Will that be all? Original fiction
Original title: Ce sera tout ?
Author: cleo-dacieuse
Translated from the French by: hotladykisses (with the author's permission)
Fandom: Original fiction
Pairing: F/F
Genre: Action/Romance/One Shot
Rated : PG
Summary: A French bakery at closing time. Young shop clerk Maud knows the drill inside out. But tonight, she is about to make a life-altering encounter…
Will that be all?
“Maud! Now is not the time for daydreaming, we’re closing in five minutes!”
Thus summoned to go back to work, Maud shook her head to emerge from her daydreams. The young woman was blessed with a rich inner life, and could hold a dialogue with herself long enough to forget the real world around her entirely.
Standing next to the cash register, her boss was giving her a stern look. Leaning inside the refrigerated vitrine that contained the pastries, Maud resumed her daily chores - sorting the cakes, putting the ones still fresh enough to be displayed for sale the next day on a grid. There was one strawberry tartlet left - it was definitely mouth-watering and she would gladly eat it. Maybe Mrs Floriot would agree to let her take it home tonight. After clearing the vitrine out, Maud put the unsold pastries in the goods lift so they would be stored in the basement fridge.
Adrian, the other shop clerk, was sweeping the floor behind the counter while Theo, the baker, was whistling in the back shop, probably putting his jacket on. In a few moments his face would show up in the doorframe, inevitably covered in flour, and he would wish them a good evening before walking up to his scooter.
Things were always exactly the same, and Maud knew the drill inside out. In her head she counted down the seconds until she heard the sound of Mrs Floriot’s key turning inside the front door’s lock. Late customers would find the door shut and would have to do without baguettes - her boss made a point of ignoring those who pounded the door, lured by the light still seeping through. Maud would leave through the back door and disappear into the night as she always did. And everything would start again the next morning, as it always did, a now automatic daily routine that she had already renounced wanting to shake up.
Maud was almost twenty-five and content for now to be free, self-supporting, and to dream of a possible future that she embellished in her dreams with the craziest adventures. She ate alone, lived alone, read a lot, thought even more. Nobody cared specifically about her, and she went through life stealthily, one day after another, being neither demanding nor bitter. She was never disappointed since she expected nothing.
The very last customer went out at the same time as Theo. Mrs Floriot locked the door, put the beige canvas blind down along the door, and silence settled inside the deserted baker shop. Outside, the streets were becoming quieter. It was dinner time. Maud’s stomach growled the minute that thought popped into her mind.
She grabbed a sponge and was about to clean the shop window when a loud noise in the back shop made her stop and prick up her ears. She had no time to wonder any longer - four people were already rushing into the room in a single line. They were all identically dressed in black, hoods covering their heads and scarves up to their noses. The one in front was holding a gun.
Mrs Floriot let out a scream and was immediately shoved to the other side of the cash register in the customers’ area. Gesturing toward Adrian, one of the men ordered, “You! Get over there with her.”
His voice sounded young, confident and cheeky. Adrian seemed hesitant. He looked at Maud, and she guessed effortlessly that his male pride was at stake - the day before, he had let her know that he quite fancied her. She hoped he wouldn’t try to play hero in order to impress her. She was not easily impressed.
“Hurry,” said the man impatiently, gesturing with his gun.
Adrian complied, and the man stationed himself in front of Mrs Floriot and him. He was obviously in charge of watching them. Two other men were spreading out expeditiously. They started emptying the cash register, obligingly left open by Mrs Floriot who had been intending to carry its content downstairs and shut it away. The first man had found paper bags and was holding them open while the second one was shoving bundles of bills inside.
Maud was quiet as a mouse, leaning behind the shop window. Nobody seemed to notice her. Until the last man, who was standing against a wall and seemed to supervise the whole operation, turned his head in her direction. The eyes who met hers were deep and unexpected. They were experienced, mature and… mischievous? Two wide almond-shaped eyes, their irises dipped into deep, thick black ink, lined with yet darker eyelashes. Slightly higher up, two sunshade eyebrows, their shape much subtler that she would have expected.
