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The bell attached to the old wooden cafe door twinkled with a chime of welcome. Xiao’s cat-like eyes flashed to the door in response.
It wasn’t her.
Gods. Why did his heart sink just a little bit further when it wasn’t that stranger with blonde hair walking through the door?
Lumine was her name. He only knew it because it was a part of his job to know. His chest raised and fell sharply as he wished that wasn’t the case.
Lumine the stranger. That was all she was, wasn’t she? A stranger, yet she felt so familiar after all this time.
He refused to admit that to himself, though.
No, it absolutely hadn’t become a Pavlovian response for him to expect her around this time every day.
No, he didn’t have his hand on the medium-sized cups, waiting intently to serve up her usual: a honey cinnamon latte with oat milk and one pump of vanilla syrup.
No, he did not get ready for work every afternoon hoping that she would catch something she liked about his outfit, hair, demeanor, or the like.
“Expecting anyone?” His manager’s cheeky tone from behind him nearly sent him to the ceiling.
“No, Lisa,” he grumbled.
She just chuckled her usual whimsical chuckle.
Because she knew. And he knew.
Another chime from the door.
Not her.
Fuck.
Lumine heaved a heavy sigh.
To be completely honest, she wasn’t doing the best today. Today and the past few days, for that matter. Anxieties from all angles buzzed at her subconscious like annoying little fruit flies.
Why?
Group project, of course.
School hadn’t been kind to her this week. And after crossing ‘Thursday’ off on her calendar, she fell onto her mattress as dread hit her stomach. An entire week of nonstop stress, and it seemed like next week was going to be just as bad.
Any person in college, or at school at all for that matter, knew to be afraid of the words “group project.” The phrase was almost as bad as “We need to talk” or “Help, I’m dying! Call an ambulance!”
Okay, maybe not as bad as that last one. But it was close, okay?
This mood wasn’t something that Lumine was proud of. In fact, her usual demeanor was usually quite the opposite: she was sunshine in the middle of the rain. But now, all was storms.
Usually, Lumine thrived off of making other people smile. Simple as that. Friends, family, strangers. Anyone, really.
For instance, Mona’s eyeliner looked particularly incredible today. Oh, and Itto’s horns looked super shiny.
Wait, was that a good thing? Was that insensitive to say?
Lumine wasn’t the most outgoing person, but she tried to push herself out of her comfort zone regardless. After all, she had no idea what a stranger could be going through, and a small smile or compliment might snowball into something larger. Brighter. That’s what she hoped, at the very least.
With all the kindness she expelled, though, it was difficult to make room for herself. As a straight-A student at the prestigious University of Celestia, it wasn’t hard to feel like she wasn’t smart enough. Not active enough in extracurriculars. Not high-scoring enough to secure a spot as one of the school’s top 20. Not enough in general.
At the end of the day, she wasn’t a saint. She wasn’t perfect in the slightest—she was just Lumine.
So that was why she felt it okay to feel angry at her group project partner.
Normally, she would chastise herself for not taking this situation in stride, but she gave him every benefit of the doubt since they were paired together. Her thoughts were filled with excuses: he could have been sick last class, right? And the class before, he could have just been sleeping through their free time because he was going through something personal.
But after what happened at the end of class today, she knew that the guy was just a grade-A asshole.
“I’m gonna be honest, this project is all you,” he said with a chuckle.
Lumine just stood there.
“I’m not interested in this shit in the least. Sorry. Later.” And then he shrugged his backpack on, turned, and walked away.
The anger that set her heart ablaze was only second to that one time Aether hit her with a hockey stick that one time. She was twelve, though, so this was far more serious.
As Lumine stared at the ceiling, the back of her hand rested atop her forehead. A week left to work on a project meant for two people, on top of a test and two papers…
It was going to be a long week ahead.
She felt bad, though. She wasn’t acting like herself. It wasn’t hard for friends and acquaintances to catch the way she gnawed on her bottom lip and the anxiety that swirled beneath her quietude. “Oh, just some trouble with a group project,” she had laughed courteously. Every single one of them caught on right away and shared their condolences.
