fic for aubreyfalls!

[nino_mod]

For: aubreyfalls
From: :3.

Title: Coffee-flavoured Dreams
Pairing/Focus: Ohmiya
Rating: PG-13 because of swearing I think?
Word count: ~13.500
Warnings: swearing
Summary: Nino owns a small cafe, and Ohno is the newest member of his staff. Right from the start, they somehow rub each other the wrong way, without really knowing why. When they go out to spy out their rivals, they slowly get closer and come to realise the other is not that bad as they’d thought...
Notes: Dear Aubrey, I had fun writing this and I hope you feel similarly when you read it. Thank you for your wonderful prompts, and making it so easy to pick some of them up and put them into a story.


Nino groaned unhappily as the alarm woke him way too early in the morning. He rubbed his face tiredly before sitting up with a yawn and checking the time. He thought longingly of sleeping for a bit longer, but then decided that it wouldn’t do him any good. He needed a shower and then to head over to his cafe to open it.

Nino’s eyes wandered to the schedule pinned on the wall opposite of his bed, and he realised the name beside his was Ohno’s. He grimaced at the memory that the regular morning shift for today had cancelled the day before. Nino supposed he could be happy enough that the boy had called the night before and that Ohno had readily agreed to take the shift. Otherwise, he might have ended up all alone for the morning rush, and that would’ve sucked even more.

“Up, up, up,” he mumbled as he forced himself to climb out of bed and into the bathroom. There he took care of his morning routine as well as a refreshing shower. At least that managed to wake him up, and he felt more human after he changed into the dark blue trousers and black button-up he would have to wear for work. He checked his bag to make sure he had the dark red apron packed, as well as the papers he had to give Sho when the man came in later that afternoon.

At least, Nino thought as he arrived at the coffee shop, Ohno was always on time. Probably even a bit earlier than necessary, but that was nothing to be upset about.

“Good morning, Ninomiya-san,” the other man said as soon as he saw Nino rounding the corner. The man dipped his head low, and Nino nodded in answer.

“Morning, Ohno-san. Thank you for filling in,” he said with a sigh as he remembered the bad fortune that had brought this on. Ohno shrugged, holding the strap of his bag a bit tighter. Nino opened the door, letting the other man step in first, before following him and closing the door again, making sure the shutters were down.

Ohno walked through the small shop to the room in the back - which functioned as their break and changing room as well as providing extra storage, with toilets for staff members and a small office right beside it - to put down his things and was soon out again, a mop in hand as he started to clean the floor without comment.

Nino rolled his eyes as he walked over to the counter in the middle of the shop to check on the coffee machines and start them all up one after the other, starting their morning cleaning cycle to make sure that they were alright. The night shift should have cleaned them before leaving, but Nino always thought better safe than sorry. It would be a big problem if suddenly their coffee wasn’t topnotch and they lost customers. Or worse - if something was not clean, and it gave someone food poisoning. He shuddered just at the thought of it.

After he was happy that everything was up and running, he turned around to watch Ohno, who was wiping down the last table. “Could you prepare two coffees? I want to see if you got better at memorising our acronyms. I wrote down on the cup what I want,” Nino said with a saccharine smile when Ohno was finished. There was just the smallest of wrinkles on Ohno’s face at his words, but he nodded without voicing any complaints.

“Yes, Ninomiya-san,” he mumbled as he vanished to put the cleaning utensils away again and then stood in front of the cups. A deeper frown settled on his forehead as he tried to decipher the characters that Nino had scribbled down and what they meant. He bit his lip in confusion, but didn’t say anything as he turned around and started to look for the right settings.

Nino sighed. He was actually curious how Ohno wanted to prepare the pumpkin spice he had written down when it was not the season for it, but maybe the other would surprise him. He turned around without another word as a bell rang, indicating that their freshly baked goods had arrived.

Nino walked into the backroom toward their delivery entrance, clicking his tongue as he saw it littered with stuff. There was a forgotten umbrella, a few papers on the table and a few pens lying on the floor. He would make sure to put up a notice again to make sure that the newly hired help cleaned up behind them. It was not only a matter of tact, but meant to prevent accidents. Especially with the pens on the floor.

Shaking his head, he opened the door to thank the delivery guy. He checked their order before signing the paper off and wishing the man a good day.

“Uhm, Ninomiya-san?” Ohno asked when he came back, hands full with the box with loaves of bread and sweets to put into the fridge and display at the register.

“Yes?” Nino asked before he sighed when Ohno continued to stand there and stare at him, his brows still furrowed. “How about you give me a hand? Or at least free the counter so that I could put this down, please? It’s getting heavy.”

“Oh, yes.” Ohno grabbed the box and turned around, before realising that there was still no free counter space. Nino huffed softly in slight amusement as he pushed the coffee cups out of the way so that Ohno could put them down.

“Thank you,” Ohno mumbled. Then as he remembered that there was something else bothering him, wrinkled his forehead as he watched Nino filling the display right beside the register, making sure not to touch the cleaned glass panes.

“What is that?”

“What is what?” Nino asked with a small roll of his eyes as he looked up.

Ohno lifted the cup with his order up gingerly, showing Nino the characters he had written down. “Pumpkin blend?”

“Pumpkin spice. It’s a special syrup we offer during autumn.”

“Ah, that’s why I couldn’t find any pumpkin,” Ohno realised. Nino sighed and pointed at the fridge.

“Yup, could you fill that cabinet?” he asked.

“Okay, Ninomiya-san. Why did you write it down if we don’t offer it right now?”

“Because people often ask for it out of season. I’m sorry for confusing you, but I wanted to see if you would ask. What did you come up with? Since you didn’t ask and prepared a coffee for me, there is something special in it, right?”

“I understand, Ninomiya-san. And I put in some spices,” Ohno said softly as he concentrated on putting the different cakes and desserts in the fridge that needed to be kept cold. He noted down what each was and then carried the empty box with him to the front to deposit on top of the one Nino had emptied.

Nino smiled for a second in understanding and thanks as Ohno, without another word, took the now empty boxes to return them to the back and put on his apron. Nino watched him go, shaking his head. He wiped down the counter again and tried the coffee with a small frown as he realised that Ohno had indeed mixed in some spices they used for milk tea. And it tasted awful. Though Nino appreciated that Ohno had tried, at least.

—

Ohno opened the door when the alarm in the shop chimed. Nino had it installed so that nobody would miss the opening time when they were busy with their other duties. He wore a bright smile as he greeted their first customers. The early morning crowd was always the same people.

“Good morning, Maiga-san.”

“Good morning, Ohno-san. The usual please.”

“One special roast coffee, coming up,” Ohno said as he vanished behind the counter to prepare the coffee while Nino handled the money. Nino was asking the man how his family was doing, especially his mother who had been ill two weeks ago.

The man answered with a surprised face, but clearly happy that Nino remembered. Ohno handed the coffee over and changed places with Nino so that the other could prepare the drinks and Ohno the transactions.

—

“Mika-chan, all alone today?” Ohno asked the little girl as she hopped up and down in front of the register. The morning rush was over, and all the salarymen and women were gone with warm drinks or snacks to eat on the go. Now was the time to refill the displays and wipe down the counters or chat with the incoming customers.

“No, grandma is coming. She told me I’m allowed to order and secure a seat,” she said with a bright grin.

“Oh, what do you want, then?”

“Green tea for grandma, and I want hot chocolate.”

“Of course,” Ohno said with a chuckle, handling the transaction.

The little girl proudly paid the price he told her and got the change back. She climbed on one of the high chairs at the side of the counter where Nino prepared the drinks.

“Extra sprinkles, Mika-chan?”

“May I?”

“Of course,” Nino chuckled as he winked at her. “Don’t tell the others though.”

“Yup, thank you.”

“How about you secure the table like you promised your grandmother and I’ll bring the drinks over? You shouldn’t carry hot beverages.”

“But I can do it,” she pouted, and he tutted softly.

“Nope, you can’t steal my job here, Missy. Over you go.”

She pouted but left the high chair to choose a seat close to the window. It was a small round table with two big armchairs across from each other. Mika always exclaimed how the cushions ate people and that she liked the space the most because of that.

—

“Taka-san, hello,” Ohno greeted the man in front of him with a warm smile. The man blinked slowly as he nodded and looked around.

“It’s empty.”

