A Cup of Sweet Espresso, please? - Chapter 1a
Title: A Cup of Sweet Espresso, please?
Fandom(s) : U-KISS
Pairing(s): KeMaru
Rating: PG-13
Genre: AU, Romance (?)
Warnings: Awful!English
Author's Notes: This is a birthday present for lovelybrii12! Happy (belated) birthday! I don't know how long and how horrible it will be, but I intend to finish it because it's a birthday present! :D
Prologue
With his grip about the door's handle, Kevin exerted an average amount of strength to push it open. A strong aroma of coffee then engulfed Kevin's sense of smell, something he had been too nervous to realise the first time.
“Aloha!”
Kevin grinned at Dongho, who ran towards him to give him a big hug. It was as if they knew each other for a long time, and instead of feeling afraid of the overflowing affections, Kevin thought it felt homely.
“Hello, Dongho-ssi!” Kevin chirped, gaining himself a frown from the obviously younger one.
“We are family! You are Kevin-hyung, I am Dongho. No formalities!” Dongho sternly said, before reverting to his smiling self. “Kevin-hyung, quick go change! Soohyun-hyung made a special order so your working clothes have arrived already!”
Kevin nodded, letting Dongho lead the way. He ended up wearing a party hat (courtesy of Alexander) and having a slice of cheesecake held before him (in Eli's hands).
“Congratulations! And celebrations! Congratulations for being part of the family!” Soohyun sang, and the last part became words of the same note since it couldn't fit the original melody.
“Yo, here's your clothes.” Eli greeted, throwing a shirt towards Kevin with a friendly smile. “Soohyun insists you're S, I'm sorry if it's too big for you.”
“Oh, I'm actually fine with both S and XS.” Kevin smiled as he caught the shirt in the air. Eli gestured at the extra few shirts so he could wash the dirty ones.
“Eat the cake! Eat the cake!” Kiseop reminded, checking his watch. “We need to go grind the beans soon. Hehe.”
“Oh, oh!” Kevin grinned sheepishly, eyes prettily forming two crescent shapes.
“We have no candles, sorry!” Alexander held a fork out for Kevin and hugged him slightly. “Happy First Working Day! Soohyun said you have no experience, but don’t worry, we’re here to guide you~! Eat up, Kevvy Kevin~!”
Kevin laughed at his new nickname and took a big bite of the cake without the fork, causing everyone to laugh at his adorableness.
“Guess he’s one of us! I wanted to tell him you give weird nicknames to everyone.” Soohyun smiled, clapping his hands. “BACK TO WORK, GUYS! Kevin, you can finish up your cake, with a fork.”
Kevin giggled, nodding happily and enjoying the cake with the fork Alexander left on his plate. Alexander mumbled something about disrespect to the eldest one and made weird faces at Soohyun’s back. Kiseop rolled his eyes at him and hooked their arms together, before they cheerfully skipped out. Eli yawned, strolling into the kitchen while Dongho stared at Kevin with a smile.
“Can I have a bite, please?” Dongho asked cutely, eyes widening to magnify the effect.
Kevin looked at the leftover cake and decided to feed Dongho everything, gaining another warm hug.
“Okay, we have to put this in the dishwasher and sweep the floor!” Dongho informed, and Kevin made an ‘O’ shape with his mouth. “Yep, we do that every day. Washing in dishwashers so Eli can help out as a barista when he’s done with the food, sweeping the floor in the mornings because it’s usually really late when we close.”
Kevin nodded, hearing Dongho explain more about the café as the both of them bounced to the kitchen, bumping into Eli before hopping back out to the dining area. Dongho handed him a broom and waltzed around with practiced ease. Alexander laughed when Dongho smiled proudly and accidentally collided into a table. Kevin grinned, joining in with the sweeping, except more focused on keeping the place really clean.
“Tsk, Dongho-ah, you should do things like Kevvy.” Alexander clicked his tongue at the youngest and sighed, cleaning cups to make sure they were clean.
