A/N: This was originally written for the Severus Fest 2016 on LJ. It's a sorta MuggleAU. Many thanks to CRMediaGal, GloryandFame, and JenniseiBlack for being my wonderful team of alphas/betas. I hope everyone enjoys this. xx

Disclaimer: Harry Potter characters are the property of J.K. Rowling and Bloomsbury/Scholastic. No profit is being made, and no copyright infringement is intended.

Falling in Love at a Coffee Shoppe

Hermione stepped inside the small coffee shoppe, the door chiming as she opened it. She smiled, having visited the coffee shoppe the past three days while vacationing in the city of Boston. She had decided to vacation Stateside after finishing up her N.E.W.T.s, needing a break from both Great Britain and the wizarding world. Her flight had landed in Boston and immediately, she fell in love with the city and decided that was where she would stay for her vacation.

As she stepped up to the counter, her eyes roamed the small shoppe, searching for him. Hermione wasn't sure what it was about him, but there was an American Muggle who ran the shoppe that made her weak in the knees. She didn't know why she was so entranced by him, but she was.

"Good morning," he greeted her, his voice low and baritone.

Her eyes lit up at the sight of him. "Hello, Severus," she greeted him, glancing at his name tag.

"What'll you have?" he asked, looking at her patiently.

Hermione couldn't help but be floored by his attractiveness. Well, Severus wasn't attractive in a conventional way, but she thought he was. His shoulder-length black hair was tied back into a small ponytail, looking a bit greasy as it always did. She suspected the greasy appearance was due to working with coffee machines all day. His eyes were dark – obsidian – drawing her in every time she looked at him. His nose was rather large and hooked, but she found it very fitting to him. He was certainly older, probably in his thirties, and that just added an extra appeal to him. Overall, Hermione knew that she was smitten.

"I'll have a hot vanilla chai today," she decided, taking out her cash. She paid, holding back a gasp as their fingers brushed during the exchange. "My name is Hermione," she added, deciding that she wanted him to know it.

He arched an eyebrow at her as he finished the transaction. "Hermione? Your parents must have been fans of Shakespeare."

"Oh, yes," Hermione nodded. "I've been to the Globe Theatre lots of times with them." Hermione smiled fondly at the memories.

"Ah, I had a feeling you were British. You're from London?" he asked.

"Oxford actually," Hermione clarified. "I went to school in Scotland."

"Interesting," he said, his gaze raking over her. "Be back with your drink."

Hermione waited patiently, her cheeks turning warm from blushing. "Thank you," she said, graciously accepting the chai. "See you tomorrow."

A hint of a smile appeared on his usually stoic features. "Tomorrow."

She left the coffee shoppe, her heart thumping wildly in her chest.

Two days later, Hermione decided that she was sick of making small talk with Severus at the shoppe. Gathering her Gryffindor courage, she decided that she would ask Severus out on a date.

She had given it a lot of thinking over, whether or not she wanted to become involved with a Muggle. Reasoning that she was born and raised a Muggle, there was nothing wrong with it. She would worry about everything else later on. There was no harm in getting to know him.

"Hello, Severus," she greeted him, stepping up to the counter. "I'll have an iced coffee with a French vanilla swirl today."

"Cream or sugar?" he asked.

"A little cream," Hermione replied, handing him her cash. "Severus, I was wondering, are you doing anything when your shift ends?"

He froze, his eyes widening. "I… That is, no, I don't tend to…"

Hermione smiled, finding his nerves adorable. "Do you want to maybe go to the aquarium with me?"

"The aquarium?"

"Yes," Hermione said with a nod. "But only if you want to," she added hurriedly, suddenly feeling nervous herself. "You don't have to if you're not interested, I only though that I would offer." She held her breath as she waited for his response.

"Sure," Severus said after a few moments of contemplation. "I can meet you there at one o'clock."