“As always around this time,” Ohno reminded the old man, who nodded before smiling.

“Royal milk tea with a biscuit, please.”

Ohno nodded and helped the man with counting the right amount of money before handing the wallet back. “Ninomiya-san will bring it to you shortly. Why don’t you sit down?”

The old man’s face brightened at the prospect, and he slowly shuffled to the lone corner seat. There was a small bookshelf that had a strange collection of old books and newer mangas. Taka sat down there, studying the books for a moment, before taking one that he had read for a few times already as Nino brought the drinks over.

Ohno watched Nino sit down across from the older man for a moment, talking to him about the weather and how beautiful the flowers at the park bloomed. Ohno could hear Taka-san talking about the favourite flowers of his late wife and hid a smile at how happy the older man looked at the memory.

—

“No laptops between twelve and two,” Nino reminded two students as he put down a pitcher of water filled with fresh mint and lemons. “And I will need your orders for lunch, or you have to free the tables.”

They looked at each other for a moment, silently conversing about what to order, before choosing the cheapest items on the menu. Nino rolled his eyes but nodded in agreement as he wandered over to where Ohno had already prepared the sandwiches for them, as he knew exactly what the students normally ended up ordering. He then walked to the next customer to take their lunch orders.

Ohno filled paper bags with bagels, sandwiches and coffees while Nino wandered through the few tables they had, taking lunch orders or reminding their customers to leave the tables free for other paying customers.

Shortly after, Aiba stormed into the shop, apologising profusely as he ran to the back to change into his apron and relieve Ohno for his break, which he took very happily as he vanished to their break room to finally eat lunch. The cafe was mostly quiet, with soft music playing in the background, but Ohno could really do without the busy times when too many people tried to cram into the small shop that offered only a handful of tables. The constant humming of voices during those times regularly caused him a headache. But he loved the calm times, and most of their regulars.

—

Ohno looked up as the doorbell rang, a greeting ready on his lips. He faltered, though, as a scary looking man wearing a dark suit stalked in. Ohno tried very hard not to frown or flinch, as those were the customers he didn’t like.

They sometimes came, wearing dark suits, looking frighteningly big and buff, and wore a frown on their face. Even during the instances when they were not frowning, their smiles seemed fake. Ohno thought it made them even scarier. Nino always brightened up when he saw them, talking with them. They seemed to be fond of his boss, which was overly strange to Ohno.

The other customers tried to make space for the man who didn’t even seem to realise the threatening aura he had around him. Ohno cleared his throat as he finally arrived at the register.

“Welcome, what can I do for you?” he asked, trying to remember the name of that customer. He was a regular, Ohno knew that, and he knew that Nino preferred them to greet regulars by their names. It makes them come back that way. But there were a few people where the names always slipped his mind.

“Same as always,” the man ordered. Ohno nodded as he turned around and put it into the computer in front of him, glad that he actually remembered that, then taking the offered money.

Nino beside him looked up from the orders at that voice and grinned brightly as he recognised the other man. “Matsu-nii,” he exclaimed.

There was a small smirk on the man’s face as he wandered over to the counter to prop himself up and ruffle Nino’s hair.

“Hey brat, how are you doing?”

“Good. How’s it going?” Nino placed the cup in front of him.

Matsuoka shrugged at his question as he sighed. “Same old. Leader had a fit the other day. It wasn’t pretty.”

Nino grimaced as he nodded. “I can imagine. Here, take these chocolates to him, and…” His eyes wandered through the shop for a moment. “Aiba, come and take over, I need to show Matsu-nii something.”

“Yes, yes,” Aiba said as he came over from where he had served a table, flashing the customers an apologetic smile that he needed to cut their conversation short. “Hey, Matsu-nii, you don’t need to play nanny today?”

“Later,” he answered with a small smile.

“Enough dilly-dallying, there is a line,” Nino huffed.

Ohno blinked, surprised as he realised that he hadn’t paid attention, too focused on the others. He cleared his throat as he took the orders of the next in line, with Aiba appearing beside him, listening to the requests to prepare them while Ohno still finished the transaction.

Nino slipped out from behind the counter, with Matsuoka behind him. Ohno frowned as he could hear Nino telling another helper to get out to the front and do whatever he was doing in the backroom later.

Ohno was still musing about the regular appearance of men like Matsuoka when they came back to the front, talking in quiet voices before Nino returned to the drink station.

Nino sent the other people back to their places, and Ohno sighed when Nino decided that he was too slow at the register and should make the orders instead.

—

“Good morning, Ohno-san. It’s us two for the early morning shift again. It seems that some people don’t do well with early mornings... What do you think?” Nino asked with a huff as he opened the door to their coffee shop. He swore when it didn’t open right away, mumbling something about having to call Nagase to make sure that he repaired the door.

“I don’t mind mornings, Ninomiya-san. And I don’t know who else was supposed to be here on the shift with me,” Ohno mumbled with an unhappy frown. It was really not his fault if people didn’t come and his boss had to be here instead.

Nino smirked slightly at the reaction and then moved his shoulders to lose some tension. He had fallen asleep rather late - a late gaming session was the culprit - but that didn’t mean he had to be cheerful. Especially not since he had been called up early to make sure to jump in for another colleague.

“That’s surprising. I thought everybody wanted to know with whom they would work. But I need to check on those short notice cancellations of that kid. It’s getting annoying. I should still be in bed and not opening up the shop,” Nino said instead.

Ohno stared at him for a moment, before sighing and deciding to not argue with his boss. He walked to the back to start with the cleaning duties. The coffee machines came to life sirring and splurging as he came back to the front, and Nino hissed slightly when the hot air from one of them burned his wrist.

“God damn, I’m not awake enough for this shit,” he grumbled as he rubbed the reddish skin, turning to scan the perimeter for Ohno who was leisurely sweeping the floor. “Hurry up, Ohno-san, we are late as it is.”

“Yes, sir,” Ohno answered with a small frown on his face. It wasn’t as if that was his fault, he thought with slight dismay but moved a bit faster as Nino prepared a double shot espresso for himself and put a cup of cafe latte with latte art in front of him.

“I know it’s not your fault, but right now, we’re in this together. Caffeine might help to get you awake,” Nino said as he nodded to the cup.

Ohno thanked him quietly as Nino moved to the back to get the just arriving delivery man for their bread. He frowned down at the foam art depicting a grimace, groaning at the thought that the other was clearly in a bad mood, which meant that this morning was going to be stressful. Even if Nino normally tried his best to be at least polite.

—

Ohno stared a tad too long at the cup, trying to make out the order and the name of the customer, when Nino sidled over to whisper it in his ear.

“I’ll call the orders out loud, will that help? Or do you want to change positions?” the other said, and Ohno shook his head.

“I’m sorry, I can do it,” he mumbled tiredly as he prepared the dark white chocolate mocha for the woman in front of him. He offered her a smile and put the cup down in front of her.

“Uh-oh… Kids,” Nino warned him when the door opened.

Ohno looked up with dread settling in when, indeed, a group from around twenty teens came in and ordered from their special iced drinks section. It wasn’t as if they were hard to make, but they took longer than your regular coffee, which meant the line would only get longer. Today was really not his day.

Ohno tried to prepare them as quickly as he could. Still, as soon as Nino had most of the orders of the group ready, the other man turned to the machines to help him prepare the drinks, making sure to murmur each order to Ohno when he pushed a prepared cup into Ohno’s hand so that he could handle the sudden influx of people.

“Take your break when Jun comes, even if it’s early. You look tired,” Nino said.

“Yes, sir, thank you.”

“Yeah, whatever.”

—

Ohno purchased one of their tuna sandwiches and a big cup of coffee for his break because he had forgotten to bring his lunch and he didn’t feel like going out.

Nino chuckled as he prepared an extra serving of some cookies to go with Ohno’s lunch and made sure he got a discount before leaving him in peace. Ohno put his headphones in his ears as he chose a seat at the windows, staring at the people on the streets. He tried hard to ignore the others or any customers, but it was hard when the register was mirrored in the windowpane.

Nino and Jun were standing close, and their heads bowed over some papers. Nino sometimes nodded to whatever Jun was explaining to him or shook his head as he noted something down on one document. Whenever the bell at their door announced a new customer, Nino looked up with his fake smile, which only changed whenever someone entered that he knew.