That was the easy part. Unfortunately for her, though, there was… someone else to whom she owed a special apology.
That had its own story attached to it.
The fact of the matter is that Lumine loved coffee. As a dean’s list student, she had a hard time living without it. The coffee scene at the university wasn’t the best, though. So from coffee shop to coffee shop she hunted in hopes of finding the best cup of coffee in town.
When she first walked into a small shop off the beaten path called the Purple Rose Cafe, though, coffee was the last thing on her mind.
Intense topaz eyes. Jade locks tied back at the nape of his neck.
Suddenly, this had become the best coffee shop in town. No, in the country. Hands down. For sure.
Thankfully, the coffee was actually good, though. The atmosphere of the shop was top-notch, too. Rows of books lined the shelves of tall oaken bookshelves. Those bookshelves sat next to floor-to-ceiling windows that showered hanging greenery in fresh sunlight. Those two facts alone made this her go-to study spot.
The stoic barista was just… an added bonus. Eye candy. The way his tied-back hair fell loose around his face only added to the aloof aura surrounding him. And those eyes…
Serious. Mysterious. It was hard to pin down what he was thinking, yet she could see an inkling of a dark shadow had been cast over his deep amber gaze.
Hm.
She pondered the idea after fumbling her way through her coffee order. He looked… sad, underneath it all. Maybe it was just her imagination, but she couldn’t shake the possibility.
And so with her head far above her, on autopilot, she found a quiet nook in a semi-hidden corner. She made haste to spread her books and laptop out on the table in front of her before—
“One honey cinnamon latte with oat milk for Lumine,” the jade-haired barista raised his voice above the cafe’s lofi playlist.
Her heart thumped as she was throttled back to reality. Even the way he said her name was delectable. So she scurried to the front counter, smiled warmly, and said her thanks before taking her coffee from his hands. His amber eyes warmed slightly at her golden irises’ touch.
That made her happy.
Thankfully, studying went well that day. So well, in fact, that she went up to grab a second cup.
(It definitely wasn’t partially because she wanted to see his face up close again.)
She was Lumine, though, and it bothered her that he looked sad. It was only natural for her to feel the need to break out of her comfort zone in hopes of making someone’s day a bit better. Especially if the “someone” in question was… highly attractive.
And so a pen met a slightly coffee-stained napkin.
definitely the best coffee in town ( ˶ˆᗜˆ˵ ) thank you!!
A tip of 600 mora—maybe too generous, but the guy really did seem like he needed to be cheered up—was wrapped up in the napkin before she went to order her second cup.
“Could I actually get a pump of vanilla syrup in this one?” She tilted her head as she gazed at the menu board above his head, tapping her finger to her chin.
“Sure,” the man murmured nonchalantly, typing the addition into the computer.
She couldn’t help the way her eyes seemed to flash to his face as if magnetically. The napkin crumpled under her tense grasp.
Do it. You have to do it, Lumine. Just give it to him and walk away.
After paying, at the last possible second she could, she took a deep breath.
“Thank you! Oh, uh, and I wanted to give this to you! It’s a tip for the good coffee,” she smiled brightly before handing him the napkin satchel of mora.
And then before she could do something simple as gauge his reaction, she turned and made a beeline back to her seat.
Fuck. Fuckfuckfuck. She stared at her open notebook in an attempt to appear casual, but holy shit, was she awkward.
And on top of that, she just remembered that she needed to pick up her coffee from him. An internal groan threatened to rattle her bones. How could she be so stupid? She should have just given the napkin to him after grabbing her drink, but her anxiety had very obviously gotten the best of her.
In the midst of her internal meltdown, she heard her name being called. Her eyes shot up from their unmoving stare at her notebook.
“Lumine,” she heard. Not, “Something-something-latte for Lumine.” Just, “Lumine.”
Was he feeling as awkward as she was? Did she blow it? Should she just leave and never show her face here aga—
“Thanks for the tip,” a small smile warmed his features, melting the ice that lined his eyes earlier.
