Pointe Shoes and Spider Webs

37. Raspberry Cheesecake

Peter waited over an hour after his classes had ended before Daphne finally came out of the classroom. She looked absolutely exhausted. Burnt out, even. Who wouldn't be after three hours of tests with limited breaks in between? She practically fell into his arms and hid her face in his chest, groaning loudly. She didn't want to tell him how it went, not even when he asked her. He didn't want her to feel bad so he suggested they go out for some fresh air. Principal Morita told her she'd get a call later in the evening when her tests had been assessed by multiple teachers. Daphne and Peter were now headed to Central Park.

...

They sit on a bench at an open area where dogs are allowed to roam freely. It's chilly. Daphne put on her winter coat over Peter's hoodie and Peter has a big scarf wrapped around his neck. He hides his chin and mouth in it. An old golden retriever slowly waddles towards them to come say hi and Daphne lets it sniff her hand before giving it a few pets.
"What's your name?" She coos the rhetorical question while scratching its neck. Its tail wiggles excitedly. "Where's the big boss?" The dog pants contently and looks back at its owner. Daphne is surprised to see Emma walking their way.

"Daphne?" A smile spreads across Emma's face and her eyebrows raise when she notices Peter. "Hi!"
Daphne smiles back.
"Em!" Daphne gives the retriever a few more pets before letting go, giving it the space to waddle back to Emma and sit down next to her. The dog looks at Emma patiently, radiating unconditional love for her. "How are you?"
"Good, good!" She doesn't give Daphne the time to say something else as she looks at Peter. A mischievous glimmer sparkles in her eyes. "Now, I recall you-" She gestures at Peter with her hands, holding on to the dog leash. "-buying raspberry cheesecake slices at my bakery last Saturday." Both Daphne and Peter freeze in their spot.

The dog lays down. It probably senses this is going to take a while. Emma looks back at Daphne and performs the most obvious wink. Daphne wishes she could hide in her coat.
"Peter helped me study for some big tests," she says, immediately regretting saying his name.
"Ah, Peter!" Emma claps her hands together, making her dog perk up for a second. Emma brings her attention back to Peter. "I knew you were getting it for Daphne!" Peter simply nods. He looks at Emma with big eyes and now also hides his nose in the scarf. "Oh, don't be shy now!" Emma waves her hand to Peter. Daphne looks at him rather amused. She tries to read the expression in his eyes, curious about what happened on Saturday.

"Morning!" Emma shouts through the store from the back. "I'll be right there, one sec!" Peter looks around the bakery. It's cute. Halloween decorations cover every corner of the shop, creating a sharp contrast with the pastel design of the bakery. He tightens the straps of his backpack and walks to the display. There's nothing in there that Peter wouldn't want to try out. Everything looks delicious. However, he's in the bakery for a reason. He needs to get some cheesecake. A middle-aged lady walks into the shop from the back. Her salt and pepper hair is pulled back into a bun and she's wearing a checkered apron.

"Hi," Peter says politely as he plays with his fingers.
"You're up early," Emma jokingly remarks. She raises her eyebrows. "Most people your age would still be in bed, enjoying their Saturday off!" Peter shifts his weight from one foot to the other, still scanning the display, trying to find the treat he's looking for.
"I'm spending the day with someone I care about and I want to get her something she likes." Emma smiles kindly, immediately shifting into match-maker mode. There's just something so endearing about teens in love.

Emma assesses the boy- no, young man- in front of her. He has brown, slightly curly hair. His cheeks are a little red from the cold and his brown eyes look at Emma expectantly. He seems sweet. Cute. She's already prepping herself to go to the back again for her special treat batches.
"Do you know what she likes?"
"I'm pretty sure she'd kill for your raspberry cheesecake." Emma's eyes light up when he says that. She gets many customers that tell her they like her cheesecake, but there's only one person who has told her those exact words. 

Daphne.

Emma revels in how the puzzle pieces are slowly falling together. It all fits: When Daphne bought a muffin for someone special to her and the fact that the boy in front of Emma seems to be Daphne's age. And he asked specifically for Emma's raspberry cheesecake. Daphne's favorite.
"Let me get you the good stuff." Emma has to hold herself back, or she would be bouncing. She shuffles through the door, on her way to her best batches. "How many slices?" She yells from the back.
"Two!" Peter shouts back. He thinks for a second and corrects himself. "No, wait. Three, please!"