There was a loud laugh. Ohno flinched since he could hear it clearly even over his earphones. He looked around at Erika-san, one of their elderly customers, who offered a bouquet of peonies to Nino, who grinned and thanked her profusely, before shooing Jun off to get a vase.

Jun rolled his eyes good naturally, but vanished, just to come back shortly after with the vase. Just in time for Nino, who handed over the change to the woman. Jun started to prepare the drinks while Nino made sure to put the flowers into a good spot on the counter.

Ohno frowned as the woman left with a few more words, and then sighed. It was so strange to see Nino teasing and laughing at the other people, he thought sullenly. He only looked up again when someone sat across from him.

“Hey, Oh-chan,” Aiba said happily with a bright grin on his face.

“Oh, Aiba-chan,” he smiled. “What are you doing here this early?”

“I brought cake,” Aiba grinned happily as he put the container in front of Ohno on the table. Ohno frowned at that explanation.

“We have cake here.” he mumbled.

“Yes, but Nino wants to enlarge the shop. He wants to offer self-made food as well. Instead of buying those things from the chain,” he explained.

Ohno hummed. He had heard whispers about that already.

“There isn’t a kitchen, nor the space for one. And the seating section is not really big.”

Aiba shrugged. “Yeah, well, the shop next door is on sale.”

Ohno just nodded. He still didn’t know how that would help them. But he had decided early not to question anything. The first time he had commented at how great it was for Nino to inherit such a space, he was given strange looks and Nino’s mood towards him had downright soured.

“Whatever. I made the cake. Nino said it’s too sweet, but you should try it, because I think it’s great. I have to get ready,” Aiba said when Nino called his name. Aiba winked at Ohno as he vanished, just to appear in the front in a dark red apron soon after.

Ohno gingerly opened the container of cake and stared at it. The cream was squished on top of the cake with small carrots made from either fondant or marzipan sliding off. It looked a bit beaten up, Ohno thought.

“It’s not poisoned,” Nino said with a sigh. “Well… It might give you diabetes, which is probably the same thing.”

“Ninomiya-san…” Ohno started before stopping because he didn’t even know what he wanted to say.

Nino sat down across from him looking just as exhausted as Ohno felt. “What is it, Ohno-san?”

“Is there something you need me to do?”

“Actually, yes. I have a favour to ask. I regularly do some research on other coffee shops to check out our rivals and try new things. The guys all said they don’t have time, and reminded me that you have not yet experienced it. You will be excused from the rest of the duties for the week, and we would meet at eleven tomorrow morning.”

Ohno tried hard not to grimace. A whole week of accompanying his boss throughout different shops to research products? That didn’t sound that enticing. His mind wandered to all the possible excuses, but he drew a blank.

“Of course, Ninomiya-san. I’m looking forward to it.”

Nino clapped his hands with a smile. “Good, then it’s settled. Meet me here tomorrow around eleven am then.”

Ohno nodded as he leant back with a sigh.

“Good, I need to go over the finances with Sho. Try the cake and tell Aiba what you think, or he might be unhappy.”

Ohno nodded mutely watching him go, before pulling the cake mess closer and trying a bite even if he didn’t feel like it. But shortly after he couldn’t help himself as he ate the rest with a delighted expression. It was delicious! Not too sweet at all, he thought, surprised at how well Aiba could apparently bake. Even if he needed to work on presentation.

—

“Hey Ohno,” Jun greeted when he entered the shop. Ohno waved as he walked closer. “Looking for Nino?”

“Yeah, where is he?”

“In the back, talking to Sho. There seems to be a problem,” he shrugged.

“Great,” Ohno groaned.

“Want to have a coffee?”

Ohno shook his head. He probably would drink enough of that as it was for the next few days.

Jun shrugged with a grin. “Nervous?”

“Nervous about what?” Ohno snorted. “It’s just research.”

Jun laughed. “Sure. You should tell him you are here. Otherwise, he might think you are late.”

Ohno grimaced as he nodded and made his way to the back. He wasn’t sure if he wanted to disturb Nino, but then again, he didn’t want Nino to think he was tardy.

“Nino, I don’t think…” Sho sighed as he and Nino looked at the papers. Ohno could see the numbers, but didn’t understand.

“It’ll be fine. We get a rebate from the current supplier. Even if they raised their prices, a new one would be more expensive,” Nino said.

“Didn’t you want to buy the shop?”

Nino sighed as he scraped a hand through his hair. “Yeah, but I don’t want to compromise our quality by buying cheaper coffee beans, Sho. That would be stupid. If that means I can’t buy it, then so be it.”

“If you…”

Nino glared at him as he crossed his arms in front of his chest. “I will not ask him, so stop it.”

Sho looked as if he wanted to argue, but Ohno chose that moment to clear his throat, already feeling uncomfortable as it was.

“Ah, Ohno-san, sorry. I’ll be out in a second,” Nino said as he looked up. He pulled over the papers and put his signature and stamp on the bottom.

“Nino,” Sho sighed.

“I can ask aniki if there is any other way for us to make our own food. And I kept Ohno-san waiting for long enough already, so more another day,” Nino mumbled as he grabbed his shoulder bag. “Let’s go, Ohno-san.”

“Bring back the receipts!” Sho yelled, but Nino ignored him as he grabbed Ohno’s hand to drag him out behind him.

“Have fun!” Aiba said as he saw them.

“Idiot,” Nino huffed as he pulled Ohno out. Ohno groaned as he ran into a muscular chest outside.

“I’m sorry,” he mumbled, even if it was not his fault but Nino’s, and bowed down deeply.

“Huh, brat, you going out?” Matsuoka asked.

“Yup, research,” Nino said. “Even if I don’t know why anymore,” he murmured under his breath, sighing.

Nino’s eyes fell on a young teenager beside Matsuoka, who had a deep frown on his face. He chuckled when he felt Ohno stiffen beside him.

“New kid?”

“Yup, stuck with him. Let’s go Ueda-kun,” Matsuoka said as he put his arm around the boy’s shoulder pushing him to the coffee shop. “Have fun on your date.”

Nino rolled his eyes at the smirk on Matsuoka’s face, before finally leaving.

Ohno stumbled along, staring at their still clasped hands when they were out on the street.

“Ninomiya-san?”

“Yes, Ohno-san?” Nino asked with a small groan in his voice. “What is it?”

“My hand…” Ohno trailed off when the fingers tightened around his hand, and it almost hurt.

Nino turned around with a grin, loosening his grip and now almost caressing the reddened skin. “Oh, did I forget to mention? Since we are undercover, we should pretend to be lovers.”

Ohno’s mouth fell open, enticing a laugh from Nino.

“So let’s go Sa-To-Shi,” Nino said, still in a teasing manner.

Ohno frowned but didn’t dare to protest as he followed Nino.

—

“How was the first day?” Sho asked as Nino came back to the shop in the evening. Nino sighed tiredly as he threw the receipts on his desk.

Sho frowned when he saw that there were only two receipts in total and lifted an eyebrow as he looked back up at Nino.

“He is no help at all, Sho,” Nino whined and put his chin on the desk as he stared at him with hopeful eyes. “I tried, like I promised. Please, can’t you come tomorrow?”

“Nino,” Sho sighed in exasperation as he shook his head. “We’ve talked about it. He’s the new hire, and it will help you more if you get other input than just from me, or Masaki, or Jun.”

“But we don’t get along,” Nino grumbled. “He gets on my nerves.”

“Yeah, what’s up with that anyway? I have never seen you react that badly.”

Nino shrugged as he pursed his lips. Something about Ohno was unnerving, and it was hard to put his finger on it. “He never reacts, and he somehow looks… I don’t know, not scared but something…” Nino trailed off, not knowing how to explain it well.

Sho stared at him for a moment before starting to laugh. “God, you’re hopeless. But anyway. Why is he awful?”

“Because he just stares at me, states that all things taste delicious, without elaborating about what is special about them or what could be improved, and whenever I say something to try to bring out more information, he shifts and then nods in agreement. Hell, I even made things up, like saying that that strawberry mousse cake tastes more like melon than strawberries - and he agreed!”

Sho’s lips twitched at that, and he started laughing softly. “Well, you are his boss. Maybe he’s afraid that you’ll fire him when he doesn’t agree? As I said, you’re not exactly kind to him.”

