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A small bell chimes as the front door of The Last Drop swings open. It’s late, almost closing time for the local coffee shop and chairs are already set atop the small square tables. The floor is shiny, a wet floor sign set in the center of the cafe cautioning people to step carefully. The lights are still on, for the last few minutes, but it seems like there’s no one there. That is until a large figure rises behind the cafe’s bar counter. Vander stands, holding a fresh bag of coffee beans and some filters as he hums a soft tune. Half of his dark, chestnut colored hair was pulled into a bun, the leftover strands that were too short bushing the back of his neck. His greying beard was neatly trimmed, following the natural shape of his jawline as the hairs framed his lips.
“Am I too late to place an order?”
A voice comes from across the shop as the door shuts. Silco smiles as he walks forward, being careful not to get the freshly mopped tiles dirty as he makes his way to the counter. He’s dressed in burgundy colored scrubs with a dark brown coat thrown over it to fend off the chilly night air. His black hair is neatly combed away from his face, with streaks of grey running through the middle of it like a highlight. He lifts one of the chairs off a nearby table and pulls up a seat on the other side of the bar, letting out a tired sigh as he sinks into it. His body is stiff and tired from working all day, so finally getting to be off his feet is a much needed treat at the moment.
“You’re actually right on time. I was about to try out some new beans if you’d care to be my taste tester.”
Vander smiles at the man as he sets a small electric kettle of water to boil, getting the additional tools ready for the coffee. He grinds the pre-roasted beans by hand, steadily rotating a hand crank that turns the beans into a fine powder. Silco watches as the man works, focused on the way his hands move with practiced ease and familiarity. He’d seen Vander make coffee so many times before that he could predict each step of the process. But watching something so simple made him feel at ease in a way he couldn’t quite describe with words alone.
The kettle clicks off and the sound of boiling water quiets as Vander pours it over the coffee grounds. The strong smell of the coffee begins to waft through the air as Silco breathes it in, humming in approval at the rich, nutty smell. He gets comfortable as the coffee drips into the glass below, taking off his jacket and hanging it over the back of the chair before rummaging through a large messenger bag and pulling out an old spiral notebook and some pens. He quickly flips through the pages full of scribbles and notes before settling on a half empty page.
He wrote about the coffee, like the brand and its origins, describing the smell and color of it. Though it wasn’t at all necessary, it was something he enjoyed doing with Vander. Sharing a cup of coffee and brainstorming new recipes or ways to sell it in the shop brought them closer together. It was a moment of peace and quiet with someone he cherished, time that was becoming all too scarce these days as his workload increased. Short staffing and budget cuts at the hospital were making his days at work a living nightmare as he could barely get a screaming patient to calm down long enough to stitch together a sliced cheek before he was rushing off to treat someone with second or third degree burns on their arm.
“Is the hospital still giving you those long shifts these days?”
Silco glances at Vander and nods in response while attempting to rub the exhaustion from his eyes. He worked as a plastic surgeon in a local hospital’s emergency room, helping with trauma care and performing skin grafts on patients with disfigurement due to accidents like car wrecks or fires. He began studying after being in a tragic car accident that left half of his face scarred and his eye partially blind. But he never let that stop him and worked hard to become a licensed surgeon to help others with similar stories. When he wasn’t in the operating room, he was discussing treatment options with patients or studying new methods for better success rates. Still, he was at the hospital for hours on end, sometimes days and it was wearing him down.
“I’m guessing it shows, huh. Be honest, how bad are my circles? Do I look like a raccoon yet?”
He tugs on the skin beneath his eyes, making Vander laugh as he brings over two mugs and sets them down on the counter. They were both scrawled over with various sketches of stars and hearts, courtesy of Powder, the youngest daughter of a mutual friend, Felicia. It had been a gift to the two men from years ago as a fathers day present, a set of matching mugs with the initials “V” and “S” drawn on them. The drawings were relatively simple, understandable as it was an elementary school project from when Powder was eight years old. But the added touch of doctor's tools and band-aids on Silco’s mug or steaming cups of coffee and cake slices on Vander’s never failed to bring a smile to their face.
