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For a coffee shop in the middle of Tokyo you’d think it would be packed at all hours of the day. The hustle and bustle of Tokyo was well known- it was hard just finding a place to stand on the sidewalk most days. The city was one of the major metropolitan of the world, people were packed like rats in apartments that rose hundreds of feet high- the rent was ridiculous for that fact alone! How then, Hawks asked himself, could the café be completely empty? While fairly early in the morning, there wasn’t a single patron sitting in any of the vacant seats. Not even the usual caffeine addicted college kids or businessmen typing away at their laptops in the corners- it was completely and utterly empty. Hawks assumed the place was cursed.
Hawks wiped down the front counter absentmindedly, whistling some pop song stuck in his head after hearing it for the fiftieth time over the shop's speakers. The café had played the same infuriatingly catchy songs for the last three weeks of his miserable employment, so while the radio was usually kept at a low volume, as it wasn't uncommon for people to be doing actual work at some of the small café tables, it didn't prevent the earwigs from worming their way into his brain. He’d never be able to listen to Maroon 5 ever again after this job, or at least until a new disgustingly catchy song had the displeasure of making the top ten.
He’d been hoping for someone, anyone: either one of his coworkers or customers to break the monotony- to at least distract him long enough to stop hearing Adam Levine every time he dozed off, but he hadn’t been so lucky. It was busy earlier today, morning rush strong enough to break this place's curse, however now the shop was blissfully calm, not a single patron loitering about, which left Hawks ample time to slip slowly into painful boredom.
Hawks was a natural busybody, always moving from one thing to the next, never able to focus his attention on one thing for too long- his love life could tell you that much. But it was good in some cases. For one, he was an apt barista- his thoughts could flit between stations easily, and in the ridiculously busy rush hours he moved with such alacrity you almost couldn’t see his hands. It was for no other reason, that fresh from being hired, he was already looking at a promotion. He could tell his coworkers felt stiffed, but it’s not like it was his fault he was such a fast learner.
Of course, most of the time, his free spiritedness was a huge inconvenience. Cramming for finals was near torture, and any 3 hour lecture was complete and total agony. Hawks hated taking things slowly, always wanting to do more than wait around and listen to some lecture, or look at a bunch of flash cards for hours on end. Nevertheless, Hawks took it in stride, he was a good student- his scholarships depended on that, so studying, while it sometimes felt like herding cats, was something he’d learned to deal with. Babysitting the front counter of an abandoned café however, was not.
It was only a few more minutes of tidying the front until Hawks became bored of the cleaning he’d been doing as well- not that wiping down imaginary stains was invigorating to begin with.
Hawks slipped the rag back behind the counter. He was about to pull out his phone, tap away at some mindless app game, even though he really wasn’t supposed to, when he noticed someone coming through the front, followed by a gentle ringing from the bell above the door.
Hurray, blissful distraction.
Immediately Hawks was struck by the stranger’s appearance. He was big, definitely over six feet tall, and with a huge scar crawling up the right side of his face. He was nothing short of imposing. Hawks could easily see him starring in an action thriller, explosions and fire, the whole shebang, and yet the stuffy suit and tie he was wearing totally ruined the rugged movie star look. Hawks could admit he was intrigued, a small smile coming to his face at the serious expression with which the man regarded the café menu. Hawks figured the stranger was at least middle aged, probably in his mid-forties, yet he didn't find himself caring. He'd be lying if he said it deterred his attraction in the slightest.
Hawks knew absolutely nothing about this man, aside from what he’d gathered by his unique appearance, and yet he could feel himself drawn to him. His broad shoulders and fiery expression sparked something needy within Hawks. Everything about him was stark and rugged in contrast to his icy blue eyes, and while Hawks would reprimand himself, because really he’d only been working this job a couple weeks and he was already thinking about hitting on a customer, he decided that perhaps he’d cast his line for this one. Sure it was unprofessional and totally against protocol, but he was never really one to follow the rules anyways.