Maud held that gaze with her round, permanently surprised-looking cat eyes. Blue eyes held dark eyes for a long time, neither of them seeming determined to win the staring contest. Maud shivered. The man was not bringing her presence to the others’ attention, and she wondered what he was waiting for. He didn’t have to, since the robber who was watching the others suddenly exclaimed, “Hey, there’s another one there! You, join the others, quick!”
He walked up to her in a hurry, and when he passed in front of the dark-eyed man - incidentally breaking their eye contact - he bumped into him, pulling his hood down. Maud barely had time to glimpse a long, dark, silky braid before the hood was abruptly pulled up again.
“Watch it, will you!”
Maud was startled. The fourth man was a woman. If you thought about it, she told herself, there was no reason to be so surprised. Men didn’t have exclusive rights on brutality.
The voice was definitely female, music-like, warm even though she was getting annoyed at her team-mate. It would be a shame not to use such a voice as often as possible, Maud thought. She had always been extremely susceptible to sound modulations. From her general demeanor and in such an outfit, she would assume that she was sixteen years old at most, but her eyes had betrayed at first sight what her voice had just confirmed - this was definitely a woman.
“Come on, chill!” the man who had bumped into her mitigated. He still looked a bit sheepish though, which reinforced Maud’s feeling that the robber (who was in fact a lady) was also the gang’s leader. She fussed less, watched more, and the three others frequently turned to her, as if looking for her approval. Hardly a surprise, Maud told herself - she would have been completely unable herself not to obey any orders uttered by such a voice.
“I’ve got this,” answered said voice. “Go back to watching the others.”
Maud straightened up, her sponge still in her hand, and looked at the young woman who was walking up to her, her gait limber. A sporty person, Maud noted, maybe even an athlete.
“Do I have to put my hands up?” Maud asked.
She didn’t know what compelled her to speak when basic common sense demanded that she simply keep quiet and wait for them to be done with what they had come for. She didn’t know why she was not afraid. She just knew she wasn’t.
The female robber shook her head.
“That won’t be necessary, Maud.”
For a few moments, Maud wondered how she could possibly know her name, ready to believe that this had something to do with witchcraft - such an appealing explanation - and then she remembered the name tag stuck on her chest. The woman just could read - it was almost disappointing.
“Take her jewels,” yelled the one holding the gun. “I’m taking the old cow’s.”
Mrs Floriot’s indignant gasp was drowned in the following bustle. Once the cash register was empty, one of the men went into the back shop, claiming he was going to “smash the lockers open”.
“How much do you care for your handbag?” The woman asked Maud. She shrugged.
“I’d rather not have to get my ID redone.”
The woman nodded before raising her own voice to yell back to her team-mate in the back shop, “Take the money and leave the rest.We are not bothering with bags or papers.”
“Thanks,” Maud said.
The woman nodded again. She was probably boiling in her hood and scarf, the sales assistant thought before wondering what her mouth was like. Even before being asked, she started unhooking her necklace and earrings. She stepped forward and handed them to the stranger. The woman took them without haste, nodding for the third time.
Simultaneously, the blue and the dark gaze fell on the sapphire-mounted ring that Maud was wearing on her right hand - her only jewel of any value, both in a literal and figurative sense. The woman’s left hand brushed it and Maud’s lips trembled. The dark eyes looked away.
“Guys, let’s go.”
While the robbers were regrouping, she whispered to Maud, “Will you forgive me?”
“I might - if you take me with you.”
The corners of the young woman’s eyes stretched, matching a smile you could sense under her scarf. Surprised at her own nerve, Maud held her breath.
“Who knows,” the stranger finally answered before turning around and joining her accomplices who were getting out double time.
Less than ten seconds later, the back door slammed behind them. Stunned, Maud bent forward to finish cleaning the shop window.