“You don’t look like one any more than usual I’m afraid,” Vander states with a remaining chuckle.
Vander pours some coffee into each mug, allowing Silco to take a small sip of his to see if he wanted more before filling it the rest of the way. The two continue to chat, talking about any recent events or sharing random news they’ve picked up over the past few days they’d been apart. Felicia’s eldest daughter, Violet, nicknamed Vi, was having her first professional boxing match and gave Vander a ticket for Silco if he happened to get the day off. Powder and her not-so-secret boyfriend Ekko were entering into their school’s science competition, though their project experimenting with energy fissures and whatnot went over the older mens’ heads.
Two part timers at the coffee shop and friends of the sisters, Mylo and Claggor, were making plans for a surprise party that weekend for Powder’s eighteenth birthday. Meanwhile, Felicia and her husband Connol were planning a small summer vacation at a beachside cabin and wanted to know their availability. A couple hours had passed as they talked before they realized the time. The coffee was finished and the shop was officially closed for business, but Silco hadn’t left yet. He was too engrossed in complaining about a particularly difficult patient he was dealing with at work.
Vander listened, offering small acknowledgments and words of understanding as the other ranted on, unable to hide the gentle smile from resting on his lips. He cleaned up the coffee and mugs and locked the front door before shutting off most of the lights in the cafe. He then picked up the other man’s bag and slung it over his shoulder, prompting Silco to put up the chair he’d been using and follow Vander up a staircase at the back of the shop all while still venting. As Vander took out a different key, he unlocked the door to a small apartment loft above the coffee shop where he lived and set Silco’s bag down near the front entrance. Stepping further inside, he went to the fridge in a small kitchenette, pulling out containers of last night’s leftovers and tossing them in the microwave to warm up.
As he does, Silco rummages through the cabinets to take out some plates and forks, setting the table at the small island counter in the kitchen. It’s muscle memory for both of them at this point, despite having separate homes, Silco practically lived with Vander after spending so many nights together. While neither of them really bothered to put a label on their relationship, they were essentially long time lovers after being close friends in their youth. Despite following different career paths, they remained close, developing a strong bond that held them tightly together. Felicia often told them that they should make their relationship official and get married, even if it was a simple court wedding with papers and no ceremony. Neither of them really thought about it as they were busy with surgeries or running the shop, but they did like the idea. So the two wore a matching set of silver rings on their marital fingers. Though they got some questions every so often, their responses were the same. They weren’t married, but were instead living happily with the person they cherished the most.
“What time do you want to wake up tomorrow?” Vander asks as he pulls out the container of food from the microwave and sets it on the counter between them, pulling up a stool and taking a seat while Silco fills Vander’s place.
“That depends, do you need an extra pair of hands downstairs?” Silco takes a bite of his food, chewing slowly as Vander mulls over the offer.
“No, not really. The boys are coming in and Vi said she could stop in for a bit before heading to the gym. So we’ve got the morning all to ourselves.”
Silco can hear the teasing smile creeping into the other’s voice and tries to hide his own smile as they continue to eat. Vander was the type to wear his heart on his sleeve, so it was easy to guess what the man was thinking. Not that there was anything particularly special on his mind compared to any other night.
“I think I’ll take a nice, hot bath before anything else if that’s alright with you,” Silco says with a light tease in his tone.
“I was about to suggest the same thing. I’m sure you’re exhausted from working so hard at the hospital. Why don’t I join you and I’ll give you a massage while we’re at it, it’ll help you unwind.”
