Hurraaaay!

Ice Cream!

YAY!

Okay, enough of that. I came up this little ball of adorableness over AIM, and a good friend encouraged me to write it out.

Also never fear, PFL will be updated today as well.

I own none of the orginal!

There was a quaint little ice cream parlor shop nestled between a hair salon and a pawn shop, modeled to look like something that came out of the sixties what with all the black and white checkered floor that's been polished to an impossible shine and the bright red bar stools the lined the marble counter. There was only one employee on staff, which was just as well as the day was quite slow.

It wasn't surprising though, as it wasn't a hot summer's day or the weekend. It was actually quite chilly outside, you would have to ether have a severe need for comfort food or be severely obsessed with having your soft served frozen treat to want to walk in at all. Even so, the shop remained open, just in case customers were to come about.

The lone employee with golden eyes wiped down the counter for what felt like the hundredth time, when he heard the faint ringing sound of the door opening. Looked up, he at first see's nothing.

Perhaps… Perhaps it was just the wind? He looks back down to continue his important work when he spots a tuff of red hair peeking from the edge of the counter. "Ah…" the man leans over to have a better look, to see a little red headed boy, perhaps no more the five staring intently at the ice-cream displays. Smiling softly, he tried to get the boys attention. "Why hello there."

The child spun on his heel and smiled brightly back at the man, startling him slightly with the intensity of the boys brilliant blue eyes. He almost wanted to take a picture with his phone, but knew very well that would not only appear creepy, but likely illegal without the consent of the parent. "Hi!" the boy chirped.

Parents…

"Where your mom kid?" he asked. "Does she know you're here?"

The boy pointed at the door. "She's getting her hair cut!" he declared proudly. He returned his attention to the ice cream display, trying to decide what he wanted to eat. "She says not to go off on my own, but you're here so I'm not alone am I? Besides, I was getting boooored… Oh!" he looks back up the man. "My name is Hanna, what's yours?"

The man blinked. That was an odd name for a boy… "My name is Ryouta," he answered. "And maybe you should go back to your mom before she…"

"Ryan Two?" Hanna ran back to the counter and started to climb the bar stool like a little monkey. "That's a silly name!"

Laughing slightly the man tried to correct the boy. "No, it's pronounced Rye…You…Ta. And your mother might be worried."

The boy nestled into the stool comfortably, swinging his legs. "Right…Yat…Roo…" the boy paused and before the golden eyed man could repeat the correct pronunciation, he pointed authoritively him. "Carl!"

"…Okay. That's my name." This kid was adorable enough to get away with changing his name. But even so, there was still the matter of trying to persuade the child back to the hair salon before his mother figures out what was happening. He decided to go with bribing Hanna. "You must have been bored waiting for you mom- would you like some ice cream to take with you while you wait for mom to finish up?"

"Can't I have it here?" the boy whined, pouting slightly. Ryouta made note of the childs freckles and how they were spotting all the right places. It just looked adorable. "Besides, you're my new best friend Charles!'

"I thought my name is Carl?"

"Now it's Henny!"

Ryouta sighed, but not out of annoyance. "Alright, but don't go blaming me if you mother gets upset." He was happy, very happy for the company. Now being put into such a good mood, he decided to give the child the promised ice cream, even thought it would no longer serve as the intended purpose of a bribe. Take out a small cone he looked over at the staring kid. "So what's your flavor?"

The boy mulled this over for what seemed like only a second. "Rocky Road!" he cheered as he spun around in the barstool. Ryouta continued to smile as the boy then sprung into a little song about ice cream, and just how awesome it was that he was getting some.

Ryouta felt that song was enough to earn the child two scoops instead of just one.

He handed the child the ice cream, earning a bright smile in return. "Wow! Thank you!" he said happily. Ryou dealt with plenty of children before, but none that smiled as warmly as this one. He was secretly starting to hope the mother was getting a very long haircut.

But sadly no.

A woman, who so obviously was Hanna's mother, what with the strong resemblance in the red hair and freshly styled hair came in looking absolutely panicked- until she see's Hanna. Her expression melted away into relief- and thankfully not anger like Ryou feared.

"Hanna Falk Cross!" she said in a scolding tone as she approached the boy who looked as if she had just caught him standing over a broken vase. "I told you not to wander- I swear, I turn my back for… oh sweetie, did this man give you ice cream?"

Hanna nodded. "It's okay, I'm gonna pay him!" he declared as he started to fish into his pockets.

Both Ryouta and his mother shot each other quizzical glances. Ryouta didn't expect the boy to have any money, and apparently by judging by the woman's expression, neither did she. The boy eventually pulled out a crumbled up white piece of paper with pointed bits sticking out at odd angles. "Mommy, hold this!" He gave his baffled mother his ice cream as he fixes and smoothes out the paper before presenting it to the nice man.

A paper crane.

"I made it myself!" he boasted. "And it's magic, 'cause if you make a thousand of them, you get a wish. So each little crane has to have a little magic in it right?"

"That's… incredible." Ryouta played along, holding up the crane, looking as though he was very, very impressed, like it was made of real magic. "It was a pleasure doing business with you Mr. Cross."

Hanna just beamed as he wandered over to the door so he could leave with his mother, who paused for a moment and whispered that she will pay him with real money, but Ryouta declined her offer and said the ice cream was free for today. She returned to her son's side, pulling him out the door, mouthing 'thank you'. Hanna shouted "Good bye Freddy! See you later!" as he carefully balancing his double scoops of ice cream.

Now being left alone, the young man displayed the crane up onto a shelf filled with little antique trinkets that served as the parlors decor before returning to work.