The man only took a few more seconds to gloss over the menu before he stepped up to the counter, causing Hawks to crane his neck slightly just to make eye contact. Hawks was easily a good head or two smaller than the stranger, and maybe he was a bit shorter than average, but this guy really was something else- and the way the stranger looked from below made Hawks’ heart to beat a bit harder.
Hawks put on his most customer friendly smile, perhaps a bit more flirtatious than the usual, and spoke with a chipper tone despite the man’s solemn and business-like demeanor.
“What can I get for ya?”
“Mmmm..”
The hopeful expectations Hawks had before he heard the man's voice were confirmed by the gruff bass that hummed out of the large man sending a shiver down Hawks’ spine.
“Caramel Latte.”
Hawks almost snickered at the order, definitely expecting the man to be a ‘black coffee’ kind of person.
“So that’s one caramel latte- what size? And is that iced or hot?”
“Large, Hot.”
You can say that again.
Hawks grabbed one of the paper cups sitting in the small carousel, simultaneously reaching into his apron to pull out a pen. Then, with as much cockiness as a celebrity about to sign an autograph, he tilted his head towards the man, giving him an even more flirtatious smile.
“So, who do I make this out to?”
The man, either purposefully or from obliviousness, didn’t react to Hawks’ coquettish demeanor.
“Todoroki.”
Hawks scribbled the name on the cup gleefully, but he still had to make sure he wasn't stepping on any toes if he also included a special string of numbers. Of course if he was about to hit on a married man, then there’d be a good chance Todoroki might become indignant by the question, or really even if he wasn't married. Hawks did seem to have a curse of crushing on straight guys...
Either way, Hawks had never been one to shy away from anything, much less some harmless flirting. Here’s hoping he wouldn't be smacked for his next comment, Todoroki’s hands looked quite capable of knocking him unconscious without much effort on the other man’s part.
“And is there a ‘Mrs. Todoroki’, hot stuff?”
Todoroki paused, his expression just as unreadable as before. Until one of his eyebrows quirked up in obvious confusion, and despite himself Hawks couldn't help thinking it made him look cute.
Todoroki took a moment to respond, and in that moment Hawks could feel his palms get clammy in a wave of nervousness. Maybe this was a bad idea-
“No, not anymore. Why? Is there a promotion?”
Hawks almost couldn't believe his ears, he paused for a moment as if he was still deciphering what language Todoroki was speaking, but after a few seconds he came back to his senses, looking up at Todoroki in complete disbelief.
This guy was CUTE! Hawks burst out laughing to the man’s surprise, unable to fathom that somebody was actually this dense. His laughter only lasted a few seconds, and turned into quiet giggling as he slipped his pen back in his apron, a ridiculously wide smile on his face.
Todoroki was looking at him crankily, like a kid that got left out of a joke too raunchy for explanation. Hawks waved a hand dismissively in hopes of salvaging any hope he had because this guy was adorable , well, in a grumpy teddy bear kind of way.
“It’s nothing, don't worry about it, oh and I forgot to ask, is that the end of your order?”
Todoroki seemed to relax again, the pout replaced a slight scowl, and he nodded, albeit a bit more stiff than before.
“Okay that’ll be $4.87, cash or credit?”
Todoroki pulled out his wallet, slipping his card into the machine and oh, was that a platinum credit card? Hawks had only ever seen those in movies, his own meager upbringing worlds away from the frivolous life of platinum credit cards . Hawks’ nearly empty bank account seemed to give a cry of jealousy at the sight.
Hawks was still ogling the piece of plastic by the time it was slipped back into Todoroki’s wallet. There was a brief moment of silence as they looked at each other before Hawks realized he had a drink to make.
“I’ll be right there with your order.”
Todoroki nodded almost imperceptibly, and Hawks scuttled over to the coffee press, still close enough to talk comfortably with any customers, particularly the handsome redhead that stood brooding on the other side of the counter.
While Hawks would usually have been done with the simple drink in under a minute, he found himself taking much longer than usual, too preoccupied by the way Todoroki glared into his phone before depositing it back in his pocket.
Obviously he would need a bit of coaxing, and really there wasn’t much time before he'd be out the door, meanwhile Hawks still hadn't come across nearly as cute or funny as he’d hoped.
