Work Text:
Lance didn’t hate mornings.
But that didn’t mean that he loved mornings.
Regardless of whether he loved them or hated them, Lance had to start his mornings early. Like, way early. He worked morning shift in a small independent coffee shop, so there was no other choice for him. He was often tired because his shifts started at 6, so everything else outside of work had to be done during the afternoons and evenings, and often he ended up staying up late or unable to sleep well. But he loved his job, he loved his work place, he loved his bosses who were more like a family to him, and that made it more bearable.
In fact, he loved it so much that even though he started out as a barista, he has often found himself wondering if he should take up a full apprenticeship as a patissier; Allura and Coran, the owners of “Altea Coffee & Pastries”, were actually pretty awesome patissiers and with Lance’s shifts starting so early, he was sometimes around to watch them still at work on cakes and other sweet delights. However, he had moved to this place to go to college. Sure, he hadn’t made it for this year but like this, he was able to fully get accustomed to the new surroundings, the people, and work on a great portfolio for the fashion design course as well as keep revising for astronomy and all related subjects. Sure, he didn’t have an actual social circle aside from Allura and Coran, part of the other staff and sometimes a bit of smalltalk with customers, but that was okay. He skyped with his family a lot, he still had his beloved cat, and he surely would be able to make more friends once he got accepted to uni the next year. Or if a miracle happened.
He was actually kind of lonely but he ignored it most of the time.
“Altea Coffee & Pastries” had the reputation of having the most amazing coffee in town, but somehow it was never terribly crowded. Or at least it never was during Lance’s shifts in the morning. Sometimes he barely had anything to do at all and it was during mornings like this when he was beginning to wonder if people just didn’t have time to come here in the morning, or if their prices were too high or people just didn’t care about the quality of their coffee and pastries (which, in Lance’s opinion, were even more amazing than the coffee), or maybe it was because of him , he wasn’t the kind of barista people wanted to see in a little shop like this, that he was too ugly or chatting too much or somehow did a bad job even though he was always praised for being the best--
He was interrupted from his thoughts running into a downwards spiral by the sound of the bell by the door chiming to signal the arrival of a customer. Lance prepared his brightest smile - it was something like his trademark trait on the job - to greet the customer. He ended up holding his breath when he took a look at the guy.
This guy was possibly the most handsome he’d ever seen. He was probably around the same age as Lance, as well as about the same height. But unlike Lance - who despite his broad shoulders was very much on the scrawny side and often teasingly called a beanpole or noodle - he was obviously of a stronger build in his arms and back. Probably worked out a lot. Lance could only imagine what his muscles might look like underneath the black t-shirt, black-white-red plaid shirt and red jacket he was wearing. (He actually had to stop himself from going down that train of thought. Being distracted by swooning over a strong customer wouldn’t be so good for his reputation as the best. But damn he wanted to see those muscles.) The guy had black hair, reaching near his shoulders in the back and slightly curling up at the tips. But what caught Lance’s attention the most when the customer stopped in front of the counter, quickly studying the menu, were his eyes: they were purple, looking like some kind of amethyst galaxy. (Lance blamed this weird thought on the lack of good proper rest. Or the fact that this guy came in stunning him out of nowhere with how handsome and hot he was all at the same time. Or his inner artist/poet or whatever. Or all of the above.)
Lance finally remembered that he was supposed to greet his customers. “Hi, good morning, welcome to Altea Coffee and Pastries! What can I get for you?” he asked, trying to make his voice sound as normal as possible, but not quite able to hide the slightly higher pitch. His smile may or may not be just a bit brighter than usual in an attempt to flirt in any way he can.
The guy was looking at him now, eyes darting up and down to take in his appearance. Lance hoped he was only imagining how his face was heating up at the intensity of the gaze even with the other’s eyes moving at this speed. There was a frown on the guy’s face and Lance had no idea if it was because of him or the guy being not-a-morning-person or something. Violet eyes now looking into Lance’s own, the guy said: “Large coffee.”
Lance couldn’t help but snort at this very short answer lacking even a small “please”. “Not a morning person, huh?” he asked while tapping the order into the register, “that’s fine, I can chat enough for both of us.” He looked up to see an eyebrow raised in what he guessed was amusement. “That’ll be 4.50 dollars.” The guy handed over a five dollar bill - Lance took note of the black fingerless leather gloves, wondering if they were some kind of edgy fashion statement or if he was there by bike. Not that there was anything particularly wrong with those gloves - and Lance put it in the register and handed over the change. “What’s your name? You know, for the cup,” he picked up the black marker along with an empty paper cup to stress the point. There wasn’t any actual reason to do this when it’s obvious that it’s just him, and the guy being the only customer around, he really wanted to know the guy’s name and making use of the “it’s a habit of the job”-excuse would work to avoid trouble if the guy pointed it out. If he pointed it out in his state of obviously not being caffeinated yet.
