[Ferris Felwinter]

The last time he had been here, he died. It was a very 'reassuring' thought.

Ferris parked outside the bakery with Rhys in tow. Not that the entire family hadn't wanted to come with, but Ferris had wanted a break. He wasn't on anything that denied him driving a car and not going into the office was killing him just as surely as smoking was. They had agreed that as long as he take one kid, he could go to the bakery without the entire pack to ask after his credit card.

He turned off the truck and got out, waiting as Rhys, small adult that he was, unbundled himself, opened the door slowly and half fell out of the truck. Ferris twitched to catch him in case he missed the step, but the eight-year-old caught himself and offered a grin. “I told you, I got this, dad,” he said, closing the door.

“I stand corrected,” he said as he locked to door and led them across the lot and inside. Rhys dashed ahead a few steps to get the door and hold it open with his skinny little arms. “Thank you,” he said, forcing a smile. He knew his son was trying to be helpful, but he really didn't need the coddling from an eight-year-old.

It was afternoon, past the time a usual lunch time rush came in. Still, there was a pair of women in line, chatting with the lady at the counter. Ferris picked up Rhys (the boy seemed surprised and guilty, but he clung to his dad tightly) so he could see into the display cases better. “Those look good,” he noted, pointing at some pastry with cream cheese and some sort of fruit inside.

Rhys made a face. “Can I have a donut?”

“What was all that in the car about wanting something other than a donut?”

“But I like donuts.”

“Have you tried that?” He pointed at some sort of brownie thing in the display case.

“No.”

“Maybe you’ll like it.”

Rhys shook his head shyly.

“If you get a donut, we have to get donuts for everyone.” Which was the other rule for him being allowed to go out almost alone.

He looked up at the counter, putting down his son. He vaguely recognized the woman behind the counter and smiled. "Hello. I was here a few weeks back and I might have left my credit card? Name's Ferris." He asked, beginning to pull his wallet out so he could prove his ID matched any names on the card.

[Felicity Everette]

The lunch rush hadn’t been to awful that day, so Felicity had no problem when one of her baristas had a family thing come up and needed to leave. Manning- or rather; womaning the front counter didn’t bother her at all. Her thought reminding her of her encounter with Ezra at Fantasia. She had been taking her time cleaning off a few tables, a comfortable pair of jeans and her shirt tied to show a bit of her midriff.

Cleaning was one of the more calming aspects of working the front of the bakery, though she returned to the counter when a pair of women walked in and began to chat with her about her pastries and inquiring if she offered catering to deliveries on large orders.

Of course, any and all business was appreciated; so Felicity tried to be as helpful as she could while offering the women her business information and even encouraged them to check out their new website. “It’s still being worked on, but you can place advance orders there and contact us directly.” She gave a friendly smile, blond hair pulled up into two relatively neat Dutch braids making her smile seem more sweet.

She was finishing up with the register, about to ask what she could get the next customer; a man and his son. And her face fought not to melt into a look of relief. So he was alive! Felicity couldn’t put to words the level of ease she felt at seeing this man standing and not lying on the floor unconscious and not responsive like last time.

And his son…

“Oh, yes! Of course.” Felicity gave a half smile to the young boy with him as she tapped as few buttons on the register to open the drawer. Lifting the first section up to retrieve the credit card that indeed had ‘Ferris Felwinter’ printed on it. “I figured you might swing back by for it, so we kept it in the register. Here ya go.” She slid it across the counter, clearly not wanting to risk a potential repeat of the last time. If just touching his hand could cause a cardiac episode like that, she didn’t need to risk it happening again.

Though, today had been one of her better days.

“It’s a relief to see you’re alright… is there anything else I can get for you guys?” She asked, brown eyes moving to his son and making her feel a twinge of guilt over what her lack of control of her ability had caused him and his family.

[Ferris Felwinter]

Ferris heaved a sigh of relief. Sure, he'd put it on hold, but he'd rather not go through the hassle of requesting a new one. It was also just a weight off his mind and every little bit helped right now.

Considering how much see remembered him, he didn't bother pulling his ID the rest of the way out. She'd probably seen his name and face enough, between seeing his credit card any time she pulled the register drawer and the memory of him practically dead in her bakery. It was probably enough to give her nightmares. Man, he really hoped she didn't have nightmares about him. "Thanks. I appreciate it. And thank you, for the donut before and for helping my wife when...when we were last here."

