Work Text:
“Some people shouldn’t be allowed to have coffee in the mornings,” the chime of a bell and an exasperated remark calls Yuki’s attention to the arrival of his co-worker, who doesn’t wait for a reply as he walks to the back door to get in his uniform. “Good morning, Shibayama.”
“Good morning, Yaku-san!” The calico sitting on his lap yawns as it stretches, clearly not happy as Yuki stands up and brushes a few white hairs off his apron. “Sorry, Moka. I need to get to work, but I’ll keep petting you later okay? That regular you love so much tends to come in later today… is that why you’re so needy this morning?” A swish of her tail is his reply, and he crouches to stroke her chin a bit more before letting go and heading to the entrance.
He walks to the door of the café and turns the ‘closed’ sign to ‘open’, as he turns around a gaze to the clock hanging on the wall behind the counter tells him it’s 9 am sharp. Yaku appears again and judging by the expression on his face he’s still annoyed for whatever caused his earlier comment; Yuki already knows what Yaku going to say even before he asks about it, though.
“Nishinoya-san again?” Yuki asks, petting a black cat who was hanging around the entrance of the café. It’s Mint; she’s one of his favorites. She’s quiet and fluffy, and she’d been one of the first cats to warm up to him when he began working part-time in the shop. That’d been…how long already? Five months?
“Yeah. I love him, but he has just way too much energy in the morning.” He sighs, yet Yuki can’t see any annoyance on his gaze. He guesses that that’s one of the things that comes with living with someone you’re in a relationship with— even things you’d normally find irking become endearing with time. To be fair to Yaku, the few times his boyfriend had come to pick him up he seemed quite excitable, so much so that Yaku asked him to wait outside as to not disturb the cats or any of the customers (to which his boyfriend loudly exclaimed a ‘yes!’, earning a glare from some of the people attempting to eat their food and pet the kitties in peace).
The familiar sound of the knob of the café being turned and pushed with the tinkling of the chime makes them turn to look at the door just when three drowsy students step inside, chattering about what coffee they planned to order. Yuki remembers a reserve made for three people— he immediately turns towards the computer they have in the reception, signaling for Yaku to check it.
“Welcome to Nekoma cat café!” They both exclaim, amicable smiles on their faces as they get into work mode.
Even as 11:00 am arrived, Yuki still found himself covering his mouth to let out a yawn. It wasn’t like he had a problem with working on the morning shift; he didn’t mind waking up early and it fitted nicely with his afternoon classes, but sometimes things were so slow he couldn’t help but wish time would go by quicker. It didn’t help how calming the ambiance was, and how the idle chatter of the clientele wasn’t too loud in an attempt to allow the cats to feel comfortable.
The customers weren’t anything new, either. The people who came in when he was working were mostly regulars: the businessman who wasn’t allowed to have a cat because of his wife’s allergies so he came to the café to spend time with them, the tired college student who lived nearby and preferred to have breakfast while petting his favorite cat (a male Bengal who never seemed to run out of energy), a pair of girls who liked ordering something simple as they played with cute cats, appreciated the stylish decoration, and enjoyed each other’s company, the quiet elderly couple who the older cats ran to greet with meows when they arrived…
Yuki had grown acquainted with most of them via small talk while taking their orders or helping them make the cats more comfortable, and he enjoyed their presence but…it’d be enjoyable if something changed his routine once in a while.
A few minutes later, the boy who came once a week to spend time with the cats while playing video games on his switch arrived and ordered a mocha and a muffin, just like always. The place he chose to sit down in was the same as always too— near the power outlets, where he would charge his laptop.
“Good morning, Kenma-san.” The boy nodded, not taking his eyes off the console he was holding. Yuki left his order on the table in front of him and smiled as he notices a familiar orange and white calico laying on Kenma’s lap. “Moka seems to like you a lot, she kept asking for pats this morning.”
“I like her too,” Kenma replied, smiling at the cat whose ears twitched. She didn’t make any signs of moving out of his lap, though.
Yuki didn’t take offense at his concise replies, he was used to it by now. It wasn’t like Kenma was trying to be rude, he was just a quiet person, and he was always kind to the staff and cats around the café.
The day proceeded as usual, with a comfortable silence covered by the meowing of the more talkative cats and the talk between customers. It wasn’t until Fukunaga signaled to him that his shift was over that Yuki realized it was already 12:30.
He said his goodbyes to his coworkers and hurried back to his apartment which, luckily, was close enough that he could walk to it. He had class at 15:00 so he could take a short break at home before going to campus.
