Art by  sudonym! 8 more to go until the Final Frappuchino!

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"Fair enough," Samuel murmured as he took his wallet out again, this time to pull out a credit card. "I'll just pay the check and leave you alone." He began get up when Venti touched his forearm.

"Wait. I'm sorry." He felt the anger drain out of him, replaced with a sudden weariness. Maybe it was all adrenalin which caused his temper to flare, or maybe it wasn't. The blame was still on his shoulders. "I just...I've been dealing with little pieces of drama that's been building up, and the last thing I ever expected was to have a reunion with someone I've never met."

Samuel sighed heavily as he sat back down. "I thought I was hallucinating when I saw you on that cover. It took me several days to gather up the nerve to come down here to meet you, but I still chickened out when I saw you in the gym today."

"You saw me there?"

"It's how I knew to call you."

Venti decided to change the subject quickly. "So you say you got a temper?"

"It's a big one, and when I lose control of it I explode into a thousand shards of white hot rage." A half smile formed on Samuel's muzzle. "Then I curl up in a corner and wish I were invisible."

"I've gotten a lot better with my temper, but I've had a lot of friends call me out when I lose my cool." Suddenly he remembered the time. "Oh crap, I have to call my--" How would Samuel react to Venti being gay? He was raised Southern Methodist...or was it Baptist? "--friend. I said I'd be meeting him tonight at my place. He might be worried."

"It's all right. I'll go pay the check so you can have some privacy in case your friend loses his temper," Samuel chuckled as he went inside the cafe.

Venti dug out his cellphone from the depths of his gym bag and called Art, who answered on the third ring.

"Hi, Venti," Art said. "Why aren't you home yet? Did they call you in to work tonight?"

"I got invited to dinner by someone you won't believe..."

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