Todoroki was still standing adjacent to his station, so with as much bravado as he could summon, Hawks was going to woo this bastard.
“You come here often?” It was cliché, sure, but if this guy was as oblivious as he was acting it might be best to go a more conventional route. Hopefully he wasn't making a complete ass of himself.
Todoroki fumbled, most likely unused to his baristas making small talk, or at least that’s what Hawks gathered from the perplexed look he was being given. Despite his gruff exterior he seemed to acquiesce to the chatter, though he looked like he’d much rather be standing in silence.
“Yes, although I’ve never seen you here...” Hawks nodded while a buzzing came from the coffee grinder.
“That’s because I just started.” Hawks explained.
Todoroki nodded, though it was obvious he didn't have any actual interest in when Hawks started working at this particular café, yet the fact he was even humoring Hawks was enough for him to continue prodding.
“You work around here?”
Todoroki finally turned his full attention towards him, much to Hawks excitement. He loved having eyes on him, especially the attractive blue ones he was looking into right now.
“Yes.”
So terse! Ah, so he was gonna play hard to get, Hawks could work with that.
“Hey, when’s your birthday?”
To that he was met with one of the blankest stares he'd ever seen, but he kept his expression calm, guys liked suave. Hawks was almost suave!
“August 8th.”
Hawks did a bit of mental calculation before orchestrating the rest of his pickup attempt.
“So you're Leo, huh? You seem like it, like a big strong lion ready to rip someone’s throat out- I’m a Capricorn. They say that Leos and Capricorns have a lot in common, y'know. They also say Leos are passionate- it is a fire sign after all, so whadda you think Todoroki, would you say you’re passionate ?”
Enji seemed to fluster easily if the way he immediately shrunk into himself said anything.
“I-I don’t know, I never believed in that stuff anyways…”Todoroki’s eyes seemed to be focusing on anything but Hawks at this point, and his entire face was red. When this guy blushed he blushed!
Hawks snickered at Todoroki’s answer, of course he didn’t believe in it, only wackjobs actually thought that balls of gas millions of light years away controlled how people acted, however, it made for great flirting in Hawks’ opinion.
Hawks placed the sleeve around the drink, having finished it during his star signs spiel. He held it out for Todoroki to grab, and as their hands brushed lightly Hawks swore he could feel fire crawling up his arm.
Clearing his throat Hawks tried to maintain his composure, while it seemed Todoroki was already rearing to get a move on.
“Okay, well have a great day!” And please call me , thought Hawks optimistically.
“You too,” Hawks could see Todoroki’s eyes travel to his nametag, and one of his eyebrows raised curiously, “...Hawks?”
Hawks waved enthusiastically despite Todoroki’s obvious befuddlement at his chosen name. He watched as the man left through the front, and while he tried not to get his hopes up, a small part of him was already waiting for the man to text him, even if he knew deep down his chances were incredibly, incredibly low.
At least that song wasn’t stuck in his head anymore, now replaced by a much more pleasant baritone.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Enji scribbled away at the form sitting on his desk, his pen moving quickly across the page. It wasn’t long since he’d started working on this stack of paperwork but he could already feel himself slipping into a comfortable rhythm, his mind easily completing the monotonous busywork. Of course it was then that his secretary decided to burst into his office, distracting him from his previous train of thought.
Enji didn't look up, still trying to work through the intrusion, but it wasn’t uncommon for him to be short with his employees, especially when they showed up to his office unannounced, so Mizushima started with what he wanted to discuss regardless of receiving Enji’s attention.
“Boss, Naboo tech was hoping to get a meeting with you, preferably Friday. I penciled you in for around 12, does that seem doable?”
Enji mulled it over and sure enough that fit perfectly into his packed schedule, but of course it would- Mizushima was the one in charge of the entire thing anyways. To be honest it was inane that the man even asked him, although Enji supposed he could have scheduled some family time there, however that was about as laughable as anything else Enji could think of. As if his family wanted to spend any time with him at all.
He gave an affirming grunt, still too busy focusing on filling out his financial reports to do much else. That was enough though, as Mizushima moved to leave the office, Enji’s schedule being his only apparent order of business.
