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The loud whir of the milk frother was all y/n could hear as she tried to make a leaf in someone latte. She wasn't very good at the latte art, but her manager had said that if she didn't learn, they'd fire her. Who fires someone over latte art? Y/n thought it was kind of insane, but she really needed the job, so she tried.
She may have developed a small hatred toward the people who ordered lattes with designs, but that was okay, she kept it to herself and did her best. And if she got a few complaints and then went and screamed in the walk-in freezer, that was nobody's business but her own. And maybe her concerned coworkers.
Why did it seem like everyone was ordering lattes with art on them these days? It was such a blow to her ego every time a customer looked excited to receive their drinks, only for their brows to furrow and smile to drop when they got their wonky looking drink.
Could someone just order a normal coffee for once? Please?
"Hi, welcome to Roast Lab, what can I get started for you?" She slapped her customer service smile on, but cringed internally at the stupid name of the damn cafe.
She took a quick look at the guy, he was definitely new to the shop, she would have remembered him. He was wearing fitted black cargo pants held up by a black belt and a simple black shirt. He had a black beanie on his head with a logo y/n recognized for a nearby firehouse. There was a baggy black and red jacket thrown over the top with a recognizable first-aid patch over the sleeve. The hair peeking out of his beanie was brown, and so were his eyes. He was actually kind of cute.
Y/n knew most of the paramedics around, given their shittily named shop unfortunately had the best coffee around. She'd met a lot of first responders at her current job, knew most of their orders, too.
"One medium americano and one iced mocha, to go, please." He said, pulling his wallet out of his back pocket.
Y/n almost cried in relief at the order. She quickly told him his total, and he tapped his card. She got a name for the order and noted it. When y/n turned around for a second after getting tapped on the shoulder by her coworker, Ino sneakily slid a tip into the tip-jar.
This was his first time at Roast Lab. He'd recently been transferred to a different firehouse, so it was a completely different area than his last house. His partner, Yuji, had insisted that Roast Lab was the best place for coffee on their route. Yuji was... interesting. He was like if sunshine was a person. This was his second shift with the guy, and although he'd questioned his abilities at first, he was pleasantly surprised to learn he was very good at his job.
Ino grabbed the two coffees when they were ready, glancing at the barista on the way out.
"Here." Ino climbed back into the rig and handed Yuji his drink.
"Sweet, thanks!" He smiled and took the drink.
He would never understand how Yuji could drink that sugary monstrosity, but he guessed it matched his personality.
Ino took a sip of his drink, and had to admit that it was pretty good. A call came in not long after, and they were off.
~
"Yuji- theres protocol for a reason." Ino stressed as he unzipped the jump bag.
"Yeah, yeah- I hear you." He answered, already helping the patient.
"Nanami will not be happy about this." He groaned and jumped into helping Yuji stabilize the patient.
Yuji had never been one for protocol, but Ino had to begrudgingly admit that his energetic partner was very good at his job. Yuji tended to ignore most protocols and whine about paper work, but he always got serious when it came to patient care. He'd asked Yuji why he'd become an EMT, and it was such a simple response, but he respected it.
He'd said, 'I just want to help people' with this big, dumb smile on his face.
~
Y/n yawned and put her bag in her locker, quickly changing into her shirt and apron. She made sure she looked presentable and then went to clock in for her shift. She got to work immediately at the register, taking over for a coworker. She was only working for about an hour before she was ready to quit.
There was an influx of latte art requests, and y/n was going to scream.
Y/n looked up and said her usual line, waiting for the order. She recognized the guy from the previous day, the cute EMT.
"One medium americano and one iced mocha, to go, please." Ino grabbed his wallet, already pulling out his card.
Y/n told him his total, he paid, and then he stepped aside to wait for the drinks. Again, when y/n turned around for a second, Ino slipped a tip into the jar. He'd just grabbed the coffees when Yuji's voice sounded over his radio. He thanked her quickly and left the shop.
~
That was how three months easily passed by the two. It didn't take long for y/n to remember Ino's order and already have it rung up before he could open his mouth. It had surprised him the first time, but he was used to it by the third time around. It became normal for them to have little conversations when the shop was slow. It started with y/n first. She asked about how his day was going, just some small talk to ease her boredom.
They slowly grew closer than your average barista-regular relationship. It was routine for them to ask about each other's day and be honest about how it was really going. Y/n grew quite the crush on Ino in those three months, but she didn't want to be the one to make the first move.
She didn't even know if he liked her too, he could have just thought of her as a friend, if that.
