Saturday morning was supposed to be slow.
After their cozy night of pillow forts and popcorn, Lia Henderson had planned exactly one thing: rest.
No trays. No chaos. No espresso machine rebellion.
Just peace.
"…So," Ethan said, lounging on her couch, scrolling through his phone, "…we're doing absolutely nothing today?"
"…Yes," Lia said firmly, wrapped in a blanket like a burrito. "…Nothing. No chaos. No coffee. No you accidentally starting disasters."
He grinned. "…Wow. You have a lot of faith in me."
"…None," she said.
Her phone rang.
She froze.
"…Don't answer it," Ethan said immediately. "…It's definitely chaos calling."
"…It's the café," she said, staring at the screen like it had personally betrayed her.
"…Of course it is," he muttered.
She answered.
And within seconds—
"…WHAT DO YOU MEAN THE ESPRESSO MACHINE IS SMOKING?!"
Ten minutes later, they were sprinting down the street.
"…We were supposed to rest!" Lia yelled, trying to tie her hair while running.
"…This is rest," Ethan said between breaths. "…Active rest. Very trendy."
"…If we die because of burnt coffee beans, I'm blaming you!"
"…Noted," he said.
When they burst into The Daily Grind, chaos had fully taken over:
Smoke lightly filled the air near the espresso machine.
Customers stood around confused, clutching half-made drinks.
Mia waved a towel like she was trying to fight a dragon.
"…IT'S FINE!" Mia shouted. "…IT'S JUST… SLIGHTLY ON FIRE!"
"…SLIGHTLY?!" Lia yelled, rushing behind the counter.
The next fifteen minutes were pure chaos:
Ethan tried to unplug the machine… and almost unplugged the fridge instead.
Lia grabbed a fire extinguisher, hesitated, then realized it was just overheating—not actual flames.
A customer calmly asked, "Is my latte still coming?"
"…NO!" Lia snapped. "…Your latte is emotionally unavailable right now!"
Ethan burst out laughing mid-crisis.
"…Not helping!" she shouted.
"…I'm sorry!" he said, still laughing. "…That was just—perfect."
Eventually, the crisis settled.
The machine was turned off, windows opened, customers refunded (with varying levels of confusion), and the café slowly returned to normal.
Lia leaned against the counter, exhausted.
"…I just wanted one calm day," she muttered.
Ethan stepped beside her, equally tired but smiling.
"…You really thought that would happen?"
She sighed. "…No. Not with you."
There was a pause.
Not chaotic this time.
Quiet.
Real.
"…Hey," Ethan said softly, nudging her shoulder. "…You handled that really well."
"…I panicked," she said.
"…You fixed it," he replied. "…That's what matters."
She glanced at him. "…You helped. Even if you almost unplugged the fridge."
"…Hey," he said defensively. "…Important appliance."
She laughed.
Then, more quietly—
"…This is what it's going to be like, isn't it?" she said. "…Chaos. Stress. Things going wrong."
Ethan nodded. "…Yeah. Probably."
"…And you're still here?" she asked softly.
He didn't hesitate.
"…Always," he said.
Her heart did that familiar, steady flip—not chaotic this time, but certain.
"…Even when things get messy?" she asked.
"…Especially then," he said, reaching for her hand. "…Because I don't just want the easy days. I want all of it. With you."
Lia smiled, squeezing his hand.
"…Okay," she said softly. "…Then we'll survive it. Together."
Behind them, Mia shouted—
"THE OVEN'S BEEPING AGAIN!"
Lia groaned. "…Of course it is."
Ethan grinned. "…Round two?"
She rolled her eyes, already moving. "…Round two."
And just like that, chaos returned.
But this time…
They faced it side by side.