“He’s just new. He’ll be dancing around soon because sweeping is so boring.” Dongho shrugged, repositioning the table.
Kiseop and Kevin exchanged glances and smiled, while Soohyun returned with breakfast for the crew.
-
Kevin and Dongho held on either sides of the “Open” and “Closed” sign to flip it around. Dongho grinned widely and high-fived the older male.
“Do you want to flip it from today onwards? It’s boring for me.” Dongho smiled cheekily.
Kevin nodded enthusiastically. “I think it’s fun!”
“Oh, we’ll see.” Dongho chuckled, ruffling Kevin’s hair. “I was like that once.”
Kevin shook his head and laughed, following Dongho back to the coffee counter.
The two baristas and the two waiters chatted idly as Eli continued to transfer cakes from the kitchen’s refrigerator to the one inside the coffee counter. Their chat got cut off by high notes the bell at the door made.
Kevin slightly pouted, his sentence uncompleted.
“Kevin, go take his order.” Kiseop chuckled. “Your first order, fighting!”
The new waiter then snapped back into reality, realising that it was his first order. He brightened up and sped to the customer, not wanting to leave him unattended for too long. He thought the customer looked familiar.
Oh, he was one of the “idiots”.
He smiled cheerfully and bowed. “Table for one?”
“Oh, yes.” The customer smiled. “I usually take the seat over there though.”
Kevin blinked as the customer walked before him to his apparent usual seat, not knowing what to do. Dongho hissed for Kevin’s attention, raising a tray in one hand and a menu in the other.
The new waiter gasped and ran back to the coffee counter, quickly thanking Dongho and then rushing to the customer’s table. He accidentally dropped the menu in his rush to place it on the table, causing Kevin to blush furiously.
His first order was a mess.
“It’s okay, take your time. You don’t have to run, you know.” The customer laughed, returning the menu to Kevin. “A double shot of espresso. Thank you, Kevin.”
Kevin blushed into a darker shade of red when the customer told him he was aware of the rush. “How-how did you know my name?”
“It’s on your nametag.” He chuckled, positioning his laptop on the table and Kevin caught what he thought to be the customer’s name.
“Oh.” Kevin nodded, mentally kicking himself for being stupid. “Well then, your order will come right up, Kibum-ssi.”
Kibum chuckled, smiling. “You catch on fast. Sure, take your time.”
Kevin walked quickly back to the copy and stated the order. “Uh, espresso.”
Alexander raised his eyebrows, but Kiseop nudged the older one.
Dongho bit his lower lip and tapped Kevin’s shoulder. “He comes everyday. He only orders double shot of espresso.”
The two baristas immediately frowned at Dongho. “Dongho!”
“We have to tell him some day.” Dongho scratched his head, instantly apologising. “Sorry!”
“It’s okay, I…messed up quite a bit.” Kevin bit his lower lip, remembering the menu that he had dropped on the floor.
“It’ll get better.” Alexander smiled encouragingly.
Kiseop placed the cup of coffee on the coffee counter and smiled. “Fighting!”
Kevin almost forgot to add a piece of serviette on the tray. He apologised again, taking in a deep breath before leaving the coffee counter. Dongho tried to stay on to note Kevin’s possible mistakes, but another customer entered.
Kevin moved cautiously around the many tables and chairs, when a noisy child ran past him and caused him to fall forward. He shut his eyes tight and prepared himself to pay for the cup, when he realised the cup took a little too long to hit the floor.
“Oh my god!” Dongho gasped, while Alexander and Kiseop made distant noises.
Kevin opened his eyes and widened them, watching as Kibum took the empty cup off his lap and assessed the mess on his jeans. Dongho got to Kibum before Kevin could react, directing him to the staff’s toilet and that they were willing to compensate in any way.
Kevin’s eyes watered as he took the empty cup and placed it back in the tray, seeing the coffee-stained cushioned chair and the wet floor. The couple walked to him and apologised profusely for their uncontrollable child, and Kevin managed a smile while saying he was the one at fault.