“Keith.” Again, short answer, just the necessary.
Uncapping the marker, Lance wrote the name in his most beautiful handwriting. Somehow, he ended up dotting the “I” with a cute little heart. Before he could go down the path of reasons for this, he proceeded to make the drink, putting it down on the counter along with a lid once it was done. He took note of how Keith added one sachet of sugar, stirring it thoroughly before securing the lid.
Lance watched with a smile as Keith raised the cup to his face, expression lighting up visibly as he took a sip. “The reviews were right, this really is the best coffee in town,” he said.
Lance had no idea how he could possibly smile even brighter than he already had been since Keith had walked in, yet here he was. “Of course! We are the best café around, and I am the best barista. Better remember my face and name!” He pointed to the nametag on his apron (he customised it with a cute kitty he embroidered himself and was very proud of it) and added a little wink for effect. Usually he didn’t actively flirt with guys, rather wanting to be romanced by them, but something made him want to catch Keith’s attention.
“Uh huh,” was all Keith said to that, but Lance could hear a hint of amusement. He really wanted to see Keith smile and hear him laugh. “Who knows, maybe I’ll come back to get my caffeine fix for the morning from here starting now.”
“You’re welcome to stop by anytime - I work morning shift all the time. See you around!”
Keith only gave a small wave as he walked away, left hand adjusting the strap of his bag, the coffee in his right hand.
Lance watched him leave, still smiling. He really hoped he would come back.
The next morning found Lance idly wiping the counter (never mind that it was already sparkling, but there was no one around so there wasn't any other task) when the bells chimed. Straightening up, Lance was delighted to see Keith return. Today, he was wearing a black turtleneck and black skinny jeans combined with the same red jacket and the same fingerless gloves and black messenger bag slung over his shoulder. About 7:15 , Lance noted with a glance at the clock to the side. “Good morning!” he greeted. “So you decided to come back?”
Keith nodded. “One large coffee,” he said once he stood in front of Lance.
“Of course, one large coffee for Keith, coming right up,” Lance said while tapping in the order and taking the money from Keith. At Keith’s questioning look, he shrugged. “It’s easy to remember the names of my regulars when there isn’t much traffic in the morning.” While writing the name on the cup (again in his most beautiful handwriting and dotting the “I” with a little heart), Lance asked: “So is this gonna be your usual?”
“Uh, I guess?” Keith shrugged.
Lance giggled and said in a teasing tone: “Great, you can save your energy for other things then instead of having to say it, and I can start setting up right away.” He could feel Keith’s eyes on him while he prepared the drink. Once it was done and Lance set it down on the counter, he watched as Keith - like the previous day - added one sachet of sugar. He noted that down in his mind along with the time and coffee order.
Also like the previous day, Keith took a sip of his coffee right there at the counter. “This really is the best coffee in town.”
“You’ve made that observation yesterday already.”
Keith shrugged. “Yeah, but it had to be said again. The coffee on campus is shit compared to this. And this place is on my way there, so I get my caffeine earlier.”
“Don’t forget you also get to meet the best barista,” Lance said playfully with his brightest grin.
This gained him a snort and eyebrow raised in amusement. “Nah, I’m definitely just here for the coffee.”
With a wave, Keith turned to leave and Lance watched him, calling out a cheerful “see you again!”
It was only the second visit. He wouldn’t give up that soon.
On Friday - or alternatively called “day three of Keith” - Lance was prepared. The first thing he did after greeting Allura and Coran to start his shift and getting changed into uniform was writing Keith’s name on a cup, complete with heart dotting the “I”. He was determined to keep doing it until Keith noticed, be it in a positive or negative way. By the time the clock said 7:15 and Keith walked through the door (this time, he was wearing a dark red shirt, black leather jacket and cherry red scarf. This combination along with the usual fingerless gloves was not good for Lance’s heart), Lance was ready to tap the order in the register to get started right away.
“Hi Keith!” Lance greeted with his brightest smile. “The usual?”
For a split second, Keith seemed taken by surprise because he hadn’t even finished walking up to the counter but his expression was back to his usual “Don’t talk to me I’m not a morning person”-glare the moment he stood in front of Lance, giving a grunt in reply. Lance took the money from him with a light laugh. He wondered if it was just his imagination that Keith’s glare seemed… softer than the first day.
Once the coffee was done, Lance put it on the counter; however, when Keith reached for the sugar, Lance lightly swatted at his hand. “Nuh-uh, sugar is part of the service,” he said and proceeded to add the one sachet of sugar, stir, and secure the lid. He handed the drink to Keith, who took it from him all while staring at him with his eyebrows drawn together in confused thought. Lance smiled and said: “Here you go, one large coffee with a bit of sugar, made with love!” There was a pleasant tingle on his fingers where Keith’s fingertips had touched them around the hot paper cup.