~
Ino had been to the coffee shop a few times a week, but only now was he realizing just how cute y/n was. His cheeks warmed slightly as y/n smiled at him as she handed him his drinks.
"Have a good day." She said.
Ino swallowed thickly. "You too." He said before quickly turning on his heel and walking out of the coffee shop.
Was he stupid? How did he not recognize that y/n was so cute? Thinking back, he had to say that he and y/n had grown quite close considering the situation. It had been quiet, and it had snuck up on him. Did he like her?
While Ino was having a slight inner crisis, he climbed back in the rig and handed Yuji his drink. Yuji took a sip of his drink and looked over at his partner, noticing the expression on his face.
"Dude, what's up?" He asked.
Ino groaned and put his head in his hands. "I think I like the barista."
Yuji laughed. "You're upset about that?"
"No." He lifted his head. "I just don't know what to do about it."
"Ask for her number!"
Ino was quiet for a moment. "I will, tomorrow."
Yuji grinned and punched his shoulder lightly. "Yeah! Good luck, man."
~
The day was going slow, not many customers were in the coffee shop, and the sky was dark, only illuminated by the stars and faint crescent moon. Y/n hadn't seen Ino yet, but she knew that he was working. She learned his schedule over the past few months, and it was weird that he wasn't there, she felt like some part of her day was missing.
She always looked forward to seeing her crush, and not seeing him for a day was a little worrying. She was nearing the end of her shift, and there was still no sign of Ino. Y/n worked until 10pm, but the coffee shop was open 24 hours. It didn't start out that way, but with the high population of first responders working in the area, the owners decided it would be better for business if it was open longer.
The bell above the door dinged, and y/n lifted her head. Her face lit up as she stood in front of the cash register. Ino approached slowly, rubbing the back of his neck. He looked a little nervous.
"The usual?" Y/n asked.
"Yeah." He nodded.
Y/n put the order in and leaned over the counter, propping her chin up on her palm. Behind her, a coworker began making the drinks.
"You okay?" She asked.
"Yeah." His hand dropped from his neck. "I just, um, I wanted to ask for your phone number. You don't have to give it to me though, no pressure." He said.
He was a little awkward, but it was endearing.
Y/n's eyes widened at his question, but a smile quickly broke out on her face.
Finally, she thought.
They both fumbled for their phones before finally exchanging numbers. When the drinks were finished, Ino picked them up and bit the inside of his cheek, not wanting to leave yet.
"Have a good rest of your shift, be safe." Y/n said sincerely.
"I will." He replied, turning and walking out of the shop, cheeks tinted red and his heart beating wildly.
He climbed into the rig and handed Yuji his drink. "Did you do it?" He asked excitedly.
"I did." He said, taking a sip of his coffee. Yuji stared at him expectantly. "We exchanged numbers."
"Yeah!" Yuji punched his shoulder lightly. "That's awesome, man."
~
Two days later, Ino and Yuji's unit was called to the scene of a partial apartment building collapse. In those two days, he and y/n had been talking a lot, basically any time they were free. It was nice to get to know each other properly outside of the coffee shop, outside of the time constraints of talking at y/n's place of work.
Y/n thought that Ino was cute, a little awkward, kind, and incredibly driven.
If only she didn't have the worst luck in the world.
That apartment collapse? It was her building. She knew that the building was sketchy, but this took the cake. It was the only apartment that she could afford on her salary, but she had never expected this.
How unlucky am I? y/n thought as she coughed into her hand.
She had been in the stairwell on the third floor at the time of the collapse, but now she was somewhere on the first, she thought. There were only four floors to the entire building, so there was that, at least. At least it wasn't ten floors of debris above her head. She was honestly surprised that she hadn't been crushed.
The building was now dark, but she could hear people calling out for help and the yelling from the first responders. It'd already been a bit since they'd arrived, and they were working to dig them out. Only half of the building had collapsed, and thank god it wasn't the side her unit was on. She would have just wished to die in the collapse if all of her stuff had been buried under debris.
Y/n sighed shakily and wiped her face. She just had to stay calm and wait, she could do that.
~
Okay, so y/n was starting to not be so calm. An hour into waiting, and she was still there, buried under rubble. There had apparently been more debris above her than she'd thought. She was dusty, her skin was sweaty, and her body hurt. She thought she was fine after the collapse had happened, but now, assuming it was the adrenaline wearing off, she was in pain. Her arm was hurting something fierce, and she had a splitting headache. Her arm was definitely broken, she could tell that much.
