Work Text:
Ajax was down. Bad . While he couldn’t exactly say he had a type, this guy had unknowingly hit every single beat in less than one sentence and it killed him. To the point where he was frustratedly sitting in his bed glaring at the ceiling desperately trying to replay the interaction in his head.
It was ridiculous enough that any coffee shop was open past four in the evening, let alone seven at night, but any place near a University would no doubt need it, and Angel’s Share was one of them. So that’s where Ajax was at seven PM, tapping on his switch when in reality he should be crunching for an exam he had not studied for whatsoever in fourteen hours time. But it was fine, and those details weren’t relevant (even though that exam was creeping closer and closer to him with every passing moment).
“I’ll get a double shot mocha frappe please.”
“And your name on that?” A disinterested voice replied.
“Uh… Childe with an E.” He didn’t look up. (Something he was totally kicking himself over later.)
“Sure. That’ll be right with you.” In his reimagining of the event, Ajax pictures something resembling a half smile on the barista’s face at that.
About five minutes later, that same voice called out.
“Order for Childe?”
Picking up his drink, Ajax felt himself blank for a half second. In handwriting that was far too nice for any customer service employee, the words ‘Child with an E’ were written clear as day. His quickly heating face was made so much worse when he looked up and saw what was probably the most beautiful man he’d ever laid eyes on, who was giving him a little amused smile from over the counter. Long, deep red hair fell in front of a pair of even prettier eyes that were currently framed by raised brows. With his messy hair and ancient tank top, Ajax felt entirely underdressed compared to the clean elegance the other had managed to achieve with the bare minimum.
Sure, Ajax knew he was probably gay in some regard, but god, this was like getting shot with a second awakening, because this guy was something else. Desperately, he combed over for an earring or pin or something that could give him an idea- Aha! Nestled just above a trans pride pin and some sweet Sanrio character ( cute! ) sat a little rainbow ribbon. Which… Now Ajax thought about it, did not help in his little quest. A rainbow tie could mean anything under the sun, so he scrapped that idea.
That was definitely flirting though, right?
He stressed his troubles to his now very peeved roommate, who was hearing none of it.
“Childe, you saw him for how many seconds?” Scaramouche bit out after a punctuated sigh. This exchange had been longer than the usual quick remarks or jabs and and he was clearly not into it, distracted from what Ajax refused to believe was a ‘history thesis’.
“I can just tell, he’s the one.”
“If you’re being this much of an idiot over him, sure, fine. Do you know his name?”
“I— Ah. Look, I don’t, but he definitely had a name badge on.”
“Riiight, and you didn’t read it because…?”
“I was a little distracted. Hey! Don’t give me that look.” Ajax sat up indignantly at the deathly stare that his roommate had dished out. Scaramouche turned back to the study he’d been doing before.
“Just go there at the same time until you see him again and ask him out. I seriously can’t see the problem here.” After saying this, he pulled a pair of headphones over his ears, signifying that the conversation was over and once more leaving Ajax to his agonising alone. Seriously, what kind of advice was that?!
A day later after completely winging his exam on virtually no sleep, Ajax mustered up the courage to try his luck again. He needed coffee, so the end justified the means. If there was one thing the ginger had going for him, it was that he didn’t overthink things. Yesterday night aside, he never stumbled over his words or felt any fear when faced with confrontation, so hopefully, that would come in handy now.
His confident strides were all for naught when that burning stare met his the second he walked through the door. Slinking the rest of the way, he approached the counter. There wasn’t his switch to protect him now, furiously fiddling with the collection of rings on his fingers.
“What may I get for you today?” The infuriatingly handsome barista raised a quizzical brow. Finally, Ajax got a good look at the name tag, the name Diluc printed there. His stare didn’t leave him the entire time.
“Hey.” If this was some sort of challenge, Ajax wouldn’t back down and fold.
“… Hi. What do you want?”
“Oh. Er…” He hadn’t thought that far ahead yet. Everything was totally blanking now he’d gotten here. So much for doing first and thinking later.
“Eheh… Diluc, the machine isn’t- Oh, I’m so sorry!” A girl with long brown hair from behind the counter tapped the redhead on the shoulder, looking terribly apologetic.
“It’s fine, Amber. What happened? Please excuse me for a moment, I’ll be right back.”
That was fine by Ajax, who now had at least another ten seconds to screw his head on and conjure his usual order from some recess of his not at all gay thought addled brain.