And that was all she needed.
The next day, she walked through the cafe door’s threshold hoping to see him again. And as their eyes met, a bolt of electricity coursed down her smile. A smile beamed his way, and he caught it with a small grin of his own.
Gods, she was so hopeless.
Every day, she ordered a honey cinnamon latte with oat milk and a pump of vanilla syrup. And every day, she wrote him a different note.
thank you again!! i think your shirt looks great on you! green is definitely your color ✩
hi favorite barista! ₍ᐢ. ̫.ᐢ₎ hope you’re doing well today~ keep up the nice smile!
your hair looks great today! i have a feeling it would look sooo~ good long btw ⸜(｡˃ ᵕ ˂ )⸝♡
Slowly, she grew comfortable with their whole… whatever the fuck sort of arrangement they had. No matter the crowd at the counter, he always met her eyes as she walked through the door. Every time she handed his note to him, he shot her a half-smile. And every time he smiled, butterflies gathered in her chest.
After a while, Lumine found her feet to be planted firmly on the ground, resisting the fading need to turn and run as they had the first few days.
It didn’t matter if they were friends, if he had a crush on her too, or if he was just using her for her tips. As long as she witnessed his topaz irises brighten when she walked through the door, that was enough for her to keep coming back.
Even his barista’s manager seemed to catch onto whatever was going on. On occasion, Lumine caught her shooting looks at her and then at him, to which he promptly rolled his eyes and scoffed under his breath, deflecting whatever ideas she had conjured up. Though it was to be expected, Lumine was a bit disappointed by his reaction.
Unbeknownst to her, though, a storm was brewing on the horizon. A perilous storm named “group project.”
Slowly, things became frustrating. She went to the coffee shop to see his smile, but she could barely bring herself to match his brightness. And then a few days later, she had felt so incredibly stressed that thoughts of school had overcrowded her entire mind. Unfortunately, that meant that she was no longer well enough to write her barista his notes.
She felt bad. Terrible, even. Even if she had kept writing him notes, he would have known that something was off by her demeanor alone.
So that’s why she owed him an apology. An explanation. Anything.
But before she could spare a thought to contemplate a good course of action, something interesting happened.
“Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t order whipped cre—”
“Don’t worry about it,” something unknown danced in the jade-haired barista’s eyes as his smile crinkled their corners.
Ah. She had to admit that her heart fluttered at that. As she walked to her seat, though, nothing could have prepared her for what she saw next: a small napkin settled between her teacup and its saucer with blue ink etched onto it.
Hope this makes your day a little better.
Oh, gods, it did. It did. Her heart nearly burst from her chest.
Elated. Smiling. Red in the face. She was on cloud nine for the rest of her study session. And as she got up to leave, she passed him the same napkin with her own handwriting scribbled in black ink next to his.
it did. thank you ˶ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ˶
That was an understatement.
As she walked home that night, Lumine wore a permanent grin painted on her face. She quickly fell into bed, writhing around on top of it, clinging her pillow to her thumping chest.
Because he noticed she was sad. He cared enough to write her back. It might sound embarrassing, but that simple gesture alone was enough to fill her heart with newfound purpose. With a smile as she fell asleep, she felt genuinely good for the first time in a long time. She was motivated. Now she was ready to take this project and kick it in the—
And then tomorrow came.
At the end of the day, classes were classes. “You should be about 3/4 of the way through your project at this point,” her teacher announced as his lecture ended. With the knowledge that she was only half finished at most, that single sentence alone was enough to undo almost everything that her barista provided her with.
And so through a heap of anxiety, frustration, and fear, Lumine practically dragged herself to the cafe for a much-needed cup of coffee.
When she walked into the Purple Rose Cafe to the normal crowd, the barista’s topaz gaze immediately caught hers. That wasn’t something out of the ordinary—they usually locked eyes as she walked through the door—but for some reason, today, they glimmered with playful haste. “Lumine,” he called from the register. “Excuse me,” he mumbled to the customer he was waiting on.
