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It's such a treat that Asta and Yuno get a rare day off to hang out together, just two of them on the perfectly same day. It was Asta who dragged Yuno to attend an invitation to Nairn City. The small city that he had ever gone to fight with the Eyes of the Midnight Sun back then after just a few months of joining the Black Bulls as a Magic Knight. The memories of going there that filled with the supportive battle along with his comrades in Black Bulls rushed surrounding him with a comfortable warmth. It was also thanks to them that he reached the point where he stood up in the present. Such treasurable comrades.
Now that Yuno has become the Captain of his Golden Dawn squad, he gave his tasks to his Vice Captain while he got his day off. Then as promised, he picked Asta up before making a couple of gigantic wind eagle magic to carry both of Asta and him to Nairn. He insisted because Asta invited him on that treat. He meant to return the favor as gratitude. They still wore their usual uniform, just in case something emergency happened. Their job is timeless as the protectors of the country. Forced them to get ready anytime to fight. On the way, they occasionally throw simple chitchats to each other. Well, Yuno preferred to listen. It was always Asta who loved to speak much more than him. Typically Asta, pretty noisy. Even chirping birds couldn't match him. The conversation between them showed that Yuno never visited Nairn. He didn't recall any mission that sent him there. His comrades from the same squad might have gone there but he has no experience going there. Afterwards, Asta told him that he would love that city as well as Hage, they just have the similar vibes.
Asta asked his rival to fly slow a bit down and lower in order to search the right place. He hasn't ever come over there but he got a map with him. Yuno started to doubt they would find the place, knowing how doubtable Asta is. He began to feel a bit uneasy about this uncertainty. But then he caught Asta shouting loudly and cheerfully pointing somewhere. Asta’s index finger led them to a simple cafe that has its name placed above the entrance. Asta checked the cafe name, it spelled Rodina. He bounced happily before knocking on the wooden door. Yuno watched him with a questioning face as he found that the cafe still had the word “closed” hanging at the front. Asta shook his head right away, telling him to never mind.
Sounds heard from the inside of the cafe before it opened. The figure of a person quite the same age, slim body with light-colored skin as white as snow wearing a dark blue apron welcomed them. His pale white bluish hair that reached his elbows was tied low. His soft grey eyes fitted his charming look. He was the man in charge of the cafe.
“I've been waiting for you, Asta!” greeted the young man in apron, smiling sincerely fond of guests.
“Neige!” Asta responded warmly. They engaged in a friendly handshake. A very hospitable welcome. As they enjoyed their reunion, a sharp side eye from the other guest that seemed like being ignored pierced Neige, sending him some chills.
“Uh, oh. Welcome… Sir?” Neige nervously greeted Yuno who gazed down judging. Asta felt something was off looking at how Yuno stared and his unpleasant vibes. He quickly interrupted with some introduction.
“Neige, this is Yuno. My childhood friend and rival. As you can see, he's also a Magic Knight. And Yuno, this is Neige. He's my friend. I met him in the cave when I fought the Eye of the Midnight Sun. He was on the enemy's side back then but he's actually a good person.” Asta introduced both guys to each other, switching off the thick uncomfortable atmosphere.
“An ex-enemy? Moreover, Eye of the Midnight Sun? It's a serious crime. Why didn't he get punished in jail?” Yuno spat out, stepped forward. He chinned up looking down at Neige full of threatening and intimidating gestures. It brought Neige more afraid and smaller inside. His pale lips trembled. Asta took it as a hint of seeking help. He moved forward taking Neige’s side to control the suffocating air.
“He was just being used by his brother back then, Yuno! It's all already in the past. I can explain more.” Asta waved his arms, defending his snow mage friend. He knew truly that Yuno couldn't trust Neige as a stranger, so he had to intervene. But Neige couldn't let Asta shield him more, he had to speak up for his own self. He built up his fragile courage before telling Yuno with shaken voices.
“I-I actually repent my crime by doing some social humanity tasks, in the church and orphanage. I still do it outside the work hours. But now I can't do it too often because I must earn money to live. I can work here under the permission of the church. I also have been trained to open this cafe by the owner,” told Neige finally got to defend himself. He stood still to see how Yuno would react. Meanwhile, the black-haired Golden Dawn Captain slowly shut his eyes, trying to understand the situation of the stranger he suspected. He nodded slightly. Asta took it as the sign of acceptance and understanding. He grinned.
“Thank goodness, Neige! You get a nice job! You must be working hard to gain the trust of people!” Kindly Asta complimented.
“T-thank you, Asta. Also, please have a seat. Y-Yuno, too. Please enjoy your time,” Neige treated his guests politely. Still kind of nervous, but he knew he should be professional during service to customers. He bit his lower lip, understanding how lack of service skill he is. He must learn more of this to work better.
When choosing a table, Yuno and Asta scanned over the cafe interior. It was dominated by a brownish wooden color. The walls were painted with ivory color. It had hanging lamps over the top of the counter. Felt warm and cozy like home.
As Neige reached the counter, he offered the menu to Asta and Yuno who were seated face to face in front of him. He started to explain about the cafe and menu.