Enji’s pen continued to scratch into the paper but it wasn't until a few seconds later Enji was brought out of his thoughts once again by Mizushima’s voice, the man still very much in his office.
“Eyy, nice going boss.”
Enji looked up from his work, peering at Mizushima inquisitively. The only answer he got was the man gesturing vaguely at the coffee sitting on Enji’s desk. For a second Enji figured he’d meant something by his sugary order, of course it looked like any old cup of coffee at a glance, although looking at it now there was quite a bit of writing on the side. In fact, that was definitely more than just his name, it almost looked like-
“Oh my God.”
Enji’s face flushed immediately, his cheeks no doubt turning a dark red color, he’d always been told he was an obvious blusher.
The embarrassment was partly because he hadn't even realized the phone number was there, and the rest of it was because that boy had been hitting on him?! That explained the odd looks and the weird questions, although why anyone in their right mind would flirt with him was beyond reasoning.
Despite Enji’s silence Mizushima didn't seem to pick up on his dread, so, like the gossip he was, he started asking questions that only made Enji’s face feel even hotter than it was before.
“Is she any cute?”
Enji didn't blame Mizushima for assuming it was a girl, he would never have even imagined anyone flirting with him, let alone some college pretty boy.
To answer his employees question he simply shook his head because No , that boy was definitely not cute!! He was insane! What adolescent in their right mind flirted with washed up middle-aged men?!
Mizushima looked at his boss, clearly aware of the blush that was now reaching his ears and staining his cheeks even darker red. Enji damned his own obviousness.
“Haha, okay then,” and if the sarcastic tone didn’t give away his skepticism, the shit eating grin definitely did. “But if you need to schedule a little get together let me know, boss.”
Enji desperately wanted to throw Mizushima out of his office, the door or window- whichever was fastest, so he did just that. He rose from his chair, ushering the man away, praying to god Mizushima didn’t go blabbing about this to his coworkers. He didn't seem much of a chatty Cathy, but his employees had to think their boss was an imbecile if they thought he didn’t hear the kinds of gossip they spread about him. Hopefully an embarrassing phone number would be forgotten easily along with the other frankly ridiculous rumors he’s heard over the years.
Enji sat back down at his desk, trying to will away any and all thoughts that pertained to the perky blond he’d met earlier that day. Hawks, Enji’s brain supplied belatedly, was his name, as ridiculous as it was.
Enji picked up the cup glancing at the cutesy script that stretched around the base of it. There was even a damned heart scribbled beneath his name!
There’s no way in hell this was genuine- but if it was- well, he wouldn’t even consider it.
Enji threw the cup into the trash, he had paperwork to do and he couldn’t focus with that nonsense sitting on the table. He had paperwork to do.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Hawks picked up another one of the styrofoam cups, looking at it briefly before stacking it with its brothers to create a mini fort. He stared at the structure for a second or two before demolishing the entire thing, sadly replacing the cups onto the rack they came from.
Pushing out a sigh he pulled out his phone, the same empty notifications screen, not that he expected anything at this point. An entire day had gone by and he hadn’t received a single message from that cute guy. Outright rejection would’ve stung less at this point, it had to be better than whatever this limbo was.
Dejected, he slipped his phone back into the pocket of his apron, taking a seat on one of the stools that sat in the back of the café.
There wasn't much to do, and he could almost feel himself slipping into a nap before a sharp slap to the back of his head had him jumping up and onto his feet again.
Rubbing the back of his head he could hear laughing from behind him, which definitely didn't help his already sullen mood. He spun around quickly, unsurprised by the person behind him.
Of course it was Rumi, she was the only person he knew who was ballsy enough to go slapping people for no good reason.
“What was that for?” He tried to suppress the scowl that was forming as she only seemed to laugh harder.
While he had to look down to make eye contact, an already impressive feat considering he wasn't exactly the tallest, she more than made up for it with her boisterous personality. Since starting this job she’d become a sort of mentor to him, although slapping him definitely didn't make him want to call her senpai any time soon.
