"Oui, love. I am back."

His familiar word of endearment snapped me awake from my frozen state. Yet, I asked a redundant question, not able to believe the reality. "Francis, you're re back?"

He laughed at my obvious astonishment, awkwardness slipping through at my lack of a warm welcome. I didn't express it, but the insides of my stomach had twisted into a tight knot, either from being so close to him once again, or the opposite; afraid to make the same mistake like I did years ago.

I cleared my throat, trying to regain my composure. "I mean, you didn't tell me you'll be visiting." Intentionally, I emphasized the word 'visiting', but he didn't seem to notice it.

"Then it wouldn't be a surprise, would it be, love?" he spoke with his thick accent, unchanged since the last time we had met.

He took a step forward, closing the distance between us. I gave a nervous laugh but stopped shortly. Francis leaned down close to my ear, which was not that far, since he was only a few inches taller than me. "You haven't kissed me yet," he whispered, and a shiver ran down my body.

He was doing it again. Whispering those sweet nothings, and charming me with his boyish smiles. I shouldn't let it affect me. I shouldn't give him a dime of my attention. But like a fool, even after such a long time, my body warmed up at his closeness. I cannot let this happen again, I chastised myself. After he had left, it had been difficult for me to put myself together. More so when I had been determined to not let anyone show my weakness.

Even when my few friends believed we had had a messy breakup, it wasn't so. We had resolved our issues with patience and understanding. He had to go back to France, and with our busy school life, we had agreed that long distance relationship wouldn't work for us.

But here he was, shaking and riling up those long-buried feelings again.

Unable to help myself, I joked, "It's not the right time, sugar."

The use of his old nickname, a word we had been so familiar to, brought a smile to his lips.

A loud cough compelled me to look back, and I turned, facing Brandon. He leaned against the counter for support, his eyebrows raised, and his expression curious. Heat crept up my cheeks as I realised that Francis and I had been wrapped in our own bubble this whole time.

Time for awkward introductions.

"Oh. Francis, I would like you to meet Brandon." I gestured toward him, and Brandon gave him a nod. "Brandon this is, um, my friend, Francis."

Francis frowned, not satisfied with my introduction. He shot a small smile at Brandon, and in a dismissing tone added, "Nice to meet you. If you don't mind, I'll be borrowing her for a while."

I tried to protest, but he pulled me out of the kitchen and the cafe, leaving a perplexed and confused Brandon behind. My mother waved at me as I went out. Her expression was a mix between happiness and confusion. She gave me a thumbs-up. I shook my head at her and her enthusiasm to see me out. We always had contradicting ideas, but I knew she meant well.

"Hey, wait up! Where are we going?" I pulled at his arm when we had walked a sufficient distance away from the cafe.

"Down to the beach, of course," he murmured, the familiar glint back in his eyes.

"Oh." It had been our place. We had spent our whole summer swimming and goofing around at the beach. Roaming around with no care in the world. But it was also the place when we had said our final goodbyes.

"By the way, when are you going to stop calling me sugar?" he asked me, a dreamy smile on his face.

I giggled. "Like, never."

"Can I borrow some sugar, s'il vous plait?"

My eyes had been fixed on the timer that ticked down the end of the cooking time, so I blinked and focused on the slender looking boy standing in front of me.

"Come again?" I said.

"Some sugar? Sugar?" He spoke slowly, afraid I wouldn't understand him under his think accent. Raising his hand, he pointed back towards a huge pile of spilled sugar in the basin where he was working on.

"Oh." I filled half of my sugar bowl into an empty one and handed it to him. "Here."

"Merci, love!" He grinned and kissed me on the cheek. I blinked at the unexpected shower of affection. Across the audience, I caught my mother's eyes, all wrinkled up with smiles and beams. Great! Now she would pester me about it forever.

Dismissing all the thoughts, I concentrated back on mixing all the ingredients for the pastry. Next...

"Kids! Only five more minutes to the countdown!" My hands shook as I cleaned my plate and began decorating it.

"Go, Ty!" I heard the collective shout of the people supporting me. The room was roaring with noises of utensils being dumped and orders being shouted out. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. When I opened them, the first image was to see that the 'sugar' boy was doing the same. He caught me staring, and instead of ignoring, gave me a thumbs-up instead.

I smiled, before shunning out the outer world and concentrating on the task at hand.

"Three, two, one, and time over!"