Yuki wondered if he had time to make some omurice for himself.
The rest of the week was more of the same. Greet people, tell them the price of entering (¥1000 per hour), repeat the rules of the café (don’t lift the cats, don’t be loud, don’t feed them with anything except the cat food the staff can provide you with, if you’re told to be particularly mindful about how you handle a cat listen to the waiters, etc.), provide them with indoor slippers and ask them to sanitize their hands, lead them to a table, ask their order, get the order and give it to them, repeat.
It was a week after the last time he’d seen Kenma, and although this was commonly the time Kenma visited the café again (Every Friday, around 11:00 am) he was nowhere in sight. Yuki had no reason to think much about it, after all, he had no obligation to come to the café— maybe he’d decided to break the routine, or maybe he’d gotten tired of it. Yuki had no way of knowing and although seeing the empty spot near the power outlets did feel strange, it wasn’t as if it was life-changing.
However, Kenma did come, an hour later than normal and with company nonetheless, something that had never happened before. He seemed to enjoy his alone-time, but Yuki guessed he must’ve not been the only one tired of the routine.
“Oh! This is the café you like so much, Kenma-san?!” An unfamiliar voice was accompanied by a familiar chime, and as Yuki turned around, he found himself staring at a skyscraper.
Well, not an actual skyscraper, however, he was sure the boy who’d just entered could pass as one just fine. He could barely come in through the door of the café, probably because his legs were so long. His features were sharp, and they certainly weren’t Japanese— was he a foreigner? More importantly, was Yuki staring?
“Lev, don’t be loud.” Kenma had to raise his head to look at the other boy, and suddenly Yuki felt extremely self-conscious about his own height. ‘If Kenma-san looks small, then I will look tiny…’
“Oh, sorry!” He lowered his voice a bit, but it wasn’t such a big difference in Yuki’s opinion. According to Kenma, it wasn’t either, and it was made apparent by his expression.
He decided this was a good moment to intervene in their conversation.
“Welcome to Nekoma cat café! Kenma-san and…?”
“Lev! Lev Haiba! Nice to meet you!” He bowed, which seemed like an excess of politeness to Yuki, but it was also… sweet in some way. It wasn’t like clients were normally rude, but most of them weren’t over 190cm and trying really hard not to hit themselves with the decorations around the café. Yuki immediately noted how vigorous Lev’s movements were— too vigorous for someone so tall on such a closed space.
“Nice to meet you too! I’m Yuki Shibayama. Uhm…alright, we’ll check you in and start recording your time, once that is done you can go and sit down and order…um, Haiba-san, did Kenma-san explain the rules to you?”
“Yeah! Uh…no holding the cats or making loud sounds…or feeding them anything besides cat food!” He counted with his fingers as he spoke. One, two, three, four… “Listen to the waiters and um...”
“Make sure to take off your shoes and sanitize your hands before you go in.” Yuki finished with a smile. This guy seemed nice, but he was certainly different from Kenma; he spoke a lot more than his friend that was for sure.
“Yeah! Ah, now that we’re standing closer, I realized how short you are! Are you around uh…158cm?” Ah… contrary to Yuki’s first assumption about him, politeness wasn’t his forte, apparently. Yuki tried not to feel offended about it, it wasn’t as if he cared about his stature anyway.
“Lev.” Kenma looked at his friend, who didn’t seem to understand that commenting on someone’s height wasn’t the best first impression. The blonde sighed and turned his gaze back at Yuki. “Don’t mind him, sorry.”
“Ah, it’s fine!” He shook his head a bit and told them to go inside. As he went towards Yaku to begin recording their time, he didn’t fail to notice the slightly upset expression the man was wearing on his face.
“Hey, if the guy gets too annoying, we can kick him out you know? Don’t let him bother you” Yuki blinked. Twice.
‘Ah, Yaku-san is sensible about his height. He must’ve thought the customer made me upset.’
“It’s alright! He doesn’t seem to be a bad person.” Yaku’s shoulders, which had stiffened as he spoke previously, relaxed and he sighed before speaking again.
“Just don’t let customers’ step all over you, yeah?” Yuki nodded earnestly, and his coworker patted him on the shoulder before returning to work.
