Work Text:
Caffeine
Leblanc is unusually calm, given the time of the day.
Makoto is, by all account, not too used to drinking coffee. But Ren's persistence for her to try out all of his experimental batches of various kind of coffee has turned her into somewhat of a connoisseur in beverage-tasting.
He gets noticeably better over time. The aroma has always been the thing he could improve the most, follows by the taste, and then the texture. But sometimes, he would actually botch a batch, and she would end up drinking something questionable, which would in turn spell into her throwing whatever's closest to her hand (and not breakable, mind) into his direction reflexively. He would always laugh it off, and make amends with a decent cup of hot chocolate afterwards.
Today, not long after Christmas night, where she had spent the whole day with Ren just walking around the city and, well, dating him (she still couldn't help but blushes at times when he holds her hand), he has invited her back to Leblanc, to taste more of what he called a fresh batch of never-before-seen coffee that would blow your mind away.
…Not ominous at all, Ren. Not at all.
She sits at the counter, her bag on a stool, her fingers idly tracing the lines on the woods while Ren goes over to the other side with his apron on, busying himself with preparing the cups and the ingredients and the beans. After he settles into a pace, he smiles up at her and says, "I'm sorry in advance if these ones will taste strange. I've been… experimenting."
"You said that all the time," Makoto muses, taking a cup of hot chocolate from him. "I'm not sure if I should be excited or scared about this. The last few times are pretty decent, but—"
"—You think I'm going to make weird shit and break the good streak," Ren finishes with small grin. When she gives him a look, he just shrugs, a mischievous glint clear in his eyes. "Can't say I blame you. I'd be skeptical about myself, too."
She sighs. "Unbelievable."
"Anyways," He hums, glancing her way with a softer smile. "I'm glad I got to spend Christmas with you, Makoto. Merry Christmas."
She could feel her face heating up a little at that, and nearly trips over her own tongue. She breathes in and out a few times before muttering under her breath. "…Merry Christmas as well."
She spends the next few minutes inhaling the scent of coffee before she's served with a single cup.
She just gives it a long, unflinching look. It smells… normal enough, but she isn't quite sure what to make of the taste when she takes a sip. It's not as bitter as pure black, but something feels a little… off. There's sweetness in it that doesn't mix quite well, and she wrinkles her nose a little.
Ren just sighs and scratches his head. "Well, I guess that honey I put in doesn't mix, huh."
"It doesn't," She mutters, putting the cup down. "Why do you keep experimenting, though? I always thought your black and your espressos are good enough."
"I'm not content," He hums, taking the cup away from her and starts mixing a new one. "Trying new, different things is always fun, you know. And I get better with every success and failure. Not to mention that it's a good excuse for me to be with you longer."
She is both elated and peeved at that, pouting a little. "You just don't care about me getting addicted to caffeine at all, do you?"
He smirks. "Do you really dislike it, though?"
She opens her mouth, but promptly closes it as she ponders on his words. When she thinks about it… she doesn't think that she'd want all these tasting sessions to not happen, so she just sighs in defeat and mutters under her breath. "…I guess not."
"Thought so," He says and places another cup before her. "I try to mix that a little better, and less honey. Tell me what you think."
She does, taking careful sip from the cup. This time, it takes her a while, but the sweetness is seated quite deep under the veils of caffeine. It gives the cup a nice little touch, so she voices it after halfway through. "This one is nice. The taste of sweetness is layered under the bitterness… I think."
He laughs. "I see. I'm glad you like that."
"Is this all?" She asks as she tips the last drop down her throat, and is greeted by a smirk from Ren as he shakes his head. She raises an eyebrow. "Ren?"
"Of course not. The night's still young, and I've got like, a dozen recipe ready to be applied."
She sighs exasperatedly. "Seriously?"
"Seriously," He says with a smirk.
Looks like she's not going to be getting any sleep tonight, considering the numbers of cups she's going to be forced to consume.
(Not that she dislikes being with him, but she still loves sleep, thank you.)
After literally half a hundred sips and a dozen cup's worth of experimental coffee later, she's left with her heart almost out of her chest, palpitating wildly.
"Oh my god, my heart's going to leap out of my mouth and I'm going to die," She moans, a hand over her chest, trying to calm herself down. He usually isn't this pushy with his experiments, but on a rare occasion, he would get absolutely carried away, and… this would be the usual results.
Looks like she's going to spend the rest of Christmas with her heart trying to beat its way out of her throat, and she really is going to haunt Ren forever for this.
"It can't be that bad, can it?" Ren laughs merrily as he cleans up the cups, the sound of running water the only thing that occupies the empty café.
"It is that bad, Ren!" She mutters with a frown. "Seriously, don't drown me in coffee, thank you!"
"You didn't complain, though."
"Only because it's you that I did not," She mumbles, and once the real meaning of that phrase register, she blushes and stammers. "I—I mean, not like that! I—"
He smiles softly. "Love you too, Makoto."
She could feel the heat creeping and crawling up her face, and she is, in no way, ready for that declaration of love, so fearless and so direct. So she just sighs and bemoans into her hands, happy and embarrassed, all in equal measures.
"By the way, there's one last thing I want you to taste," He says as he sets the last cup into the sink. When she throws him the dirtiest glare she could've mustered, he laughs and waves his hand. "I promise, it's not coffee this time."
She chews the inside of her cheek lightly and weighs her option. Of course, should she choose to decline, he would oblige by her wishes. But she thinks, even if it's another cup, she could handle it. It does give her another excuse to stay with him – not that she's planning to leave this place tonight, anyway, they have planned a sleepover, after all – so she just relents and nods.
"Alright. What is it?"
He gives her a warm, gentle smile as he takes off his apron and walks around the counter, something in his hand. He places it down on the counter and sits next to her, and she looks at it – it's just an empty plate. So she looks up, planning on questioning him—
—Only to be met with his lips on hers.
He tastes like coffee, that much is obvious, but also of autumn and gentle breeze. He acts much like how he always is – a little bit assertive, a little demanding, but still respectful of her boundaries. She smiles a little as she pulls him closer by the scruffs of his shirt, and he recuperates.
He is as fierce as he is inside the Metaverse, unforgiving, but with gentleness at the edge. And she lets herself melts right into his touch, sighing happily into the kiss.
After a moment and an eternity, he pulls away, licking his lips with a smirk. After a moment for her to catch her breath and to force the blush away, he says slowly. "How was it?"
She pouts a little, before smiling lightly. "…Great."
His smirk turns into a smile, one that is free and unchained by anything. His laugh is as merry as ever as he pats her head lightly. "I'm glad to hear that."
She catches his hand and places it on her cheek. "I'm still going to ask you to take responsibility for drowning me in caffeine, though… my heart's still racing."
She's pretty sure her frantic heartbeat and the incoming headache are not just because of all those cups of coffees, but he doesn't need to know that.
He smiles slightly. "I will, don't worry. What do you want to do?"
She smiles back as she murmurs, for him and him alone to hear. "I want to be with you."
She doesn't mind the caffeine in the least, as long as she gets to be here with him.
And she wouldn't have wanted it any other way.