Ten seconds later, he’d gotten no further in his quest, instead preoccupying himself with fidgeting and the rather pleasant view of his now favorite Starbucks employee fixing the coffee machine.
“That should be good to go” The man- Diluc, as Ajax now knew him by- turned back around. “My apologies. What may I get you?”
Ajax didn’t even know what item he eventually decided upon, reading some random drink off the menu and paying without considering the very real possibility that it would be completely undrinkable.
“And your name on that?” Diluc asked. It had only been a day and he’d already been forgotten? Couldn’t be helped, but it still hurt, if only a little bit.
“Tartaglia. Thanks” May as well take advantage of it. He got a pensive frown in return, but no further questions as the next customer was served. Diluc didn’t need to know that was his gamertag or that he was so big of a loser to have one he’d put time and effort into deciding upon it.
The next few minutes were agonizing, Ajax resorting to flicking through random videos on his phone and cracking his knuckles to quell at least some of the seemingly endless restless energy that plagued him. He watched Diluc and the way he went through the same few motions with each customer, calling out their name and blandly moving onto the next without batting an eye. That smile that Ajax had been given the day before hadn’t appeared again in the time he was watching, which was both incredibly disappointing and just a bit satisfying. It was validating enough that Ajax felt a little warmth in his chest at the thought that it was something of a rare occurrence.
By this point, he’d zoned out almost entirely, so the first and second time his ‘name’ was called it was in one ear and out the other. The third, slightly louder time-
“For Tartaglia?”
Ajax startled at that, picking up the drink. He felt his heart simultaneously soar and drop upon seeing what was written on the cup. In that perfectly neat handwriting was once more; ‘ Child with an E. ’
And there was that smug smile too. “Enjoy your drink.” Diluc was clearly holding back a chuckle as he said it, turning away to where half his face was hidden behind the counter.
“Uh. You too.” Ajax said dumbly, mentally kicking himself directly afterward as heat shamelessly rose to color his cheeks. “Sorry, fuck. I meant… thanks.”
At this he got a laugh and a head shake. “Alright then.” Diluc’s tone was undeniably fond, that mellowed voice utterly hypnotic and replaying again and again as Ajax went on autopilot the whole walk back to his little flat.
The reality of it came back to him when he started drinking whatever he’d ordered. While he’d drink or eat anything without complaint, this was certainly something else, enough of a pallet cleanser to wake up to what had just occurred.
“Oh man…” he said out loud as he walked in through the door. Scaramouche didn’t even look up from his computer. He tried a little harder to get his attention, sighing loudly as he inched closer to his roommate’s desk from the door.
“What.” The short man pulled his headphones off one ear, already annoyed.
“I totally fumbled.”
“Don’t care.”
“Come on, I thought you loved seeing me suffer.”
“Yeah, when you lose in games and shit. Not this.” He looked like he was about to throw up, lip curling over his teeth. “This is just weird .”
“Please? Scara, I told him ‘You too’ when he told me to enjoy my drink.”
A sharp cackle sounded “Hah! That’s pathetic. Wouldn’t have happened if you took my advice.”
“From you? It’s not like you’d know more than I do.” Ajax retorted.
“Coaches don’t play the game, dumbass. Now leave me alone.” His roommate swiveled back on his chair to continue typing as those cat headphones were once more over both ears.
The ginger wasn’t exactly a fan of the coffee from Angel’s Share, but he found himself crawling back only a few days after his blunder to once more order whatever menu item he read first. While this time Diluc wasn’t on the front register (something he was gutted over), the deep red locks were easily spotted next to a girl no older than fourteen at one of the coffee machines. The friendly brunette at the cash register looked more than happy to serve him.
“Hiya! What would you like today?”
Now he actually had some breathing space (not much, since even from the back, Diluc was a sight to behold) Ajax actually manage to get out a tangible order. Only when he went to pay did he notice the not-so-subtle side-eye the man was giving from the coffee machines. Of course, once the ginger noticed, Diluc whipped his head back around, so quickly that if Ajax convinced himself hard enough it didn’t happen at all.
“So, what name do ya want on that?” The girl asked, glancing quickly back to her red headed coworker then to Ajax, who by now felt thoroughly confused.
“Uh. Tartaglia.”
“Okay! Great! That’ll be right with you… hehe…”
It was boring and he was considering it not even worth his while because minus the split-second meeting of their eyes, nothing even vaguely interesting had happened. The sentiment was mirrored when his name was called out in a voice that was decidedly not the honeyed tones he’d come to yearn for.