"Great!" Hermione exclaimed excitedly. She tried to keep from looking too happy as she waited for her coffee, but on the inside, she was brimming with eagerness. She took her coffee, telling him that she couldn't wait until later. Hermione exited the coffee shoppe, an obvious pep in her step.

Hermione had changed from her comfy clothing earlier to a yellow sundress. She stood in front of the aquarium, watching all of the people walk by. When she spotted Severus in the crowd, her heart began to race.

"Severus," she greeted when he made it to her.

"Hello," he replied. "Shall we head in? I've already bought us tickets?" He held up two pieces of paper.

"You didn't have to do that," Hermione insisted.

"I wanted to," Severus replied. "Er, let's get started."

His cheeks were flushed and, at once, Hermione could tell he wasn't very well-versed at dating. She wondered just how many dates he had been on before quickly pushing that thought from her mind. It didn't matter to her how many dates he had been on. She liked him just the way he was.

The two of them walked in, her eyes widening as she saw the large tank. "It's huge," she commented. She could see that the walkway swirled around the tank, going up.

"Did you know that they built the tank first and then built the rest of the aquarium around it?" Severus supplied.

She turned to face him, smiling. "No, I didn't. See, I knew there was a reason I needed a local American for this." On the inside, she was beaming that he appeared well-educated. There was something about a smart man that turned her on. Reaching out, she grasped his hand. "Well, let's get started!"

The two of them spent some time at the penguin exhibit, watching the small birds hop from rock to rock. Hermione watched with enjoyment as the penguins swam about. "They're quite fast, aren't they?"

Severus nodded. "But they do stink a bit." He scrunched up his nose, causing Hermione to giggle.

"Right, well, let's go up and see the tank," she suggested.

Holding hands, the two of them began to walk along the tank. Hermione was in awe at all the colorful fish and coral inside the tank. She let out an excited squeal when she saw the giant green turtle.

As Hermione walked with Severus, she saw that he eventually began to relax around her. At every exhibit they stopped at, Severus lectured her about the animal inside. With every passing moment, she found herself growing more and more attracted to him.

Far too soon, Hermione found that they visited every exhibit of the aquarium. She frowned, not quite ready for the date to be over.

"Do you want to walk to Faneuil Hall and get some ice cream?" Severus suggested when they finished.

Hermione smiled warmly. It seems Severus doesn't want our date to be over yet either. "That sounds nice." Her stomach did small flips when he reached over and grasped her hand. The two of them began to walk and Hermione found herself utterly happy. She knew it was too soon for her to be feeling this way, but she could definitely see herself staying Stateside with Severus.

"What kind do you want?" Severus asked, stopping outside the small shoppe selling ice cream.

"Hmmm," Hermione said, looking over the menu quickly. "Caramel fudge swirl sounds nice. I'll have that."

Severus smiled at her briefly before ordering them both ice cream. He handed the caramel fudge to her and kept the strawberry one for himself. "We can sit over there and people watch," he said, pointing to a bench.

Hermione went and took a seat on the bench, scooting closer to him when he sat down as well. "This is delicious," Hermione said with a smile. "American ice cream just tastes so much better than the ice cream back home."

He laughed. "Well, I can't say whether or not I agree since I've never tasted British ice cream."

"Maybe someday you will," she said, blushing slightly.

Severus's cheeks turned pink as well. "Er, how long do you plan on staying in Boston?"

"It depends," Hermione replied honestly.

"On what?" Severus asked, a slightly confused expression on his face.

"On us," Hermione replied, tilting her head upwards and pressing her lips against his. She pulled away seconds later, warmth spreading throughout her entire body.

Severus cupped her face lightly, careful not to drop his ice cream in the process. "I'd like to kiss you properly this time."

"Properly?" Hermione asked, slightly breathless. "Yes, please." Closing her eyes, she moaned slightly as Severus pressed his lips to hers, deepening the kiss.

Hermione had a feeling that she'd be staying in Boston for a very long time.