Author: cleo-dacieuse
Translated from the French by: hotladykisses (with the author's permission)
Fandom: Original fiction
Pairing: F/F
Genre: Action/Romance/One Shot
Rated : PG
Summary: A French bakery at closing time. Young shop clerk Maud knows the drill inside out. But tonight, she is about to make a life-altering encounter…
Will that be all?
“Maud! Now is not the time for daydreaming, we’re closing in five minutes!”
Thus summoned to go back to work, Maud shook her head to emerge from her daydreams. The young woman was blessed with a rich inner life, and could hold a dialogue with herself long enough to forget the real world around her entirely.
Standing next to the cash register, her boss was giving her a stern look. Leaning inside the refrigerated vitrine that contained the pastries, Maud resumed her daily chores - sorting the cakes, putting the ones still fresh enough to be displayed for sale the next day on a grid. There was one strawberry tartlet left - it was definitely mouth-watering and she would gladly eat it. Maybe Mrs Floriot would agree to let her take it home tonight. After clearing the vitrine out, Maud put the unsold pastries in the goods lift so they would be stored in the basement fridge.
Adrian, the other shop clerk, was sweeping the floor behind the counter while Theo, the baker, was whistling in the back shop, probably putting his jacket on. In a few moments his face would show up in the doorframe, inevitably covered in flour, and he would wish them a good evening before walking up to his scooter.
Things were always exactly the same, and Maud knew the drill inside out. In her head she counted down the seconds until she heard the sound of Mrs Floriot’s key turning inside the front door’s lock. Late customers would find the door shut and would have to do without baguettes - her boss made a point of ignoring those who pounded the door, lured by the light still seeping through. Maud would leave through the back door and disappear into the night as she always did. And everything would start again the next morning, as it always did, a now automatic daily routine that she had already renounced wanting to shake up.
Maud was almost twenty-five and content for now to be free, self-supporting, and to dream of a possible future that she embellished in her dreams with the craziest adventures. She ate alone, lived alone, read a lot, thought even more. Nobody cared specifically about her, and she went through life stealthily, one day after another, being neither demanding nor bitter. She was never disappointed since she expected nothing.
The very last customer went out at the same time as Theo. Mrs Floriot locked the door, put the beige canvas blind down along the door, and silence settled inside the deserted baker shop. Outside, the streets were becoming quieter. It was dinner time. Maud’s stomach growled the minute that thought popped into her mind.
She grabbed a sponge and was about to clean the shop window when a loud noise in the back shop made her stop and prick up her ears. She had no time to wonder any longer - four people were already rushing into the room in a single line. They were all identically dressed in black, hoods covering their heads and scarves up to their noses. The one in front was holding a gun.
Mrs Floriot let out a scream and was immediately shoved to the other side of the cash register in the customers’ area. Gesturing toward Adrian, one of the men ordered, “You! Get over there with her.”
His voice sounded young, confident and cheeky. Adrian seemed hesitant. He looked at Maud, and she guessed effortlessly that his male pride was at stake - the day before, he had let her know that he quite fancied her. She hoped he wouldn’t try to play hero in order to impress her. She was not easily impressed.
“Hurry,” said the man impatiently, gesturing with his gun.
Adrian complied, and the man stationed himself in front of Mrs Floriot and him. He was obviously in charge of watching them. Two other men were spreading out expeditiously. They started emptying the cash register, obligingly left open by Mrs Floriot who had been intending to carry its content downstairs and shut it away. The first man had found paper bags and was holding them open while the second one was shoving bundles of bills inside.
Maud was quiet as a mouse, leaning behind the shop window. Nobody seemed to notice her. Until the last man, who was standing against a wall and seemed to supervise the whole operation, turned his head in her direction. The eyes who met hers were deep and unexpected. They were experienced, mature and… mischievous? Two wide almond-shaped eyes, their irises dipped into deep, thick black ink, lined with yet darker eyelashes. Slightly higher up, two sunshade eyebrows, their shape much subtler that she would have expected.
