Work Text:
When you breathe in, there’s nothing but the delicious smell of chocolate that greets you.
And when you open your eyes, there’s nothing but the sight of your boyfriend’s back facing you from the other side of the counters.
You’re in a good mood. It’s hard not to be in one when you, your boyfriend and the rest of your team get the chance to spend time together somewhere nice- and not for work. To be honest, you’re not sure whose cabin this is. It’s a big, beautiful thing nestled up in the Swiss Alps with all the amenities you could ever dream of. And some that may take some inspiration when coming to mind. But it’s big, and it’s beautiful and someone’s house so you’re able to take the time to do the things you rarely get the chance to sit down and enjoy.
Like watching your boyfriend do who-knows-what is in this nice, expensive kitchen you’re both in.
Though under normal circumstances, staring at Makoto as he shifts back and forth and back and forth as he fiddles with something just out of your view wouldn’t be the most interesting thing to spend five or so minutes looking at. In fact, it’s not an unfamiliar scenario and you’ve learned very quickly that taking the time to play a quick little mobile game on your phone would be a better usage of your time despite his promises that he’ll “only be a minute longer, I swear!”
But this time, it’s a far different story. This time, he told you that he had a surprise for you. Something that he had to pull a few strings and talk to a few people to pull off. And naturally, you couldn’t help but grow excited. The smile on his face was contagious as he pulled you into the kitchen and sat you down on the other side of the counters- his surprise supposedly hidden within a neatly little red gift bag topped with a golden and black trimmed ribbon. He told you to sit tight. That this surprise wouldn’t take too long. That there were just a few things he needed to prepare.
And because it’s impossible to say no to him when he looks at you with that adorable grin and warm, chocolate-brown eyes- you found yourself sitting quietly with your hands folded in front of you. Waiting for him to turn around and present to you his surprise.
It doesn’t take long for the smell of something sweet to start filling the air. Out of pure instinct, you draw in a deep breath, and your nose was filled with the smell of something rich and powerful . It was the perfect blend of scents, yet you couldn’t quite put a name to it. Out of everything you could tell it was something sweet. But was that everything to it? It smelt too different to be something you had before. You know for a fact you would have remembered a scent such as this one before. A scent that was not too much. A scent that was not too little.
But really? A scent- a feeling - that felt like it was just enough.
The breath you ended up releasing is a sigh of pure contentedness, your mouth already starting to water at the smell of whatever your boyfriend was cooking. Your sigh manages to get Makoto’s attention. It briefly breaks him away from his concentrated state of half-humming, half-singing under his breath in his native language to throw a look over his shoulder. His expression is amused as he throws up an eyebrow at your eagerness, and you can’t help but shrug and offer up a giddy smile before opting to turn your head and find something else to distract yourself as the time passes by ever so slowly.
Almost immediately, your eyes slide over to a large window. Outside, it’s relatively dark. The sun had set hours ago so it’s no surprise to you that there’s not much you can see outside. With the sun no longer shining down upon you, it’s next to impossible to make out the shape of the mountains. Not with all the trees standing up big and tall in the way. And while you can’t help but feel a smidge of disappointment now that the main attraction of the trip is no longer visible, there is still one thing outside that is managing to lift your spirits.
The snow.
Inside where it’s toasty and warm, you’re able to get a good look at the snow as it flutters down from the sky and piles and piles onto each other from a safe distance. It’s hardly a blizzard outside, even though a sudden gust of wind every couple of minutes or so pushes a big wall of snow from the roof town off into the forest just outside the cabin. Yet you wouldn’t dare call these precious flakes a little flurry based on the rate the snow dunes outside were climbing higher and the freshly shoveled pathway was almost completely covered in white. In your opinion, it was the perfect amount of snow. Not too much. Not too little.
But really? Just enough.
It’s a beautiful sight to see. A sight you rarely get to enjoy when most of your days are spent chasing after crooks and slamming the hammer of justice down upon the most exploitative of rich bastards. But right now, you don’t want to think about work. Right now, you don’t want to think about all the places you’ve been and all the people you took down.
