Winn or Lose, the Skye Shines Bright

Chapter 3

Winn wasn't the biggest fan of coffee, but now that he knew Skye would be there, he stops by Noonan's more often to say hi before going to Cat Co. It makes his day to chat with her for a bit as he tries to find a form of coffee he could choke down. And Skye has fun putting different silly nicknames on his cups since he is one of the few customers she knows.

"You know, you come in here and pick a different drink every morning," she comments. "Don't you have a go-to drink that you like yet? Not that I'm judging, of course. I'm still learning the menu and you make for a great taste tester."

"Yeah, well I'm having a little trouble deciding what to get. I've never been a huge fan of coffee," he admits with a sheepish smile.

"Just need a caffeine fix then?" she jokes.

Winn lets out a small sigh when she supplies an excuse for him. "Yeah, exactly. Can't fall asleep on the job or a printer might explode!"

The joke catches her by surprise and she cackles before stifling it. "Didn't know that was a possibility. I guess being tech support was more dangerous than I thought," she teases.

"Oh, it's a real warzone," he fires back with a huge grin.

"Well then," she says in her best attempt at a solemn voice and salutes him, "I thank you for your service, soldier." She bursts into another fit of laughter, causing Winn to join in.

"Well, I have to report for duty," he chuckles, turning to leave.

"Winn! You forgot your coffee!" Skye calls after him. He turns around with a slight blush from embarrassment and grabs his drink before running off again.

When he reaches his desk, Kara is immediately at his side. "Who's #2?" she questions, looking at the inscription on his cup.

"I'm #2" he answers, attempting to remain nonchalant, but the deepening blush gives him away.

"I knew there had to be a reason you were drinking so much coffee lately!" the alien whisper shouts, pointing at him to celebrate her victory. "So is it a barista? A regular customer? Who is it that has you pretending that you like coffee?" she prods, excited for her friend.

"I don't know what you're talking about, Kara. I've just been tired lately and needed the caffeine, that's all." His heart rate spikes as he tries to cover for himself but Kara's super-hearing picks up on it in an instant.

"You're lying to me," she sings, poking his arm repeatedly as he avoids making eye contact with her. "Come on, tell me! I've never seen you like this and I want to know who's responsible for that smile,"

As if the universe was conspiring against him, his phone buzzes on his desk. Kara grabs it before he can and reads the notification. A sly smile appears on her face, "Why is Skye sending you coffee recommendations?" Winn gives her a sheepish nod, confirming her suspicions. "Winn! That's awesome! Skye is a really nice girl," she gives him a comforting smile as she expresses her approval.

"Exactly. She's nice. So I have no idea whether she's just being nice or if she's interested too. And I don't want to assume anything or screw up our friendship because she's still new to town and-"

"Woah, breathe. There's an easy solution to your problem. Don't go to Noonan's tomorrow. I'll still go because I need to get Ms. Grant's coffee and I can see what she thinks and let you know," she offers.

"Are we in high school again?" he rolls his eyes before turning back to his computer to get back to work, wanting to end this conversation.

"It's just an idea, totally up to you. But if I don't see you at Noonan's tomorrow morning, I'm going to take that as a yes," she trails off as she returns to her own work. She watches her friend out of the corner of her eye as he picks up his phone and spends several minutes typing and deleting before giving up.

He zones out for a while, considering Kara's offer. It would be nice to know what Skye was thinking, but it also felt deceptive. He always stumbled when it came to flirting and relationships. But for some reason, he was especially nervous around her. He didn't want to sneak around her or use Kara like that though. He decided that he would tell his friend no and go talk to the woman himself tonight.

The day in the office lingered as time inched along. Finally, it was time for Winn to leave and go get dinner from Noonan's. And of course, talk to Skye. The talk. The talk that he always dreaded, that made his heartbeat rival that of a runner's. He put on a brave face but he was worried that he would chicken out when he arrived at the cafe. To his luck, Skye wasn't behind the counter. Instead, she was wiping down and restocking the condiments bar. He could talk to her in semi-privacy instead of in front of her coworkers and a line of people waiting for their coffee.

"Hey," he said lamely, cursing himself mentally for not having a more original greeting.

"Right back at you," she answers with a smile. "Glad your Friday is done and you're free for the week?" she jokes. "Or does my mom make ya'll work weekends too?"

Winn lit up, this was the perfect in for him. "No, I'm free to do whatever I like on the weekend, thankfully. What about you? Are you scheduled to work tomorrow?"

"Sometimes I work the Saturday afternoon shift. Unfortunately, tomorrow is one of those times, so no freedom for me." She notices his sad expression and continues. "But I'm free next weekend. Once I wake up, anyway. I like to sleep in as late as I can," she laughs.

He laughs too. "Great. Do you have any plans after you're done sleeping in?" His smile fades somewhat and an expression of nervousness seeps through before he stifles it.

"Not yet. Why, did you have a suggestion for me?" she asks him as if it is completely natural for them to make plans together.

"Well if you aren't doing anything, would you like me to show you around? It's totally fine if you don't, I'm sure you can find better things to do. It's just an idea since you're still new here and I've been living here for a good while so-" he rambles until Skye places a hand on his arm.

"Winn, breathe," she commands with amusement in her eyes. "I'd love that. So what time should I be ready for an adventure, #2?" she pulls out her phone to set an alarm.

He lets out a sigh of relief. "How about we meet for lunch before we start the tour? I know a great place you have to try."