Work Text:
“This place is trash and their coffee is utter shit, y’know?” Arakita grumbled as he followed Toudou and Fukutomi to the Starbucks closest to campus. The cranky college student scowled at the green and white mermaid logo on the building’s sign.
Shitty capitalist scum and their crappy coffee. There were way better places to grab a cup of joe and those places didn’t charge an arm and a leg either. Plus they didn’t have stupidass names for their cup sizes either. Screw Starbucks and their corporate agenda, Arakita wasn’t having it.
Well. Except for right now. Fuku-chan and Toudou had dragged him to Starbucks for one of their group study sessions and given the fact that finals were literally right around the corner, Arakita wasn’t in any position to blow off a chance to study.
“Oh quit your whining. We’re just coming here to cram for ochem and psych. You don’t have to buy anything.” Toudou replied, opening the door for his two friends.
Arakita trudged in, pulling his red retro headphones down to rest around his neck.
“Tch. I won’t.” he and Fukutomi moved into a corner of the shop and occupied some worn-looking leather chairs.
“Suit yourself. Fukutomi, do you want anything?”
“Black coffee with two shots of espresso. Strong.”
“Kayy”
Fukutomi opened his workbook and began reviewing old lab reports. Arakita, still not done being a pissbaby, decided to look around the interior of the building and keep criticizing everything about Starbucks in his head.
‘This place is filled with such fucking posers. Ugh everyone here has a freaking iPhone or a Macbook. Apple’s so fuckin mainstream. I bet half the people wearing those stupid Raybans don’t even have prescriptions. This coffee table isn’t even real mahogany it’s just painted. What the literal hell.’
“Fukotomi, your coffee.” Toudou chimed in, interrupting Arakita from his anarchist brain-bitching. “Okay guys, let’s start go over last week’s lecture for ochem.”
---
Two hours later Arakita swore his ass had fused with the fake leather of his armchair. His brain felt like it had fizzled out. He honestly wanted to take the black beanie he was wearing and asphyxiate himself with it because not only was organic chemistry the most shit-awful class he’d ever taken- but it was completely unnecessary for his major.
But Arakita had filled in his class schedule at the last minute and he honestly would not have been able to live with himself if he took Geology course as his science GE. He’d rather get stoned than study about stones, yeah?
“Ok. I concede, I need some joe.” Arakita groaned, getting up and swearing to some higher being that his spine cracked and realigned itself as he did.
‘Goddamn. I have to spend my hard-earned cash at this shit shack. Like what the hell does grande and venti even mean and why the fuck is the smallest cup called tall.’ Arakita bitched some more to himself.
He stood at the front counter and stared hard at the menu boards above him.
Like wow. Four bucks for some of the most fruity-ass looking drinks he’d ever heard of. Arakita’s scowl deepened.
“Hey! What can I get you?” a friendly voice asked. Arakita glanced down at the Starbucks employee on the other side of the counter.
Shit.
Oh no.
“Uhh, gimme a sec.”
“Sure man. Just lemme know.” the guy smiled.
Oh no he’s hot.
“Um, yeah ok I’ll do a frappuchino. Medium, uh, I mean, grande? Mocha too.” Oh what the hell his words are coming out so fast like word vomit. And shit, man. That’s the drink all the little white girls always get. Wow so impressive. Nice job, Arakita.
Luckily the mystery hottie didn’t snigger at him for his order. He simply smiled again and nodded as he rang him up.
“Ok coming right up. Can I get a name?” Arakita’s face colored.
“‘Scuse me?” he asked awkwardly. Still the unknown barista didn’t give him any shit.
“For your order.”
“Oh..right. Arakita.”
“Kay, it’ll be ready in just a minute.”
“Okay.” Arakita stood there a light bit to the side of the counter. Besides being obviously surprised by the attractiveness of the barista who had taken his order, it wasn’t like he came to this place 24/7. Arakita didn’t know proper Starbucks etiquette. Should he go back and wait? How long would it take? Was he supposed to make small talk? Would it be weird to ask if the guy was single?
Wait.
What?
