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The clock ticked eight o'clock in the morning and Phil's head shot up, looking around excitedly. His eyes lit up when they landed on their new customer and he quickly got the coffee machine started.
He heard a curse coming from near him and smirked. There was no way that he was going to let Mark win today. Twice in a week had been more than enough. He was about to serve some of their homemade biscuits in a plate when he noticed that their customer was already munching on a muffin.
"What the hell?" he mumbled under his breath. He had only been distracted for a minute. Phil shook his head in disappointment and focused his efforts on making the best ever coffee. He should have known better than to allow himself to get distracted.
He poured the finished coffee in a foam cup and quickly set to work adding the sugar and chocolate powder just as the customer liked it. He closed the cup and was about to serve it when a thought came to mind.
'Been thinking about you a latte' he wrote down with his sharpie, making sure to draw a little winky face in the end. Phil walked over to the counter and handed the cup to the customer, trying to ignore the bright blush on his face. He just hoped he wouldn't be seen as too forward.
"Here's your coffee Dan, caramel macchiato with one sugar and just a sprinkle of chocolate powder on top", he said, smiling brightly at him. "Just as you like it." Phil was hoping that getting the coffee just right would make up for failing to get the biscuits to him before Mark.
Dan looked at him weirdly and he tried not to let it get to him. He didn't have to wait for too long for Dan to read the little message he had left on the cup and Phil was rewarded for his effort by the sweet smile on Dan's face.
Dan took a sip from his coffee and smiled brightly at Phil. "Perfect, as always", he reassured. "Is everything alright Phil? You're all acting really strange today. Just a few minutes ago Mark almost fell flat on his face in his haste to give me a muffin. I hadn't even ordered yet."
Dan looked like he was suspecting something and Phil found himself trying really hard not to look guilty. It's not as if he could tell Dan the truth. Regardless of how friendly they acted with each other, he was still their client and Phil had to be professional.
"We're trying a new recipe for the muffins and I'm sure Mark was just excited for you to try them", he said, ignoring the dark look Mark was giving him.
Phil was usually not like this. He was a very friendly person and usually got along with everyone but Mark was the exception. It's not like anyone could blame him though. For months he had been trying to get Dan's attention and when he finally managed to get a name out of him, Mark ruined everything.
Phil would never forget the day he first saw Dan. It was eight in the morning and Phil was busy stacking their displays with freshly baked muffins, croissants and cakes when he heard the door bell ding. Looking up, he came face to face with the most beautiful man he had ever seen and it took him a while to finally get himself under control enough to be able to take the customer's order.
He just couldn't help himself. Phil could feel himself getting lost in those deep brown eyes and when the dimples appeared he just melted. Where had this man been all his life? He forced himself to focus enough to hear his order and quickly got to it.
Phil tried really hard to start off a conversation with the good looking stranger to no avail. He tried not to get discouraged and passed it off as him being really shy. The bright blush on his face every time Phil so much as smiled could easily confirm his suspicions.
When the stranger got up to leave, Phil tried to bury down his disappointment. It’s not as if he could hang around the coffee shop all day. He just hope that this wouldn’t be the last time he saw him. Luckily for Phil, the stranger was back the day after at eight o’clock sharp once again and he couldn’t have been happier.
They created a routine between the two of them. The stranger would come in at eight, Phil would have his caramel macchiato and favourite biscuits ready and would be rewarded by a shy smile. Any attempts at conversation pretty much failed so Phil ended up just talking to himself most of the time but he didn’t mind. He hated sounding like a walking cliche, but, getting to see the stranger everyday was good enough for him.
Things kept on going like that until, one fine day, the stranger decided to break the cycle. “My name’s Dan”, he mumbled shyly, looking at Phil from underneath his eyelashes. Even though all he’d gotten was a name, Phil had never felt more accomplished. At least now he could put a name to someone that had caught his interest from the very start instead of just referring to him as ‘the stranger’.
Phil couldn’t help but think that this was the beginning to something new. Things always had to start from somewhere and finally getting to know Dan’s name was the first step to a beautiful friendship. Now all he had to do was make sure Dan was comfortable enough with him to continue a conversation.
