Chapter Text
In a small café nestled in a backstreet in Yongen-Jaya, Souji Seta sat at the bar, staring at his half-empty cup of coffee, lost in thought. A cellphone lay a safe distance away from the cup, which the man occasionally glanced at. The first sip he took from his coffee brought with it a wave of nostalgia, when he was living at his uncle’s home in the small town of Inaba. A place Souji hadn’t been back to since he left 4 years ago. Come to think of it, he hadn’t had coffee since then, too. What had compelled him to get a cup from this café? He would never know…
“Uh, sir?” A voice belonging to the barista snapped Souji out of his thought-filled daze. “Excuse me, but are you going to finish your coffee? You’ve been staring at it for a good ten minutes or so.”
“O-oh…” Souji looked up at the barista, who was looking at him quizzically. The barista’s dark grey eyes, curly black hair, and glasses, added with the dull grey shirt and apron he was wearing made him look at home in this café, but otherwise just another face in the crowd in this bustling city. “uh… yes, I am.”
“The coffee is probably cold by now, so I can give you a refill if you want?” The barista commented. He added, “On the house.”
There was a moment of silence before Souji responded. “Sure, thanks.” The barista nodded at him before taking his cup of cold coffee away. Souji turned his head to a painting of a woman holding a baby in her arms, resting his head in the palm of his hand as he lost himself in thoughts once again. The barista looked too young to be the owner, he thought, so it was more than likely that he was a part-timer. Was he in college? No, he looked to still be in high school, Souji guessed. The barista looked around the age Souji had been when he…
“You like the painting?” The barista spoke up, once again snapping Souji out of his thoughts.
“It seems to fit in well with the café’s atmosphere.” Souji commented as he took a closer look at it.
“It really does.” The barista said as he got the cup of coffee ready.
Once poured, he placed the cup in front of Souji. Before he could even grab hold of the cup, Souji’s cellphone started to buzz as an incoming call came in. A name showed on the illuminated screen, filling Souji with dread, fear, and regret. He knew a phone call from him was going to come up soon, but this soon? All he could do was stare and read the caller’s name: Tohru Adachi