Nino frowned a bit at those words. That might be true, but he liked to believe that he was not that scary. “I could sign something that says that whatever he tells me during this week will not make him lose his job?” he mused, ignoring the amusement in Sho’s eyes.

“What now? Ninomiya Kazunari is going to give up at the slightest obstacle?” Jun mocked.

Nino blinked and looked at the younger man, who had just entered the backroom. “Are you finished?”

“Yes, I just wanted to let you know that we are off for today. But it’s too funny to see you that desperate.”

“Haha, very funny. Oh well, I should get going. Ohno and I are going to meet up at the station in the morning, so I won’t come in. Behave and don’t hurt my baby,” he said as he jumped to his feet.

“It’s a building. How would we be able to hurt it?” Jun asked with a shake of his head.

“Don’t listen to him,” Nino whispered as he caressed the wall, before laughing and running out before he could be roped into closing duties.

Sho looked at Jun with an amused smile. “You both are awful…”

“Nah, at least now, he will try again tomorrow,” Jun said as he helped Sho up. “And enough of that for today. We should leave as well.”

Sho nodded in agreement, following Jun.

—

Nino was early at the station the next morning, dressed in a loose shirt and jean shorts to fight off the humid heat that the morning had already brought. He glared at the sun, thinking about how unlucky he was to be out. He was looking forward to being in air-conditioned buildings later on.

His eyes wandered through the crowd, and he pushed from the wall he was leaning against when he recognised Ohno coming towards him. Ohno wore jeans, a t-shirt as well as sandals today and looked, in general, a little bit more confident that way. Nino breathed in relief. At least that seemed to have worked better than them going out in work clothes.

“Let’s get going.”

“Okay, Ninomiya-san,” Ohno mumbled, shuffling on his feet to fall in step beside him.

“Nino, at least,” Nino reminded him, and Ohno nodded with a huff.

“And I will need your honest reviews today. Whatever comes to your mind, and it would be constructive if it were not only delicious,” Nino said with a small frown. “Of course their stuff is delicious, that’s why they sell them.”

“What are we looking for?”

“New drink combinations, food items that we could easily make, prices. Especially prices. Ours shouldn’t be too low or too high; we don’t want to lose customers. And if there is a special thing that is on every menu but ours, we need to evaluate that as well. That might be a new trend we haven’t recognised.”

“Okay, I can do that, Ninom… Nino.” He stumbled a bit over that and Nino’s lips twitched.

“Good.”

—

“Nino?” Ohno stared at Nino, who was making notes while sipping his coffee across from him. A sight he had gotten used to over the last two days. Nino was always very serious when he tasted the drinks or food. Ohno couldn’t look away. Nino was clearly very passionate about his job.

“Mh?”

“Why did you bring me?”

“Huh?” Nino asked as he looked up and tilted his head. “I told you, the other guys don’t have the time.”

Ohno pressed his lips together as he looked around in the small shop they were in. He knew that was not true, but he didn’t know how to call him out on his lie without being too obvious that he thought Nino was a liar.

“And you are new. Each of the full-time employees went with me at least once out for research. You didn’t. Sho made me aware of that, so here you are. I know which things the others prefer and what they are good at. I have no clue about you.”

“You don’t know what I’m good at?”

Nino chuckled as he nodded. “Exactly. You are good at following orders if they are not too complicated.”

“I’m not dumb!”

“Never said that, but you have to agree that you get confused at the orders.”

“Because…” Ohno said louder than necessary. When he realised that Nino’s eyes were twinkling in amusement, he blushed and looked down. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t get loud.” He groaned as he was sure that people were looking at them.

Nino grinned as he held out his hand to put it on top of Ohno’s. “Nope, but it was a mean thing to say. Come closer now, we have to make up, people are looking and I think neither of us wants that.”

“Make up?” Ohno stuttered but followed the tugging hands until Nino had pulled him down close beside him. Nino moved closer to his ear, breathing for a moment in silence and Ohno tried hard not to flinch.

“I’m not going to kiss you,” he said as he closed his notebook. “Don’t worry.”

“I’m not worried.” Ohno frowned as he realised it was true. Nino was playful, and this game was confusing him a lot, but besides holding his hand and sometimes speaking very close to his ear, Nino always made sure there was space between them as long as Ohno didn’t move closer on his own.

“Why this charade, though?”

“Because it’s fun,” Nino said after a while thinking about the question. He wasn’t too sure himself. Something about Matsuoka’s words had irked him. And Ohno hadn’t argued when he had announced it without a second thought. “And it matters less if we taste things from each other’s plate that way."

“I see.”

—

Ohno stared at the maid cafe in front of him and then at Nino by his side. The other didn’t look that convinced himself. His eyes wandered back to the front, which was covered in bright pink colours. Then he stepped closer to Nino. His fingers tightened around Nino’s elbow, making him look at Ohno with a frown.

“No,” Ohno stated calmly. “Just no.”

Nino’s lips twitched as he looked back at the front where anime girls were asking their ‘masters’ to come in and nodded in agreement. “Right, your choice,” he offered then, curious about what kind of place Ohno liked.

Ohno looked surprised, but led the other to a shop that he frequented on his own. He liked the atmosphere there, and the special lunch menu was delicious.

—

“May I ask a question?”

“Yes, Ohno-san,” Nino said with a sigh as he played with the small spoon he had used to eat the coffee mousse he had ordered. Both he and Ohno had agreed that the coffee flavour was too faint for the dish to be considered really good. It tasted almost bland and contained too much cream. Still, it would be something that Nino would ask Aiba to try and make, because he had liked the bitterness of that dessert compared to some others.

“What are your plans for the future? Will you go into the family business? Whatever that is.”

“Family business? God no,” Nino cried out as he shook his head. “Never. I want to expand the shop, make it larger and make sure to create a place where people can relax.”

“But isn’t that what it is already?”

Nino moved his head from side to side. “In a way. But I don’t like to be dependent on so many people, and I know that the others strive for more than just a small coffee shop. I don’t want to lose them to somewhere else.”

“I don’t think they would just leave.”

Nino moved his shoulders before he shook his head and then nodded. “You never know. They all have interests that I can’t fulfil right now. They are my friends and helped me build this all up. Of course, I want to transform it into something more.”

Ohno nodded slowly in understanding as he looked at Nino with pursed lips. Nino’s eyes were unfocused, seeing the future he wanted to create. Ohno felt something in the pit of his stomach at that. He had never had goals or dreams like that and something in Nino’s eyes made him want to help him to achieve Nino’s (and maybe make him smile like that more like.) There were still many things he didn’t understand, but at the same time, he didn’t feel as if it was his right to ask just yet.

—

“What do you think?” Nino asked as he pushed the plate with the tangy lemon tart over to Ohno, who took a bite. His face was brightening up as soon as it hit his taste buds.

“Ah no, don’t tell me. It’s delicious right?” Nino asked with a chuckle. Ohno’s face showed pure bliss.

Ohno nodded, mouth still full with a second bite munching on the treat. Nino shook his head in amusement as he pulled out a notepad to write down something, then hastily crossed it out when he realised that he had written down how cute Ohno looked.

“The colour scheme is bad,” Ohno whispered as he moved closer to Nino, trying to look at his notes, which Nino hid with his hand.

Nino blinked at the words and his eyes wandered around again, as he nodded slowly. He had thought something had been off but hadn’t known what.

“You have small hands.” Ohno stayed close to Nino, watching him writing down his comment about the colour, his other fingers still firmly spread out over the crossed-out part.

“What?” Nino asked in confusion, looking up.

Ohno blushed as he realised what he had said and moved away a bit again, just to be stopped by Nino’s hand on his wrist.

“Stop wriggling, you are supposed to be comfortable being close to me,” Nino huffed. “I really don’t want to be thrown out.”

“Sorry,” Ohno mumbled, still having a hard time being close to Nino, but for completely different reasons than when they had gone out the first time. He stared at Nino in confusion.

Out of his shop, Nino seemed much more relaxed, and he couldn’t put the finger on why. Maybe it was the lack of dark clothes, Ohno thought as his eyes wandered over the hunched over form of Nino, the other drinking the coffee in front of him.

Nino wore a plus-sized sweatshirt that was wide enough for his shoulder to peek through now and then, and tight jeans that had a hole over his right knee. It was very different from how he looked usually and that had thrown Ohno off right from the start.

