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So many people like to pretend they are different, innovators. They think that asking for two shots of vanilla in their lattes, or a substitute of soy milk will make them more of themselves. Even if they ask for different amounts of sugar in their coffee, everyone’s still searching for a way to distract their tongues and souls without completely losing their minds.
It works like this: people come to coffee shops for warmth and reassurance on cold cloudy days, but when the sky gleams cerulean and the sun smiles, they go for sweetness more easily found in smoothies. And so Tobio wonders who could possibly need comforting on such a beautiful day as this.
He has been working in this coffee shop alongside his friend Hinata for long enough to recognize the general reasons for why people come here.
Those who are relatively well off, are often here to take pictures of their drinks and find satisfaction in the number of likes they get on their posts, or the older ones relish the bitter aftertaste that resonates so well with the business reports and newspapers they have to read.
There are those who come for the nice playlist Tsukishima sets every day that loops through the cheap speakers and there are students who come because the sunlight that shines through the crystal-clear windows makes them think that they can concentrate better in such a place.
But Tobio sees someone coming here for a reason he hasn’t seen before.
“Oh hey,” The next customer steps forward in the line and squints at the board above Tobio’s head, tapping his chin as he tries to decide. The afternoon sun is at just the right angle to glint off the other guy’s pretty brown eyes and form a little halo around his golden locks. Tobio wonders if he’d planned it somehow. There has to be a reason he’s coming in every day for three weeks now.
There are a couple more reasons why he’d want to just keep watching the guy, but Tobio notices the other customers in the line and resolves to at least maintain some kind of professionalism. Biting his lip, he straightens up and starts inputting the guy’s order into the register, “It’s going to be a medium skinny mocha, right?”
The man starts, eyes torn away from the board and leveling with Tobio’s with something like embarrassment in them, “U-uh yeah, please.” And then he coughs awkwardly, cheeks going a light pink under his lightly tanned skin.
Tobio hides his smile by turning to the side, letting his raven hair fall over his face and grabs a cup and the black marker, scribbling the order on it and then, “Name?”
“Shouldn’t you know it by now?”
Tobio looks up at the teasing tone and the other guy looks away hastily, fumbling in his back pocket for his wallet, babbling “Um, I mean – you said that you knew my coffee order because of um…so I figured that – oh god…”
He dropped his wallet.
Tobio could almost stir a laugh if the other man didn’t look so anxious. He tucks his bangs behind his ear and reads out loud as he simultaneously writes “Atsumu” on the cup.
As an afterthought, he scrawls a wonky little smiley face after it.
“It's just formalities,” he shrugs in a way that he hopes looks cool and modest. “But really, you should stop doing this, you know.”
“Doing what?” Atsumu’s face contorts into purely confusion, and it’s somewhat annoying that it’s still just as cute as when he’s embarrassed.
“Coming in and hoping for another free shot of coffee,” Tobio says distractedly as he writes the order down on a ticket and slides it over to Shouyou, “I mean, I know I gave one to you the first time you came in but – “
“I'm not here for that.” Atsumu’s tone sounded genuinely taken aback, and Tobio raised an eyebrow in response.
“Well, it’s not a big deal, actually. I mean, business is business, but I figured I should let you know in case – “
“Here,” Atsumu digs out ten dollars and puts it on the counter before shoving his leather wallet back in his pocket carelessly. “I promise I’m not here for any free thing. I just –”
“He’s here for you.” The gray-haired boy behind Atsumu sang-songs and Tobio didn’t really notice before that there was someone besides the blonde. Actually, now that Tobio takes a second glance, they have the same features. Are they twins?
The guy taps Atsumu on the shoulder, tutting, “Dude, just give him your number already.”
Tobio’s brain had finally caught up to the words of the gray-haired man; his jaw might have fallen open at that point. Seeing the situation over the counter, Shouyou quickly moves Tobio out of the way and takes the money, putting it in the till, “That’s five ninety change –”
“Keep it.” Atsumu looks straight at Tobio’s azure eyes and licks his lips nervously before ducking his head, walking straight over to the pick-up counter.
“Wait, did I hear that wrong or did he just say he was here for me?”
“Well duh silly, totally!” Shouyou writes down orders, takes names and changes money rapidly, gradually dwindling the line to nothing, “How have you not noticed? I mean, our coffee’s pretty good, but it was pretty obvious he was after more than just his mocha.”
Tobio shrugs helplessly, “I…just didn’t really expect it.” He’d have thought someone as beautiful and athletic as Atsumu was way out of his league.
Shouyou scoffs and claps him on the back, “Well, you’re lucky Osamu was there. I don’t know how long you two would have gone on and on otherwise.”
“Probably another five months.” The boy from earlier – Osamu, must be – calls out from a table nearby, winking. It is most likely that he and the blond are twins. Although Tobio has his suspicions, he is certain they’re definitely related.
Tobio opens his mouth to protest, but then Atsumu slides right in front of him, this time with his cup of coffee in his left hand. Shouyou discretely sneaks away to help Tsukishima with the rest of the coffee orders, leaving him and Tobio alone.
Before he could say anything to break the silence, Atsumu took a deep breath and started talking, almost rambling, “Okay, so I should maybe have said this from the beginning, but I think you’re gorgeous, and I was wondering if I could give you my number, and we could maybe go out sometime? On a date?”
Tobio nods once, and it’s his turn for his cheeks to turn bright pink with his ears joining in on the action too, “Uh, sure. That would be awesome.” And right after, a thought struck him, “Wait on one condition though.”
“What?”
“Please, no coffee shops.”