Ajax froze as he picked up the cup. While the handwriting was different, the name ‘Childe’ was sitting there on the plastic instead.
“Hey!” He exclaimed, the words slipping out. This had to be some cruel prank at this point.
“Is there a problem?” So now Diluc decided to butt in, the brunette’s snort of laughter just able to be heard from the service counter.
“Uh… haha.” Ajax ruffled the back of his mullet with a free hand, trying to distract himself from the burning intensity of that gaze. “Nope! My mistake.”
“I’m glad then, have a nice day.” Diluc said. Just as Ajax was about to mirror the sentiment, that smile came up again, the smug quirk of his lips that just screamed his quiet victory.
“!!… uh. Same for you.” He was totally going to catch this guy off guard one day, because while this was admittedly kind of hot, Ajax hated being one-upped like this. It was enough to almost motivate leaving a scathing review, but the ginger wasn’t one to be that petty. And besides, when it was handsome men doing so… he couldn’t get too angry.
Mentally, Ajax was formulating some sort of game plan for the next time he went into the cafe. Trying to get anywhere with thoughts of playful revenge was pitiful though. Every time he thought of something that could have potentially worked, an immeasurable roadblock that came in the shape of a pretty redhead swam at the front of his mind instead of any real conviction. He wanted to be more annoyed, but all he could do was sigh and keep trying to recall the exact shade of amber the other’s eyes were. The only time his thoughts weren’t half preoccupied by it were the late nights spent on call, but even they all knew about his predicament by now.
“Yeesh, your performance today is deadly… as in, I’m dying and I’m on your team.” Hu Tao complained
“Hey, it’s not that bad.”
A unanimous “Yes it is” rung across the call.
“You usually carry us, so it’s pretty noticeable.” Chongyun added to try and soften the blow a little.
“It’s all because this dumbass has a crush.” Scaramouche groaned, giving a glare across the room to his flat mate. Given that no one else could see the exchange, Ajax gave him a quick scowl before turning back to the big ‘DEFEAT’ screen on his computer, adjusting his glasses and leaning back in his annoyance.
“No way… You actually went outside?” Hu Tao gasped.
“Ppft, barely. Some guy read out his name on a cup and that was enough.”
“That’s-!” Ajax retorted.
“Wait, wait, wait. You’re actually gay?!” The brunette exclaimed, interrupting whatever train of thought the ginger may have been on. “It wasn’t ironic?!”
“That shouldn’t be surprising to you Hu Tao.” Xiao’s voice barely registered in the mic with how quiet he was, but everyone heard it anyway, laughs creating a humiliating cacophony ringing through Ajax’s headphones.
“Alright, fine. But you won’t be laughing when he’s my boyfriend- which will happen, mind you.”
The laughing got louder. Even if he logged off, Scaramouche’s snickers were only a few meters away. All he could do was go silent and wait for them to shut up.
The next time he strolled into the cafe, Ajax could admit to himself that he felt mightily self-confident, riding off a high from not completely bombing another exam he hadn’t studied for and decidedly ignoring the absolute embarrassment he’d made of himself the night before on call. He’d come up with a suitable way to get back at Diluc, and he was reveling in it. It was a quiet afternoon, no pressing exam weeks looming over the students studying in the building next door.
Just as he’d hoped, the man was at the front counter, looking as nonplussed as always. A little smile quirked his lips upon seeing who had entered the store, Ajax’s heart fluttering a little bit. Not enough to totally throw off his scheme, however.
“Good afternoon. What may I get you?” Diluc asked, his face preemptively showing a rather smug expression. Now Ajax was close to the redhead again, it was obvious that Diluc was significantly shorter, having to incline his head upwards to meet the other’s gaze.
“Yeah, uh, can I get a water with whipped cream?”
The look of pure befuddlement that crossed Diluc’s face was worth every second of the pathetic scheming and even worse pining Ajax had put himself through over the past three days. Diluc’s brows furrowed, his eyes narrowing.
“You can’t be serious.” He deadpanned. Ajax felt his heart flutter at the bluntness.
“What? I thought the customer was always right.” He smirked.
A puff of air that definitely could have been a laugh sounded before Diluc relented. “That’ll be fifty cents.”
“Phew… a bargain.”
