happy birthday ying @yinyqngg!! cw: megumi x reader, coffee shop au, i don't know coffee or cafes so it may be inaccurate.
working at the small cafe near where you lived was supposed to be fun, you told yourself. interesting. calming. to finally check off something on your bucket list.
and it certainly helped that you were "secretly" dating the prettiest boy you've ever laid your eyes on. black, spiky hair. eyes that lit up your dreams. hands that maneuvered the coffee machine with so much skill. and not to mention, he looks super cute in the uniform apron.
life felt like a dream for some time. working a relaxing job, funny and entertaining coworkers (you would never get tired of yuji and nobara's antics), getting to name one of the coffee machines (you named it nana after one of your favorite shows) and dating a man that seemed too good to be true.
until some influencer visited your cafe, and it instantly blew up online.
you weren't mad at the fact that this cozy corner of your life suddenly wasn't as "unknown" as you liked it to be. you were happy that this place had finally gotten the recognition it deserved—except, it was way too overwhelming for you.
there seemed to be coffee everywhere. more and more people kept on filling the small space, adding onto the temperature of the room that the air conditioner couldn't fight back. the bell at the door kept on jingling every three seconds. your shoes were sticking on the floor, your back was covered in sweat, and you had just ran out of whipped cream.
looking around, no one seemed to be doing any better. yuji spilled something on the floor and nobara looked like she was going to yell at him but decided against it, not wanting to make a scene in front of the new customers. gojo was in the back, laughing at the scene. useless manager. megumi ran around place to place like you, preparing orders at a pace that didn't seem real. you could see the beads of sweat on his face—concentration was a good look on him.
you shake your head, refusing to get sidetracked. you plop down two drinks at the pick up counter, shout out a number, and hurry along to the next one.
and on your nth "sorry, we ran out," to the latest customer, you decide that you deserve a break. slipping into the back room, you breathe in a huge breath of powdered sugar flavored air.
not even a moment later, the door opens again and megumi walks in, finding you.
"knew i'd find you in here."
you laugh, pulling him in for a soft peck on his lips before he leans on the wall next to you, also as exhausted as you were.
"i seriously can't take rush hour anymore.. they need to set a limit somewhere…" you say, filling up the empty space. "but i guess the feeling after the rush is good."
he agrees. "i just want something quiet. gojo needs to actually start managing."
you laugh again, and megumi smiles at the sound. there was no feeling that was better than the satisfaction of making you laugh.
he kisses you again. you can't help but think he smells like his signature black coffee.
suddenly, you hear a machine beeping from the outside, and yuji groaning—a sign that couldn't possibly mean anything good.
he rushes inside the back, catching you and megumi. "(name)! nana won't stop beeping and—oh my god." he fake gags at you and megumi, "i'm gonna get gojo on you two at this point!"
you shush him and follow him outside, megumi trailing behind. "how about you just show me how nana is beeping? did you forget to empty the drip tray?"
you fix his mistake, scolding yuji, and finally, the customers start filing in at a much more slower, manageable pace. just like that, it's over.
as you begin packing up and closing up shop for the day, megumi nudges you. "you were right. i guess the feeling after rush is nice."
he hands you a cup—your favorite coffee order, catered just to your taste. your eyes light up.
"thank you megs!" you exclaim, immediately taking a sip. he watches you greedily gulp down a quarter of it in one go, setting it down and wiping your mouth.
and he kisses you once more, taking your lips by surprise. it was longer, and infinitely gentler than everything else. it told you that you had all the time in the world. it told you that he'd always be there for you, silently holding your hand through it all.
when he lets go, he licks his lips.
"looks like that order will forever taste like you."
a/n: happy birthday ying!!! it's been a wonderful year getting to know you and you've been such an amazing presence inside my tumblr journey :3 ilysm so does megumi chan ehe.
my finger is jammed so i wrote this in pure pain
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