Lumine walked over with cautious optimism lining her exhausted eyes.
He led her to the pick-up counter, and there, he pushed her a cup of her usual. It was topped with whipped cream and piping hot as if she had just ordered it. “On the house,” he murmured with a small grin.
“R-really?!”
He just nodded. “Enjoy,” he said with a small grin before turning to walk back to his line of customers.
She stood there for a second, cogs turning, attempting to process what had just occurred. But when her brain failed to come up with an answer, she just took her cup of coffee and sat down at her usual spot in silence. There were just too many questions that throttled through her mind.
How did he know she was going to arrive right then?
How did he know that she needed so much cheering up?
Why had he done something like this for someone who didn't even know his name?
… Gods, she didn't even know his name.
As soon as her heart flew to the top of her ribcage, it plummeted to the depths of her stomach. He was being so kind to her and she just sat there without a clue as to what his name was.
The simple solution was to just go and ask him directly, but that idea posed its own set of challenges. For example, challenge number one was the fact that she had to gather the courage to go up and talk to him in the first place.
It was easy to hand him notes or speak under the guise of asking for more coffee, but talking to him just for the sake of conversation was different. Something in the back of her mind nagged at her, though: if he could push himself outside of his own comfort zone enough to do something kind for her, then she could go up and ask for his damn name.
So after the crowd cleared out and the sun began to descend in the sky, she took a deep breath and made her way to the counter.
There, he was turned to the side, wiping some porcelain teacups down with a wet rag. He met her eyes with aloof eyes and a half smile.
“Hi, um, I just wanted to thank you for the coffee,” Lumine began, moving to clasp her hands behind her back. “School has been really rough lately, so it cheered me up a lot.”
“Ah, I was wondering why you seemed less upbeat,” he nodded as he absorbed her words, turning to give her his full attention. “Well, I’m glad I could help. What class has you stressed?”
Everything, she wanted to answer. “Physics,” she sighed. “Group project. My partner told me to my face that he wasn’t going to participate.”
“Oof,” he winced. “I have a group project, too. Physics with Dr. Kreideprinz, right?”
“Ah—yeah, actually. Physics 102. I’m in his 3PM class on Tuesdays and Thursdays.”
He hummed. “Coincidence. I’m in his 10AM,” he said casually, eyes darting to the side. “Name’s Xiao, by the way.”
“Xiao,” she tested his name on her tongue. His eyes snapped back to hers instantaneously. She almost giggled. “Well, I appreciate your kindness, Xiao. This place helps me focus, so I’ll be here tomorrow, too.”
A moment of hesitation. “Sounds good,” he murmured. “Nice to see you, Lumine.”
She turned to hurry out of the shop so that he couldn’t see her blush.
Gods, that was exhilarating. Xiao. Xiao. Why did his name sound so perfect?
Ah, that’s why. With the minuscule piece of information she had learned about him, she found herself craving more. She wanted to get to know him. To explore every corner of what made him tick. To see his flaws, and to fall for them. To fall for him.
With how often she went out of her way for others, very few people—outside of close friends and relatives—went out of their way for her. She didn’t keep a tally, of course, but after years and years of being a candle for others, her wick had little wax left to burn. When it came to strangers, she just had to hope that they would spend the kindness she shared with them on others.
But with Xiao, she had the complete opposite problem. She felt the need to pay him, a near-stranger, back for his benevolence. She yearned to out-tally his generosity with acts of her own kindness. She just wanted to show him how much she appreciated him.
Maybe that was a toxic way of thinking, but she was just so new to the concept of being paid back for her kindness.
Lumine was too tired to think up a plan to pay him back that night, but at the very least, she resolved to talk to him the next day he was working. She wanted to become friends with him, maybe find out what his hobbies were, so that she could get him something tailored to what he liked.
She also just wanted to get to know him for other reasons, but that was beside the point.
So the next day, she walked to the cafe from class with a confidence that she rarely felt. She would go up to him, grab her coffee, and talk to him for a bit. If there was no line, she’d strike up a conversation.