“So what are you guys studying?” the mystery barista asks, looking at Arakita with a friendly expression as he wiped down the counter. His coworker, a big bear of a guy in his tiny green apron was making Arakita’s drink on the other end.
“Uhh. Right now it’s ochem.”
Ugh. Arakita’s mind went back to organic chemistry. Such a shitty class. Who even cares about this stuff?
“Ohh. I loved that class. It was super interesting.”
He cares. Arakita cares a lot now.
“Yeah?”
“Yeah. Oh your drink’s ready. Hold on.” the hottie goes to fetch his drink, squeezing some more whipped cream from a silver canister to fill up the lid. He hands it to Arakita, who notices just how cold the drink is when his warm (and kinda sweaty) fingers wrapped around it.
“Thanks.”
“No prob. Put some more whipped cream in there for ya. Glucose keeps the brain flowing, you know.” he smiles his toothless grin again and Arakita nods, shoving a green straw into the drink and taking a sip of it.
The sweet sting of sugar settles onto his tongue. Arakita’s brain is feeling an acute shortage of glucose right now.
---
His name is Shinkai, Arakita learns, upon his third visit to Starbucks.
Shinkai Hayato.
He’s a natural redhead, likes to bike for fun and has a pet rabbit even though it’s against his lease. Also he’s semi-addicted to power bars and more often than not, Arakita has caught him snacking on one during his shift.
Arakita learns those facts his fourth and fifth time visiting the establishment.
What? It’s just a couple of times. And the Starbucks really close to his dorm. Like. Kinda.
Two.
Maybe four miles away.
...on foot.
...
Shut the fuck up.
---
“You drink those frappuchinos so often but you STILL whine about them.” Toudou nags at him, the headband-wearing boy sits on the sofa in the lounge of their dorm. His legs are folded up in front of him and he’s busy texting someone.
Arakita takes a long sip of his frappuchino. It’s still mocha. It’s still grande. And it’s still shitty.
He concludes that even having hot people make their shit doesn’t make Starbucks less rotten.
That’s just good marketing on their part.
---
“Fuku-chan did you study much for that psych final?” Arakita asks absentmindedly .
“Not much.” is Fukutomi’s brusk reply.
“And you’re not worried at all?”
“I am strong.”
“...Yeah okay.” Arakita decides not to push the topic any further, ignoring the fact that all Fuku-chan really likes to do is ride his bike all day and knowing which set of gears to use to ride up a hill the fastest isn’t going to help him memorize Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.
But that’s not his business though.
“Do you wanna grab something from Starbucks? I have a giftcard.”
“Giftcard?” one of Fukutomi’s admittedly big eyebrows cocks up a bit.
“Yes, giftcard.”
“You have a giftcard?”
“I have a giftcard.” Arakita parrots, sounding a touch annoyed with his blond best friend.
“You hate giftcards.”
“Yeah. Well. I have one. Wanna go or not?” Fukutomi nods, letting the subject die even though it’s a known fact that Arakita hates the system and thinks giftcards are corporate ploys to ensnare the sheeple.
Arakita grumbles and pulls the little piece of plastic out from his wallet. Shinkai might have given him a giftcard last weekend since Arakita was SUCH a dedicated customer at Starbucks.
But it also could have been one of his other friends.
Whatever. It only had fifteen bucks on it anyway.
---
Arakita’s doing some deep-ass soul searching right now. He’s laying sprawled out on his bed in his black Soundgarden tank and dark green sweats.
His brow is furled as he stares up at the pock-marked ceiling of his dorm room.
What the hell does it mean.
Like.
What the hell does does it mean when he doesn’t really like tits anymore?
I mean. He likes them like yeah they’re okay and nice to look at. A nice rack is a nice rack, there’s no denying that but like. When Arakita doesn’t feel a twinge of want or lust when he sees them?
To be honest, Arakita’s starting to think that having a nice body is more important and a pair of fine jugs. Having nice abs, a tone body, defined calves and a firm butt?
Niceee.
Hmmmm. Maybe Arakita’s just an ass man now and he didn’t realize it till just recently.
