Work Text:
The bell hung above the door chimed. "Welcome, give me a moment." You said with the blandest, most uninterested voice you've ever let slip out of you. You couldn't be bothered to perform good customer service right now. You were half turned to the cash register, cleaning up the spilled coffee grounds off the counter and the coffee, that was steadily dripping onto the floor, blooming little brown dots on your shoes.
You didn't even register when you dropped it, the exhaustion from the day catching up to you. Needless to say your shift was not going too well. You looked at the clock on the back wall of the room and counted down the hours to the end of your shift. You were halfway through, you could do this. You took a deep breath and stood up from your crouched position ready to take the customers order. Your eyes softened.
Asa and Anthony were looking at you with more concern than pity, you suddenly felt abashed for greeting them so coldly. Asa smiled at you as if to say "I forgive you". Anthony waved his hand telling you to let it go. You gave an awkward smile to both of them and asked for their order. Asa was looking at the menu while Anthony was glancing around the shop, admiring the garlands hanging in the windows. You weren't sure if he was actually enjoying them or just trying to cheer you up as you were the one that was in charge of the decor this month. He looked back at you and gave you a thumbs up while nodding approvingly. You snickered.
"If we could get a vanilla latte and a mocha that would be perfect!" Asa said cheerfully, infecting you with his, seemingly, unending enthusiasm. You tapped the screen in front of you a few times and asked if they were up for any desserts. "Oh we could be a bit cheeky and share something don't you think?" the shorter man joked and Anthony turned his attention towards his companion, giving him a bright smile. "Oh, I know you want a piece of that honey cake all for yourself, you've been eyeing it ever since we walked in." Anthony said with a chuckle.
Asa jabbed the redhead and requested you add the dessert to their bill along a parfait that "was going to go wonderfully with Anthony's mocha!". They sat down and you began making the order. The coffee shop was relatively empty so you could hear their conversation pretty clearly. Aside from the sound of the machinery, not much was interrupting the sound of the stream of consciousness spilling out of Asa's mouth.
If one was to create a painting to portray adoration, it would've looked like how Anthony was looking at Asa right now. When they were around you, you understood love was real and it was manifesting in the form of two middle-aged men who finally found their soulmate.
You remembered when Asa came to the coffee shop for the first time and after tasting a simple latte you prepared for him, vowed to come back and try every variation of drink you had the option of making. Ever since, whenever he would appear your day would get better. Simple small talk or deeper conversations after closing you held with him would always make you hopeful for the future. You sometimes felt like he had ancient knowledge of the universe or something…
When Asa brought Anthony to his favourite coffee shop he was super nervous about how you were going to react. When 'Mr. Fell' appeared beside a tall ginger, that didn't act anything like your long time friend you were a bit sceptical. Anthony turned out to be just as attentive of a conversationalist as Asa was, just on fewer topics. While the blonde could talk your ear off for a significant amount of time, you mostly lead the conversation with Anthony safe for his astrological rants that you enjoyed immensely.
You brought the order to their table and felt pride at your barista skills when they both hummed with approval, they always did this but you enjoyed it every time anyway. You walked to an adjacent table to pick up the dirty dishes left by previous patrons, still listening on to their conversation absentmindedly. Asa paused his rant regarding whatever was bothering him at the moment and Anthony, taking the opportunity, gestured to the steaming cup in front of his companion.
"Maybe you should take a sip Angel, you're gonna damage your voice."
You paused putting the plates on your tray. You were certain that something was going on between them but this was the first time they used pet names for each other (and in public too!!!). They weren't big on PDA safe for one or two times when they gazed longingly into each others eyes after ordering far too many Irish coffees. You tried to turn around and walk back to the counter as nonchalantly as possible but they must've noticed the change in your demeanour.
When they approached the counter to pay you handed them a small package with a bow around it, claiming it was on the house and that they couldn't say no to it or you'd take it as a personal affront. When they got back to Asa's apartment, just above his bookshop, they unwrapped it and saw two brownies, a few cookies, and two pieces of angel cake.
The next day Anthony dropped off an old edition of you favourite book that, mysteriously, appeared in Asa's bookshop. Inside of it was a note, thanking you for the treats and for your company during their journey. Signed under the message were initials A.F. and A.J.C. with a smiley face and a shooting star, both in different pen colours.
This note would hang proudly on your mirror and would later be mentioned in the speech you gave at their wedding. They exchanged glances while huge warm grins spread on their faces when you pulled out the little piece of paper, worn by time yet still so cherished. Proudly, the invitations displayed A.F.C. and A.J.C.F, Anthony insisted on keeping the 'J', their initials would surely get mixed up after all!