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Ranmaru had gotten addicted to caffeine and it was not his fault. It was the fault of the coffee shop right next door to his college and one of the workers.
The first time Ranmaru ever visited Asunaro’s café, he had got a regular coffee. He had pulled an all nighter and needed the beverage to pull him through the day. The doors had chimed when he walked in th first time. The café was homey. He had pulled his folder for science over his shoulder before entering the queue. It was as long as he expected it to be at the start of the school day. The line dispersed quickly as the workers skimmed through the orders. There was no small talk going on only focused work.
“Sara! SARA I HAVE THE PURE BLACK COFFEE FOR THE GUY YOU’RE SERVING!” A guy yelled as he ran out from the kitchen. He had a mug in his hands. The girl on the counter ,Sara, had taken it from him and slid it to the counter. The student who ordered their coffee had already collected it and were sitting back at a table.
The system continued. Each person would get called up for their order, come collect it and leave. There was little room for conversations and Ranmaru wondered if it was this hectic all day. He got pushed to the front before he recognized it.
“What do you want?” Sara asked. The words spewed from her mouth.
Ranmaru responded with his order before he was shoved out of the way to serve the next person. He stumbled back before he found his footing. There was no time to waste as he scrambled into the chair he had almost crashed into and sat there. He didn’t pull his phone out because he didn’t know when he would be called back up to collect the drink. The next two minutes of his life was awkward. Sara managed to get three orders, collect two drinks and almost diminish the queue. It was impressive.
“Annnd, the one with more sugar than coffee.” Sara called. Ranmaru didn’t want to get up but he had got an insane amount of sugar lobbed in. He had hoped someone else would claim the coffee but no one stood up. The worker looked ready to repeat the order but Ranmaru had already headed to the counter to pick it up. It was warm in his hands and if it weren’t for the napkin it would’ve burnt him more. Sara took a second from her job to smirk at him as if she knew something. If she had tampered with the drink in anyway Ranamru would just demand a refund. It wasn’t worth the hassle anyways.
He took a sip. Sure enough, the drink was just as promised. He smiled at the fact and headed into the building. His feet went up the stairs. There were people everywhere but he held himself high. He took another slurp of the drink seeing as once he got to the labs it’d have to be binned. As he approached the classroom, he gluped what remained down and threw it in the rubbish.
It was when he removed the napkin for recycling that he noticed what Sara had done. Written in cursive handwriting was Your sheep hair looks fluffy and a smiley emoji. Ranmaru snorted and lobbed the cup into the bin and the napkin into the recycling.
The second time Ranmaru went to the café, it was Monday after college. His earplugs were in for the journey home. He pushed the door open. Like the time before, it jingled. The queue was shorter this time. The same worker who made the drinks was talking over the counter to a customer casually. While the decoration of the shop hadn’t changed, it felt more welcoming than before. It was probably due to it not being rush hour.
Ranmaru walked through the area sectioned off for the queue with ease. He stood back at the counter. Sara was taking orders again. She waited patiently while he removed the earplug from his ear.
“Coffee but its half milk and twelve sugars like before?” Sara asked. Ranmaru felt the blood rush to his cheeks and he averted his eyes .
“You remembered my order…” He stated. People only remembered orders if they were either a regular or living in a coffee shop alternative universe. Ranmaru didn’t fit either of the criteria’s.
Sara laughed, “Of course I did. It was so wacky. A bit like your hair. You want it again?”
“Yeah sure.” Ranmaru answered.
“JOE I NEED SHEEP HAIR’S ORDER!” Sara yelled. The guy who had been talking to the customer hurried off. He was presumably Joe. Ranmaru slithered off to the table he had sat at last time. He didn’t have anything to hide his face in so he kept his head down. If he looked up he would’ve seen Sara scribbling another note onto the paper. He also would’ve seen her try another three times because she failed before that.
He also would have noticed that Joe had dropped the drink off and laughed as Sara shut him up because otherwise Ranmaru would watch her try and scribble things down on the notepad.
“Sheep hair!” Sara called up. Ranmaru stood up and picked the drink up. He headed to the table and removed the napkin. He was hoping for another stupid comment. To his surprise, there was one. Teen Idle is better. Listen to that instead.
Oh, she heard his music. He looked up and showed her a thumbs up. Sara didn’t seem to understand he was signalling that Teen idle was the song playing in the background.