“…” After he’d paid, Diluc didn’t even ask for a name, wordlessly grabbing a cup of water and making Ajax watch in real time as he unceremoniously filled the top with whipped cream. He spent some time after that scrawling a name on the cup. Reading it made Ajax’s face flush in both excitement and an odd sense of shame at the thought it might’ve been something nicer.
“Moron?! That has to be against some sort of policy.” Ajax pouted as he read the name. “I should ask for your manager.”
“I am the manager.” Diluc said.
“Oh.”
After another little laugh (which still got a breath stuck in Ajax’s throat upon hearing it), Diluc shook his head, “Do you want an actual drink?”
Ajax weighed how petty he felt like being, deciding on the answer ‘very’ as he took a long sip from his cup.
“Is this not one?” Other than the eye twitch at the frankly horrendous mixture of water and cream, Ajax thought he’d done a good job of framing his satisfaction. Diluc gave him an unimpressed frown at the action, the ginger beaming back.
“Your loss, I suppose. Please, enjoy your drink you so insist upon.”
“Why thank you! I will, especially since you made it.” Out loud that was not the smug gotcha tagline Ajax was aiming for and instead sounded far more like a genuine compliment. Diluc noticed it too, caught off guard by the sudden sincerity.
“… You’re welcome?”
Ajax didn’t have time to fully analyze Diluc’s face, which was now partially turned away, because he was too busy high tailing it out of the cafe with his ridiculous beverage in hand.
“-Anyway, I think that was an overwhelming success.” He said to a very dispassionate Scaramouche as he flopped onto one of the small twin beds in their shared room.
“You’re insufferable.”
“You thought the water with whipped cream idea was good though, right?”
“Fine, the concept wasn’t terrible. But don’t get a big head, your execution sounds shit.”
“He totally was flirting at the end.”
“Which ended with you running off and drinking a whole cup of water and whipped cream. Nice one.” The other even went to the effort to put down his pen and give a sarcastic little round of applause.
“I’ll get him next time, I swear.”
“Whatever. Just let me work.”
Ajax decided not to mention it was the shorter who initiated the conversation this time around, looking mightily curious when the ginger strolled through the door with a cup dotted with the remnants of that terrible concoction.
The next time Ajax encountered Diluc it was outside of the cafe entirely. While on an early morning run with loud music blaring in his ears, it was easy to miss other people who were just outside of his peripheral vision. Ajax was largely lost in his thoughts about Diluc and what he was going to do next when a he made impact with something entirely solid and felt himself falling quickly into the pavement.
If it had been anything else - a pole, a tree, an unsuspecting trash can (all of which had happened to the man before) or even another person if they were forgiving enough (also had happened multiple times before) - it would have been fine. But of course it, under a tangle of limbs and profuse apologies, the rich red hair was painfully obvious, even in the dull light.
“Fuck, I’m so sorry.”
“It’s… fine.” Diluc groaned from under him. He squinted up for a second, eyes widening. “Oh. It’s you.”
“Hey! Hahaha, sorry about that.” Ajax apologised again, ears burning furiously. Neither of them looked to be injured, the redhead taking the brunt of the impact and acting as a pillow for Ajax, who was now trying to unfold himself out from the other’s torso. He couldn’t help but enjoy himself a little bit, the softness and warmth far preferred over the concrete or chilly morning air. How would that feel waking up next to? Ajax shook his head - this definitely wasn’t the time, so he successfully extracted himself from their awkward position, holding out a hand to lever the other up. It didn’t really count as hand holding, but Ajax decided he’d let himself be just a little delusional, living his magical fairytale moment just for a second.
“Don’t worry about it, I’m not hurt. I should have looked anyway.” Diluc dismissed. All Ajax could do was make a vaguely affirmative remark to keep the other with him a little longer. Somehow he looked even nicer outside of his uniform, wearing a turtleneck that hugged his torso and black jeans, that red hair no longer covered by the work cap he wore. “Did you enjoy your drink?”
“My wh- oh. Right! Nope.” Ajax admitted, not thinking and wincing. “Not through any fault of your own.”
“I figured.”
“I still finished it though.”
“Of course you did.” Diluc sighed, though his tone was light and filled with a radiating warmth. “Please, just order a normal drink with a normal name next time.”
“So not Childe with an E?” Ajax teased.
“Or Tartaglia, preferably.” The fact he’d remembered that too had the other’s heart fluttering just a little more than it already was.
“What if that’s my name?”
