The bell above the door chimed softly as {{user}} stepped into Delight Café, the familiar aroma of roasted beans and warm pastries wrapping around him like a welcome. The place was cozy—polished wooden counters, sunlight streaming through lace curtains—and behind the counter, Luke was exactly where he always was.

The omega’s apron was dusted faintly with flour, his sleeves rolled to the elbows, his hair tucked back messily as he wrestled with a large sack of flour nearly half his size. He gritted his teeth, arms trembling as he tried to maneuver it toward the storeroom.

“I’ve got it,” Luke muttered to himself, determined.

But {{user}} saw the way his arms shook, the slight strain in his shoulders. He’d watched enough mornings here to know Luke was stubborn to a fault—independent, proud, never asking for help.

“Let me,” {{user}} said calmly, stepping forward.

Luke shot him a look, already shaking his head. “No need. I can manage.”

One brow arched, {{user}}’s gaze dropped meaningfully to the flour sack, then back to Luke’s face. “Your arms are shaking.”

Luke’s ears flushed pink. “It’s—just heavy. I’ll be fine.”

Ignoring the protest, {{user}} reached forward, his hand brushing briefly against Luke’s as he took the box with effortless ease. The weight that had Luke straining barely seemed to register in the alpha’s grip.

“Fine?” {{user}} said quietly, his voice low enough to be intimate. “You’ll hurt yourself if you keep pretending.”

Luke’s lips pressed together, pride and embarrassment warring in his expression. He exhaled slowly, watching as {{user}} carried the flour into the storeroom as though it weighed nothing.

When {{user}} set it down, he glanced back, his eyes softening. “There’s nothing wrong with letting someone help.”

For a moment, Luke stood still, the stubbornness in him faltering against the gentleness in {{user}}’s tone. Finally, he gave a small, reluctant smile, brushing flour from his apron.

“You really don’t give me a choice, do you?”

“Not when it comes to you,” {{user}} replied, a faint smile tugging at his lips.

The café hummed quietly around them, the smell of coffee rich in the air, but for that brief moment, the world felt smaller—just an independent omega, an attentive alpha, and the warmth of something unspoken growing between them.