After having her fun she straightened up, a feigned seriousness as she looked at Hawks.
“No reason, but seriously dude, you gotta stop sulking!” She punched his arm lightly, or at least she probably meant to.
Hawks groaned, rubbing his arm, they’d already had this conversation but no matter what he said Rumi didn't seem to hear him, of everyone he knew she was the most stubborn of them all. Nevertheless, he tried once more in vain to rebuff the accusation.
“I’m not sulking, I'm just tired, finals are coming up and stuff!”
Rumi rolled her eyes, putting her hands on her hips in a way that definitely screamed ‘you’re an idiot Hawks.’
“Okay, well I don’t want you falling asleep then, how about you go mop up the front!”
The grin she gave him was devilish, and Hawks almost regretted ever thinking of her as his mentor, she was evil. But regardless of his feelings she was technically his boss, so with as little moping as he could muster, he rolled the bucket and mop out to the front, but not before sticking his tongue out to her, which she seemed to think was very funny.
The front was a bit busy, as it usually was around this time, so he picked the least occupied corner and got to work.
Hawks wasted no time in soaping up his mop, as senseless as the whole thing was. He’d be doing this for at least ten minutes, so casually he slipped an earbud into his ear, putting on one of his playlists. If he was going to be doing manual labor he’d do it listening to his trashy music, thank you very much!
Moving some tables and chairs he cleared a little area before dipping the mop into the bright yellow plastic bucket.
He scrubbed the floor mindlessly, usually they’d leave this until after hours, save for if someone spilled coffee everywhere, but at least this might get his mind off of, well, everything . And as the newbie he’d probably end up doing it later anyway.
He’d only been cleaning for a couple of minutes but he could already feel himself slipping into his own little world. He swayed to his music, occasionally tapping his feet or twirling the mop handle childishly. He was in public, and sure it was a little weird, but Hawks was not easily embarrassed, he couldn’t care less what some random person thought of him.
He was actually starting to enjoy himself until he tripped, slamming into the wall behind him.
“Oof-”
He tried to use the wall to catch himself but quickly found his hand grasping at nothing. It wasn’t until a strong pair of arms practically picked him up, setting him rightly on his feet before he realized that he’d run into a person. A very big person.
“Sorry, sorry!” Hawks swivelled on his feet yanking the ear buds out of his ears, his face hot with shame. But that feeling was completely dwarfed by the shock and humiliation when he saw just who he’d fallen into the arms of.
Looming over him was Todoroki, or at least that’s what the jumbled up memories his brain was providing told him. He almost seemed bigger than last time, Hawks’ face eye level with the sturdy chest he’d been nestled into five seconds earlier. Hawks felt his face turning an even deeper scarlet, but this was definitely not from humiliation.
“I-it’s you!” Hawks yelped.
Todoroki gave a conservative nod of his head, and Hawks never wanted to crawl into a hole more than he did right then. Not even the thought that Todoroki actually remembered his face was helping quell his nerves.
Hawks could feel his face burning, whether it was because Todoroki’s chest was just very warm, or Hawks’ blush was trying to tarnish his reputation even more he couldn’t tell.
“S-sorry I bumped into you, my ass must have a mind of its own hahaha!”
Hawks’ laughter was painful to his own ears. He reached down to pick up the mop he’d dropped. He sorely wished the earth would open up and swallow him, curse his naturally flirtatious tongue! Every time he opened his mouth he was digging an even deeper pit of embarrassment. He could practically feel the awkwardness pressing down on him and folding him up like a used tissue. That had to be one of the worst thing to ever come out of his mouth, second only to the time he wore those tight jeans and ripped the ass seam on that date and he made that joke about easy access-
Okay remembering that definitely wasn’t helping.
Todoroki still seemed to be in shock from the outburst, perhaps he was a bit paler than before. Dear God, obviously Todoroki wasn’t interested! Why wouldn’t he have called him by now? Unless he wanted to be reported for sexual harassment he had to stop because at this point it was just sad.
Hawks was about to backtrack, probably apologize yet another time, but he was swiftly cut off by the much larger man.