"He means the time when he was unconscious on the floor," Rhys filled in firmly, trying to be helpful since his dad was being far too vague.

Ferris smiled awkwardly at Felicity. "Yeah, that time." Kids were so great. He picked up his card off the counter and then tapped it there for a moment, looking over at Rhys as Felicity asked if they needed anything else. "You want donuts?"

Rhys fixed Feris with a look that said he was asking a stupid question.

"Right, stupid question. What kind of donuts do you want?" He asked his son, looking back at Felicity. "A dozen, please," he added for her, leaving his card on the counter and pulling the little member card out of his wallet to lay along side it. He let Rhys pick out a few and then filled in the rest with what he knew the others would like.

Ferris had put some thought into what happened, going over and over in his head why his heart had stopped, just as he knew Darcy had. Only nothing really explained it and while he felt fine now, he had felt find that morning too. He didn't rule out some underlying problem, but there was the potential that it was something else. That it wasn't him. Part of why he wanted to come back and get his card was to try and figure out what about this place or the people who had been here might have contributed. Especially knowing what he knew about Gifted individuals.

Of course, he hadn't been sure what he was looking for. Not until Felicity made it crystal clear she had no desire to touch him again. Not even close. He did recall handing her his card, and while he couldn't really remember that exact moment, they might have touched? barely? She didn't seem to have anything against him or out for him though, not with her attitude now and knowing the help she had been. But...he did wonder if she had some sort of Gift.

Confronting her about it wasn't ideal. Especially not with his son and when he didn't really know her.

[Felicity Everette]

Felicity gave Ferris and Rhys a warm smile, though she was careful to keep a slight distance, mindful of her proximity. The last thing she wanted was a repeat of the previous incident. Not again, not when she was having such a good day.

"Of course, Ferris. I'm glad I could help. And don't worry about it—I'm just happy you're doing well now," She replied, trying to ease the awkwardness with a friendly tone. It wasn’t everyday that someone nearly died in her bakery… all because she couldn’t figure out what was going on with her ability.

Turning to Rhys, she added, "Alright, a dozen donuts it is! Let's see, we have chocolate glazed, jelly-filled, maple bacon, and a few others. Feel free to pick out your favorites."

As Rhys enthusiastically chose his donuts, Felicity deftly boxed them up, her movements precise and practiced. She glanced at Ferris, noticing his thoughtful expression. It was clear he had something on his mind, but she didn't press him, focusing instead on ensuring a smooth and pleasant transaction.

When the box was full, she slid it across the counter with a smile. "There you go, a dozen delicious donuts. Enjoy, you two!"

She avoided any unnecessary contact, subtly picking up the card and moving the touch the card reader… only to have it pop loudly and a spark shoot from it. This of course caused Felicity to jump a little, though considerably less than anyone else experiencing electronics malfunctioning around them. Sadly, she was used to it. But that likely looked a bit odd. "So, it would seem my card reader just gave out. These are one the house." She offered a sheepish smile as she initialed the member card to indicate the date of purchase. She set the cards back in the counter and used the one to slide them further as a precaution, trying not to be so obvious.

[Ferris Felwinter]

Rhys was almost bouncing with how excited he was to pick out donuts. Ferris was certain he would fill the entire box with his favorite two if he let him, but he commandeered his son after he picked out three of them. He looked disappointed for all but a moment until he realized how unrealistic it was that his parents would allow him to each twelve donuts all by himself. He supposed he'd rather share than not get anything, so he decided instead to look forward to the ride home where he'd get to eat one. Probably.

His father notably avoided choosing any that he would be too tempted to eat. Specifically, the maple frosted, though it was really difficult when he saw she had maple frosted sprinkled with bacon. Damn, that was a tough chose that he made look super easy with his serious demeanor. Not that he thought too much sugar or carbs was the problem, but cutting out a few donuts from his diet probably wouldn't hurt. The medical bill had hurt a lot more than a few donuts would, but the point remained.

Ferris flinched at the electric pop, surprised and honestly expecting something terrible to happen for a second. All he could think about was not having Rhys see something like that happen to his dad again. And then the next moment, the familiar calm took over, especially as he realized he was fine. Which left him instead curious and confused at what had happened to the register. He looked up at Felicity and raised an eyebrow. She'd seemed just as surprised but...she handled it a lot easier than expected.

