Stockholm (boyxman)

Chapter I: Caffè Misto with Cinnamon

Stockholm Syndrome

noun

feelings of trust or affection felt in many cases of kidnapping or hostage-taking by a victim toward a captor.

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It was mid-November in the town of Wolfpine. The air was cold and dry, the leaves on nearly all the trees were in the beautiful shades of yellow, orange and red. The fallen leaves left the town looking like a picturesque Autumn dream only seen in Hallmark movies.

Bundled up and making his way with quick strides into the nearby Starbucks, Shiloh Lapierre pushed open the door to the establishment, grateful he decided to leave home a little earlier than usual.

He had forgotten his gloves at home and almost immediately after entering the coffee shop it began to lightly snow outside.

Shiloh made his way past the barista station quickly greeting his coworker Lynn before disappearing into the back room to get changed in his uniform and clock in.

Shiloh was grateful to have the part-time job but it bothered him that the shop was understaffed and has been since his sophomore year of high school. He was finally in his senior year and preparing to graduate soon but his manager showed no signs of wanting to hire any additional help.

On any given day there was guaranteed to be only one barista working, taking orders and making drinks while the manager seemed to always be slacking off in his office.

In all honesty, two baristas weren't enough, especially during rush hour after school let out and every blonde within a 5-mile radius all craved a pumpkin spice frappe at the same time.

Donning the signature green apron, Shiloh gave himself a once over in the mirror before officially clocking in and heading towards the front of the coffee shop.

School had let out two hours earlier today so Shiloh was able to go home and get some rest before having to head to work. He usually worked 30 minutes after classes ended and dreaded having to see his annoying classmates all file into the shop expecting a discount on drinks because he happened to be in their math class or they've seen him around on campus before.

The shop was pretty quiet today however. It was a Thursday and there were less than ten customers in the shop. Lynn was leaning near one of the coffee machines with a bored expression on her face as she scrolled through what Shiloh could see was her Instagram feed.

Lynn was 3 years older than Shiloh and officially able to drink and go clubbing without a fake ID. She was a tall curvy woman with tan skin and dyed blue hair. She attended a college near Wolfpine and worked at the Starbucks to earn some extra spending money to fuel her budding party lifestyle. Her scholarships covered all her classes and a majority of her books.

While she looked like the typical party girl Lynn was quite down to earth and only ever actually let loose after exam week or during her breaks from school.

Shiloh was an average height boy who stood at 5'7. His clear olive skin had hints of pink from the warmth of the shop and his curly red hair was something that always caught the attention of strangers. He had almond shaped brown eyes, a slim small nose and full lips. He was thinner than most boys his age since he wasn't involved in sports but he made up for that by being a great student.

Shiloh stood awkwardly at the front of the shop with Lynn waiting for any customers to walk in. The light sound of the music playing in the quiet shop filled the comfortable silence.

While waiting Shiloh glanced at some of the people that were occupying the little coffee shop.

A tall looking man with glasses sat at the front of the shop near the window typing quickly on his laptop, he seemed extremely focused as his eyes never left the screen.