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Another person — any other sane person — would have noticed and maybe been a little taken aback by the dingy, maybe even downtrodden nature of the hotbox. The sound of leaves crunching in the air, a consistent yet methodical sound. The faint smell of herbs as the man in front of him crunches them into a bits and pieces with nothing but a mortor and pestle. The broad back, the muscular arms flexing on an individual hard at work. Everything about it seemed untrustworthy, seemed like everything that his immigrant mother had spent her life preparing him to avoid, and yet there leonício antonio del río álvarez sat, unknowing and unbidden, a sloppy smile on his face.

[break][break] "i don't take breaks."

[break][break] the college boy pouts, his bottom lip jutting out. "why not?" he huffs, fingers curling at the far edge of the counter. despite his expression, however, leo isn't bothered. this, he's used to. he had wandered into eli's shop many months ago. he knew the sitch. yet still, he tried. "not even a little one?" he makes a little motion with his hands, pinching the air, to emulate just in case that elijah gardner wasn't sure what 'little' meant.

[break][break] however, it seemed like his little tactic worked — or maybe leo was just lucky. either way, it is only a moment's more before elijah turns to him, asking what he wants. leo's face brightens even further — if possible. his smile is blinding. "ice cream! no, a crepe! wait..." his stomach rumbles, and he puts a hand on his belly to quiet it. "...can we get brunch?" his eyes are round behind their glasses as he awaits the other man's answer.

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"no breaks."

[break][break] the words fill the room with resounding quiet, and leo lets out a resigned huff, pushing his arms forward and pressing his chin against the countertop. leo never grew up with siblings and so, like most only children, always got what he wanted. of course, his parents gave push-and-pull, but they always gave in eventually. they denied him almost nothing — especially when it came to food.

[break][break] meeting elijah gardner , in a way, was a breath of fresh air from all of that. he always said no, always pushed him to make him think about what he really wanted. at least, that's what leo thought about as he listened to the quiet, comforting grind of the mortar and pestle, his gaze growing sleepy and distracted in the silence of the apothecary. there was something comforting about it - the sounds, the resolute way in which elijah commanded attention. it almost felt soothing, like his mother singing a childhood lullaby to him to help him fall asleep as a toddler. the hand of his father's hand on his head, just before he was about to leave for his shift.

[break][break] there was something secure in elijah, something that leo sorely lacked in his life, and perhaps that was why their relationship lasted as long as it did.

[break][break] leo sits up when elijah speaks again, not even bothering to turn his back to him. (leo could pout at this, too, but doesn't.) the lure of ordering in has snagged him — it may not be as good as getting elijah to go outside and see sunlight, but it is still good. he smiles blithely at the somewhere between the blades of elijah's shoulders, only blinking and frowning when he pats his pants pockets to realize that he no longer has his phone on him. "uh..." worry creases his brows for a second, before there is a small yelp at his side.

[break][break] it is yams, his newly caught - well adopted - yamper, slobbering around a distinctly square-looking device. "oh! yeah!" he says, in response to elijah, leaning over to grab the small pup and set him in his lab. with the corner of a sleeve, he wipes his device and then begins to open through his pidgeyeats app, scrolling through it. although he felt absolutely ravenous moments ago, the sudden possibility of so many options has him stilled.

[break][break] the yamper presses his nose against leo's neck — it's cold but leo pays no mind, before speaking to elijah, only half distractedly. "is there anything you want to eat?" he trails off. "taquitos sound good..." the accent as he says the word is comfortable and easy, just like his relationship with elijah. yams' tail makes a steady thump thump sound against his knee.

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were taquitos healthy? probably not, but they were yummy.

[break][break] leo tells him that, bottom lip jutting out in a pout. "but they're tasty, " he says, with a huff, but even as he says that, he knows that his friend is right. sometimes his stomach is fine, but also sometimes shoveling garbage into his mouth is not enough trouble for all it's worth — elijah's nagging could sometimes be as bad as mama's, and worst of all, both were usually right.

[break][break] "maybe if i made them, they'd be healthier?" he says, the tone of his words lilting almost like a question. leo is not the best cook, but his mother at least taught him some basics, and using real ingredients at least has to be better than whatever frozen, pre-prepared ingredients than the chain restaurant hungry hawluchas is probably selling. curiously, he looks up at elijah's back, glancing as he sets the two glass jars on what looks like a boiler. "do you know how to cook, 'lijah?"

[break][break] maybe elijah told him before, maybe leo just forgot.

[break][break] his eyes drop back down to the app, clicking out of the hungry hawluchas page, and clicking into something healthier. there's poke bowls, pizza places, other local fastfood chains... leo glances up at elijah, eyes catching on the other's green hair. a laugh, somehow, comes unbidden to his mouth and he presses his knuckle against it. knowing the other, he'd probably want to eat something like salad which is only laughable, given his place of work and his hair color. leo doesn't say it outloud though - he thinks that elijah might bite of a finger - and instead, "so what do you want to eat?" if elijah is gonna be so picky about their food, he might as well choose.

[break][break] leo pets the pokemon in his lap idly as he scrolls through their options, only looking up with surprise as the question that is lobbed towards him." 'course I do!" he says, brow furrowing. why bring that up now? then - all of a sudden - his face brightens. "oh — did you want me to invite them over?"

[break][break] strange, since elijah gardner doesn't seem like the type to enjoy company.

[break][break] except, leo, of course.

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