Kiseop decided to help mop the floor since there were only a few customers, asking Kevin to carry the chair into the staff’s room and get a clean one out. Kevin nodded guiltily and continued apologising.
“It’s okay, Dongho was horrible when he just joined. He was worse than you.” Kiseop smiled, and Kevin could tell the older one was just trying to make him feel better.
Kevin kept quiet and carried the chair (with some difficulty) through the short gate at the counter held open by Alexander.
“Don’t worry, Kevin. I’m sure things will get better.” Alexander nodded firmly, giving him directions to where the other cushioned chairs were at.
Once Kevin was inside the authorised area, he let his tears leave his eyes. He sadly looked at the ground and rather his fellow workers scream at him then be so nice about everything.
“No, it’s fine, really.”
“But-”
“He’s new, I know.”
“Th-thank you, then.” Dongho smiled, spotting Kevin. “Kevin-hyung!”
Kevin looked up and dropped the chair he was holding, quickly wiping his tears away. He thought he saw Kibum in the area. Weird, was he a staff?
“It’s fine, I don’t mind.” Kibum patted lightly on his shoulder. “These jeans dry fast anyway.”
“Kevin-hyung, don’t worry. Everyone has a first.” Dongho nodded. “Let’s quickly go back out to take second, third, fourth and so on orders to get better! The café will get crowded soon. Dear customer, we’ll get you a new cup of double shot espresso for free and a slice of cake as compensation.”
“Oh no, it’s really fine.” Kibum shook his head. “I don’t fancy cakes much anyway.”
“We have muffins too.” Kevin added softly.
“Oh, I…don’t have a sweet tooth.” Kibum shrugged. “All is well, don’t worry.”
-
I didn't intend to break the chapter into two. It was sort of a last minute decision.
I intend to update on the Friday, but if the fic I'm rushing out isn't able to be rushed out on time, I'll update part 1b. (I don't make sense, but I'm trying to make up for "lost updates" because this is a birthday fic and I feel bad for dragging it's update for more than a month :() Sorry lovelybrii12! Chapter 2 is still in the making but I hope I won't take so long the next time :S
Fandom(s) : U-KISS
Pairing(s): KeMaru
Rating: PG-13
Genre: AU, Romance (?)
Warnings: Awful!English
Author's Notes: This is a birthday present for lovelybrii12! Happy (belated) birthday! I don't know how long and how horrible it will be, but I intend to finish it because it's a birthday present! :D
Prologue
With his grip about the door's handle, Kevin exerted an average amount of strength to push it open. A strong aroma of coffee then engulfed Kevin's sense of smell, something he had been too nervous to realise the first time.
“Aloha!”
Kevin grinned at Dongho, who ran towards him to give him a big hug. It was as if they knew each other for a long time, and instead of feeling afraid of the overflowing affections, Kevin thought it felt homely.
“Hello, Dongho-ssi!” Kevin chirped, gaining himself a frown from the obviously younger one.
“We are family! You are Kevin-hyung, I am Dongho. No formalities!” Dongho sternly said, before reverting to his smiling self. “Kevin-hyung, quick go change! Soohyun-hyung made a special order so your working clothes have arrived already!”
Kevin nodded, letting Dongho lead the way. He ended up wearing a party hat (courtesy of Alexander) and having a slice of cheesecake held before him (in Eli's hands).
“Congratulations! And celebrations! Congratulations for being part of the family!” Soohyun sang, and the last part became words of the same note since it couldn't fit the original melody.
“Yo, here's your clothes.” Eli greeted, throwing a shirt towards Kevin with a friendly smile. “Soohyun insists you're S, I'm sorry if it's too big for you.”
“Oh, I'm actually fine with both S and XS.” Kevin smiled as he caught the shirt in the air. Eli gestured at the extra few shirts so he could wash the dirty ones.
“Eat the cake! Eat the cake!” Kiseop reminded, checking his watch. “We need to go grind the beans soon. Hehe.”
“Oh, oh!” Kevin grinned sheepishly, eyes prettily forming two crescent shapes.
