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Morning shifts have always been the most hectic in Wanmin Cafe.
This, of course, is expected as most people are eager to get their caffeine fix first thing in the morning for a variety of reasons. Whether it be work or studies, coffee has been the go-to for Liyue locals given its stimulant properties that make one feel motivated and able to face the harsh reality of the world.
As a graduating university student, Zhongli can very much relate. And so he takes his job as a coffee barista quite seriously and greets each seemingly weary soul with a polite smile.
Sure it meant extra work along with his theses and other requirements, but strangely, working in the cafe is his way of destressing.
He found himself initially dragged by his best friend, Childe, who was looking for work to gain some extra cash. His friend may be known as a trouble maker, but he is a good guy especially with not wanting to add more expenses for his parents to pay; the guy has three younger siblings who need more care than he does. After a month of scouting for part-time jobs, Wanmin Cafe’s owner welcomed them with open arms.
Little did he know that his spur of the moment decision would be quite value-adding in both a social and management aspect. Not to mention that it was a pretty beneficial experience for his two majors; through his job, he gets to see ‘history’ unfold, learn about customer service and satisfaction, as well as observe a business from a worker’s standpoint.
“Will it be a long black today, Yanfei?” Zhongli asks a regular customer of the store.
“Yep, and make sure it’s hot please.” The girl replies before stifling a yawn in the process. “I need to be at the top of my game for a presentation.” She then hands the exact amount due.
“I’m sure you’ll do great.”
Yanfei gives him her thanks, a small tip for the morning affirmation. He honestly didn’t need it but he does appreciate the little tokens of gratitude. Though knowing extensive knowledge of the history and customs of Liyue and Monstadt, he also had the headspace to memorize most customers’ names as well as their orders; this is especially applicable to regulars to the shop which Yanfei has been since he started working at the cafe.
Oftentimes, the morning shift is full of familiar faces. There were individuals like Madame Ping who would be one of the first customers of the day. When on counter duty, Madame Ping likes to ask Zhongli how he’s doing. The old woman loves to check on him and Childe, knowing they both still have academic duties in the midst of their weekend shifts. However, other customers are less chatty which is expected as not everyone is an early bird, and other factors such as introversion and the like.
Within less than an hour, they serve around fifty patrons with most being passerbys. Having had over a year of experience, Zhongli isn’t tired yet. Childe says it’s rather impressive given how he is often buried in readings and notetaking. Though he does engage in debates and discussions, academic exchanges apparently don’t count as socializing.
The bell chimes and they all take it as a sign that customers are going to increase yet again; when one goes, the rest follows. As usual, Zhongli greets the patron with a polite smile and ‘ good morning ,’ but finds himself speechless upon actually looking at the woman before him.
He can tell that she is a fellow university student as well; her ID lace hooked onto the belt loop of her dark slacks. Despite such a fact, she held quite a presence. Perhaps it was her get-up, white blouse, the black heels and the makeup. But Archons .
Zhongli has never seen a person so flawlessly put together in the morning.
The moment she gave him a smile, he felt butterflies in his stomach.
Oh no, he’s swooning.
Perhaps it didn’t help that he was looking into her alluring ruby gaze.
“One cappuccino please.” The woman requests as she hands him her card.
“Ah yes, of course,” he finds himself stammering as he processes her order. He swears he can sense Childe’s gaze at him, knowing something was up. “... May I ask for your name?”
“Ningguang.” She replies. “Oh, and it’s for here.”
Zhongli, who often finds it relatively easy to mingle with the customers, has failed for the very first time and it wasn’t due to the customer being unreasonable or rude. He failed due to being stunned by… elegance and beauty.
And Childe didn’t let him go for the mishap that happened earlier in the day.
“Someone’s smitten,” his best friend chimes while he sighs in slight exasperation.
“Stunned would be a better way of putting it.” He retorts.
“True, but man you should’ve seen the look on your face! It was like Cupid shot you there and then! I’ve never seen you look at someone like that.”
While his friend chuckles to himself, Zhongli finds himself wondering if they’ll be seeing her more frequently.
Fate decides to answer his subconscious question by taunting him.
The moment he isn’t by the cashier, she appears as a regular at the cafe.