~
Ino and Yuji's unit arrived on the scene and immediately jumped into action. They had been a little late, as they were held up at a previous scene of an overdose. There were quite a few injured people, but most of them were minor injuries. Very few were in real danger, but there were a lot of people that needed to be seen in the triage area.
Ino was checking over a child with a broken leg when he heard a familiar voice. His head whipped to the side, and his eyes landed on y/n. His heart stuttered in his chest, what the hell as she doing there? Was this her building?
He quickly finished up with the child, gave her a reassuring smile, and then sped over to y/n, who was sat in the triage area by some firefighters.
"Y/n?" He said, appearing in front of her.
"Oh god." She said, squinting up at him. "Why did it have to be you?" She groaned.
He furrowed his brows, eyes studying her for injuries. She looked terrible, all covered in dust, but no blood, which made his shoulders relax slightly.
"This is so embarrassing." She grumbled.
"Embarrassing? You were in a building collapse." He said, slightly confused.
She sighed and cradled her injured arm. Ino jumped back into EMT mode and checked her over.
"Your arm is broken," He said, pulling a splint out of his bag. "but other than that you seem fine."
"Thought so." Y/n winced as he straightened her arm in the splint. "Thanks."
"Just doing my job." He said steadily, but he was still worried about her.
"At least I got a cute paramedic." Y/n joked lightly.
Ino's lips twitched with a smile. Soon after, he was called over by Yuji to help with a more critically injured patient, so y/n shooed him off and told him that she would be fine.
~
True to her word, y/n was fine after getting her broken arm set and a cast put on at the hospital. She'd texted Ino a picture of herself leaving the hospital a few hours later before heading over to her parent's house. She couldn't go home until the building was deemed stable enough. All she wanted to do was get her things and say to hell with that building. She would have to live with her parents until she could find another place to live, preferably one that wouldn't collapse.
~
The next morning, in the spare bedroom of her parent's house, y/n's phone lit up with a call. Y/n rolled over and picked up the call, rubbing her eyes.
"Hello?"
"Hi." She heard Ino speak.
"Did you just finish your shift?" She asked, checking the time. It was early, 7am.
"Yeah." He answered, and she heard a car door closing. "I just wanted to check on you."
"You're so sweet." Y/n teased. "I'm all good." She smiled tiredly.
He cleared his throat and rubbed the back of his neck. "Good, thats good."
Y/n hummed and pulled the blanket up higher, tucking it under her chin. "Are you going to go home and sleep?"
"I was going to get something to eat first." He paused, feeling nervous. "Um, do you want to come get breakfast with me? Only if you want." He rushed out the last sentence. "You don't have to."
Y/n quickly sat up. "I want to."
Ino felt his nerves lessen. They agreed that Ino would pick up y/n and they'd go to a breakfast place close by. Her parents place was twenty minutes from the station Ino worked out of, and that was enough time for her to get ready. She'd showered the night before when she got to the house, so all she needed to do was fix herself up a little bit and get dressed.
Y/n dressed, fixed her hair, and made sure she looked presentable. She didn't try too hard, it being 7am and all. It was a little hard to get ready with the cast, but thankfully it was on her non dominant arm. Honestly, she would have gone back to sleep if he hadn't asked her out for breakfast. On weekends, she usually didn't get up until noon, and then she just lazed around.
She was a bit tired, but she wanted to get breakfast with him more than sleep. When her phone buzzed, it was Ino telling her that he was there. Y/n smiled and left the house, climbing into Ino's car.
"Hi." She said, clicking her seatbelt into place.
"Hi." He said.
Y/n asked Ino about his shift, and he told her about the calls they got after the partial collapse. It was the usual, apparently. Overdoses, suspected heart attacks, kitchen and gardening accidents. Y/n was surprised to learn how many of their calls were for seniors falling over in their homes.
When they got to the breakfast place, Ino opened the door for y/n and they were sat at a table near a large window facing the street. Conversation flowed naturally, all those days in the coffee shop making it easy to fall into the same patterns.
Ino felt a little awkward about hanging out in a different setting, but it was also nice. It was nice to get to know her without having to keep it within a 5-10 minute time frame. She was interesting, and he liked listening to her talk.
By the end of their little breakfast date, y/n was sure her little crush had far surpassed just a little crush, and Ino was in the same boat. When y/n had gone to use the bathroom, Ino paid for their food and told her when she got back.
Then, when he dropped her off, y/n hesitated before leaning over the centre console and quickly kissing his cheek.
"I had fun." She smiled shyly before darting to the front door.
Ino blinked a few times, cheeks red and mind scrambled.
Yeah, he really liked her.