“Well, be careful. Someone might take advantage of your… affectionate nature.” Enji said, and it was clear he was feeling the awkwardness too.
However, that wasn’t the worst he could’ve garnered from his own idiocy. In fact it bordered on sweet, actually, wait... was that a compliment?
Hawks opened his mouth, then closed it again. It wasn’t often he found himself speechless, it was just as Mr. Todoroki had said, he was a charmer by nature, so to have the first real reciprocation from the older man make him completely dumbstruck was a shock. Hawks was going to say something but by the time he’d found his voice again Todoroki had moved on, finishing his walk to the counter that had been interrupted by Hawks’ clumsiness.
Hawks watched as Todoroki carried out his order, jealous of Rumi that he wasn’t doing it himself. He would’ve continued watching hadn’t said woman motioned from across the room for Hawks to get back to mopping the floors. He did so begrudgingly, sticking the mop back into the gray soapy water in the rolling bucket.
Hawks mopped the floor miserably, it seemed unfair to him that the rare time his almost-crush comes in he’s relegated to cleaning duty. Hawks glanced back at the man waiting by the coffee pick up feeling bitter, well, it’s not like anything was going to happen there anyway.
Hawks was still mopping the floor when Todoroki surprised him for the second time, walking over to Hawks after receiving his drink.
“Hawks.”
Hawks perked up. Todoroki had even remembered his name ! That was so… endearing! Hawks supposed Todoroki could have read it from his name tag too- Hawks would believe he remembered it if only so he felt a bit better about his earlier humiliation.
Oh! he was supposed to respond to that though, wasn’t he.
“Hello! Do you need any help?” Hawks smiled as he spoke. Service with a smile- And bad jokes apparently.
Enji looked to the side before pausing, his lips in a severe pout, which at this point Hawks believed was how the man’s face naturally fell- which in turn gave no clues as to how the man was actually feeling. However it was only a few moments before he continued.
“No, I wanted to speak with you for a moment, is that alright?”
Hawks nearly had a heart attack at that. This could be very bad, or very good. On the one hand Todoroki didn’t seem like a bad guy, and he only seemed mildly annoyed by Hawks flirting, probably not enough to say anything particularly nasty, or wring his neck over it... But on the other hand- well, Hawks wouldn’t spend time imagining anything romantic, lest he get his hopes up.
“Um, sure, yeah, I can take a quick break I guess- here,” Hawks dropped the mop into the bucket, wiping his hands on his apron before motioning for Todoroki to follow him away from the front of the store, “just- y’know, give us some privacy?”
Todoroki didn’t object, silently following Hawks as he led him to the small back room he was using to mope- err, think earlier. Hawks didn’t miss the playful faces Rumi was making as they walked by. It might have been funny if he wasn’t so nervous, or if he wasn’t positive she was going to be lording this over him for the foreseeable future.
Once he and Enji were back there Hawks closed the door, not wanting Rumi to get any more free black mail material than she already had.
Eventually, Hawks cleared his throat, stuffing his hands in his pockets to keep them from fidgeting, opting to lean against one of the stacks of boxes.
“S-so, what did you want to talk about?”
With both of them in such an enclosed space Todoroki was more imposing than ever, his frame taking up a majority of the room. It was half hot and half completely terrifying. The serious expression on the man’s face wasn’t helping subside that terrified feeling either. However, it wasn’t long before Todoroki broke the silence, finally freeing Hawks from the spiral of anxious thoughts that were swarming his brain.
“You shouldn’t give your number away to any guy who walks in here. I’ll probably be seeing you around and I didn’t want you to think I was ignoring it, or you. You don’t know me at all, or any of your customers probably- so it’s not wise to leap into something like that...”
At first Hawks was confused- still processing the condemnation and wondering if he’d even heard Todoroki correctly, but soon that confusion turned into indignation. Who was this guy to police his flirting habits!? Even if he was just looking out for him- which Hawks had been doing just fine on his own for his whole life- it was insulting coming from a practical stranger.
“I’ll have you know you’re the only guy I’ve given my number to- and really it’s my business who I decide to hand it out to!” Crossing his arms, Hawks dared Todoroki to object, letting out an offended huff for good measure.