As Lance expected, Keith immediately raised the cup to his lips to take a first sip. “This coffee really is the best.”
Lance rolled his eyes, but he wasn’t actually annoyed. Well, maybe just a little, because all the praise was only for the coffee. “Of course it is, we are the best café and I am the best, cutest barista.”
“Whatever you say,” Keith said and waved good bye and Lance waved back, calling out a “see you again!”
He wasn’t sure if he really saw the edge of Keith’s lips tug up or if it was just a trick of his mind.
In the weeks following after, it became a routine. Lance preparing the cup for Keith, waiting for Keith to walk in, starting up his order right away and chatting at him the whole time, smiling his brightest smile. Keith usually didn’t come during the weekends, or whenever else he didn’t have class, and Lance really missed him on those days. On days without Keith, Lance would sit with his sketchbook and draw countless of sketches, figures vaguely looking like Keith and wearing his style of clothes. Lance had committed all of Keith’s outfits to memory.
Whenever Allura or any of the others teased him about his pining, he would deny it. But they all knew that was just for show. He knew it was just for show. Lance really had it bad for Keith. And it sucked that Keith still didn’t seem to notice the sneaky little hearts on his drinks.
With every visit, Keith’s face seemed to gradually light up more and more. It was subtle, but warmed Lance on the inside, spreading from his heart to every fiber of his being. Sometimes, Keith even actively joined the conversation and they exchanged banter. Lance was happy whenever Keith showed a smile that was more than just a light tug of his lips. He treasured those moments.
Another constant was at the end of each visit, when Keith would take a sip right at the counter and declare, each time without fail, “this really is the best coffee.”
One time, Lance asked: “Why do you keep saying that?”
“I told you before, I can’t say it often enough,” Keith replied. “I really appreciate amazing coffee.”
“Are you really sure it’s just for the coffee that you come here every day though?” Lance asked. He hoped his voice sounded playful. In truth, his heart was beating a mile. Just blabbering like that was probably a bad idea.
Keith looked at him for a moment that felt like it dragged on far too long before he finally said: “I’m pretty sure it’s just for the coffee.”
“Just wait, one day I’ll get you to admit that you are happy to see me, too,” Lance said with a grin. Sure, it stung a little, but it’s not like it was completely hopeless.
The other snorted a laugh. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“I’ll be waiting right here!” Lance called after him.
He watched as Keith waved back with a half smile and immediately tucked his free hand into the pocket of his red coat the moment he stepped out into the cold.
Nearly 2 weeks had passed after that exchange when something happened. Keith stopped him from adding the sugar to ask why he did that. He had noticed the sneaky little hearts on his cups. He confessed that he fell in love with Lance’s smile .
Keith actually liked him back and Lance was on cloud nine.
The young barista was dying for his shift to end. All morning, after Keith had left, he had been sneaking glances at his phone (or openly staring at it, when traffic was still slow), waiting for Keith to send him a text. He knew he should be more patient, Keith was probably busy with important lectures, but Lance was restless and already missing his… was boyfriend the right word or was it still too early for that? The thought alone made him blush in an excitement that warmed all of his body.
Around 10:30, Lance had finally received a text from an unknown number. He quickly swiped his phone’s lock screen (but not without marvelling at the image of the space scape he picked as background for it) to read the message. “ I don’t have any classes this afternoon. Want to have lunch together? I’ll pick you up when your shift ends. - Keith” Lance beamed down at his phone, quickly responding by telling at what time his shift ended and how much he looked forward to it. He also saved Keith’s number, labeling the contact as “Keith” accompanied with the cat variant of heart-eyes and kissy-face emojis.
By the time his shift finally ended, Lance was giddy. Allura, with a shake of her head and fond smile on her face, told him to finish early; she would step in until Shay would come in to start the afternoon shift. Lance gave her a quick hug before leaving to take off his apron and make sure he was in good condition for a date.
When he stepped back out into the front of the store, he saw Keith leaning against a table near the counter. Heart beating faster, Lance walked up to him with a smile that felt like it would break his face. The impossibly fond smile on Keith’s face when he saw Lance was enough to send Lance straight to heaven. “Hi,” Lance breathed out. It was a little overwhelming that he actually stood right in front of Keith now, without the counter inbetween and not wearing his work apron, and with Keith smiling at him like that.
“Hey,” Keith greeted back, leaning forward to press the softest of kisses to Lance’s lips. “You ready to go?”
“Never been more ready!” Lance said.
And when Keith, still smiling at him like he was the most precious thing in the world, took his hand and led him along out of the store and to the place they were going to have lunch at, that’s when Lance knew that no, it wasn’t just for the coffee. Their feelings were mutual, and this was just the beginning of a really wonderful bond.