Work Text:
His fingers tapped nervously on the counter. It was the first thing Ludwig noticed. Obnoxious. No rhythm. This man wanted to leave.
Usually, the other man was polite--at least when talking to some of Ludwig’s coworkers. Never had Ludwig actually gotten to take his order, though he'd seen him around a few times. Everytime Ludwig talked to a customer, they would often stutter, avoid his gaze, and rush out.
Often, he would hear this man and one of his coworkers chatting joyfully and laughing as he waited for his drink to be finished. Though he never caught his name, Ludwig couldn’t forget him. His blond hair and thick eyebrows stood out the most. He would always order Earl Grey tea, and tipped generously.
“I would l-like some, uh, Earl Grey tea, please.”
No surprise there. “Name?”
“Excuse me?”
“What’s your name, sir?”
“Oh, uh, yeah. Arthur.”
Ludwig quickly scribbled Arthur’s order. Arthur glanced everywhere...the ceiling, the counter, the tip jar, which only contained three dollar bills, and even at a few employees in the back. But not at Ludwig.
Like Ludwig cared. No one usually made eye contact with him. And, quite frankly, he didn’t want them to. They probably didn’t have very pretty eyes anyways. If he wanted to make eye contact, he could look in the mirror. Ludwig had nice blue eyes.
Arthur rushed to a seat and picked up a newspaper off a pile of The Golden Times.
Thank goodness. I’d hate to get caught listening to his rambling.
Despite all that, he still took pride in his work. Carefully, he made sure the tea would taste just as good as any of the other employees’ who mastered the art of tea making. Or at least he tried. Tea was just not his forte.
"Arthur?!” Ludwig called when he felt proud of the steaming cup of Earl Grey tea in front of him.
Without a word, Arthur dug into his wallet, pulled out a few dollars and retrieved his cup before leaving. Ludwig glanced at the tip jar and sighed. Three dollar bills.
~
Ludwig happily replaced the freshly-baked cake in the oven with a new set, then gazed proudly at his creations. He had worked hard on these. Usually, he only baked in the morning, but today, they were consumed faster than baked potatoes at his family reunions. He took off his oven mitts and began to attentively ice his newly created masterpieces.
Working behind the scenes was the best. Ludwig didn’t have to talk to anybody, and he was actually praised for his work. Sometimes he could hear customers talk about how amazing the cake tasted, and that was enough for him. Plus, he felt like an artist, delicately crafted patterns forming before his very eyes as he leaned over the counter with a bottle of a dyed sugary paste in his hand. He was just baking cakes, but to Ludwig, it meant so much more than that. For the few hours in that kitchen, he wasn’t alone. At least, he didn’t feel alone.
He checked his watch and was shocked. Ludwig’s shift was almost over. That meant Alfred would take over soon.
Kiku walked in. “I’m terribly sorry to bother you, but Alfred called in sick at the last minute. I’ll take over the baking. Could...you handle the register for a little?” Feliciano was chatting happily with another customer when Ludwig left the kitchen.
=He hovered behind the cash register. Great, I’m working over time. Ugh.
~
“You’re tired, huh? Long day?”
Ludwig opened his eyes. He hadn’t realized it, but he must have fallen asleep. He had just spent the last thirty minutes talking with customers who wanted very specific drinks and would always come back with a problem. And it didn’t help that they were nervous when complaining to him.
Ludwig gazed up at the source of the unfamiliar voice, to meet glowing eyes and snow-white hair. He had never seen this person before. Snow White had a soft childish smile painted on his face and a scarf, though Ludwig was sure it wasn’t that cold outside. He looked at Ludwig’s chest before returning his gaze to his eyes. “Hi, Loot-wig. My name is Ivan. I’ve never noticed this place before, so I decided to try it! Recommend anything?”
Ludwig wiped his name tag. “Well, Ivan, it’s ‘Ludwig’, and I don’t suggest anything besides pick for yourself.”
“How’s the chocolate cake? Is it good?”
“I don’t know, Ivan, I don’t eat here.” It was a lie. Ludwig ate here all the time. Especially the chocolate cake--it was his favorite.
“But surely you’ve tried something here, right? Can you eat chocolate?”
“Yes, I can. And if you want the chocolate cake, get it.”
“Your eyes sparkle whenever you say ‘chocolate cake’. I’ll take it!”