Arakita makes a mental reminder to ask Toudou’s one friend, the one with the weird grass hair for some of his gravure mags.
---
“Arakita, don’t take this the wrong way. But are you gay?” Toudou asks one day, one hundred percent being serious. Arakita almost trips over his own feet as they’re walking.
“Dude. I don’t wanna hear that question and especially not from you.”
“Hey what the hell does that mean! You can’t knock me just because I’m open with my feelings and sexuality.” Toudou says, so matter of factly. And yeah, Arakita agrees with him though.
“Yeah. No disrespect.” he amends. Toudou nods. Arakita for being the total cynic and social renegade isn’t down for any hate speech. He actually applauds any form of non-conformist behavior so that gay pride thing is totally chill with him.
Of course.
That doesn’t make HIM gay though.
“Seriously. You go to Starbucks all the time now and suspiciously, only when a certain redheaded barista is working at the counter.”
Arakita purses his lip. He can’t really deny that when it’s true.
“So?” he offers immaturely.
“So, you can tell me if you’re gay for the guy. It’s cool. I won’t judge. I mean really.” Toudou smirks, thinking of his relationship with Maki-chan. Mostly it’s just him text bombing and blowing up Makishima’s cellphone all day long, but Maki-chan also makes it evident how much he digs Toudou when he and Makishima suck face for a good three minutes.
“My god I am not gay, okay? I still like boobs, okay.” Arakita sounds more like he’s trying to convince himself rather than Toudou. Wait, hadn’t he concluded he liked ass more?
“Yeah, but you go to Starbucks to see him allllll the time even though you swear that Starbucks is a corporate cesspool.”
“It is.”
“But when you like someone, you do things you wouldn’t normally do.” Toudou glances at the half-gone frappuchino cup in Arakita’s hands.
The glance doesn’t go unnoticed by Arakita, who continues biting on the straw of the drink. His body language now has him angled away slightly from Toudou and his shitty analysis.
Like shut up. Shinkai always makes his drink how he wants it and gives him extra cream. And Arakita’s just a loyal customer.
Yeah.
---
Arakita’s got a headache. Toudou’s words still echo in his head and Arakita feels like his insides are all knotted up inside because of them. Every time he’s had to explain exactly why he goes to Starbucks so much, Arakita has felt more gross and tangled up inside.
So he admits that he goes to Starbucks alot.
He admits that Shinkai’s got a nice face. I mean, Arakita kinda likes looking at it? It’s a nice face as much as faces go.
And Shinkai’s got that really chill vibe, y’know? Arakita likes talking to him. Even if most of the stuff he says still kinda comes out like word vomit.
He’s kinda muscle-y too. But not super freaking jacked like that one freshman kid in his stats class. Izumida, was it? Nah, Shinkai’s just sorta built. Not to the point where he comes off as a douche but you can still tell just by looking at his forearms.
Plus he’s got these really nice lips. To be honest, they’re a bit big. But, ahh, they look soft soo..
Arakita rolls on his side. Thinking about Shinkai has just made him feel shittier. However it’s a good kind of shitty? If that even fucking makes sense.
Arakita lets out a long irritated sigh.
Man, fuck the system. Arakita always thought he’d end up with some bangin indie chick who wore dark makeup, dyed her hair funky colors and liked the same music as he did. Someone he could take to protests, Limp Bizkit concerts, and hate on the corporate world with.
Not someone who works for the very system he wants to tear down.
Like fuck.
---
Oh my god.
Oh my GOD.
Arakita stares at the side of his frappuchino cup.
There’s a ten digit number there. It’s written in that same loose scrawl as always. So it’s definitely his.
Arakita’s got Shinkai’s number.
“Hey you should text me some time.” That was Shinkai’s nonchalant comment from earlier, but Arakita hadn’t put much stock into his words.
But fuck.
He actually did it??
(Also, Arakita definitely didn’t input his number immediately after he left the shop either. Definitely)
Now he’s just kinda looking at the cup and his phone, at a loss for what to do next?
He can hear Toudou’s annoying voice in his head. “Hahaha, just text him you loser!”
His fingers move on their own.