Maud held that gaze with her round, permanently surprised-looking cat eyes. Blue eyes held dark eyes for a long time, neither of them seeming determined to win the staring contest. Maud shivered. The man was not bringing her presence to the others’ attention, and she wondered what he was waiting for. He didn’t have to, since the robber who was watching the others suddenly exclaimed, “Hey, there’s another one there! You, join the others, quick!”
He walked up to her in a hurry, and when he passed in front of the dark-eyed man - incidentally breaking their eye contact - he bumped into him, pulling his hood down. Maud barely had time to glimpse a long, dark, silky braid before the hood was abruptly pulled up again.
“Watch it, will you!”
Maud was startled. The fourth man was a woman. If you thought about it, she told herself, there was no reason to be so surprised. Men didn’t have exclusive rights on brutality.
The voice was definitely female, music-like, warm even though she was getting annoyed at her team-mate. It would be a shame not to use such a voice as often as possible, Maud thought. She had always been extremely susceptible to sound modulations. From her general demeanor and in such an outfit, she would assume that she was sixteen years old at most, but her eyes had betrayed at first sight what her voice had just confirmed - this was definitely a woman.
“Come on, chill!” the man who had bumped into her mitigated. He still looked a bit sheepish though, which reinforced Maud’s feeling that the robber (who was in fact a lady) was also the gang’s leader. She fussed less, watched more, and the three others frequently turned to her, as if looking for her approval. Hardly a surprise, Maud told herself - she would have been completely unable herself not to obey any orders uttered by such a voice.
“I’ve got this,” answered said voice. “Go back to watching the others.”
Maud straightened up, her sponge still in her hand, and looked at the young woman who was walking up to her, her gait limber. A sporty person, Maud noted, maybe even an athlete.
“Do I have to put my hands up?” Maud asked.
She didn’t know what compelled her to speak when basic common sense demanded that she simply keep quiet and wait for them to be done with what they had come for. She didn’t know why she was not afraid. She just knew she wasn’t.
The female robber shook her head.
“That won’t be necessary, Maud.”
For a few moments, Maud wondered how she could possibly know her name, ready to believe that this had something to do with witchcraft - such an appealing explanation - and then she remembered the name tag stuck on her chest. The woman just could read - it was almost disappointing.
“Take her jewels,” yelled the one holding the gun. “I’m taking the old cow’s.”
Mrs Floriot’s indignant gasp was drowned in the following bustle. Once the cash register was empty, one of the men went into the back shop, claiming he was going to “smash the lockers open”.
“How much do you care for your handbag?” The woman asked Maud. She shrugged.
“I’d rather not have to get my ID redone.”
The woman nodded before raising her own voice to yell back to her team-mate in the back shop, “Take the money and leave the rest.We are not bothering with bags or papers.”
“Thanks,” Maud said.
The woman nodded again. She was probably boiling in her hood and scarf, the sales assistant thought before wondering what her mouth was like. Even before being asked, she started unhooking her necklace and earrings. She stepped forward and handed them to the stranger. The woman took them without haste, nodding for the third time.
Simultaneously, the blue and the dark gaze fell on the sapphire-mounted ring that Maud was wearing on her right hand - her only jewel of any value, both in a literal and figurative sense. The woman’s left hand brushed it and Maud’s lips trembled. The dark eyes looked away.
“Guys, let’s go.”
While the robbers were regrouping, she whispered to Maud, “Will you forgive me?”
“I might - if you take me with you.”
The corners of the young woman’s eyes stretched, matching a smile you could sense under her scarf. Surprised at her own nerve, Maud held her breath.
“Who knows,” the stranger finally answered before turning around and joining her accomplices who were getting out double time.
Less than ten seconds later, the back door slammed behind them. Stunned, Maud bent forward to finish cleaning the shop window.