Work Text:
Liam glanced over the list on his phone, cursing out his friends under his breath, but knowing that it was his own fault. He’d been the one stupid enough to make a bet with Louis, and lose. So, now, he was stuck being the coffee runner for the office for the next month. Of course, the first day that he was on the job, every single person in the twelve person office wanted coffee. He still wasn’t sure how he was going to manage to get all of the drinks back without spilling them all over himself, or someone else.
He pushed open the door to the small coffee shop that the office usually used, glancing around and taking in the graffiti covered walls, smiling when he saw a few superhero logos scattered throughout the bright colours. His smile grew blinding when his eyes fell on the Batman logo that was painted just over the menu behind the counter.
“Can I help you?” a gruff voice interrupted his study of the room.
Blinking, Liam turned his eyes to the barista and swallowed hard. This man had to be the single most attractive human on the planet. In fact, he was so beautiful, Liam wondered if he was a demi-god. The only thing disrupting the beauty was the terrible scowl on his face. “Uh, y-yeah,” Liam stuttered, mentally smacking himself. He was always terrible talking to attractive people. Especially attractive people he was attracted to .
After a few more moments, where Liam hadn’t moved or spoken, the barista gave out a huff of air that sounded a bit like a growl. “So, what can I help you with?”
“R-right. S-sorry.” Liam cleared his throat and moved closer to the counter, regretting it almost immediately when his senses were overwhelmed with a mix of cologne and spray paint. Was this guy the artist? He glanced around the room, wondering how to ask without sounding like a complete arse.
“Your order? I know there’s nobody else in here right now, but my rush will be starting in the next half hour,” he said, and Liam flinched.
“Uh,” Liam glanced at his nametag, “Z-zayn, I have a l-large order.” He tapped on his phone to unlock it to open up the screen. “I n-need-” He jumped when the phone was snatched out of his hand.
“I need to get this started,” Zayn snapped before turning his back with Liam’s phone.
Over the next ten minutes, Liam watched as Zayn glanced at the phone and quickly maneuvered around the behind the counter making an assortment of drinks, occasionally tapping the phone to keep it open. He handed the phone to Liam the one time it locked, taking it back without a word after Liam had unlocked it. When he was done, Liam stared at the three full drink carriers he set on the counter, trying to figure out how he was going to carry them back to the office.
He saw that Zayn had put names on all of the cups, matching them up to the ones on the list. This small thing pleased Liam; he didn’t think he’d be able to understand the order shorthand that the bigger coffee shops scribbled across the sides of their cups.
“Niall!” Zayn suddenly shouted, startling Liam into almost dropping the carrier he’d just picked up. A blond entered through the back, wiping his hands on his apron.
“Yeah, boss?” the blond asked, a cheeky smile on his face.
“Help this guy get these back to his car,” Zayn pointed to Liam and the drinks on the counter.
“Th-thank you,” Liam stuttered out.
“Don’t need you spilling all of it on the floor, mate,” Zayn said before pushing his way through the door that Niall had entered from.
Niall grabbed two of the trays easily, waiting for Liam to grab the third. He followed Liam outside. “Is he always like that?” Liam asked, quietly, feeling bad for asking when Niall gave him a strange look. “Sorry, I shouldn’t have said that.”
“Like what?” Niall asked. “And where did the stutter go?” Niall slapped a hand over his mouth.
Liam chuckled. “It’s a nerves thing,” he admitted. “He made me nervous.” Liam unlocked his car and tried to figure out where he was going to put the carriers, but Niall nudged him to the side and started to arrange them on the floorboard of the passenger seat. “He was a bit...abrupt.”
Niall laughed loudly. “Zayn was rude to you?” Liam flushed before nodding slightly. “Oh, this is too perfect.” With that strange comment, he disappeared back into the shop without explanation.
Liam got into his car, shaking his head, and frowning. This was going to be a long month, but at least Niall seemed like a nice guy.
The next morning, Liam walked into the shop, determined to be as indifferent to Zayn as he had been to him. He stumbled slightly when he first saw Zayn, thankful the guy seemed more interested in the pad of paper in front of him than who had rung the bell above the door. Stepping over to the counter, Liam laid his unlocked phone in Zayn’s line of sight and took a step back.
Without looking up, Zayn grabbed the phone and began to make the drinks. When he was done, he disappeared into the back room. Niall came out a minute later, laughing lightly under his breath and shaking his head.