Emma comes back with a brown bag not much later. She rings Peter up and holds the bag out to Peter. Before he can take it from her, she moves her hand back a little, making him grab thin air. He looks at her confused and she cocks an eyebrow at him while pursing her lips.
"Take good care of her, 'kay?" Peter freezes. Does she know who he's buying the cheesecake for? He laughs sheepishly and looks down for a second. Of course, he's going to take good care of Daphne. He'd never hurt her. Peter looks back up and nods eagerly.
"I will," he says with a smile. She hands him the bag and waves. She grins mischievously as she says something similar to what she said to Daphne when she walked out with the muffins:
"Bring her along next time!"

"I loved the cheesecake," Peter says truthfully, trying to evade Emma's attempt to get them to talk about their relationship. Emma cocks her head with a smile.
"But...?" Peter laughs softly at her response. He can't get out of this conversation, so he might as well go all out. He almost feels bad for admitting he's enjoying the embarrassed blush on Daphne's cheeks. Almost. He grins into his scarf.
"I preferred your blueberry muffin." Daphne elbows him softly, while Emma laughs giddily, confirming her theory as to who Daphne was buying the muffin for.
"Glad you like my baking, Peter." She bends down to pet her dog's head. It sits upright at her attention and its tail starts wagging again. "Well, I suppose I should leave you two to it?" Daphne presses her lips on top of each other, but manages to force a smile. Peter looks down at his hands, trying to hide even more of his face inside the scarf.

Emma seems like she's Daphne's embarrassing aunt. Whether she's doing this intentionally or not doesn't really matter. It was making both Daphne and Peter feel warm and fuzzy, yet also incredibly awkward.
"It was lovely to properly meet you." Emma nods at Peter and looks at Daphne. She mouths I like him to Daphne and does a thumbs up. She quickly hides her hand gesture and stands back up straight when Peter looks up at her.
"It was nice to meet you too!" Peter says politely.
"Please stop by the bakery together next time!" Daphne chuckles at the invitation.
"Will do," she says simply. Emma starts walking again and the dog acknowledges both Peter and Daphne before getting up slowly as well. Though, instead of following Emma, it keeps staring at them.

"Come on, Buddy, time for dinner!" The word dinner makes its ears twitch and he turns its head to Emma. It seems to be contemplating something before deciding dinner means more to it than these two random teenagers.
"Was lovely to see you outside of the bakery for a change." Daphne smiles at Emma and Emma returns it.
"Likewise!" Emma turns to keep walking, her dog waddling slowly at her side. Both Peter and Daphne sigh deeply and laugh out loud when they realize they both have the same reaction to the situation.

"Sooo..." Daphne mutters, letting the os roll down. She doesn't really know what else to say. But she started talking, so she has to come up with something.
"Sooo..." Peter repeats softly. They both stare ahead, trying not to look at each other. It's quiet for a little bit. Tension rises. Daphne looks down at her fiddling fingers. He leans his elbows on his knees.
"What are we, Pete?" Peter's glance shoots her way. His breath hitches in his throat. He frowns and stares at her hands. He knew the matter was going to have to be discussed at some point, but he didn't expect it quite so soon.
"I don't know," he mumbles quietly. "What do you think we are?" Daphne turns her head to meet his gaze.

"I'm..." She pauses. Her face scrunches up for a second, trying to find the right words. "I'm not sure." Peter looks back forward and nods once.
"That's okay."
"Is it?"
"Yeah." He frowns and locks gazes with her again. "Yeah, it is."
"Then why are you frowning?"
"Because I don't-" He pauses and moves back to sit up straight, staring her straight in the eye. "I don't know it either and I've never done anything like this before," he admits. "And I don't know what I'm feeling." She stares at him before reaching out to hold his hand.
"I don't know what I'm feeling either," she whispers. She leans closer to him. "How about we agree to just... Not know for a while?" She talks softly and Peter gently squeezes her hand.
"Sounds good to me." A smile flashes across his face. She rests her head on his shoulder contently and he in turn places his cheek on her hair. They close their eyes, enjoying the moment. "Just know that I got you."