“Here's the menu that you can order. This cafe is family friendly, so we don't sell alcohol here. We only sell various beverages, such as coffee, tea, milk, and ice cream. Most of them are sweet, suited for our kid customer’s taste. But you can always just tell me for less sweet or less ice or even less caffeine. And today is special that I invited you to taste the sample of our new menu. The sample is all free. If you want to try others, you can order it but I'm afraid it's not free. Now enjoy yourselves here while I bring out the samples you can have soon! Please wait for a moment,” asked him before disappearing behind the counter. There might be storage. He came back with some transparent tall glasses of drink. They were various, no glass had the same color and variant. He placed them on a tray before delivering it to Yuno and Asta’s table.
“Here’s the free samples of the upcoming new menu! The brown colored here is salted caramel, this light brown colored one is creme brulee milkshake, this orange colored one is mango and orange mix squash, also the colorful one here is bubble gum float. While you enjoy these, please give me some testimonial and probably advice about the flavor, I'll note it right away!” told Neige as he grabbed the tray back, leaned it on his apron. Asta stared at him fondly, admiring how greatly improved Neige was. The attack in Nairn occured around two years ago, it's nice to see him becoming a much better person.
Asta replied immediately, thanking Neige. He would like to share the sample with Yuno. Each had two glasses. His palm dragged two of the drinks up closer to Yuno and they were received with a sweet smile of that handsome knight.
“Thank you,” A simple thanks launched from the pretty rival's lips. It warmed up the air, heartwarming Asta. The glasses on the table all had straight straws, only the float-filled one had a tall teaspoon because it had ice cream on top. Yuno stirred the drink before taking a sip. Asta was about to drink first before he saw Yuno stir his glass and he copied the move clumsily.
“IT'S DELICIOUS, NEIGE!” shouted Asta calling Neige for the testimonial. The young man in apron smiled widely, he hurriedly took his note out to write about the beverage's review. The one Asta sipped was the mango and orange mix squash.
“This creme brulee one is fantastic. I've tasted one in my squad’s premium lunch buffet and this taste can be compared to it. I like this one. The sugar’s sweetness isn't artificial and authentic.” Yuno described his review in a bit more detail. It brought Neige blushes proudly of his work on that beverage. He noted all he could hear from Yuno. He thought, ‘This man is quite something though he just cornered me a while ago,’ and Asta got affected by Yuno's long testimonial, his jaw opened in amaze. He would like to give testimonial as valuable as that.
“Hey, Asta. Share yours, too. So I can taste your drink, too.” Yuno slided his creme brulee drink glass to reach near Asta. Then that guy with the right arm covered in a long leather glove slided his glass to his other side of the table.
Yuno took a sip of Asta’s glass of squash with the straw Asta just used, “Asta is right. It's delicious. But based on my own tongue, it's a bit too sweet. The mango flavor dominated the orange, so maybe you should add more orange so it can be balanced.”
“Wait, Yuno! I'm still writing it!” Neige panicked, working his fingers speeding up on his note. Asta once again jaw dropped. His rival is so cool like he was overtaking the shine for himself in this cafe. He also wanted to help Neige as well as Yuno.
‘Not yet…’ Asta grunted inside, curling up his knuckles, gritting his teeth.
Moving on to the other drink samples, Asta took the float one, and Yuno had the salted caramel one. They took a sip and widened their eyes as they were saying, “It's a brand new taste!”. Neige waited for their review with his excited round eyes.
“This salted caramel drink is magnificent and genius. I've never tasted something like this before. Even my squad didn't have this. Only the original caramel one,” stated Yuno in shock of the tasty beverage in his grip.
“This bubble gum float is very good! The colorful appearance will attract kid customers. It will go well with a bit of colorful sprinkles. Children may go crazy over this beverage.” Asta tried to review as cool as his rival, refusing to get beaten up in this rivalry testimonial made-up by himself. Meanwhile Neige accepted and quickly wrote up all those testimonials in joy. His eyes filled with twinkles of enthusiasm.
Before Asta exchanged his beverage with Yuno, he took a scoop of the ice cream in the float but it got robbed by Yuno’s speeding mouth, making it look like he fed Yuno. Asta jumped in surprise at Yuno's head that suddenly leaned on his hand with a spoon, but just let Yuno have the ice cream on it.
“It's flavorful and unique. Bubble gum is perfect to go with ice cream. Kids will love this just like Asta said.” Yuno uttered his review after pulling his head back from stealing Asta’s ice cream float. Next, he put up his glass of salted caramel close to Asta, brushed the straw over his parted lips. Viewing that simple slightly sensual moment, Yuno caught his breath.
Asta proceeded to take a sip of the salted caramel flavored one with the straw Yuno used, “HOLY!! THIS TASTES AWESOME! I can drink this everyday with coffee or milk!”.
Finishing his note as the samples are all out and got tasted, Neige thanked Yuno and Asta, “Thank you for all the testimonials, guys. It helps a lot for me. Now just enjoy your time here as long as you like! If you have any orders, please just call me, all right?” offered Neige, bowing down. He hadn't gotten over the table of Yuno and Asta as long as their drinks still remained. The rest just both rivals enjoying their beverages heartfully.