It took some work but, slowly, Dan started opening up to him. It started with silly conversations about the weather and developed into passionate conversations about Muse, Buffy and all sorts of other things they found out they had in common. It didn’t take long at all for Phil to admit that his meaningless crush had turned into something more. Maybe if he approached the subject gently, Dan wouldn’t get scared off and he’d agree to going out with him…
Phil never had the chance to test out his theory. One of his coworkers, Mark, was given the same morning shifts as him and he was as infatuated with Dan as Phil had been the first time he landed eyes on him. Suddenly Phil found himself having to compete for Dan’s attention and he hated it. He hated the sort of person it made him become.
He was always so nice to everyone and willing to compromise in order to reach a solution accepted by everyone but all that went out of the window when he saw Mark flirting and Dan smiling back at him. He would not let all his work go to waste because some other barista decided to set his eyes on Dan.
That’s how it all began. It started innocently enough, with both Phil and Mark trying to be the first ones to make Dan’s coffee and privately competing to see who could make the best caramel macchiato. It didn’t take long to progress into more creative competitions like who could get Dan a pastry first or who could get him to blush the most.
Phil couldn’t help but feel as if he was a little kid once again competing over someone’s affections. And the worst part? Dan was oblivious to it all. He genuinely thought they were both really nice guys who acted this way with all their clients. If only he knew the heated glares exchanged between them behind his back.
The fact that Dan had finally caught on the fact that something was not right spoke volumes of how ridiculous they must be acting. Phil couldn’t help but think that his written comment on the cup might have been a step too far. He had never done that sort of thing for Dan before and, as oblivious as the other boy was, he wasn’t stupid. He was just about to try and explain himself when Mark jumped into their conversation and looked at Dan, a smirk on his face. “Is there anything else I can get you Danny?”
Phil saw red. No one called him Danny but him. How dare Mark barge in where he was obviously not wanted and try to ruin everything. Dan was obviously not interested in him in that way and Mark was just making him uncomfortable by insisting that he - wait, why was Dan smiling at his coworker?
He could only look on in horror as Dan blushed and murmured something about wanting to try their new cookies. Mark looked like the cat who had gotten both the milk and the canary. He told Dan he would get some for him and then left but not before looking at Phil in satisfaction.
How was it possible? How could Dan have chosen Mark over him? Phil thought they’d shared a special connection and were close to becoming great friends. The realisation hit Phil as soon as that thought crossed his mind. Dan only saw him as a good friend and his real interest was in Mark. Phil felt like his day couldn’t have gotten off to a worse start.
He went back to the coffee machine and acted as if he was busy cleaning it. In reality, his whole attention was on Dan and Mark and the way they were talking to each other with small smiles on their faces. He couldn’t handle seeing them like that so in the end he dropped all pretences of cleaning and moved to the backroom. Better to distract himself by carrying around boxes and stocking shelves than having to look at Dan and Mark’s lovestruck faces any longer.
Two hours had passed by the time he finished everything he could do in the back room. His shift was almost over and Dan would surely be gone by now. He could safely come out of hiding, sign out and then go home where he could mope in peace. What he was not expecting was to see Dan waiting for him outside.
“What are you doing here?” he snapped and quickly winced when he realised just how rude he sounded. The hurt look on Dan’s face didn’t help him feel any better. It wasn’t the other boy’s fault if he didn’t feel the same way about him. It wasn’t fair for Phil to hold it against him and he knew it. Knowing all that still didn’t make it any easier for Phil to face him after what had happened a few hours earlier.
Dan just looked confused. “What the hell is going on Phil? I come in for my usual coffee only to have you and Mark racing for who will finish my coffee first, who will bring me the best pastry and you writing weird things on my cup. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed it even though it was so horrible it was laughable but it’s not really something you’ve done before.”
Phil was once again reluctant to admit the truth, especially now that he knew Dan had chosen Mark. Dan seemed to have noticed the conflicted look on his face because he rolled his eyes and took a step closer. “Please just tell me Phil. I thought we were friends.” That was a low blow and Dan knew it.
Phil still found himself falling for it and opened his mouth to talk, making sure to avoid Dan’s eyes. “It doesn’t really matter now, you obviously chose Mark. I’ve been trying for months to get you to open up to me enough that I could ask you out and all Mark had to do was offer you a cookie?” He looked up to check on Dan’s reaction and flinched. He had expected for him to be upset, but he hadn’t realised that he’d be so…angry. “I’m sorry, I should have told you how I felt from the start.”
