Work Text:
The cafe's warm lights were comforting, a perfect contrast to the cool grays outside. The place oddly smelled more of fresh bread rather than coffee. Maybe that's why she liked it so much, she could feel more detached from her work at a place like this. She stood right by the entrance door looking out through its glass panels—a loud downpour. She would be lying if she said she didn't like the rain, but this is a bit excessive even for her. However, it is sunset, and she needs to be heading home. She readied her black umbrella before reaching for the door handle and-
"Uh, excuse me, ma'am?" A small voice said from behind. She turned around to see a short girl with long cyan twintails very similar to her own. "May I... exit?"
The taller one stared at her blankly. ...Oh. She's been staring out this door for probably a few minutes now, not realizing she may be in the way of other people. The taller girl stuttered, "Oh, uh, yeah. Sorry." She stepped aside and held the door open for her, making the rain grow louder now that it was open. She felt the cool breezy air hit her, brushing aside the scent of baked goods in exchange for the scent of fresh rain.
"Thanks." She began to walk past, however the blue one noticed something off.
"You don't have an umbrella?"
She halted, "Oh, uh... no. I'll be fine, though."
"...You're sure?" She couldn't quite tell what came over her, but she felt a type of worry for the shorter girl.
The cyan one tugged at the bottom of her skirt, fidgeting, "Heh, well, my hair may get ruined, but. It... should be fine."
"You could get a cold. Here, take mine." She offered the black umbrella, "I can wait for the rain to pass." Generosity was a side of herself she didn't show to people often, but for some reason... this girl made her want to show off, in a way.
The shorter girl took the umbrella, "Oh. A-are you sure?"
She readjusted the knot of her tie and glanced around the room, the coffee shop was quite vacant today, "Yeah. A few more hours here may do me good anyway." The warmth and solitude of the place allowed room for personal thought, something she usually didn't have much time for. Just a few more moments away from the bustling stress of work and routine sounded more than pleasant.
The shorter girl laughed awkwardly, "I only need to walk to my taxi," she peered out the door, and so did the taller girl—the taxi was parked maybe thirty feet away from the building, at the end of the crosswalk on the edge of the road. Its bright yellow hues are dimmed by the bluish atmosphere and slightly obscured by the light fog. ...She absentmindedly cocked an eyebrow. Why did it choose to park so far away? Maybe it got the building wrong. The cyan girl spoke again, "I appreciate it, though." She handed the umbrella back to the taller girl.
She thought for a second. Then took the umbrella. "I'll walk you there." Hand gliding from the door handle and along the glass to keep the door open, she stood in the door frame, feeling gentle flecks of rain hit her face as she just barely stood under the small roofing that held the building's entrance sign. She opened the umbrella while pointing it out into the grays. She stepped out with it opened above her now blocking the rain from her face. Looking back, she noticed the shorter girl appeared to be hesitant.
But she nodded, "...Okay. Thank you." Her voice was delicate and genuine. She stepped out under her umbrella whilst not looking at her, seeming nervous. The taller girl couldn't deny it, she definitely had a cute look to her. A long sleeved black and gray shirt with a cyan tie around her collar that matched her hair, the slightly different cyan shades on her skirt went well with her red hair ties. Not to mention... she just had a cute face.
The blue one stepped forward, and the cyan one followed with her movements. They let the door swing shut on its own, it closed with a faint click sounding through the rain. They began walking across from near the doorway, and to the start of the crosswalk. The rain was loud against the umbrella's stretched fabric. The taller girl didn't realize just how windy it was—their hair blew wildly as she tried to keep the umbrella stable.
They didn't say a word to each other as they stood at the start of the cross walk, waiting for an opening to go across. She made sure to hold the umbrella over the shorter girl more than herself. Large drops of rain pelted against the top of her head and her suit jacket's shoulder pad. She didn't mind, she liked how cold water felt against the skin of her face.