“We have no candles, sorry!” Alexander held a fork out for Kevin and hugged him slightly. “Happy First Working Day! Soohyun said you have no experience, but don’t worry, we’re here to guide you~! Eat up, Kevvy Kevin~!”
Kevin laughed at his new nickname and took a big bite of the cake without the fork, causing everyone to laugh at his adorableness.
“Guess he’s one of us! I wanted to tell him you give weird nicknames to everyone.” Soohyun smiled, clapping his hands. “BACK TO WORK, GUYS! Kevin, you can finish up your cake, with a fork.”
Kevin giggled, nodding happily and enjoying the cake with the fork Alexander left on his plate. Alexander mumbled something about disrespect to the eldest one and made weird faces at Soohyun’s back. Kiseop rolled his eyes at him and hooked their arms together, before they cheerfully skipped out. Eli yawned, strolling into the kitchen while Dongho stared at Kevin with a smile.
“Can I have a bite, please?” Dongho asked cutely, eyes widening to magnify the effect.
Kevin looked at the leftover cake and decided to feed Dongho everything, gaining another warm hug.
“Okay, we have to put this in the dishwasher and sweep the floor!” Dongho informed, and Kevin made an ‘O’ shape with his mouth. “Yep, we do that every day. Washing in dishwashers so Eli can help out as a barista when he’s done with the food, sweeping the floor in the mornings because it’s usually really late when we close.”
Kevin nodded, hearing Dongho explain more about the café as the both of them bounced to the kitchen, bumping into Eli before hopping back out to the dining area. Dongho handed him a broom and waltzed around with practiced ease. Alexander laughed when Dongho smiled proudly and accidentally collided into a table. Kevin grinned, joining in with the sweeping, except more focused on keeping the place really clean.
“Tsk, Dongho-ah, you should do things like Kevvy.” Alexander clicked his tongue at the youngest and sighed, cleaning cups to make sure they were clean.
“He’s just new. He’ll be dancing around soon because sweeping is so boring.” Dongho shrugged, repositioning the table.
Kiseop and Kevin exchanged glances and smiled, while Soohyun returned with breakfast for the crew.
-
Kevin and Dongho held on either sides of the “Open” and “Closed” sign to flip it around. Dongho grinned widely and high-fived the older male.
“Do you want to flip it from today onwards? It’s boring for me.” Dongho smiled cheekily.
Kevin nodded enthusiastically. “I think it’s fun!”
“Oh, we’ll see.” Dongho chuckled, ruffling Kevin’s hair. “I was like that once.”
Kevin shook his head and laughed, following Dongho back to the coffee counter.
The two baristas and the two waiters chatted idly as Eli continued to transfer cakes from the kitchen’s refrigerator to the one inside the coffee counter. Their chat got cut off by high notes the bell at the door made.
Kevin slightly pouted, his sentence uncompleted.
“Kevin, go take his order.” Kiseop chuckled. “Your first order, fighting!”
The new waiter then snapped back into reality, realising that it was his first order. He brightened up and sped to the customer, not wanting to leave him unattended for too long. He thought the customer looked familiar.
Oh, he was one of the “idiots”.
He smiled cheerfully and bowed. “Table for one?”
“Oh, yes.” The customer smiled. “I usually take the seat over there though.”
Kevin blinked as the customer walked before him to his apparent usual seat, not knowing what to do. Dongho hissed for Kevin’s attention, raising a tray in one hand and a menu in the other.
The new waiter gasped and ran back to the coffee counter, quickly thanking Dongho and then rushing to the customer’s table. He accidentally dropped the menu in his rush to place it on the table, causing Kevin to blush furiously.
His first order was a mess.
“It’s okay, take your time. You don’t have to run, you know.” The customer laughed, returning the menu to Kevin. “A double shot of espresso. Thank you, Kevin.”
Kevin blushed into a darker shade of red when the customer told him he was aware of the rush. “How-how did you know my name?”
“It’s on your nametag.” He chuckled, positioning his laptop on the table and Kevin caught what he thought to be the customer’s name.