Even now, on his fifth day with Nino walking through different kinds of coffee shops or even smaller restaurants or bars, he had not gotten used to it yet.

“So, besides the awful colours, anything else?” Nino asked, drawing him out of his thoughts. Ohno blinked, looking at him for a moment in silence and enjoying how the dark lashes framed Nino’s eyes.

“The music is a tad too loud, and the lights are in strange places. Also, the cake is good, but the base could be more crumbly.” Ohne huffed.

Nino smiled as he nodded, humming. “Wow you are really useful,” he teased Ohno with a giggle, closing the notebook.

“Bully,” Ohno grumbled, feeling bad when Nino’s eyes clouded over for a second before he faked a smile.

“Let’s go home for today, okay?”

Ohno blinked in confusion but nodded then. “Okay. Whatever you say, boss.”

Nino rolled his eyes but stood as to pay their bill and lead Ohno out. Outside he stopped and turned around to look at Ohno. “Tomorrow we should take a break to refocus. Write down what you can envision a future shop to look like and bring it with you to the shop the day after. I think we have done enough research for this round.”

Ohno nodded as he watched Nino leave with fast steps. He looked at his hand that felt strangely empty, now used to hold Nino’s mostly when they were out together, until the other would let go with a squeeze when they separated for the day. He had the feeling that he’d done something wrong, but he didn’t know what it was, and that disturbed him immensely.

—

Ohno didn’t sleep well. He woke way too early the next morning, especially considering that it was a free day for him. He rubbed his eyes as he shuffled to the kitchen to brew some coffee and make some breakfast. With it, he sat at the table in his kitchen, staring out of the window.

The last few days had been strange, and he had gotten closer to Nino throughout their “research.” Something that he still didn’t fully understand. How did it help Nino to stroll into different coffee shops and places to test the drinks and their menu?

But he didn’t understand a lot of things about Nino, so he was not too bothered about that. A small smile appeared on his face as he remembered the pleasant time he had spent with his boss. He had really enjoyed it, especially since Nino had been more open around him. They had joked around and he had come to like the teasing charakter of the other. Ohno couldn’t deny that he had also enjoyed being close to him as well. He looked at his hand and felt as if he could still feel Nino’s warm hands against his. If Nino continued to be like that, Ohno thought that he would enjoy getting closer to him, and to get to know him better. Ohno really would love to know all secrets about the other, even the ones Nino never shared with anybody else.

If… Ohno sighed at the thought and rolled his eyes. If it weren’t for these strange men around him. With a groan, he finished his breakfast before settling down in his living room. He put on some variety programme on the TV before pulling over his sketch pad. Better not thinking about Nino and their unusual customers, he decided.

He still had some ‘homework’ to do for Nino, and he would rather let his mind wander about how the perfect spot would look like for him, than about how Nino’s behaviour seemed to have changed around him in the last week, even if it was hard. Ohno looked at the sketch after he was finished, tracing the charcoal lines as he realised that it looked a lot like the café Nino so often talked about. He tried to come up with another kind, but realised soon enough that his vision of the perfect café came close to Nino’s dream.

—

“Good morning, Nino,” Jun greeted from behind the counter as Nino entered the shop.

Nino waved at him as he sat on the stool at the counter. “Hey, how’s it going?”

“Same as always,” Jun said with an eye roll as he put a cup of coffee in front of him. “We didn’t destroy anything or spook any customers. Well at least nobody that didn’t deserve it.”

Nino snorted slightly. “I bet.”

“You were missed though,” Jun said, chuckling when he got a brilliant smile back at those words. He shook his head. “You are too in love with your customers. I should be worried.”

“Aww, you are too sweet, Jun-pon,” Nino cooed.

“How did it go by the way? You and Ohno-san were able to talk it out? You didn’t kill him and dispose of his body alone, right?”

Nino huffed, before laughing. “I’m not that bad.”

“Normally not. But Sho had a point with you and him being polar opposites. It was fun to watch, if a bit disheartening.”

“He’s alright,” Nino said with a hum as he stared at the coffee with a small frown on his lips. “In the end, we got along more or less okay. At least I think so. It was good to hang out with him. And he did give me proper input.”

“But? There is a but, right?”

Nino shrugged as he continued to stare at the cup. “Not really. He is just somehow unnerving. I can’t place my finger on what it is, honestly. Somehow I can’t stop thinking about him and all the things he does that annoy me. And then I’m annoyed because I don’t know why they are getting on my nerves. God, I’m confusing even myself.”

Jun watched him with dark eyes for a moment before he started to snicker.

“What?” Nino asked with a glare.

“Nothing.”

“No really, what?”

“Nothing. You need to figure that one out on your own.”

Nino pouted, then decided that it was not worth the headache. If Jun wanted to be mysterious, he was going just to ignore him. Yes, that was probably the best to do. And he would ignore the Ohno issue just as well.

“Are the others in?”

Jun lifted his eyebrow as he pointed at the two part-timers, running around in the seating area, cleaning tables right now. “As you can see.”

“You know who I meant.”

“Sho is out in the back. Staring at your numbers again as if they change if he stares hard enough.”

“He will give himself an aneurysm or something. I will tell him to help you instead. I fear the lack of social contacts will do something to his brain.”

“You are one to talk.”

“Hey! I have you to know that I talk with the customers a lot. They love me.”

“Strangely enough. You are nothing but a brat.”

Nino laughed out loud as he winked at him. “Don’t let the others hear or they might hit you.”

“I’m not scared of your brothers,” Jun said with a shake of his head.

“Aww, Junny, you hurt my feelings.”

Jun almost jumped when the heavy hand of Nagase fell on his shoulder, sending Nino into giggles as he hid his face.

“God dammit, did nobody tell you that it’s bad to sneak up on unsuspecting people?”

“Ah, no I might have missed that talk,” the older man said before his eyes fell on Nino.

“I need to talk to you.”

“Why now?” Nino said with a frown.

“Not out here.”

“Then let’s go to the office. I was about to chase Sho out anyway so we can do that.”

“Good,” Nagase nodded as he put his arm around Nino’s shoulder and led him inside.

“Hey Sho, Jun needs your help outside.”

Sho frowned. “What are you even doing here? And since when?”

“Since I said so. He told me you are cooped up here most of the time, staring at the numbers.”

“Nino…” Sho said with a frown. “The sale will be at the end of the month. I’m just trying to help.”

Nino’s lips twitched as he nodded. He knew that. “Thank you. But still, I need the desk space for a while.”

Sho frowned, staring them down as if he wanted to argue, but at Nino’s warning look he got up and vanished to the front.

“You got money problems?”

“No,” Nino said. “Sho is making this a bigger deal than it is. Hey, do you think that I could fit a kitchen in the back?”

Nagase frowned as he lifted an eyebrow and looked around. “If the kitchen is supposed to be bigger than a kettle and one hot plate, the answer is no.”

“Bummer,” Nino decided as he pushed the papers to the side. Well, another time then. He turned to look at Nagase with a frown. “So what did you need to tell me?”

Nagase was still frowning down at him. “Ah, yes. Actually, I’m here to ask you if there is a free spot on your roster.”

Nino picked non-existing dust from his jeans, mentally going over the people he employed so far.

“Ah, wait!” He’d remembered the boy that had cancelled on him so often already. He jumped to his feet to ask Jun about the boy, since Jun was responsible for everything when Nino wasn’t there.

When Nino came back, he nodded. “Yes, or there will be, at least. A student that either keeps coming in too late or doesn’t show up at all. Jun handed him a second warning. If it happens again, he’s out immediately. Otherwise, he is still out, but it will be later.”

“That’s fine. We can figure something out for a few more weeks.”

“I want to meet him. I won’t just say yes, because he comes from you,” Nino warned.

Nagase laughed as he nodded. “Of course. I will make Matsu-nii bring him next time.”

Nino nodded as he wrote down a note for the others, just in case he wouldn’t be here then. “Tell Matsu-nii to call me before he comes through to make sure I’m in.”

“Yeah, yeah. Don’t want to scare the others.”

Nino chuckled as he stretched out his back.

“So what sale was Sakurai-san talking about?”

“Will you just let it go?”

“No?”