Yuno excitedly sipped his salted caramel drink before his amber eyes found something interesting that was placed on the corner of the counter. He called out to Neige to gather his attention.
“Neige! What is that red stuff on the corner there?” Yuno pinpointed at the things he got curious about. Neige turned his look to the box of red heart-shaped straws.
“Oh, it's the red heart-shaped straws that we prepared for the customers who came as a couple. Today is Valentine's Day, right? Well, it's for today's special!”
Hearing Neige's words, Yuno gulped. He gripped his glass tight, gesturing some urge inside that he suppressed. His mind screamed, “IT'S A CHANCE! IT'S A CHANCE!” along with his thumping heartbeat. He faced Asta with determination.
“I’ll treat you to a drink today as a gratitude for bringing me along. You can choose anything you want from the menu. Come on, let's try another menu in this cafe!” Yuno said with a pressure in his voice. He sounded insisting. Asta just wondered about his weird gestures. With his ki, he could read how hard Yuno wanted him to order another drink. It was kind of strange to think about it.
“Come on! Choose anything—!”
“Uh… D-do you have any recommendations?”
Harshly, Yuno grabbed the menu, making Asta wonder what happened to Yuno. What made him change drastically like this?
“Here. It's called Hazelnut Choco Parfait. A milkshake with vanilla ice cream. With a strawberry slice and blueberries on top. You'll like it. Also, we must try the heart-shaped straw while we are still here. It looks interesting, right?” A pair of golden amber irises glared at Asta fiercely. It was like a threat. Sweat dropped, Asta just nodding.
“Y-yeah, it looks interesting. Let's try this one,” Asta agreed nervously then ordered the menu to Neige. About fifteen minutes later, it came to their table. It looked so pretty and interesting just as their expectations. And of course, the heart-shaped straw pierced through the drink. Very fun.
“How about a mini game? We drink this together while looking into each other's eyes. Who blinks first is the loser.”
“BRING IT ON!”
Asta and his cluelessly density, so easy to get lured by Yuno who just wanted a romantic date that day. When they were busy competing, Neige from the counter trembled watching them get so close. They were really more like a competitive couple than a pair of rivals.
Asta, who widened his eyes badly towards Yuno, got his eyes drained and hurt. He just couldn't help but blink. He lost shamefully, yelling out his frustrating disappointment. On the other side, Yuno smiled genuinely in victory.
“You open your eyes too wide, you won't last long, Dumbsta,”
“You just pick a staring contest that you know as my weakness!”
“Proves you're just too weak that you can't win in this simple competition,”
Asta growled messing up his hair on top of his head with his fingers, irritated by Yuno's savage roasts. Meanwhile Yuno just held his chuckle at how terribly cute Asta was at that moment.
“I'm going to leave the counter a while to do some preparations in the storage room behind here for opening soon. You two can just call me anytime if you need me. Excuse me,” The cafe crew bowed politely before going back to the storage room to check on his job desk, doing some preparations for the products.
The atmosphere changed as Yuno and Asta left alone just the two of them in that cafe room. Yuno smirked, watching Asta deeply invested in the parfait. He moved over his seat to draw nearer to Asta. With mouth full of ice cream, the anti-magic guy sensed with his ki that Yuno's energy beside him was rising highly. He tilted his head to face Yuno and got grabbed by the arms of Yuno that pulled his face against the rival, meeting their lips. Not wasting any more time, Yuno captured Asta’s off-guarded lips. His gold sharp eyes met the wide round green ones. He started to lead the kiss with smooches before pressing and crushing the rival's sweet lips. Sweet flavored as the beverage they tasted just now. It was addicting. Sucking lips, tilted heads, tongues inside. Both gasped for air, but still connected their mouths, unwanted to be apart. The sloppy sounds were heard by Neige and he peeked over the cafe room. There was Yuno and Asta that he knew were childhood friends and rivals kissing lustfully and paid no care to their surroundings. Neige shuddered in shock watching them overly brave doing that kind of act in the family friendly cafe. He was about to get back to the counter but turned down, decided to hold still in place waiting for his wild guests to finish their doing.
Groans and moans escaped from both mouths. Yuno licked Asta’s lips before biting them gently. He wanted him so bad. He could not take it anymore. He already ravished his rival's mouth for thirty minutes and it still wasn't enough. But the place wasn't right, so he decided to end it before his pants were torn by something huge that made it tightened. He pulled back leaving a string of saliva that linked to Asta’s swollen reddened lips. Losing his mind, Asta fell out, hitting his head against the table. His comically weakly trembling soul that was still attached to his body flew out of his ash blonde head. He fainted, his head boiled overheat.
“Neige! Asta just got a brain freeze. Please let us rest here a bit longer,” Yuno shouted calling Neige but that cafe crew was also collapsed, shaking in embarrassment after witnessing that couple of rivals shamelessly making out in his work place.
…