He got a stare “then make up a normal one.”
“Haha, okay, okay. I yield.” Ajax put his hands up defensively. “I’ll see you soon?”
“Hopefully not by running into me, but yes. Goodbye now.” Diluc smiled a little as Ajax waved him off, continuing on his run feeling totally and completely ecstatic.
It was a miracle he didn’t run into anyone else after that, his thoughts racing so fast his feet could barely keep up. It took a considerable effort not to leap in the air and kick his feet. The heat in his cheeks refused to disperse even as he got back to the little flat, kicking his shoes off and giggling like some schoolgirl as he jumped onto his bed. Scaramouche wasn’t there, so their shared fridge became the subject of his lovesick ramblings. Words didn’t catch up with his thoughts as he paced back and forward, planning fifty different loose ends of how his venture would go and getting nowhere with any of them. Knowing him, he’d wing it and fumble, but he didn’t care about that right now, too giddy to consider the less desirable endings. He was going prove all of his group wrong and he was going to commit and burst open the doors. Birds would start singing and he’d confidently say… something, and get his fairytale ending. He wasn’t a plans guy anyway.
Of course it all fell apart when he actually got there the next evening, his nerves practically jingling as he bounced on his heels. He’d put in effort to his outfit (though not so much that he’d look like a try-hard), donning his only nice-ish blouse and ripped jeans. He’d jogged the full five minute walk there to try and dissipate some of it, but it was not working whatsoever. His ‘meticulous planning’ the night before had fallen through completely and left him for dead now.
Better get it over and done with than look like a fool standing awkwardly in front of the door.
Ajax didn’t miss how Diluc perked up the second he saw him enter, an easy smile sitting on his face, so seamlessly composed compared to the fidgeting wreck that Ajax no doubt was, running on about four hours of fitful sleep and two energy drinks. Though, in the ginger’s opinion, Diluc would probably still look good covered in dirt and blood, so he likely wasn’t the best judge in this situation.
“Long time no see. What would you like today?”
“Uh.” Something definitely short circuited then, Diluc’s gaze too much for the man, who eventually landed on the loose thread of a plan he’d made the night previous. “…Ajax!”
“Pardon me?” Diluc frowned after that announcement.
“That’s- ugh- that’s my name.” Ajax put his head in his hand, sighing miserably.
“Oh. It’s a nice name.” The redhead said, the ginger unable to see that pretty face through his fingers. “But that’s not really an order.”
“Yeah, I know… can I just get a - er - cookies and cream shake please.”
“That can be arranged. Ajax, right?”
“That’s me.” He replied, forcing himself to look at Diluc once more as he paid. If he wasn’t totally delusional, the other’s cheeks were dusted pink. “Thanks.”
“Sure. I’ll have that to you soon.” A quick quirk of his lips followed that, Ajax giving his best sheepish grin in return, scurrying off to where he usually waited and trying his hardest not to look like a total idiot, grabbing out his phone to start swiping through random photos and his tabs without paying any real mind to what they were. Anything to distract the anticipation he was feeling, glancing up every couple of seconds to see what Diluc was doing as he fidgeted with his feet.
“Order for Ajax?” The redhead called after three excruciating minutes. The ginger practically skipped the distance to the counter, picking up the drink and making a little noise
‘Child with an E’ again!?
“Seriously!?” He squawked. Diluc sighed, red faced
“… just turn the cup over, please.”
Ajax did as he was told, all protests leaving him upon seeing a phone number neatly written there. “Oh.”
“I did mean it, Ajax is a nice name.”
“Thanks.” He was unable to say much else “it really is my name, by the way.”
Diluc laughed “I figured. Have a good evening then, Ajax.” The way the man said his name had the ginger in shambles, perfectly falling from his lips as if he’d practiced it.
“Hahaha… you too, Diluc.” Ajax beamed, half running out of the store.
He jumped up kicked his feet together in his joy on his way down the street, forgetting he was holding a very much full drink and spilling half of it.
Ajax was far too happy to care.
BONUS:
“You look way too happy right now. No way you actually pulled it off.” Scaramouche was in disbelief as Ajax grinned upon entering the room. “No fucking way.”
“Yes way. Guess who just scored his number.” Ajax brandished the cup
“I hate you. I can’t believe it.” The shorter said. It couldn’t hide how he sounded a little proud, smiling a little through his biting words.
“I’m going to text him right now.”
Ajax pulled out his phone and began to type.