Yes. She was ready.
But when she walked in, and the bell on the old wooden door jingled with a welcoming sound, she laid eyes on a brunette with green eyes.
Her heart sank a tiny bit at the sight of Xiao’s manager at the counter. She was busy with a line of customers that reached around the shop; an impressive feat for any small business, but this whole situation was exactly the opposite of what Lumine wanted.
So with a sigh, she set off to set her backpack down at her usual spot.
But when she hurried past the queue, she noticed that someone had already taken her spot.
Dammit. Today had taken a turn for the worse. Frustration was strewn atop the mountain of disappointment and stress that had been festering within her heart.
But then—
The person in her spot turned to meet her gaze.
Topaz eyes.
“Hey, Lumine,” Xiao waved at her with a small smile.
Oh, gods. Why was he here? In her spot? Off work, but still at the shop? For her?
Too many questions whirred through her mind as an awe-lined grin played at the corners of her mouth. “Hey,” was all that she could muster.
Because he was beautiful. His hair was tied back, as always, but his outfit was completely different from the ones he wore on shift. An oversized white t-shirt allowed an arm-length sleeve of tattoos to peek out from beneath. And, gods, those piercings—his earlobes were clad with a line of black rings that added an extra oomph to his streetwear style.
If she wasn’t melted to the ground now, she was about to go outside and dig a grave for herself.
“Here lies Lumine,” it would say. “Death by hot guy.”
“Figured you needed help on your project, and I’m finished with mine, so I thought I’d help you out.”
“B-but…” she sputtered, unable to find the words. “You took your day off to come back to the shop and help me?”
“Oh, no, I was actually supposed to work today. My manager gave me off. Don’t ask why.”
As he said that, his eyes moved to the counter behind her. And when she followed his gaze, she met the wide smile and electrifying emerald eyes of his manager. A quick wink told her that she knew far more than either of them could dare to assume.
With a smile back and a small laugh, Lumine decided to trust in her instincts. So she took a seat next to her jade-haired barista.
Three hours passed with ease.
“So, if you want to calculate the way the object is moving with that sort of resistance, you have to do this,” Xiao scooted over to scribble notes on her page.
“That makes… sense?” Lumine winced. “I think.”
He choked back a laugh. “What doesn’t make sense?”
“This part,” she moved to circle a portion of his scribbles, bumping against his hand in the process. And, gods, was it electrifying.
No, no, it wasn’t just that. Everything about this was electrifying.
They took it in stride, though. Their chemistry flowed so freely that it was all so easy. The way their smiles met; their intertwining laughs; the adorable scowl that lined Xiao’s features when she insisted on buying the coffee.
“I have an employee discount,” he protested flatly.
“Too bad,” she said in a sing-song tone before making her way to the counter.
As the sun sank in the sky, and the shop prepared to close, Lumine and Xiao had finally finished with her project. A well-deserved high-five was louder—and harder—than they expected, earning laughs and pained palms all around.
“I appreciate this,” Lumine smiled brightly as she rubbed at the stinging ache in her reddened hand. “Seriously. You have enough good karma to last you a lifetime.”
She was grateful. So, so grateful.
“Not a problem,” he just smiled warmly—a sort of warmth that she hadn’t witnessed before. It touched his amber eyes in a way that had her melting on the spot.
But then he broke her gaze to shuffle through his bag. “Oh, one more thing…” he trailed off, furrowing his brow while searching deeper into his bag.
After a moment, her own brow wrinkled. “Forget something?” She murmured as she joined him, shuffling through the papers atop the round table in front of them.
“Ah.” And then he pulled out a small napkin.
… Hm. Lumine stopped in her tracks, confused.
A single peek up at her eyes was all Xiao could afford before he placed it in front of her.
Dinner this weekend? Was written in blue ink.
Golden eyes widened in surprise at the sight. It was just a split second, though. Because she knew her answer. She had always known her answer.
With a click of a pen, she responded.
absolutely ♡