“Oh.” Kevin nodded, mentally kicking himself for being stupid. “Well then, your order will come right up, Kibum-ssi.”
Kibum chuckled, smiling. “You catch on fast. Sure, take your time.”
Kevin walked quickly back to the copy and stated the order. “Uh, espresso.”
Alexander raised his eyebrows, but Kiseop nudged the older one.
Dongho bit his lower lip and tapped Kevin’s shoulder. “He comes everyday. He only orders double shot of espresso.”
The two baristas immediately frowned at Dongho. “Dongho!”
“We have to tell him some day.” Dongho scratched his head, instantly apologising. “Sorry!”
“It’s okay, I…messed up quite a bit.” Kevin bit his lower lip, remembering the menu that he had dropped on the floor.
“It’ll get better.” Alexander smiled encouragingly.
Kiseop placed the cup of coffee on the coffee counter and smiled. “Fighting!”
Kevin almost forgot to add a piece of serviette on the tray. He apologised again, taking in a deep breath before leaving the coffee counter. Dongho tried to stay on to note Kevin’s possible mistakes, but another customer entered.
Kevin moved cautiously around the many tables and chairs, when a noisy child ran past him and caused him to fall forward. He shut his eyes tight and prepared himself to pay for the cup, when he realised the cup took a little too long to hit the floor.
“Oh my god!” Dongho gasped, while Alexander and Kiseop made distant noises.
Kevin opened his eyes and widened them, watching as Kibum took the empty cup off his lap and assessed the mess on his jeans. Dongho got to Kibum before Kevin could react, directing him to the staff’s toilet and that they were willing to compensate in any way.
Kevin’s eyes watered as he took the empty cup and placed it back in the tray, seeing the coffee-stained cushioned chair and the wet floor. The couple walked to him and apologised profusely for their uncontrollable child, and Kevin managed a smile while saying he was the one at fault.
Kiseop decided to help mop the floor since there were only a few customers, asking Kevin to carry the chair into the staff’s room and get a clean one out. Kevin nodded guiltily and continued apologising.
“It’s okay, Dongho was horrible when he just joined. He was worse than you.” Kiseop smiled, and Kevin could tell the older one was just trying to make him feel better.
Kevin kept quiet and carried the chair (with some difficulty) through the short gate at the counter held open by Alexander.
“Don’t worry, Kevin. I’m sure things will get better.” Alexander nodded firmly, giving him directions to where the other cushioned chairs were at.
Once Kevin was inside the authorised area, he let his tears leave his eyes. He sadly looked at the ground and rather his fellow workers scream at him then be so nice about everything.
“No, it’s fine, really.”
“But-”
“He’s new, I know.”
“Th-thank you, then.” Dongho smiled, spotting Kevin. “Kevin-hyung!”
Kevin looked up and dropped the chair he was holding, quickly wiping his tears away. He thought he saw Kibum in the area. Weird, was he a staff?
“It’s fine, I don’t mind.” Kibum patted lightly on his shoulder. “These jeans dry fast anyway.”
“Kevin-hyung, don’t worry. Everyone has a first.” Dongho nodded. “Let’s quickly go back out to take second, third, fourth and so on orders to get better! The café will get crowded soon. Dear customer, we’ll get you a new cup of double shot espresso for free and a slice of cake as compensation.”
“Oh no, it’s really fine.” Kibum shook his head. “I don’t fancy cakes much anyway.”
“We have muffins too.” Kevin added softly.
“Oh, I…don’t have a sweet tooth.” Kibum shrugged. “All is well, don’t worry.”
-
I didn't intend to break the chapter into two. It was sort of a last minute decision.
I intend to update on the Friday, but if the fic I'm rushing out isn't able to be rushed out on time, I'll update part 1b. (I don't make sense, but I'm trying to make up for "lost updates" because this is a birthday fic and I feel bad for dragging it's update for more than a month :() Sorry lovelybrii12! Chapter 2 is still in the making but I hope I won't take so long the next time :S