“You liked it?” She called in confusion. Ranmaru wanted to correct her on what she meant but was way to tense to go and act casual. Joe and the customer were looking at him. His shoulders tightened. Yeah, he was not staying there. He took the drink and hurried out of the shop.
The third time Ranmaru went to the Asunaro coffee shop, it was in his break. It had only been one day since he went the second time but he found himself drawn to the café. He opened the door and went into the queue. The time he spent in it seemed slower this time. Ranmaru told himself it was just the drinks taking longer. The small part that piped up that he was just impatient to meet Sara was buried deep down.
Ranmaru stood at the counter and saw Joe.
“Sheep hair!” He exclaimed. Ranmaru stood there in shock as Joe hurried off to hand his order to the people in the kitchen. The student was tempted to tell Joe he wanted to change his order but the thought of having his coffee anything other than white stopped him. Joe seemed to be gone for some time before he appeared back.
“Okay Sheep hair, your order has been received. Go plonk down somewhere and we’ll call you when your ready!” Joe exclaimed. He was smiling as he waved Ranmaru off. He met the person behind him with enthusiasm. The joy Joe radiated was infectious and the disappointment vanished. Ranmaru slipped into a spare chair and watched Joe interact with the others. It wasn’t professional and he acted more like an excited puppy than a cashier. He still did the job, it just didn’t compare to how Sara did it.
“Sheep hair! You’re orders ready!” Joe exclaimed as he returned from handing in another order. The beverage was in his hands. Ranmaru stood up and took the drink.
“Thanks.” He stated as he headed out. There were too many people around and he agreed to meet with his friend. The clock said he had five minutes to get to their meeting spot. Ranmaru could do that. He walked along the street until he reached the park. Sure enough, he wasn’t there first.
Anzu waved him over and Ranmaru slipped in beside her. They fell into an easy conversation. She didn’t mention Ranmaru’s knew found coffee addiction. She probably thought he was drinking milk. Milk didn’t need to be blown so Ranmaru let the liquid burn his mouth. There was no way he could let her know. He never heard the end of it that her dear friend Ran was finally growing up to be an office worker.
So when Anzu called him out for the napkin he laughed it off and headed to the bin. The cup didn’t burn his hand. The cold wind having cooled it down. He approached the bin and unfolded the napkin. It wasn’t blank like he expected Joe would leave it. It was decorated with emojis and a string of numbers. Call her. It said.
Ranmaru knew what it meant. Joe had given him Sara’s number for some reason. He bit his cheek as he weighed the pros and cons of calling the girl.
He chucked the tissue in the bin with the cup but a new number burned in his contacts. He didn’t have to call it.
After that, Ranmaru found himself heading there frequently. He was still sheep hair to the workers and he still got silly messages if it was a teenager behind the counter. Joe’s messages scruffy, they teared the napkin and the pen bleeded everywhere. They were knock knock jokes and absurd friendly reminders.
Friendly Reminder: you are walking on a ball.
Friendly Reminder: Snakes have bellybuttons.
Friendly reminder: We have a carton of milk for your order. You use so much.
There was the other worker Ryoko. She was the last one Ranmaru met and the one who didn’t seem to always make notes. When she did, they were threats. Harmless threats that made him chuckle.
If you don’t drink all that I’ll pour it over your hair.
Do your homework or I will ban you from the shop.
Change your order or I’ll change it for you.
Turn your music down or I’ll smash your phone.
Come by tomorrow if you appreciate your sheep hair.
Sara also kept up with the notes. She scribbled them down on the counter every time he went in. They were short and sweet. The next time Ranmaru bumped into her he’d respond to the message verbally. Soon they had conversations going.
I think you could hide as a sheep in a farm.
“Is this about my hair?”
If we took off your legs you really would be a sheep.
“What, should I say baa now.”
I don’t know, You give me more moo sounds.
“I can’t believe you.” Ranmaru had said.
Sara ended that conversation that day when she handed the coffee over, “Yeah yeah, I love you too.”
Ranmaru didn’t run away to hide his blush after that incident definitely not. He did not hide away from the world for the rest of the night. He was not running away from his feelings. No Ranmaru was not, he was just hiding in his bedsheets, normal people did that.
Ranmaru avoided Asunaro coffee shop after that instance. His mind jeering, pointing at him that Sara meant it in a friendly way. There was a minimal drawback from the withdrawal. That was one of the good things about his order. No one noticed the lack of coffee, they all just assumed Ranmaru woke up late.