I made a last sprinkle of powdered sugar and stepped away from the counter when the clock chimed. The sides of my cheeks hurt with the intensity of my grin. My eyes weren't able to detach themselves from the handiwork. With difficulty, I looked up. The audience was going mad. As if there was a magnetic attraction between us, I stared straight at my parents. My father had finally joined my fan club, hollering my name at the top of his voice, leading the crowd to cheer for me. A sense of accomplishment filled me. He had approved of my baking after all.

A minute later, our desserts were taken for tasting. Nervousness made a wreck of my fingers. I twisted and stretched them a billion times per minute.

"Don't worry, you did well."

I snapped my head up to see the same blue eyes. With a hesitant smile, I said, "Thanks. You too."

"I'm Francis." He stretched his hand out for me and I took it.

"Tyler. But you can call me Ty." From the audience came a familiar shrill of hooting, and I blushed. There goes my mother, sailing a ship on her own in her head.

"No need, love."

Twenty minutes later, and the nervousness had increased a hundred times.

The judge announced the runner-up. Patrick had already won the third position. I waited, holding my breath."And the runner-up is... Francis Antonio!"

I exhaled, clapping for him with all sincerity. Even then, my stomach twisted, nervous about the announcement of the winner. Francis sprinted up the stage, claiming his prize, and breaking out into hugs and kisses.

"Now for the delicious lip-smacking part!"

I straightened. The audience went silent, everyone's attention on the announcer. He cleared his throat, and pressed the microphone to his lips."The winner for the Annual Junior Baking Competition is.... Tyler Marie Anderson!"

A scream tore from my mouth, my hands covering my face. The confetti blasted from above, showering us with glitters and ribbons, the shouts of hundreds of people rejoicing and celebrating the end of the baking competition. Even amidst the madness, I looked straight at my dad, seeking his approval. He gave me a nod. I ran towards the stage and claimed my trophy.

"You're thinking about it too?" Francis whispered and I turned to look at him. He had a smile on his face, lost in his own thoughts, just like me.

"Yes. It's one of my best memories."

"Me too." He sat on a flat stone, facing towards the road, and patted the space next to him. I sat down gingerly.

"Why are you back?" I asked before I could stop myself. My hair flew around my face with the cool sea breeze, definitely not as breathtaking as it was in the movies.

He found my hand and looped it in his. "That's not important, love. I came back for you. That's all."

"Are you staying? What about us? We-we can't--?"

"Shh." Francis cut me out with a finger on my lips. His eyes burned with emotions I couldn't comprehend. "All in its time, love."

With those soft words, he laid down on the stone. I copied him, breathing in the stillness and the timelessness of the scenery. My mind worked its rusted screws, trying to think of all the possible reasons Francis would want to come back. Brimming with curiosity, I asked, "Answer me, Francis. Why are you here? What changed your mind?"

He fiddled with the hem of his shirt, lost in his thoughts before he spoke. "Nothing did. My parents still want me to complete my studies back in Paris. But I needed a change of scenery."

"I see." I didn't push him, and it seemed to surprise him.

"You're not going to ask again?"

"No. You can have your privacy. It's been a long time after all," I whispered back.

"You have changed, love."

I smiled, about to agree with his words, when a voice cut through. "Wha-? Love? Now that's a strong word, ain't it, Ty?" The words made me snap back up to a sitting position. Even though I'd known him for just a day, it was impossible to doubt that it was Seth's voice. That lazy drawl and the inquisitive tone couldn't be imitated by anyone else.

"Seth?" I said anyways, surprised to see him here.

"Aye, babe! I still have the same face, you know!" He laughed at his own joke, and Francis shot up to a sitting position too, confusion marred on his face. A low whistle escaped Seth's lips as he circled around Francis, startling him. "Now, who do we have here?"

Instead of answering Seth, I tried to imagine Seth from Francis's perspective. The dyed blonde hair, the piercings and that I-don't-give-a-fuck attitude, and when compared to his goody two shoes style; yup, it didn't look pretty.

Looking between the two of them, I stepped in with the introduction again. "Seth, this is Francis. We've known each other for a long time."

Like Brandon, I thought he would just nod and acknowledge. Why did I even think that was possible?

"You cheating on me already, baby? After you almost strangled me in your bed this morning? Tsk tsk." Seth shook his head, making me shoot up to my feet. I covered his mouth with my hands, glaring at him with a disbelieving look. How could he just forget his promise?!

Liam jogged up to us, and I felt my heart flare at his entrance. But his next words crushed that teeny-meeny bit of hope. "You were where this morning?"

God, could this get anymore embarrassing?