“Any better today?” Liam shrugged, picking up one of the trays. Niall grabbed the other two. “Look, Zee’s not a bad guy, yeah?”
“I’m sure he’s not, but I must’ve said or done something to offend him,” Liam said, unlocking the door and setting his tray on the floor. He stepped back to let Niall put the other two in. “So, today, I just didn’t speak at all.”
“I know; he was muttering about it when he came to get me,” Niall said around a wide smile, before patting Liam on the back and heading back into the shop.
Liam walked, unsteadily, into the office, thanking Harry when he came to help him. They distributed the cups together before they were down to only two. Liam looked at the one he had before handing it to Harry, who was smiling widely as he handed over Liam’s cup. Liam headed to his desk, sipping at the sugary tea. Sitting down, he set the cup on the corner, away from his papers.
As he was logging onto his computer, he reached for the cup. He was bringing it to his lips, he saw some extra scribbling at the bottom of the cup. Yesterday’s cup had simply said Me because that was how Liam had identified his order in his phone. He’d done the same on today’s order, but today’s cup said Mystery Man. Liam shook his head, understanding Harry’s grin now.
The next morning, Liam was smiling to himself when he walked into the shop. The smile fell from his face when he saw Niall behind the counter. Liam forced the smile to return before handing his phone over to Niall, who laughed as he disappeared into the back. A few moments later, Zayn reappeared, handing the phone to Liam to unlock. After he did, Zayn turned away to start filling the drink order.
Liam had intentionally put his drink order at the bottom of the list, but he noticed Zayn reaching for a tea bag and pouring sugar into a cup before he attempted any of the other orders. When eleven of the cups were placed in the carriers, Zayn glanced down at the phone. Liam thought he saw the corners of Zayn’s lips twitch. Holding his breath, he waited and a moment later, a full smile bloomed on the lad’s face, increasing his beauty a hundred fold.
“Have I entered an alternate universe or did you really just crack a smile for me?” Liam asked, proud of himself for not stuttering.
“Batman, really?” Zayn spoke, his voice much lighter than the other times Liam had heard him speak.
“Got a smile, didn’t it?” Liam was feeling particularly proud of himself for his accomplishment as he watched Zayn quickly sketch a Bat Symbol on the side of his cup.
“Niall said I made you nervous,” Zayn said after he placed the cup in the final empty spot. He rubbed at his eyebrow with his index finger. “‘M sorry ‘bout that. I, like, get edgy around, like, attractive people.”
Liam’s eyes widened as Zayn’s words sank in. “Y-you f-find me at-t-t-”
“Yeah,” Zayn interrupted, but then looked apologetic. “Rude again.”
Liam shook his head and took a deep breath, trying to steady himself. “It’s f-fine.”
“Do you mind if I help you to your car today?” Zayn asked, chewing his lower lip. Liam grinned broadly as he jerked his head towards the door in invitation.
They walked quietly to the car, shoulders bumping occasionally. When they reached it, Liam opened the door and put the carriers in their place. He turned around and Zayn was holding his phone out to him. “Don’t want you to forget this,” he said, and Liam smiled in appreciation.
“See you tomorrow?” Liam flinched when he realized it sounded like a question, but Zayn nodded before waving, and turning to head back into the shop.
“If not sooner, Batman.” The words were so soft that Liam thought he’d imagined it.
Liam was buckling his seatbelt when his phone went off. Picking it up, he was surprised at the notification. Zayn. iMessage. Sliding it open, he was surprised to see a conversation started. He read Zayn’s response first. Yes. Then he read the text that was sent from Liam’s phone, but not by him. Batman Begins is playing at the Multiplex tonight. Wanna go?
Liam’s jaw dropped, and he started to chuckle as another message from Zayn came across. Hope you don’t mind me asking myself out. Pick me up at the shop at seven?
Liam’s hands shook as he typed out a response. yeeeeeeeessssssss!!! My names really liam.
Liam set the phone to the side and drove back to the office, hoping the coffees weren’t cold. When he got back and picked up his phone, he saw another message. Whatever you say, Batman! ;-)
Louis pulled open the passenger door. “What took you so bloody long? You are not going to weasel out of coffee runs early just because you suck at it. I won that bet fair and square!” he bitched while grabbing two of the carriers and disappearing into the office, still complaining.
“Best bet I ever lost,” Liam said, smiling as he tried to plan out what he was going to wear on his date that night.