They did notice the fact he closed himself off. His hand wasn’t always in the air, instead they both remained in his pocket. No one called Ranmaru out on the behaviour but they noticed and tried to make him feel better.
“Ran,” Anzu stated as they walked home together for the first time in months, “I think it’s time you become an office worker.”
At first, he didn’t think much of the statement. He followed her down the road rolling his eyes. Anzu knew he wasn’t destined to sit by a desk all day. Her friendly prods kept his thoughts off of the café. That was until Anzu dragged him through the door.
“Welcome to the start of your office career Ran!” She threw her arms in the air. Most of the shop had turned to face the two. Ranmaru wanted to run out again. He hadn’t prepared for Anzu to take him here and let alone make it public. Now he couldn’t escape Joe leaning over the counter (at least it was Joe) and yelling back,
“SHEEP HAIR, WHAT DOES YOUR FRIEND WANT?” Joe yelled. He ignored the customer he was ordering. Anzu looked shocked at the recognition.
“Strawberry milkshake please?” She called back. Joe smiled and pulled a thumbs up. Once he had looked away Anzu stared at Ranmaru. She said, “You’ve been an office worker all this time and never thought to tell me?”
Ranmaru darted his eyes away. He led her to a table while explaining the descent into the coffee shop hell he was in. Anzu listened to it all before she shoved him up.
“Go get our drinks,” She demanded.
“Why do I have to get them?” Ranmaru questioned.
Anzu pointed a finger at him and sang, “Because the people know youuu.”
Ranmaru couldn’t argue with that. He grudgingly went to the counter to collect the drinks. Joe was leaning there.
“So we finally have a name for sheep hair?” Joe teased. Ranmaru stared at him.
“Haven’t I told you my names Ranmaru?” He asked.
“Dude that’s why we’ve been calling you sheep hair. Are you generally that oblivious.” Joe rolled his eyes. Ranmaru bit his lip.
“Oh. My bad.” He stated. Joe took that as a chance to change the discussion.
He chirped, “Anyway, reckon you could stay past closing hours? Sara wants to speak you.”
Ranmaru went pink at the mention of Sara. He nodded before gripping the drinks and hurrying away. Joe from the counter laughed at the action. He slipped away from the counter and went to deal with the next customer.
Anzu waited for Ranmaru. He got there and she wiggled her eyebrows. He took a sip from his drink. “I have to stay after hours, something something, I’m stuck here for another hour.” He revealed. Anzu shuffled closer to him and poked his rib causing a muffled giggle from the other.
“Then I guess we just have to judge everyone who walks through the door for an hour.” Anzu said before doing the job. She pointed to each person and laughed about anything they did. The man in a jacket looked like a hobo. The high-schooler wore a bucket and a body builder had blinding red hair. The pair giggled at each person for the hour.
Joe was rounding people up and shooing them out with a broom. He steered clear of Ranmaru but no mercy was shown for Anzu. The girl almost fell over when the broom touched her heels. Soon the place was cleared out. Joe flipped the sign over to shut.
“Sara!” Joe called. The girl in question popped her head round the door. She looked ready to ask Joe what he was doing when she caught sight of Ranmaru. The boy waved unsure what else to do. Sara dropped what she was doing and walked into the shop.
“Hi.” Ranmaru said.
“Sit down. I need to admit something.” Sara stated. She pulled a chair out and sat down. Ranmaru slid into the chair next to it. They sat there waiting for the other to say something. After ten seconds, Sara continued,
“So, I was wondering if you want to meet up one day out of the shop and maybe we could…” Sara looked away, “hold hands and you know hug and feed the ducks?”
Ranmaru stammered, “You’re asking me on a date?”
“Yeah, a date.” Sara confirmed. She gathered the courage to look back. A smile couldn’t help being formed and she looked giddy from excitement.
“I’ll see you at the park on Sunday? 2pm? Can you do that?” Ranmaru asked.
Sara nodded, “Yeah, that sounds great!” She went back to the kitchen to help Joe clean up. Just as she was about to vanish from view she called, “See ya there sheep hair!”
“Ranmaru!” He corrected. Sara didn’t come back but he hoped he heard her. After that, he left Asunaro coffee shop.
Maybe it was Ranmaru’s fault he got a coffee addiction.