Dan scoffed and shook his head. “This isn’t about that and you know it. I wasn’t aware that I had to choose someone in the first place so I don’t understand why you’re even accusing me of choosing Mark.” Phil had been right, Dan really was oblivious.
“I thought you were my friend but apparently I’m just some toy you can compete over with your coworker until the ‘best’ wins”, Dan said and Phil really wished he could unsee the way Dan’s eyes were wet with tears.
He had absolutely no idea what he could say to explain himself because, in the end, Dan was right. Even though Phil had taken an interest in him straight away, things had changed the second Mark came into the picture. They had both acted as if Dan was some property that could be won if they just impressed him enough with their barista skills.
Even if he had somehow managed to find the words to express himself, Dan didn’t seem to be interested in hearing them and he quickly walked off without another glance back. “Congratulations Phil, you’ve really done it this time”, he muttered to himself, feeling dejected.
*
Phil went in to work bright and early the next morning. He cleaned up the tables and adjusted the chairs. Mark had called in sick so at least he wouldn’t have to deal with his smug face today. Small mercies and all that.
A few minutes before eight, Phil started preparing a caramel macchiato. He added one sugar and a sprinkle of chocolate powder then placed the cup on the counter. He knew it was silly to think that Dan would come back after the way it had ended the day before but Phil just couldn’t bear the thought of never looking at those brown, expressive eyes and sweet dimple ever again.
He just wanted a chance to apologise for his behaviour, that’s all.
At nine, there was still no sign of Dan and Phil was steadily losing hope that he would show up. In the months since he had started coming here, Dan had never missed a single day and he had always come in at eight. “I guess he was just too hurt to forgive me.” He picked up the cup set waiting on the counter and threw it in the trash, trying not to think of what exactly this meant.
Needless to say, it was not a good day for Phil. His mind was constantly playing tricks on him, seeing Dan every time he so much as looked up. He kept forgetting orders and messing up the ones he did remember. Phil couldn’t remember when he was last this excited to take off the apron and leave the counter to somebody else.
He walked out and sighed. Apparently his brain had decided to play one last trick on him since he was now seeing Dan waiting right next to the door. The small smile directed at him convinced him even further that this couldn’t be real. What finally snapped him out of it was the feeling of Dan taking his hand in his own.
“Hey.”
Phil knew that he should probably say something instead of just staring like an idiot but he just couldn’t believe this was happening. Dan was here, he was right in front of him and he was smiling at him instead of glaring like the last time they had seen each other. “Dan?”
“I’m sorry I didn’t come in today, there was still some stuff I needed to figure out”, he said with a shrug. “I’m still not entirely happy with the situation. I don’t like the fact that I turned into some sort of prize and now I feel bad for Mark because I think I might have led him on without even being aware of it.”
Phil was just about to apologise once again when he realised what Dan had just said. “Wait, what do you mean by led him on?” He didn’t dare start hoping in case it turned out to be completely different than what he was thinking but if Dan meant what he thought he did, then he…
Dan laughed and shook his head in exasperation. “I’m not the most aware person when it comes to these kind of things but you’re even worse than me”, he said, looking amused. “I don’t really talk to people that much. I’m shy and I’m quiet so making friends can be difficult for me. I prefer observing from a distance because most people don’t have the patience to wait around until I’m ready to talk. You did.”
Phil was finding it really hard to keep himself from hoping. Could it be possible that maybe he had read the situation wrong yesterday and he still had a chance?
“You didn’t give up on me when I wouldn’t really talk back, even if that meant you ended up talking to yourself half of the time. You took things at my own pace even once I started opening up to you and that means more to me than you could possibly imagine. I didn’t know you and Mark were in some kind of competition to get my attention, I thought he was just being friendly. If you had just asked me I would have told you that I only have eyes for you.”
Nothing could have prepared Phil for the feeling of warm lips against his own and his eyes widened in shock. Dan was kissing him, Dan was actually kissing him. He quickly moved his arms around Dan’s waist and pulled him closer before he got any ideas in his head that he didn’t want this.
He had no idea how long they stayed there, in front of their café, kissing in front of everyone to see. All Phil knew was tat nothing could beat the feeling of Dan smiling against his lips as he hugged him. “Phil, you’re the one I want you spork.”