"Didn't you hear it the first time? In her bed, dude," Leo replied, standing next to Seth, a lollipop wedged between his teeth as he winked at me.

The look Liam gave to me almost choked me with embarrassment.

"Tyler, love, what's happening? Are you dating him?" Francis stood up too, and I mentally cursed Seth. Though my expression would have left no doubt that I wanted to say it aloud too.

I laughed, not that it helped the situation. "I can explain--"

"Seth, you are dating her?" Liam asked. Seth didn't reply, having a staring (borderline glaring) contest with Francis.

Leo smirked, taking the opportunity to mix in more trouble. "Dude, he was with her last night. Doesn't mean he has to date her." I opened my mouth to reprimand him, but Liam and Francis cut me off.

"And how did you know he was with her?"They both demanded, making him back up.

Leo looked a bit miffed, but then in a bolder voice said, "Hey! I kicked Seth out because he was getting all touchy feely. Not my fault that Seth chose Ty over your stinky asses."

"Yeah, and Ty is totally cushy and soft and--"

I squeezed Seth's lips shut again, and he protested. His struggling got all their attention, and before they went on to another yelling spree, I intervened. "Guys! Will you please stop talking like I'm not fucking standing here?!" I bellowed at them, and every single one of them cringed.

"Ty—" Liam came closer, but Francis grabbed him.

"What?" Liam turned to him.

"Stop!" I shouted, grabbed Francis, and dragged him away. Francis didn't argue. The three of them shut up, and let me go, all the while giving me side glances, and still having a go at each other.

"Francis... " I started, but he stopped me.

"It's fine. I understand. I shouldn't have come here."

"No! It's not like that. We just live together!" I whined. "God, Seth is really irritating."

"It's okay, love. It happens." He nodded, his eyes closed. But his expression was far from peaceful. Not in a position to pry anymore, I kissed his cheek for old times sake, and brushed off the sand left on my dress.

"I'll have to go," he said after a few minutes of silence, and I nodded, watching his retreating figure.

Looking back at the beach, I saw the three of them swimming in the sea. With a sigh, I walked back to the bakery with a heavy heart, thinking about the reason for Francis's sudden return. There was something up more than he was letting on. And today's confrontation with the boys had left me even more piqued. The bell chimed, signalling my entry into the bakery. My eyes narrowed onto Brandon sitting at the cash counter.

"What are you doing here?" I asked for the second time this day.

"Sitting at the counter of course," he said, a slight disappointment in his eyes. I rolled my eyes and proceeded to the back gate towards the kitchen. At that moment, I caught an iced and decorated cake in the glass case. I frowned.

"I took the liberty of decorating it, since you were busy with your boy toy," Brandon replied, and I snapped my face to his, more shocked by the cake than his term for Francis.

"You did it?" My voice carried so much doubt that he winced.

"Yeah. It's no big deal."

"Right." I looked back to the delicate looking creature, with soft petals and oranges. It looks like a masterpiece. Not like I was going to say that aloud and boost his ego even more.

"You didn't tell me you have a boyfriend," Brandon spoke, and giving up on retreating back to my room, I plopped down onto the stool next to him.

"He's my ex. We broke up last year. After his parents forced him to move back to France. We didn't talk much after that," I replied in all honesty, and Brandon chuckled. I raised my eyebrows in question.

"I didn't think you would actually answer me."

We stayed silent for a few minutes. The bakery was empty except for an old woman enjoying her afternoon tea. "Are you dating someone?" I asked. I wasn't much to talk with others. My own curiosity surprised me. Brandon didn't answer right away. I looked at him, judging his amused expression.

"Yeah, I am dating Liam," he replied.

"Ha-ha, seriously? That's pathetic, dude," I said. I wasn't too sure, but it was better than being made fun of.

"Whatever. You didn't fall for it."

"Of course, I wouldn't." I bit back my retort, relieved that I hadn't fallen for his lie. Reminded of the scene at the beach, with excitement, I proceeded to ask, "Guess what happened right now!"

"You got your time of your month?" He laughed at his own joke, making me give him a nasty glare. Upon noticing it, he pressed his lips together. Sobering up, he made a straight face. "Okay, fine. What happened?"

"Well, consider it a lovely encounter between Francis, Seth, Liam, and Leo."

"Oh, shit. No kidding?" Brandon widened his eyes. I shook my head and replayed the scene as he laughed harder and harder.

After a while, even I didn't realise, that I sat there with him, laughing for hours.

*****

Do you have a nickname? Like Ty for Tyler? I don't... :(