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It was the perfect plan.
Easy.
Casual.
No pressure.
He was going to bring her a cup of tea.
What better way to say that he was thinking about her after the traumatizing life-changing event that had taken place two days before by bringing her a small gift?
She liked tea.
It was a brilliant idea.
“What can I get you?”
Until it was his turn to order.
Awase’s fists curled at his sides as he looked over the menu for the hundredth time. “Um…” He stepped forward, frantically looking over the choices as he tried to make a selection.
Since when was tea so complicated ?
To be fair, tea was always complicated. His own tastes were simple. He only required some hot water, a tea bag, and a halfway decent steep time. The flavor didn’t matter to him. Tea was about warmth and caffeine.
What was it to Yaoyoruzu?
Her affinity for tea was common knowledge.
“Excuse me?”
His eyes snapped to the young man behind the counter.
“What can I get you?”
His first instinct was to order some green tea for her. It was the safest assumption, but it lacked imagination and felt impersonal.
“You don’t know her,” Awase mumbled, slowly reaching in his pocket to pull out his wallet. His fingers brushed over the money as his eyes narrowed at the selection.
Peach green tea sounded like something she’d enjoy, but so did the matcha.
Chamomile would be comforting. “Considering we almost died,” he shrugged, tucking the words underneath his breath.
Mango would be cheery. Something bright and happy tasting.
Did rose tea count as a romantic gesture? Awase wondered if she would understand the significance of the tea he was picking.
Of course she would.
“Dude!”
Awase blinked, brows furrowing as he brought his vision back down to the counter. “What?”
“Are you getting something?” the older teen beyond the counter questioned.
“Oh yeah, um,” Awase pulled out his money, ignoring the impatient feet of a nurse behind him, “can I get a large cup of um-” He felt his face flush, “-the rose tea.” He stepped to the side, eyes moving around the hospital courtyard. Kendo had told him that class 1-A had visited their injured classmates and slyly passed along Yaoyorozu’s room number.
“Rose tea!”
“Thanks,” Awase murmured, grabbing the drink. He froze for a moment, stopping in front of the little cart with accompaniments. He assumed she took her tea without sugar, preferring to savor the taste of the herbs and leaves alone but-
A little sugar wouldn’t hurt.
Maybe a squeeze of honey?
Splash of milk?
“You’re overthinking it,” he grumbled, stuffing a few packs of whatever he could find on the counter into his pocket and walking to the elevator. Even though he was sure that no one from school would be in the building today, he didn’t want to risk being seen.
Not that it was a big deal.
He was bringing a cup of tea to a friend.
His fingers curled around the paper cup as he approached her door.
“It’s not a big deal,” Awase reminded himself, raising a hand to knock on the door. “Not a big deal.” His knuckles rapped against the door before he took a nervous step back.
“Yes?”
He wrapped his fingers around the knob and pushed the door partially open as he took one step before coming to an immediate halt. “It’s Awase.” She had no reason to be expecting him.
Better to be rejected before he barely got a foot into the door than to stand in front of her awkwardly after seeing she didn’t want him visiting.
“Oh-”
Shit.
Awase’s eyes squeezed shut, preparing his body to make a run for it.
“Um, come in.”
He inhaled, waiting until he heard the covers stop rustling on the other side of the door. Awase pushed the door open as he exhaled. His eyes followed the pattern of the light gray tiles to the sheets fluttering above the floor. “Hey.”
“Hello Awase,” Yaoyorozu greeted politely, looking to him as she tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear. She smiled softly as she tilted her head. Her knuckles tucked against her cheek as her elbow balanced on her knee.
He stopped a few steps away from her bedside. “Hi.” What was he supposed to say? There had to be a transition between greeting each other and him handing her the cup of tea he’d bought her.
“How are you?”
Right. “I’m fine,” he answered. That simple question would have been the perfect segway, but she’d beaten him to it. “How are you?” His own injuries had been minor. A few scratches and scraps had been treated quickly by paramedics before releasing him.