When he began working at the café, he struggled with speaking up a lot more because of his timid personality and would occasionally have trouble dealing with… complicated customers; Yaku was always there for him during those situations, making sure everyone knew Yuki wasn’t someone they could get away with insulting and that they didn’t have any right to act like they owned the place. Surprisingly Nekomata, the owner of the café, didn’t seem to mind his behavior towards the clients even if things got heated. According to him, that was because he trusted Yaku’s judgment of the situation enough and that after a year working with him, he knew he wouldn’t abuse that trust. Even now, Yaku still was inclined to take a motherly role when Yuki got into trouble, and well…most people didn’t enjoy dealing with an angry Yaku, so they backed off quickly as soon as he stepped into the picture.
He typed the time Kenma and Lev came in, 12:08, and then walked towards where he guessed they were likely sitting, the spot next to the power outlets. He’d guessed right, as he found Moka making her way towards Kenma slowly and with clear reservation as Lev spoke to him with wild gestures and exaggerated expressions.
“Haiba-san, please remember not to disturb the cats.” Yuki hoped he wasn’t being too pushy about it, but Lev seemed like a naturally energetic person and even though some cats liked that, most of them shied away when they heard loud noises.
“Ah, sorry.” Kenma stared at him intently, and Lev gulped as he raised his head to look at Yuki. “Yeah um…sorry for mentioning your height? Yeah! Uh. Kenma-san says I need to stop being so blunt uh…yeah, sorry!”
“A-ah! No, don’t worry! It’s fine, I don’t mind at all!” Yuki waved his hands in front of his chest and smiled a bit to ease Lev’s worries. “I know you weren’t being purposely rude, so…”
Lev seemed a bit surprised by his reply, but the confusion was soon replaced by a feeling that was undoubtedly happiness.
“That’s good! Oh, Kenma-san mentioned your shift ended soon?! You could come and sit with us!” The proposition shocked Yuki for a second, and it caused him to wonder why exactly would Kenma say that unless Lev asked about it— which wouldn’t make sense since he and Lev met a few minutes ago…
Okay, he was overthinking it.
“Oh— um, alright!” He smiled at Lev who seemed content with his reply and looked over at Kenma to make sure he didn’t seem bothered by Lev’s proposition. He found the blonde looking at Moka, though, who seemed to have calmed down and was now rubbing against the jeans of his favorite customer. “Thank you for the invitation. Um, for now…could I take your order?”
“A mocha and a chocolate muffin, please.” So, Kenma’s usual then.
“Oh! I saw you had this cute cat-themed beverage on the entrance? A coffee?” Lev perked up.
“Yes, it’s a caramel macchiato. It isn’t really ‘cat-themed’…it just comes with some cute latte art made by the barista. It costs ¥302.”
“Oh, I want that then!” He said, and then added, “with a chocolate muffin too!”
“It’ll be ready in a few minutes, thank you for ordering.” Yuki bowed and turned around, not being able to ignore the smile tugging at his lips. Normally, he would avoid hanging out with customers at work, even when he wasn’t working, but if this stranger was friends with Kenma then he could make an exception. He liked Kenma enough for that.
Today he didn’t need anyone to tell him the time as he changed back to his casual clothes as soon as the clock indicated 12:30 had arrived. Yaku looked at him strangely as he asked him to put his name as a customer but complied anyway, telling him to be careful. Yuki chuckled and told him that if anything happened, he’d come to the entrance right away.
“Sorry for the wait.” He said as he took a seat next to Kenma, who was petting Moka. Yuki didn’t fail to notice the dejected look on Lev’s face, and it didn’t take him long to figure out none of the cats had approached him yet.
Not like he was surprised, considering how loud he was, but it was still sad to see him so upset over it.
“Ah, Haiba-san. Would you like me to bring some of the cat toys we have in the café?”
“You can do that?! Please!” He exclaimed, with his face lighting up like a Christmas tree. He assumed that since Kenma didn’t ever ask for toys, he forgot to mention to Lev that he could ask the staff for some.
He didn’t want to just take the things even though he knew where they were kept, so he asked Fukunaga if he could bring him a cat teaser. His coworker stared at him with a funny expression on his face for a second but before Yuki could ask about it, he’d already left to get the teaser.
Yuki thanked him when he handed him the toy, and he immediately ran back towards Haiba who was trying to get near Moka without many positive results thanks to Kenma and the own cat’s distaste towards him.
“Ah, Moka is a bit grumpy sometimes…don't mind her! She’s very fond of Kenma-san though, so that’s why she looks so happy today.” Lev visibly perked as he heard Yuki’s voice. “Here you go Haiba-san, this should make you a bit more approachable.”
“Thanks!” The boy took the handle of the teaser, which had a cute brown mouse made of wool hanging on the end of the strand. “Uh…which cat should I approach, though…”
“Um…I could take you to my favorite if you’d like? She’s a bit quiet and shy so maybe you’d prefer to meet one of the more extroverted—”
“No, I wanna meet her!” Lev exclaimed, and Kenma shushed him with a glare. “Let’s go, Shibayama-san!”