It was a Sunday, so it made sense the roads were extra busy at this time. The taller girl imagined all the different people in the cars speeding by, and wondered where they were heading. Maybe one of these cars carried a group of friends going to a restaurant together. Maybe another held a different group of friends, a group that was maybe heading out of town or some such. ...Part of her wished she was in one of those cars. It's not that she wants to go anywhere on a busy day like this, she just sometimes... kinda misses her work friends. They may not be the nicest bunch but they're still people who chose to consistently interact with her outside of a professional context. Those types of people are hard to come by.
She glanced over to the shorter girl... Hm. It'd be silly to ask her out in a moment like this. She probably wouldn't even be able to hear the blue one's voice over the loud umbrella. But... ugh, no, she's clearly very busy and has places to be. There's no way she'd be interested in seeing her again. This is just strangers helping each other out.
The shorter one lightly tapped on the taller one's arm, snapping her out of her thoughts. "I think we have an opening—come on, let's go." The cyan girl said. They checked both ways before walking forward.
As they speed-walked across the road, the taller girl's confidence trickled away like rain would down a drain. Drops of rain hit her dress pants. Harsh thudding against the umbrella and an already noisy city landscape around them, yeah. This would be a terrible time to ask someone out. Her heart rate quickened as they continued to walk—her lips pressed together and she glanced around to check for cars again—but what if? She thought to herself, what's the worst that could happen? Just a little rejection? It's not like she was exactly new to the concept.
They both halted their pace at the same time when they reached the taxi. She heard the shorter girl speak over the noise, her volume was raised to accommodate for the noisy weather, "Y'know you really didn't have to do this, but-" She firmly pulled at the car's door handle to open it, the taller one held the umbrella over her as she entered the backseat of the car, rain streamed down her hair, "I really appreciate it regardless, thank you so much!"
The blue one bent down to be eye level with the girl sitting in the car. ...She really was pretty. "No problem. You have a lovely night."
"Do you come to this café often?" The cyan one abruptly asked.
...She looked to the front seat of the car, she really didn't want to hold up the driver for too long. "Oh, uh, yeah—every Sunday." The taxi's interior smelt of vanilla and nectarines.
"A-alright! I'll see you next week maybe? I tend to come by on Sundays too, actually."
Oh. Well... "Um, sure." It's not often the other person would show interest first, at least for her... "You should probably get going now then, right?" She felt a blush coming on, she didn't want to embarrass herself.
"Yeah... close the door and I'm off, heh."
The taller girl blinked, "Ah, yeah, uh- alright." She stood up straight and hesitantly closed the car door, though still firm so as to actually close it.
She stepped back slightly, they made eye contact through the window. The cyan girl waved, but the blue girl was a little too starstruck to reciprocate the gesture. She saw her look over to the front seat and say something to the driver.
Then the taxi drove off, just barely splashing water on her shoes in the process.
...
She stood there in the middle of the road, umbrella in her left hand, she placed her right hand over her heart, watching them drive away. Yup. Still pounding hard. She laughed a little, oh, gosh, it felt kinda weird. She was already looking forward to next Sunday more than she usually would. It was even weirder that the girl was the one to ask the question... What was it about the blue one that made the shorter girl interested? She was undyingly curious, but just couldn't quite identify it on her own. Maybe it'll be more apparent next Sunday-
Piercing through the sound of water falling on her umbrella, a near deafening car horn blared directly into her right ear, scaring her half to death. She looked over, bright headlights shining in her face. She could just barely hear the driver of the car say with a rough and scraggly voice, "Get the hell out of the road!"
"Uh, sorry, sir!" She practically jumped over to the nearby sidewalk, umbrella trailing behind her—the car zoomed away along with the other backed up cars.
She stabilized her umbrella above her, and saw the café's warm lights from across the road. Jeez...
She laughed to herself again, this time out of bafflement—that all happened so fast, it-
...
Wait.
Damnit, Miku thought to herself, I didn't catch her name.