She often comes to the cafe alone, but there would be moments in which she would be accompanied by a friend or two.
With each visit, she doesn’t fail to look less perfect. At some point, the staff were even debating whether or not she was a model. Regardless, she never failed to leave them all at awe with her presence.
She was like the dawn of a new day.
Breathtaking.
Refreshing.
All while preparing beverages, Zhongli would find himself occasionally stealing glances at the woman. On some occasions when she is picking up her drink, they would somehow find themselves locking eyes, ambers meeting rubies, before they both turn away and Ningguang mutters a soft ‘thank you.’ Such a cycle went on until the period of midterms, then finals struck.
Sir Mao was more than kind enough to cut their work hours; they were students before employees, and it was something the man would remind them constantly, especially given how the world can be cruel to non-completionists and so-called failures.
Zhongli opted for opening shifts over the weekend; his classes were from Monday to Thursday, giving him space to balance studies and rest with the three-day breather from lectures and a few seminars. Though he may not see her, he continues to work just as he always has, especially as he won’t be able to work as much within the coming weeks.
One topic defense is already nerve-wracking as is, but two are killer. But Zhongli is practically a scholar of many things so he finds himself able to breathe before the rabbit hole that is the academe swallows him whole and spits him out with no remorse. He has a few revisions to address, but it is something to work on over the coming break.
He gets back to the groove of things. The Wanmin staff are as kind as ever, congratulating him for getting through the last few strides of college. Despite finishing his degree programs within the next few months, he reassures them that he won’t be resigning right away, especially with new workers such as the Teyvat twins needing some guidance and possibly moral support to get through their remaining years of school.
However, for today, he won’t be in the cafe as a barista but simply as a patron who wants to take a break from the city noise and listen to the cafe's jazz piano songs.
Just when Zhongli thinks he can finally breathe, after a few months of wondering if she would return, Ningguang enters the cafe with the same regal air as if things hadn’t changed since her last visit. However, instead of her usual business attire, she sports a beige sweater dress and dark boots.
Childe is the one who takes her order, casually speaking to her and throwing in a pickup line for measure. Zhongli scoffs a bit; maybe he’s a little jealous of how easygoing his friend can be around anyone.
He tries not to think about it, eyes scanning through a book titled Hex & Hound that he had neglected for months due to work and studies. He had already read it once, but another read wouldn’t hurt especially when rereading leads to uncovering new things.
Just as he was about to get into the zone, his focus was broken by a ‘psst’ from Childe.
He approaches his friend, frowning while the other wears a sheepish grin on his face.
“There’s an urgent matter in the kitchen so Xiangling called Sucrose and Albedo to help her with it. So… Can you make Ningguang her latte?” Childe asks as a customer makes it to the counter and he accommodates the man before Zhongli could even accept or reject his favor.
Either way, the worker in him takes over so Zhongli decides to roll his sleeves and prepare her beverage. Usually, they would announce the person’s name for them to claim their drink but given it was his time off, he decided to bring her drink to her.
Maybe by overcoming the stun from the awe, he’ll be able to finally speak to her properly.
Approaching her, he serves the drink to her table and they both exchange smiles to the other.
Zhongli swears he’s more eloquent in more situations. He meant to say, ‘here’s your latte,’ but other words seemed to have escaped his lips.
“I like you a latte.”
It leaves them both stunned, and honestly Zhongli was waiting for a meteor to hit him right there and then. Maybe he should be having coffee to jumpstart his neurons because clearly, he didn’t seem to be at his best thinking and functioning capacity at the moment.
He expects a slap on the arm or face, but instead, he sees her giggling in response to his words.
All while her cheeks showed signs of redness.
Blushing.
“Sorry,” she says as she catches her breath. “I was caught rather off-guard. I was honestly expecting to get your number before receiving a confession.”
He shakes his head, “I should be the one apologizing for the sudden outburst. What I meant to say was—”
Zhongli stops mid-sentence. He isn't sure how to process things anymore, only knowing his senses are wide awake now. Much to his dismay, he’s speechless yet again around her but Ningguang seems to be more than amused by the situation.
Which honestly made him all the more attracted to her, but that wasn’t the point.
Eventually, the woman breaks the silence, smiling as she asks him, “Would you like to have a coffee with me?”