Nino grinned as he pushed the other by the shoulder. “Nosy. But it’s nothing. The place besides here has been empty for a while. It’s now open for sale, and it’s bigger than this. The owners say it would be possible to connect both fronts even and… But as Sho had already figured out, I don’t have the funds yet.”

Nagase frowned at those words and Nino chuckled.

“Seems that paying people more than minimum wage while at the same time making sure to have more people at hand for each shift than strictly necessary cuts down your profit. Not to mention wanting premium ingredients. Who would have thought?”

“I thought you had the money?” Nagase asked. “You always talked about it.”

Nino shrugged. “That was before the price for it went up. Shouldn’t you go? Or are you not needed at your job any longer?”

Nagase looked at the clock at the wall as he jumped to his feet with a swear. “The boss will kill me.”

“Give the old man my regards,” Nino said sweetly.

“Did you call him lately?”

“No,” Nino said with a frown. “I don’t see why I should.”

Nagase snorted. “Then I better not mention you so that the mood won’t sour further. Or I should, and he’ll be happy to hear you are still alive,” he muttered as he turned and, with a wave, was gone.

Nino sighed as he stared at the ceiling, before straightening. He better focus on his actual paperwork.

—

“Good morning, Ninomiya-san,” Ohno greeted as he jogged up to the still closed coffee shop.

Nino smiled wryly at the greeting. “Back to that?”

Ohno stuttered for a moment. “I thought, you preferred…” he stopped as he thought about how everybody called him Nino and grimaced as he realised that it was probably the exact opposite. He stood straight in front of him with a small smile. “Good morning, Nino.”

“Good morning, Oh-chan,” Nino greeted back with a giggle. “Ready to start the day?”

“Yes!”

Ohno entered the shop behind Nino and put his bag down on one of the tables.

“What’s up? Not up to cleaning? Don’t think I’m going soft now.”

“No, it’s not that,” Ohno denied. “But… I…” Suddenly he felt stupid. Nino was probably just joking as he told him to think of how he imagined his favourite cafe. He would probably laugh at him when he saw that Ohno had drawn something. Though he had enjoyed the small sketches Ohno had drawn on napkins during their week together whenever he was bored.

“What is it?” Nino’s voice was closer now, making Ohno look up in confusion.

“I made a sketch,” he said in the end and pulled out of the folder. He handed it over to the other man, who tilted his head before opening the envelope and looking at the picture.

Nino’s mouth dropped open. The picture showed the interior of a small cafe — a handful of tables in the front, right behind the window. There was a mix of furniture that somehow looked very comfortable, even if no piece really fit the other. The counter to one side was large and went almost the whole length of one side of the shop, with displays on both sides of the register which had colourful blobs in them.

Behind the register was a figure that Nino easily recognised as himself. As his eyes wandered over the picture he recognised Aiba wiping down a table, Jun putting up some fliers on the wall across from the register, and Sho walking through a door that said ‘staff’.

“Wow…” he mumbled as he looked at Ohno who was blushing madly.

“I know it’s not much. But… I can’t explain well in words, so I thought a picture would maybe… Sorry, it’s stupid, right?”

“No, it’s beautiful, Oh-chan. I love it. It looks a lot like what I like.”

Ohno nodded as he shuffled his feet. It looked a bit like the shop they were currently in, just bigger and wider and in a colour scheme that Nino had commented on as soothing as they had entered a cafe the other day.

“May I keep it?”

“Of course. It’s my homework after all, right?” he asked with a small smile, which grew wider when Nino threw his head back and laughed loudly. Being the source of that laugh was something else. Ohno realised that it was the first time it was directed at him.

“You get an A+ for it then,” Nino said with a twinkle in his eyes.

Ohno blushed as he looked down shuffling slightly before he flinched as a bell sounded. “Opening duties, yes,” he stuttered as he ran off to get the broom.

Nino gazed once more at the picture, a soft smile grazing his lips, before putting it down carefully and answering the door for today’s delivery.

—

“What’s up with them?” Matsuoka asked curiously as he entered the shop to find Nino and Ohno sitting at a table, eating their lunch together.

Aiba looked up at the question and chuckled. “Ever since they had to scout those cafes together they get along. It’s cute, really.”

Matsuoka frowned as he looked at the two and leant against the counter, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

Ohno was giggling at something Nino had said while Nino grinned contentedly at his reaction. They sat close together, their heads bowed towards each other, and it was such a drastic change from the start that it shocked Jun.

“So did they already start dating?” he asked when Nino’s fingers wandered over the inside of Ohno’s elbow to get his attention back on him.

“No. Just dancing around each other. We made bets as to how long it will take them.”

Matsuoka lifted an eyebrow at those words, thinking that he probably should stop them. Then he decided against it. Nino was old enough to defend himself.

“He better be good,” he said instead.

Aiba rolled his eyes at that. “Don’t scare him away, or Nino might hate you. Why are you even here?”

“Nino told me to come with the kid.”

“Ueda-kun? Where is he then?”

“I told him to meet me here at three.”

“And it’s only two…” Aiba said in understanding. “Are you trying to scold him for being late?”

“Of course, what else would be the fun,” Matsuoka chuckled. He stood and went over to Nino and Ohno.

“Matsu-nii!” Nino said in surprise as the older sat across from them. “What are you doing here already?”

“Thought it didn’t hurt to be early so that you won’t change your mind.”

Nino rolled his eyes. “Nah, you just want to guilt him into being a good boy to me.”

“Maybe.” He looked at Ohno to see that the face of the other had closed up again when he had sat down. A small smirk played on his lips. “Got curious about you two lovebirds.”

Ohno spluttered a bit. Nino just scoffed, but the tips of his ears were red, betraying his true feelings. “Idiot. Don’t be stupid.”

He got up and pointed at the back door. “Since you are here, you can already look over his contract. Sorry, Oh-chan.”

“It’s no problem, Nino. Work first, right?”

“Right,” Nino sighed as he pulled at his hair when he waited for Matsuoka to stand. Matsuoka followed him, and soon enough, they were gone.

Ohno sighed as he finished his food and brought everything to the counter to put it in the dishwasher.

“Hey, Oh-chan?”

“Yes?”

“Can you bring this to the back?” Aiba asked, pointing at two cups of tea.

“Of course,” Ohno agreed even if he didn’t feel like it. He put the cups on a tray to bring them to their small office where Nino was staring down at a paper with wide eyes.

“Matsu-nii…” he whispered. “I can’t take this. It’s too much.”

“Course you can. We talked, the boss agreed, and said that you should see it as a bonus for getting involved with us.”

Nino frowned as he stared at Matsuoka. “Where did you get the money from anyway?”

Matsuoka shrugged. “Doesn’t matter.”

Nino heaved a sigh as he stared down at the check, biting his lips. He looked up when Ohno finally knocked.

His eyes sparkled as he jumped to his feet. “Oh-chan, thank you. I need this right now!” he declared, taking the cups and falling on his chair again.

“Is everything alright?” Ohno asked after a moment. Nino looked surprised by the question, but he just nodded.

“Yup, perfect,” Nino answered with a bright spark in his eyes as he looked back at the check on the table.

—

Ohno kept his eyes down when he left the shop that evening. He frowned when he could feel eyes on himself and finally looked up.

He flinched when he saw Nagase pushing away from the wall. “Ohno-san, right?”

Ohno nodded mutely as he slowly stepped back. He didn’t want to talk to the other out here, in the dim-lit street. Didn’t horror movies begin like that?

A heavy arm landed around his shoulders, and he coughed softly, surprised by the weight.

“You and the brat, eh?”

“I don’t understand…” he mumbled. There was nothing between him and Nino after all.

Nagase laughed as he shook his head. “Should’ve known he had a thing for the silent type. Just a friendly reminder, Ohno-san,” he said, his voice losing any and all amusement it might have held at the start.

Ohno flinched when fingers squeezed his shoulders harder than necessary.

“He is very dear to us.”

Ohno nodded mutely and sighed in relief when the other let him go. The second Nagase stepped back, Ohno walked away as fast as he could. Yup, he had been right, better not to get involved with Nino.

—

Ohno stared at the cloth he was using to wipe down the tables.

“I’m so sorry,” the woman said, but he shook his head.

“It’s fine. Don’t worry,” he said and smiled at the little boy who was staring at him with wide eyes. The boy had pushed over a glass of tea in his excitement after seeing a puppy that walked by the window.