Todoroki seemed to falter for a moment- he looked both surprised and bashful at being called out for his overprotectiveness of a person he barely knew. Hawks had known Todoroki was married before- but now he’d bet every last penny that the man had kids too.
After a moment Todoroki spoke up again, his voice less commanding, and much more confused and flustered than he seemed even a second ago.
“I just thought- Not to assume, I… I apologize.”, he seemed to think briefly before continuing, “Why me, then?”
Todoroki seemed genuinely concerned, as if Hawks would have to be insane to choose him out of a crowd- or consider him datable in the first place. Now it was Hawks’ turn to be embarrassed- why did he single Todoroki out? It’s not as if the man was some sort of debonair sweet talker, if anything the man was offstandish, some might even go as far to say rude. Really he only had one good reason- and to be fair it was barely a reason at all.
“You just caught my eye? You looked so tough when you came in, but then- when I started talking to you, you were so dense- but in a cute way! And then, I don’t know,” One of Hawks’ hands came to rub at the back of his neck as he finished lamely, “you were different, and something about you just made me want to try. That probably seems weird, sorry.”
Hawks let out a laugh in an attempt to break the awkward air that settled as he gave his weak explanation.
“Don’t be sorry. I’m sorry for being so skeptical of you, you don’t deserve that. I- I just couldn’t imagine that you were serious, or that- someone like you would be interested in me like that, but...” Hawks nodded along waiting for Todoroki to finish, “But… I can’t. I mean, I don’t even know your last name!” Enji finished, his eyes searching Hawks’ for understanding.
“Okay well, first of all it’s Takami- but that’s what my number was for- y’know, smalltalk! I’m not askin’ for you to marry me, big guy! C’mon, gimme one date, Hell, one conversation not in a storage room before you decide we don’t work! That is- if my last name was the only immediate problem?”
Todoroki paused, Hawks could tell his many objections were just waiting to be voiced, but ultimately he pulled his phone from his jacket, handing it over to Hawks.
“I didn’t keep your number- I hope you don’t mind putting it in for me?”
Hawks lit up like a christmas tree at that, excitedly punching his digits into Todoroki’s phone before handing it back.
“Y’know, I expect a response this time, okay?” Hawks joked.
Todoroki rolled his eyes, but there was a smile on his lips. He tapped a few timed on his phone before Hawks’ phone pinged from his apron.
“How’s that?” Todoroki asked, and Hawks pulled out his phone, a single text in his notifications:
(xxx-xxx-xxxx) : Coffee? My treat.
Hawks looked at Todoroki again, a wide smile on his face. He didn’t know this man very well yet, but he was already loving this side of him.
“You must love this place, huh? Cuz’ that’s quite a big caffeine addiction you’ve got.” Hawks said.
Todoroki shook his head, leaning in close, before whispering, “I suppose, It's mostly because I think the barista is cute.”
Oh he did not.
Hawks was beyond flustered, coughing to cover up the embarrassing choking sound that came out of his throat. This guy was too much.
“Give me a minute, big guy.” Hawks said, as he opened the door to the backroom and peaked his head out.
He could see Rumi was still by the front, so he whispered to get her attention.
“Psst, Rumi,” and at that she swiveled her head, looking over at him curiously, “Can I get going early?” He finished. Closing time wasn't too far off, right?
Rumi’s curious expression shifted to one much more full of understanding, I mean, he knew what it looked like, the fact that his face was red and he’d dragged some guy to the backroom, but hopefully she wouldn’t hold this over him for too long? With one more glance she looked around the shop. It had cleared out heavily since he’d been crammed in the back-it was a practical ghost town now, only two people in the entire place, and with a final sigh she nodded her head.
“You’re lucky it’s slow.” She said, making shoo-ing gestures with her hands.
Hawks wouldn't consider himself a lucky person- but for the first time since working there, he couldn’t be happier the place was shunned by the majority of Tokyo’s coffee drinkers. Maybe they should start a new promotion so this place wasn’t so abandoned- that is of course, after his date.