Oh wow. “So, one slice?”
“Yes, unless perhaps you would like some?”
Ludwig sighed and leaned into the display where the cakes sat. Earlier, Kiku had filled it with Ludwig’s new cakes before going back to organize and clean the kitchen. “To go or for here?”
“Here, please.”
Carefully, he cut a nice even slice, about an eighth, and slipped it on a plate. Then, he grabbed a plastic knife, a fork and a napkin. He was only required to give the customer a fork, but it made the place feel a little more fancy. “Five dollars.”
After Ivan paid, he sat at the counter. He literally could not have sat any closer to Ludwig without sitting on the counter. Ludwig sucked in a breath and began to pull out his phone, but was stopped by Ivan’s voice.
“May I talk to the baker?”
Ludwig spun around and stuck his head in the kitchen. “Kiku?”
Kiku appeared at the doorway.
“This customer wants to talk to you.”
Kiku walked up next to Ludwig. “Y-Yes?”
Ivan sat down his fork and smiled at Kiku. “You should present yourself with more confidence.” He reached into his pocket. “Ahh, let me…” he mumbled.
“What are you going to do, sir?” Kiku asked.
Ivan smiled. “Kick you. I--”
“What?” Ludwig cut him off.
“Ah..."
Ludwig and Kiku stepped back, aghast. Never had Ludwig heard any customer threaten any of his co-workers before.
“I’m really sorry! I’ll do better!” Kiku rushed back into the kitchen.
“Aw, I wasn’t done.” Ivan's face dropped.
Ludwig turned on his phone and tried ignoring Ivan. What kind of jerk says that to someone? Is our cake really that bad?
~
The next day was much better. There was no Ivan and Alfred came to work. Ludwig finished his shift at the counter...there was no large demand for cakes.
As he completed yet another frustrating order with a customer, he overheard Feliciano talking to Kiku.
“What’s up with that guy, anyway? He's so tall and scary, I don’t like him,” he said quietly to his shorter friend.
Anger rose in his chest. Where they talking about him?
“Just yesterday, he threatened to kick me.” replied Kiku. Oh, they mean Ivan. Ludwig leaned closer.
“Yesterday, my brother and I got into an argument, and that guy threatened us to stop!”
“What did your brother do?”
“He backed off! That guy could bend us into a pretzel! I hope he doesn’t come back. He’s really scary.”
~
It was early in the morning when Ludwig spotted Ivan. He had just entered the building when he caught a glimpse of snow white hair behind Sweet Cakes Cafe’s favorite newspaper. Ludwig rushed to the kitchen.
To his dismay, Ivan came back every day at the exact same time in the morning. Even on Ludwig’s days off, according to his coworkers. Ludwig tried to avoid Ivan, but no one else wanted to talk to him. Everytime Ivan tried to talk to someone, they would always find ways to dodge him. Every single day, Ivan would bother Ludwig with some type of request. Extra ice...extra sugar...more cake...and because no one else would talk to him, it was always Ludwig. He felt like Ivan’s slave.
Sometimes, he would ask Ludwig personal questions, like if he had any siblings, or how Ludwig woke up in the morning. It was kind of creepy. This went on for about three weeks. Everyday, Ivan would ask for something new, though Ludwig noticed he would sometimes float back to Ludwig’s chocolate cake.
It was Monday when Ivan demanded very loudly to have a word with “the black-haired Asian guy”.
Kiku grabbed Ludwig’s sleeve, but when he saw his face, quickly let go, and looked like he deeply regretted it.
“What is it?”
“Could you talk with him instead? He kind of freaks Feli and I out.”
Ludwig crossed his arms. “Why me?”
“He talks to you a lot, so he must like you the most.”
“That’s because no one else will talk to him!”
“I’m very sorry, Ludwig. It’s just, you’re so good at talking to him…”
“Come on, Kiku. He can’t do anything to you, just talk to him.”
“But I’ve only ever talked to him, uh, like, twice!”
“Twice?”
“Yes, when he threatened to kick me, and when he asked about you.”
“About me?”
“Yes. The day after he came, he arrived at around the same time as the day before, and asked if he could talk with you. So I told him that your shift ended."
“Then what?”
“He asked when your shift started and left after that. Did you know he only orders when you're here?”