“I can do that.”

“You’re a customer, so don’t worry. And please stay seated,” Ohno added with a mock stern look to the boy as the kid gingerly tried to hop from the chair. “I first need to clean up the broken glass.”

“Here you go,” Nino’s voice said from behind him, and Ohno almost jumped at the suddenness. Nino put a glass down in front of the boy and winked. “Accidents happen so please don’t worry about it. The dog was adorable, right?” he asked the boy while Ohno moved back to get out of reach from Nino and went to get a broom to clean the shards away.

He ignored Nino’s stare, sighing and chewing on his lips as he grabbed the broom and looked over the schedule. Nino had put them together for a lot of shifts lately, and it was something Ohno had come to enjoy. Nino was easy to work with, didn’t talk too much or too little... but right now it was way too much to deal with.

“Ninomiya-san,” he said when they were back at the counter. “I have a favour to ask.”

Nino frowned but nodded. “Yes?”

“I need to change my shifts for the next two weeks. I can’t do morning shifts. I’m sorry for the inconvenience.”

Nino furrowed his brows as he stared him down. “Why?”

“Because of my mother. She needs help. I already talked with Aiba, and he said he could switch with me.”

“If he said so…” Nino said and trailed off as he was asked something by a customer about the cakes in their display. Ohno sighed in relief and continued with his own work.

—

“Just talk to him.”

“I don’t know what you are talking about,” Nino said with a frown as he tried to close the cash register. He swore when it got stuck.

“You’ve been in a bad mood for days now,” Aiba said as he pushed Nino to the side to rearrange the bills and then closed the register with no problem.

“I’m not,” Nino denied.

Aiba turned around and lifted an eyebrow. “Sure you aren’t. Ever since I switched with Ohno, you’ve been moping. Call him and talk to him.”

“He doesn’t want to talk to me. He is avoiding me,” Nino said as he kicked the counter. He had tried to chat to Ohno after his shift was over and Ohno’s started, but Ohno would just answer with the least amount of words possible and always made up some things he needed to tend to.

“He’s not…” Aiba said with a frown, lifting his hands when Nino glared at him. “Okay maybe a little bit. But you won’t know why if you don’t ask him.”

“But how?! He is clearly not interested in talking with me anymore. God knows why. I can very hardly force him to face me.”

“You’re his boss. So you very much could.”

“I’m no bully, Aiba. At least I try not to be. I won’t force him to talk to me if he doesn’t want to. I’m his boss, as you’ve already said. How would it look if I cornered him?”

Aiba frowned at the words but had to agree that it probably would look bad.

“Still, I think you should at least try to talk to him. He should allow that at least.”

Nino shrugged. He thought so too. That was the least Ohno could do, honestly. Nino had thought… He’d thought that they were somehow on the same page, but right when he had opened up and started to believe that he really liked Ohno, the other had turned cold again. And now that Nino knew how well they fit together, it was tough for him to go back to how it had been before. He was just happy Ohno had not quit yet.

“If you don’t talk to him, I will ask him what his problem is,” Aiba declared.

“Don’t you dare,” Nino huffed, turning around to ignore Aiba when he started to talk about Ohno again.

—

Jun groaned in annoyance when the door to the back was closed with a bang. “It can’t go on like that.”

“Don’t look at me. It’s not my fault,” Sho said as he scrunched up his nose. “On the opposite, I thought he would be over the moon now that he got the extra space.”

Aiba nodded as he put his head on his arms. “It’s all because Oh-chan is avoiding him.”

“Yeah, what’s up with that? I was so sure they would have jumped each other already,” Jun murmured.

“You’re just sour that you already lost the bet,” Sho teased with a grin.

“Nevermind that,” Jun said with an annoyed huff. “Really do you think I care about a little bit of money? If this goes on, we can forget about all the plans.”

“He is right, Sho-chan,” Aiba said with a frown.

“Okay, does anybody know what happened between them?”

Both men shook their heads. “One day they were openly flirting, the next Ohno was getting jumpy whenever Nino was close and wanted to switch shifts.”

“You should have said no,” Jun accused Aiba, who glared at him.

“Hey! I thought he needed to take care of his mother. I couldn’t say no. I didn’t know they were like that.”

“Still,” Jun began, but Sho put a hand on his shoulder to calm him down before he could raise his voice too much.

“Nobody is at fault but those two,” he calmed him down. They looked up when the doorbell indicated someone coming in.

“Hey guys, Nino’s already gone?” Ohno asked, looking relieved at not seeing him. The three of them exchanged a glance, and finally, Sho nodded.

“Yup, had an appointment at the bank”, he lied smoothly. It was technically the truth. However, that had been two hours ago, and now Nino was back to put the documents from the bank back into their office.

“Ah, good,” Ohno said and vanished into the backroom.

“I’m sorry for this, but it can’t go on like this,” Sho mumbled as he went to the door and pulled a table in front of it as a makeshift barrier.

“They could go out through the back, you know?” Jun said, but Sho shook his head.

“No, the builders put a container in front of the backdoor. I’ve been trying to call them the whole morning to make them move it. You can’t open the door right now. Nino was mighty pissed at that and swore to behead someone if it was not gone in time for tomorrow’s deliveries.”

“Ouch,” Aiba said as he started the coffee machine. “Coffee?”

“Please. This one is awful,” Sho said, pushing his cup to the side.

—

Ohno flinched when he heard the door falling shut. But he shrugged and went further into the changing section to put down his bag. He blinked when the door to the office opened, and he was suddenly face to face with Nino.

“Oh-chan,” Nino said in surprise.

“Ninomiya-san… I… Uhm…” Ohno murmured looking everywhere but the other. “The rest said you were gone,” he ended lamely.

Nino winced softly at the almost betrayed look Ohno shot at the closed door. “Don’t worry. I’m on my way out. I didn’t intend to make you uncomfortable.”

Ohno bit his lip because saying Nino wasn’t would be a lie. He stared at his feet, and Nino cleared his throat.

“Right, goodbye, and have a good day.”

“Thank you, Ninomiya-san,” he murmured.

Nino sighed, kind of wondering why Ohno didn’t just quit if he felt so uncomfortable, but at the same time very happy that the other didn’t. That way, he could still hope to make this all better again.

He went to the door, pushing it, and then frowning when it didn’t open.

“What the—?”

“Ninomiya-san, is everything alright?”

“The door is stuck,” Nino said with a frown.

“It was fine when I entered.”

Nino rocked the door again to find it jammed.

“You said the others were out?”

“Yup, they were talking when I came in. Seemed to be troubled.”

“Oh great. Stupid interfering bastards.”

“Ninomiya-san?” Ohno said, flinching when Nino kicked the door.

The younger man was feeling honestly frustrated and angry, and betrayed. Yes, betrayal was one emotion at the very forefront of his mind right now. Nino turned around at the almost fearful tone and stared at him with big eyes.

“What is up with you? Why do you look at me as if I’m going to hurt you? Whatever did I do?”

“Nothing, Ninomiya-san. I’m sorry if I made you uncomfortable.”

Nino laughed humorlessly as he sat on the chair in their break room. He crossed his arms in front of his chest. “That should be my line.”

He frowned, staring at Ohno who didn’t want to meet his eyes directly. He was so fed up that he might as well press Ohno for answers when he couldn’t get out. That was what everybody wanted, after all.

“This is all so stupid,” Nino said as he breathed in deeply. “Ohno-san, why did you suddenly start to hate me?”

“I don’t hate you, Ninomiya-san,” Ohno mumbled weakly as he sat down on the other side of the table, still staring at his fingers instead of looking at Nino.

“Then why did you start avoiding me?”

“I’m not.”

“Ohno-san, please, at least don’t lie to me. That hurts almost more than the thought that you don’t want to have anything to do with me anymore.”

“I’m sorry. I don’t want to hurt you,” Ohno mumbled.

“Then, why?”

“Because we got so close, comfortable around each other.”

“Well, on my part that was on purpose. I thought… Ohno-san, you do know that I fell for you, right?”

Ohno flinched and bit his lips hard.

“I wanted to ask you out for a date, and then this disaster happened, and I don’t even know what I did. That feels awful, just to let you know.”

“You didn’t do anything, Ninomiya-san,” Ohno said meekly and finally looked at him.