Right now, you want to just be here. Enjoying yourself. Enjoying the sight. Enjoying Makoto. And-
“Here you go. I’m sorry for the wait.”
Enjoying his surprise for you.
You turn your head back to the man in front of you just in time to see him walk towards you and place two large mugs on the counter in front of you. Their design is simple, and it’s obvious that they’re a part of the dishware that the cabin was stocked with due to their matching looks. But your mind moves away from cute little patterned red mugs as you take a peek at what’s inside them while taking in another deep breath to finally capture that beautiful scent you had noticed before.
And then, it really hits you.
“Hot chocolate!” You couldn’t help but cheer, an impossibly large grin spreading across your cheeks. Makoto looks nods silently, his own smile on his face as his eyes fill up with pride at the instant recognition of his work. And you can’t blame him. “ Oh , Makoto these look gorgeous!”
He did a damn good job.
The two mugs in front of you are slightly different, but it’s easy to tell that the one with all the fixings (and is pushed a little bit closer to you) is yours. Looking over at Makoto’s mug, you’re able to see the warm, warm color of the tasty beverage sitting so prettily in the cup. Steam rises from the cup as your eyes take in the sight of the silky smooth looking drink. But it’s hard to focus on that cup when there’s another drink sitting right in front of you, begging you for attention as well.
It’s a little hard to tell that what’s in your cup is actually hot chocolate with just your eyes. But the sight of the pretty spiral of whipped cream sitting on top is much more than enough to convince you of the delicious treat sitting underneath. Not to mention, the fragrant shavings of little chocolate pieces and cinnamon sitting on that fluffy white cloud have your mouth watering all over again. And for good reason too.
“Now, this isn’t any ordinary hot chocolate. At least, it’s not like anything I know you had before.” Makoto begins, gently pushing the fancy done-up cup closer to your hands, urging you to pick it up. Once your first close around the handle, you follow his lead as he picks up his own cup and brings it to his lips. “I had to ask Laurant for a couple of recommendations and do a couple of practice runs by myself. But I think you’ll like what I came up with in the end.”
Your eyes flicker to his face and back down at your cup, feeling a little too hesitant to drink such a pretty little surprise your boyfriend spent so much time and effort making for you. Obviously, you had hot chocolate before. But it was always a simple cup of warmed-up chocolate milk at home. Or something quick and easy that you would pick up from a nearby cafe when you weren’t feeling a cup of coffee that morning. Now, knowing about all the hurdles he had to go through, it really did feel a little too important to drink so casually like this…
But Makoto was having none of that.
“Try it,” He urges you softly, before lifting his mug up in a cheer, and taking a big sip. It’s not long afterward that you decide to follow in his footsteps and dig in, no longer able to handle the excitement now that you’ve been given the okay.
Tilting your head back, you part your lips and take a big sip of what was in your cup. In an instant, there’s a sweet yet soft and foamy texture tickling your lips and dancing on your tongue as you get a mouthful of cinnamon and dark chocolate-coated whipped cream. But a second later, there’s something new floating onto your taste buds. Something richer. Something sweeter. Something far, far better than you could have ever expected.
He was absolutely spot on when he said that this cup of hot chocolate would be like no other. The chocolatey drink is smooth as it pours down your throat, filling your mouth with a taste like no other. It’s a masterful blend of a bunch of flavors really- Makoto’s whole concoction made sure of that much- but there’s something about what you’re drinking right now that is different . Something about what you’re drinking right now is magical . It’s all the sweetness in the world, yet that’s not all there is to it. It’s milky, yet with earthy undertones. Strong, yet a delicacy. Pure, yet flowing with all these new things. Making it so that it’s not too little. Making it so that’s not too much. But really, making it so that it's absolutely, positively…
“It’s perfect, Makoto!”
…More than enough.