As Lev stood up, Yuki turned to look at Kenma who was making no signs of moving from his seat. “You aren’t coming too, Kenma-san?”
“No, I’ll wait here.”
“Alright,” Yuki signaled for Lev to follow him. “she’s shy but very sweet! I’m sure you’ll love her.”
They walked across the room to an open wooden door, which led to another room where they’d arranged some varied structures for the cats to play with. The ceiling was higher in this place since shelves and bridges connected the various structures together and their positions required height. At the back of the room, a big window allowed light in and near it there were some cat perches for them to bask in the sun or take naps. Yuki allowed Lev to take in the view, with a sparkle in his eyes that brought him back to the times he’d led younger kids to this room after their parents dragged them to the shop.
“Woah!” He grinned and turned to look at Yuki, and it was easy to notice how much he was containing himself from making any energetic moves. “This is so cool!”
Yuki smiled at him and walked towards the side of the room where some clients were speaking to one of his coworkers. As the clients began playing with the cats, he spoke up. “Kai-san?”
“Shibayama? I thought your shift ended already?” He looked at Lev and then at Yuki again.
“I’m not working, I’m here as a client, but… I wanted to introduce Mint to my friend if she’s free?” He wondered if calling Lev his friend would make things awkward, but luckily no discomfort was shown on the taller boy’s face. Rather, pure glee adorned his features.
“Yeah, she woke up a few minutes ago. She was lounging around here the last time I saw her? You already know she doesn’t like leaving this room when there are clients around.” Yuki thanked him and, as on cue, a soft meow came from behind him. He crouched and shifted to find himself face-to-face with black fur.
“Hello, Minty!” The kitty jumped to his lap, curling her tail and brushing it against his arms. “Haiba-san, this is Mint. As I said she’s a bit reserved so um…make sure to move slowly when you approach her, okay?”
“I will!” He kneeled slowly and shuffled to a more comfortable position before gently raising an arm towards her.
Yuki kept petting Mint calmly, though the cat was clearly alert about Lev’s movements. “Don’t worry, Haiba-san won’t harm you okay?”
Just as the Russian placed a hand over her, she moved away.
“Ah…” Disappointment washed over his face as his brow furrowed and he closed his mouth tightly.
“It’s okay! She probably just needs to get used to you first.” He was about to pat his shoulder but decided not to. Wouldn’t physical contact be awkward, considering they’d met so recently…? “For now, how about you play with her? She likes teasers a lot!”
As Lev began playing with her, Yuki found himself enchanted. A pleasant, fuzzy and unexpected warmth settled on his gut as he watched the stranger wave the teaser around, attempting to grab the cat’s attention and the evident changing expressions on his lineament as he did so. The way he bit his lip as he didn’t know how to proceed after the kitty clung to the wool toy, the joy on his energetic movements as the mouse was flung around, the warmth spreading throughout his curving lips as he finally grazed the fluffy black fur for the first time…
It was a fresh, strange, embarrassing feeling. Was it weird, to feel this way towards someone he’d just met?
In the end, they spent more time playing with Mint than eating with Kenma. As they came back to the table, chatting excitedly about the experience, the boy was stuffing his laptop in his bag and Moka was curled up at his side napping.
“Oh! I’m sorry, your drink must’ve gotten cold…” Shibayama frowned as he turned to look at Lev, but the other boy seemed carefree as he shrugged.
“I’d already drunk most of it while waiting for you before anyway! Don’t worry.” After a pause, he spoke again. “I can always come back next week to order another one anyway!”
“Hey, don’t bother Yuki, okay?” Kenma sighed apologetically, but Shibayama was quick to tell him it was okay as he walked with them towards the door of the café.
“In any case, thank you very much for today. It was very fun spending time with you, Haiba-kun. I’m sorry I wasn’t able to spend more time with you Kenma-san.”
“Don’t worry, this is exactly what I expected when Lev told me he wanted to come here.”
“Ah! Kenma-san don’t say that!” It was weird to see Lev blush and scold Kenma, who didn’t look like he cared about what Lev said. Shibayama couldn’t do anything but laugh, and maybe if he had been paying attention he would’ve noticed Lev staring at him completely awestruck.
As they parted ways, Shibayama thought about he wouldn’t mind for Lev to come back next week as he had implied he would. This small change in his routine wasn’t bad at all.