“Excuse me?”
“Every day when he walks in, if you're not here, he leaves.”
Now, Ludwig felt creeped out. What was up with this guy?! However, he knew nothing he could say would convince Kiku. So he finally agreed to talk to Ivan instead.
Ivan had ordered two slices of chocolate cake. One was untouched and the other was halfway eaten. Usually, Ivan sat at the counter. But today, he was sitting at a two-person table pressed against one of the windows. As he walked by, Ivan motioned for Ludwig to sit down.
Hesitantly, Ludwig slid into the seat in front of him. He didn’t like the idea of sitting at the same table as this guy. “What is it you want?”
Ivan grinned. “Your Asian friend does not seem to want to talk. But you seem to love to.”
“Actually, no, I just...what do you want?”
“I really want to tell him something. Ever since the first time I came here. Could you tell him for me?”
Ludwig rolled his eyes. “What it is?”
“Okay, but this time, I rehearsed. So I know what to say. Last time, I didn’t know how to word it. Tell him: ‘Kick-you, your cake is amazing, and I wish you were more confident about it. And I...”
“Kick you? You mean ‘Kiku’?”
“Oh, yeah, sorry. Kiku. Tell Kiku that ‘your cake is amazing. And the ones after are even better.”
“Actually, um… I usually bake the cakes. He just took over that one night…”
“What?! Really? Why didn’t you say so? Ludwig, your cake is amazing, and you should feel more confi--”
“Okay, I get it.” chuckled Ludwig. Wait, did I just laugh at something Ivan said?
“Ludwig, I don’t get you.”
“Huh?”
“You make great cake and you don’t even care to take some credit?”
“Well, I told you I baked them.”
“Yeah, but it seems as if you are not proud.”
Ludwig shrugged. “I just bake for my job.”
“Any reason why you chose this particular job?”
Ludwig wasn’t sure what else to say.
Ivan smiled. “I think you and I are more similar than you think.”
“Is that so?”
“Do you have any friends, Ludwig?”
“Well, I, of course! I have many friends.”
“Name them.”
“Ah, well, Kiku and I talk every now and then…”
“About what?”
“Well, for one thing, work…”
“Does he consider you a friend?”
“Whatever, Ivan. I don’t want to hear you brag about how many friends you have as compared to my zero.”
Ivan twiddled his fork in his hands. “I have no friends.”
Should Ludwig be shocked? “Well, maybe if you were less scary…”
“I’m scary?”
“Well, yeah. For example, well, I supposed the ‘kick-you’ thing was just a misunderstanding, but from what I heard, you threatened Feliciano and his brother, once. That won’t earn you many friends.”
“Who’s Feliciano?"
“Brown hair, way shorter than me, amber eyes.”
“Oh, him. He and his brother were fighting pretty bad. I don’t like it when people fight. It would be nice if everyone could just get along.”
“Well then, it sounds to me like you're not what everyone thinks you are.”
"Sound like anyone you know?”
"Uh..."
“I don’t think you’d actually hurt someone, would you? I think you really like to bake.”
Ludwig shifted in his seat. “Why do you only come when I’m here?”
“I see some of you in me. And you’re the only one who talks to me.”
Some of you in me. It was a strange thought. Ivan had an innocent, childish looking face. Ludwig’s was pretty much the opposite. How similar did Ivan think he was to him? How much of it was true?
It was then Ludwig realized the time. He checked his watch and cursed under his breath.
=Hm?” mumbled Ivan.
Ludwig shot up. “I have to go! I completely forgot I was working! It’s not even my break!”
Ludwig turned to leave but was stopped by Ivan’s voice. “I’m sorry to hold you up, but can I ask you one more question before you leave?”
“Uh, yes, What is it?”
Ivan’s gaze locked into Ludwig’s eyes.
“Do you have any friends, Ludwig? Close friends? Not coworkers."
Ludwig pulled away from his gaze. He paused. “Yes. I have one.”
Ivan smiled. Picking up the uneaten piece of cake, he got up and walked over to the counter in front of the empty tip jar and the cash register before walking out. He had left the slice of cake there.
Ludwig walked over, picked a piece off the cake and popped it into his mouth. Ahh, it really is amazing, he thought blissfully. That was when he noticed something was different.
Within the tip jar was a twenty dollar bill.