Hey.
Wait. Shit. Arakita had put a period there. Was that too much? It kinda looked passive-aggressive. He doesn’t know. GIrls complain about this stuff, right? But Shinkai’s a guy? Does the same texting etiquette apply? It’s not like Arakita doesn’t text Fuku-chan and Toudou and the other but like.
He might...maybe...kinda like Shinkai?
Jesus this is too much. Arakita wants to slam his head on a table for freaking out over a period. It’s just a period. It was just a four character text.
Four characters is kinda lacking though? They’re not that super familiar with each other yet, right? At least Arakita doesn’t feel like they are. Maybe he should have put more effort into his text. Oh god what if Shinkai didn’t even know it was him with that text. What if he just thought it was a text from some random stranger. Fucking fuckkkkk.
His phone lights up.
Hey! This is Arakita right? :)
Oh thank sweet Jesus.
---
“Holy shit so are you guys gonna get married?”
Arakita gives Toudou one of his deepest frowns for that gross question.
They’re not even fucking dating yet so like.
“No, we’re not even dating.” He strategically leaves out the ‘yet’ part in his response. Toudou visibly wilted a bit.
“But you like him though?”
Yes.
“I never said that.” Arakita says instead. He quickly texts back Shinkai and slips his phone back into his pocket.
“You’re gonna go meet up with him at the arcade later today?” Arakita nods. He’d been the one to pick the arcade actually. It was filled with tons of retro games and there weren’t really any snot-nosed brats hogging all the shit like there were in the past so it was a good place to pick for a d...da-day to meet up. Yes.
“You’re definitely not invited, just so you know.” Arakita adds. Toudou just grins and folds his arms behind his head as they walk to class.
“As if. Maki-chan and I are gonna go out and see a movie.”
“Hm. Have fun on your date then.”
“Thanks, have fun on yours as well!”
---
The “date” hadn’t got that bad. The two had played almost all the games in the arcade from Pac-Man to Space Invaders and they’d chowed down on some greasy pizza. Finally they had played a couple rounds of DDR and Arakita more or less dominated. Both of them were panting and sweating by the end of it.
Arakita wiped the sweat from the bridge of his nose and looked over at Shinkai. It was the first time he’d seen him in anything other than his uniform. Shinkai had picked a strange t-shirt with a rabbit on it. It was kinda weird? But definitely a Shinkai thing.
Shinkai pulled up the neck of his shirt wipe at his face and Arakita got a good look at his abs. Wow. So nice. He pulled his eyes away to stare at another arcade game, hoping that all the bright flashing lights from the games would disguise the blush on his cheeks.
It was nearing the end of the night and pretty soon they would have to part ways.
Shit.
Arakita kinda wanted to do something though. Hug him? Kiss him maybe? But at the same time he didn’t want to do those things. Cause like.
Arakita’s not gay and Shinkai is probs not gay either. Arakita just kinda likes Shinkai a lot? More than a friend but he doesn’t really know what words to call it.
Ugh. Fuck all these words and terms.
This is why Arakita hates the system so much. There has to be a proper term for shit and everything has to be spelled out to the dot. Nothing’s fluid and you need a name for everything. Does Arakita really have to admit or acknowledge anything? He just has feelings for Shinkai. Nice feelings that make him feel all gross and warm inside.
Arakita’s still brooding and staring off into the distance when Shinkai calls for him.
“Arakita.”
“Wha-huh?”
There’s a pair of lips on Arakita’s lips. Shinkai’s lip. Needless to say Arakita is totally taken by surprise. Shinkai’s lips aren’t as soft as Arakita would have thought either. They’re actually a bit dry and chapped but they still feel really nice as the two kiss. Shinkai does kiss just how Arakita expects hims to though. Their lips mesh and mould together slowly and calmly.
Finally they pull apart.
Arakita’s pretty sure it’s obvious he’s as red as tomato right now. Shinkai looks him straight in the eye and smiles a bit.
“Hey, Arakita, I like you.”
Of course his confession is that plain and simple.
“Thanks, right back at cha.”
Fuck doing things the conventional way.