“Better,” she nodded, “They’re letting me go soon.” Yaoyorozu tapped the bandage on the side of her head as she gave him a gentle smile.
“That’s good.” His grip tightened around the cup. “I’m,” Awase paused as he shifted his weight from leg to leg, “glad you’re okay.” He swallowed nervously as he tried not to let his mind drift back to that night in the forest. “I brought you some tea.” He thrust the paper cup out toward her.
“Oh,” she leaned away in surprise, eyes darting from Awase to the tea. “Thank you!” Yaoyorozu carefully reached for the cup, her fingers brushing over his.
He looked away, clenching his jaw.
Her warm smile didn’t falter as she took the cup close to her. She closed her eyes feeling the steam warm her face. “Rose?” she questioned softly, opening her eyes.
The steam floated around her face, glowing softly in the sunlight creeping in from the window. “Yeah,” he swallowed the urge to tell her how pretty she looked in a small cloud of drifting dust and team steam.
Her lips quirked into a smirk before taking a tentative sip. Cheeks full, Yaoyoruzu frowned, swallowing sharply.
“I wasn’t sure what kind of tea you liked.” He wasn’t going to confess how long he’d spent trying to make a selection.
“No,” she stopped him, shaking her head. “It’s a little bitter.”
He should have known better than to use tea from a hospital atrium as part of a grand gesture.
“I like rose tea. It’s just I think whoever made this either steeped it too long or just used dustings,” Yaoyorozu explained, turning the cup around and inspecting the little pieces of paper at the end of the tea bags.
“Uh, I can fix it.” Without thinking, Awase took the cup from her and placed it on the nightstand. He removed the lid and emptied his pockets. “I grabbed some sugar packets. Some-.” He rustled through the items. “Milk? Or creamer?” Those were like the same thing, right? “I got some honey, cinnamon, molasses…?” What the hell?
“Some sugar would work,” she told him, quietly watching as he sorted through the various packets he’d taken.
“It’s two sugars, right?” He’d ripped open the packets of sugar cane before she could answer.
“Yeah.”
He watched as the sugar dissolved into the hot liquid. “I can run and get you some milk.”
“Oh no,” Yaoyorozu insisted as he carefully swirled the liquid around. “That’s perfect.”
He’d grabbed everything except for something to stir the drink with.
“Awase?”
“Yeah?” he asked, placing the lid back on the cup and presenting it to her once more.
Yaoyorozu grasped the cup, allowing her fingers to caress the edge of his palm. “Thanks.”
Awase found himself frozen, helplessly drawn to her eyes as the dust glimmered behind her. “It’s not a big deal.”
“No-”
“It’s just tea,” he insisted, allowing his eyes to trace over the bruising peeking out from beneath her bandage.
“You saved my life.”
She remembered. “No, I-” There was a small egotistical part of him that hoped she remembered.
“There was a Nomu and flashes-” Yaoyorozu started carefully, eyes dripping down before looking back at him, “-of sparks or fire?”
“The Nomu had drills and saws attached to him. It was coming toward us.”
“You were holding me? Or carrying me?”
“You were injured.” His brain had only scrambled flashes of what happened to her, but he hadn’t had time for a second thought when he saw the blood pouring from her head.
“You,” she started, tilting her head as she looked at their contented hands for a moment. Yaoyorozu dared to reach a little further to wrap her fingers to his pulse, “stopped moving though.”
She wasn’t hesitant about that fact. “We stopped moving. You shouted you were sorry and-”
He could feel her watching him carefully. Awase could hear his heartbeat thudding between his ears as he tried to fight off the flush creeping up the back of his neck.
“You shielded me,” she whispered. “You put your hand on my head and you were-”
-ready and willing to die to keep her safe. “It was nothing.” His voice was small and raspy.
“It wasn’t nothing.”
She knew. “Here’s your tea.” They weren’t ready for this now.
There was too much going on.
They’d just been attacked and a classmate was missing.
“Thank you,” Yaoyorozu smiled as his fingers released the cup. “Roses are my favorite.” She commented as he dropped down into the chair next to her bed.
She knew.
That was enough.