He looked down as she marked off the membership card and handed it back. "That happen often?" he asked, trading his card for a twenty from the bill fold. "And that's fine, I can pay cash and you can ring it later," Ferris added, setting the twenty on the counter like he had his card. He took the box and handed it over to Rhys with a look that said 'be careful.' The boy nodded firmly, tongue just barely in his teeth.

[Felicity Everette]

There was always something so enjoyable about watching a child’s face light up in delight as they selected their donuts for the box. She smiled energetically as she filled the box and proceeded with the register. Of course, having her ability spaz once again and fry the card reader was misfortunate and while she frowned, she definitely didn’t panic the way a ‘normal’ person might have.

When one grew up accustomed to short circuiting things by touch; it was difficult to feign surprise or shock -no pun intended- when it happened. Especially when it seemed to be a rather common occurrence lately. Felicity ran a hand through her hair and offered a half-hearted shrug about to give some non-committal response when once of the guys from the back brought out some fresh cookies and overheard the question.

“Damn Felicity, it’s like you’re jinxed or something. First the mixer, then your phone, now the card reader. What’s next, the ovens?” The guy chuckled with amusement, but Felicity’s own laughter was a bit more forced and awkward. “Oh, yeah. I guess I’m just a bit unlucky.” She shrugged and then offered an appreciative smile to Ferris as she accepted the bill and tried to reboot the register. “Sorry for the inconvenience, I hope you all enjoy the donuts!”

[Ferris Felwinter]

It was a very strange occurrence. Coupled with the 'electrical' issues from last time. Of course, maybe he was the unlucky one? Maybe it was just a weird coincidence, the universe suggesting Ferris shouldn't shop at this bakery. Which was a shame, considering he liked it and so did the kids and it was local. Plus, since when did he let the universe tell him what to do? Okay, maybe that was a bad example, considering he let his family and peer pressure dictate his preferences. But he'd also tried to kill himself despite Garrett insisting he needed to stick it out. And then, when he probably deserved for things to be over, Darcy had found him. He believed in her more than he believed in fate. And she liked this bakery too.

Felicity's coworker saved him from that spiral, confirming that the problem wasn't him, but one that the bakery had in general. And more specifically, that Felicity had. Extra curious. "Well, I've been pretty lucky myself recently," he said. He was breathing, after all. "So maybe it will rub off?" Ferris flashed a hopeful smile.

Considering how Rhys had his hands full and was apt to start drooling like a Golden Retriever if he didn't get to shove a donut in his mouth soon, plus all the usual secrets...the off-duty Sector Detective decided it was best to remain off duty. "I'm sure we will. See you next time. Come on, Rhys, let's get home," he said, turning and nudging his son gently on the shoulder back toward the door.

[Felicity Everette]

Felicity chuckled softly at Ferris’s comment and gave him a friendly wave. “Here’s hoping your luck continues, then! I’m glad you’re doing better. And don’t worry—donuts always seem to have a way of making everything a little brighter.”

She watched as Ferris and Rhys headed out, her mind still lingering on the odd coincidence from before. It was a strange situation, but she preferred focusing on the positive. With a final smile, she called out, “See you both next time! Enjoy those donuts!”

Felicity continued to watch as Ferris and Rhys walked out, her thoughts a mix of curiosity and relief. The strange electrical incident had been unsettling, but it was reassuring to see Ferris in better spirits. She hoped the donuts would bring a little joy and normalcy to their day.

As the door closed behind them, Felicity turned back to her counter, ready to dive into the day's tasks. She thought about Ferris’s comment on luck and couldn’t help but smile. Life had its oddities, but if a simple bakery could offer a bit of comfort and a touch of luck, she was all for it.

Her coworker approached, catching her eye. “Everything alright?”

Felicity nodded, still smiling. “Yeah, just another day with its little surprises. But it’s all good. We’ve got happy customers and donuts—can’t complain.”

With a renewed sense of purpose, she went back to preparing for the next wave of customers, feeling a little lighter and more optimistic. After all, in her world of flour and frosting, a bit of magic and a lot of kindness made everything better.

[END OF THREAD]