Nino sighed as he shook his head. “But, I thought I was getting closer to you and showing you that I wanted more… Were I not?”

“You were but… I can’t… Not with the likes of you. I don’t want to get involved in that.”

Nino blinked in confusion, opening and closing his mouth a few times. “Involved in what?”

“In criminal organisations,” Ohno said with a scowl.

Nino’s mouth fell open at those words. He stared at the other in silence for a moment, waiting for anything that showed that Ohno was joking. “What? How the hell did you get that idea?”

“Matsuoka-san and those guys,” Ohno mumbled, a slight blush colouring his cheeks as he realised that his imagination may have been overactive.

Nino threw his head back, laughing loudly. “God, sorry for laughing at you. But this is too funny. Them? Yakuza? God, no!”

“But they are scary and threatening.”

“Yeah, they like to appear like that, because they are stupid. But if they threatened you, I’m sorry on their behalf and I will kick them the next time I see them.”

“You call them older brother.”

“Because they are.”

“You are not related, are you?”

Nino got serious as he shook his head with a small sigh. “No, I’m not. God, you got it all wrong. Good, Ueda-kun might be a bit scary, but he is on the right track. They are from a big brother programme of sorts. They get in touch with troubled youths and play their role model, nursemaid, and sometimes social worker to make sure the youth stay out of trouble or don’t get into any. Support them in legal instances and all that. I’ve known them since I was in my teens,” Nino explained with a shrug. “They helped me find a secure job, and get the money for this deposit.”

“But why do they put people here?”

“Because I’m still in contact with them. I’m thankful for their help and not ashamed of it, and I think everybody deserves a chance. I had one.”

“And the money?”

“That’s because of the old man. I was his first case, and I think he has a soft spot for me,” Nino said with an eye roll. “In exchange of that money, I need to have four fixed spots open for the kids under their guidance, and they get free drinks and food.”

“He gave you money because you were his first case?”

Nino shrugged. He honestly didn’t understand that either, but he had the paperwork, and somehow he was now officially listed as a place to reintegrate kids into society. He would need to take a course for that, but it was also paid by them. “Yup.”

“Because you are so lovable?”

Nino grinned. “I am, aren’t I?”

Ohno finally relaxed and chuckled. “Hard to believe, but yes.”

“So… Now that you don’t think I’m in contact with any criminal organisations, would you say yes, if I asked you out?”

“I’ll only answer that if you’re actually asking.”

Nino looked at him for a while before he bit his lips. “Oh-chan, would you go out with me?”

“Yes.”

—

“Are you going to cry?” Ohno asked when he stood in front of the cafe with Nino at his side a few weeks later.

Nino frowned at his question and then huffed slightly as he hoisted up the backpack he had put in the rest of their perishables.

“No, why should I? It’s going to be better than it is now. But I’m going to miss not being here each day.”

“It’s just for a couple of weeks,” Ohno said as he poked his side. “Do you have everything?”

“Yup, thanks for closing up with me, Oh-chan.”

“No problem,” Ohno said with a grin. “Food?”

Nino frowned but then nodded. He didn’t feel like crying, but he also didn’t feel like going home all of a sudden.

“Sounds good.”

“Good. I’ll treat you to some Ramen.”

Nino chuckled as he nodded and followed Ohno’s lead to the nearest Ramen stall, one that the older often frequented.

They ate in silence for a while before Nino touched Ohno’s shin with his foot.

“Oh-chan?”

“Mh?”

“Will you open the new cafe with me?”

Ohno grinned as he nodded. “Of course, I’m your morning shift, buddy, right?”

Nino grimaced, then laughed. “Right.”

—

“No more research today?” Ohno asked as they met up in front of the station a few days after the cafe was closed for renovations.

Nino shook his head before agreeing. “Just a date. Going wherever you want.”

“No notebook?”

Nino grimaced. “No notebook. Why do you always question me?”

“Because you are a maniac.”

“Am not.”

“Are too, but that makes you lovable. Let’s go. I already decided where to take you.”

“So not fair,” Nino moaned as he followed Ohno who chuckled as he led him to a newly opened cafe and then to another and another…

But Nino stuck to his promise and not even once made notes or compared any inspirational ideas with Ohno, who grinned, before taking mercy on Nino and steered him out for a long walk through the park.

“That was exciting,” Ohno said with a chuckle as he brought Nino home after their date.

“I hate you,” Nino sulked. Ohno smiled as he stepped even closer to the other. He squeezed his hand, his other cupping his cheek.

“Liar,” he whispered as he pressed a kiss on Nino's soft-looking lips, gratified when the other sighed and moulded himself against the other.

—

“Hey Nino, are you already going crazy?”

“No, of course not,” Nino huffed as he pressed the phone between ear and shoulder.

“So you are all relaxing at home and going to bed early?”

“Of course, minus the part about sleeping early. I’m playing games.”

Ohno chuckled at the other end of the line, and Nino wanted to throttle him since it was clear that the other did not believe him even a bit.

“Oh, so I won’t see you at the cafe if I walked over there right now and see you checking it the hundredth time for tomorrow's reopening?”

“Of course not. I’m not a maniac, nor am I stupid.”

“Sure. You don’t call it your baby, either.”

“Did J tell you that? I’m going to kill him,” Nino grumbled.

Again Ohno chuckled, and Nino felt the tightness in his shoulders finally relax as he closed his eyes and imagined Ohno lying on his too old sofa at home, the phone pressed against his ear as he scribbled on his notepad. A sight that he had gotten used to these last few weeks. Ever since Ohno and Nino had both decided early on that dates outside were not their thing and enjoyed their multiple home dates very much.

“No, he didn’t. I heard you once.”

“Oh God,” Nino whined. “I’m not there, okay? So quit making fun of me. I’m hanging up since I need to concentrate on that game.”

“Sure, sure.”

Nino shook his head as he ended his call, since it was obvious that Ohno did not believe him. He put on his coat and opened the door... to be met by a familiar pair of feet. He felt his cheeks heat up as his eyes wandered up and fell on Ohno, who was laughing outright now.

“Got ya.”

“You’re awful,” Nino whined as Ohno stepped inside and pushed him away from the door.

“Relax. Everything looks great. You going to the cafe will only make you anxious, and then you’ll probably fall asleep in the middle of the day.”

“I won’t.”

“You would,” Ohno said and kissed him as he toed off his shoes while taking off Nino’s coat, who struggled just a bit before following his orders.

“I got us takeout,” Ohno said, swaying a paper bag in front of Nino’s face as he pushed him into his living room and pushed him on the sofa. “Let’s eat and cuddle.”

“If you insist.”

“I do,” Ohno said, kissing him again as he got comfortable at his side, snuggling up to him as they shared the Chinese takeout Ohno had brought.

—

“Congratulations,” Ohno whispered when Nino opened the door the next morning. He hugged him around the waist as soon as they stepped in and swayed him from side to side. “Happy?”

“Yes,” Nino said, looking around once more. He had seen this so often already and still, today was somehow special. There was a small frown on his face as his eyes fell on the wall behind the counter. There was a blank space that got on his nerves all the time. It was like he had planned. But the picture that was supposed to go there was gone.

Nino didn’t know how and he had already yelled at all of his friends who had helped him clean it out for losing that, but everybody had said they hadn’t seen it.

“You don’t look it.”

“It’s…” Nino groaned and shook his head. “No, it’s nothing. Just me being silly. Come on, morning shift buddy, or we have nothing to offer the customers when they finally come. This place is too empty. They are missing to make this perfect.”

“Yes, boss, but first,” Ohno said as he let him go and walked over to his bag. “A gift,” he said as he pushed a package into his hand.

Nino frowned at him. They had all agreed not to exchange gifts since this was something they had built together in the end.

“What is it?”

“How about you open it?”

Nino frowned but with a shrug opened the paper carefully. His fingers hit the cold glass, and his eyes widened as he saw the picture he had been looking for. It was framed, and the colours seem to be a bit brighter, even more like the real thing.

Nino’s fingers wandered over his figure just behind the cash register at the counter, before tracing the lines to the figure standing just beside him, handing out an order, a sleepy smile on his lips.

“I thought something was missing,” Ohno offered with a smile.

“Thank you,” Nino whispered, before gingerly putting the picture down and hugging Ohno, kissing him fiercely. “It’s perfect.”


— The End —