regulars. he was a really good manager. shortly, two-bit arrived at exactly 12 o'clock to take the place of soda. the brother quickly said his good-byes, grabbing an iced coffee in the process, and then went off to his afternoon classes. pony still didn't understand why soda willingly agreed summer college classes. he never saw his brother as that type of person. maybe he would get it when he was older.