Silco chuckles at the other’s blatant eagerness. It had only been about four days since he last spent the night at Vander’s place, but he understood the desire. He’d be lying if he said he didn’t want to be touching Vander the minute he walked into the shop. Seeing the big guy always made him feel warm and mushy inside, with his charming smile and adorable laughter. He could never get enough of his lover, both his company and his touches. Whenever he spent the night at the cafe, or Vander stopped by his apartment a few minutes across town, there was always plenty of kissing and cuddling. But the sweetness didn’t compare to the amount of debasing and debauchery that went on behind closed doors.
After just four days, Vander was restless, that much was clear. And although he was tired, Silco could feel the urges mounting in him as well. The desire to touch and hold, to be caressed and cradled, to be connected as one in a loving embrace. It was already getting late, so had it been any other work night, they’d have to save the intimacy for another time. But Silco was off for the next two days, and Vander wouldn’t have to go down to the cafe until noon at the earliest. Which meant they had a good three to four hours of time to do with as they pleased. One for each day they had spent missing each other.
As they finished their plates, Vander offered to wash the dishes while Silco got cleaned up first. Grateful, he kissed the taller man on the cheek and sauntered into the bathroom to unwind. Dropping his dirty clothes into the nearby laundry basket for later, he scrubbed off that sterile hospital smell with Vander’s lightly scented soap and filled the tub with clean, hot water. He filled it about halfway, knowing it’d get fuller once Vander stepped inside and leaned against the side of the bath, letting his head rest back on the edge as he shut his eyes. The warm steam helped to loosen up his sore, aching muscles as he poured small handfuls of water over his shoulders. It felt nice to relax after almost thirty two hours of nonstop mania. But the silence also felt lonely. At the hospital there was mere constant chatter in the ER. Here, there was nothing but his own thoughts.
That was until Vander came rushing in. They weren’t all that old, nearing middle to late thirties, but seeing the man rushing to undress like a young teen having his first time was enough to make Silco snicker. Vander shoots him a confused look as he lets his hair down and grabs some extra towels in case there’s some spillover. Silco moves closer to the faucet end of the bathtub, creating space for the other to step in as he dips a hand into the water, only to immediately pull back with a sharp hiss through his teeth. The smaller man tries his best to hide his amusement, but it isn't enough as he bursts into laughter, much to the other’s disapproval.
“Did you really have to go and use up all the hot water, Silco? This thing is practically boiling you alive.”
He tentatively dips his hand back in before turning the faucet back on to let some cold water lower the temperature. This time, it’s Silco’s turn to flinch as the icy water splashes onto his skin and he moves back, making Vander smirk and chuckle.
“If you’d gotten here sooner it'd have been the perfect temperature, so I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Fine, fine, I guess you deserve the extra heat tonight. I’ll leave your little sauna alone, so move over a bit unless you want me on top of ya.”
Silco complies and Vender sinks into the bathtub behind him, sucking in a sharp breath as the hot water singes his dry skin. Vander preferred colder showers as he naturally produced a lot of extra body heat, being the type to wear light coats in the dead of winter and still be fine. Meanwhile, Silco needed his water to be piping hot, both because of the therapeutic effects it had on his aching muscles but also because he got cold very easily, even in the summertime. Their dichotomy was probably what made them an even better pair as Silco ran colder than usual and his hands served as the perfect temperature to cool Vander down on a hot day. As for the extra body heat, Vander was essentially a walking heating pad for the reptile Silco became once the weather started to drop.
As Vander finally acclimates to the higher temperature, he gets comfortable in the tub and wraps his hand around Silco’s waist, pulling the other into his lap as he holds him close. He can feel the smaller man start to relax, a gentle finger tracing circles into the wet hairs across his forearm. As the steam continues to rise and warm his body, Vander rests his head on Silco’s shoulder and softly kisses his back, remaining sweet and tender. It’s quiet still, but no longer lonely like before. This peace never came often enough, nor did it last nearly as long as they wished, but it’s what they got. These brief moments of respite amongst the chaos of the world as it continues steadily turning on its axis. Perhaps, in another life, in another time, they would have more of these sweet moments together.