Kohi Onegaishimasu! Chapter 3
Title: Kohi Onegaishimasu!
Genre: drama!fic/slice of life/some Angst
Rating: G
Summary: Ren 'Alexander' Suzuki, a generally miserable, socially awkward young man is forced to give up his dreams in order to preserve his late grandfather's legacy... a man he very much hates. Armed with a small amount of money and a smaller staff, Ren is tasked with bringing business back to a Cafe in order to pay off a debt. With a personality that makes it harder for him to serve customers or even make any friends in a new place, Ren's got his work cut out for him. With time and a constant threat of a dangerous businessman, Ren might just discover why the little shop was so important to his grandfather.
Disclaimer: I own the plot and the idea and thus the copyright for it. The media used is not mine nor are the Idols used as cast members.
Cast:
(Chapter 3)
Shinichi Nakamura - Yuto Nakajima
Chapter Three - Love Me Latte
Ren slid his phone into his pocket, a faint smile still lingering on his lips. It didn’t really matter that he had spent the last two hours cooped up in his room talking to Yuki about absolutely nothing important. It helped get his mind of things like the debt, the restaurant and the incessant ‘friendly reminders’ from Anzai-san’s office about the amount of time left till he would be forced to sell the shop or have it taken away by the bank.
The wall clock showed 7 in the morning; exactly an hour before opening time. He sighed, taking heavy steps down the stairs and into the back room where he found, to his surprise, Shin, leaning against the wall, breathing heavily. He gasped inaudibly as he spotted the horrible bruise on the right side of the boy’s face. It was slightly swollen and his right eye seemed pinched shut because of it. There were multiple cuts on his knuckles, his lip was bleeding profusely and he was holding his abdomen, as if holding in his guts from falling out.
“Shinobu what happened to you?”
“Good… morning boss,”
Ren frowned and rushed to the boy as he collapsed onto the floor, face scrunched up in pain.
“What the hell happened?
“I… got into a fight…,”
“This early? Are you crazy or is this your idea of some sort of morning workout?”
Shin seemed to crack a lopsided grin but flinched as it hurt.
“I’m sorry I hid here, I didn’t know where else to go,” the boy said weakly, nursing his aching abdomen. Ren stared at him, feeling a little strange at the statement before walking over to a cabinet and pulling out a first aid kit.
“This will do for now but I’m going to take you to a clinic… I’ll call Naoki and ask him to watch over the shop until Rin gets here,”
“Uh… Rin said she won’t be able to come today, she has a test coming up,”
Ren blinked at the boy refusing to meet his eyes.
“I see… okay, well Naoki will take care of things,”
~*~Naoki did take care of things, considering he managed to keep a young couple entertained until Ren got back. Shin had refused to go home but Ren had managed to convince the boy to rest in his room above the shop.
They were an annoyingly happy couple, their public display of affection made Ren roll his eyes when they ordered one Vanilla Ice Latte with two straws.
“I can see cute pink hearts floating around them, they are so adorable!” Naoki commented dreamily as he returned after serving the duo. Ren cringed at the description before leaving his tenth message of encouragement of the morning to his younger sister. Something didn’t feel right to him.
“Ni-san! We should get those heart shaped straws! And discounts for couples!”
“Do you have a death wish?”
Naoki did another ridiculous pout and chuckled as he dodged a wet towel from his boss. Ren continued cleaning the stove as he heard Naoki sigh.
“They real are like the perfect couple though, I wonder if Rin-chan…,”
“Naoki?”
“Yeah?”
“Go ask them if they need anything else,”
Naoki gave a gracious bow before stalking off, missing the smile on the older boy’s face.
Ren jumped as he felt his phone buzz and was relieved to see a message from Rin.
Sorry for worrying you,
Really busy with school work. I feel bad for not helping at the café. Will return soon!
Please take care.
Love you.
Ren sighed, not being able to shake that awful feeling. Maybe he should go visit her in the dorms later. A loud noise startled him quite bad and he rushed to the stairs when he spotted Shinobu on his behind, looking thoroughly irritated for having slipped.
“Shinobu, are you an M?”
Ren slightly enjoyed the flustered response he got at the crude remark.
“I can’t stay in one place… not doing anything… it makes me want to punch holes in the walls…,”
Ren blinked.
“Um… okay then, don’t want you to be doing that… watch the stove for me then,”
Shinobu nodded, staggering to his feet and bravely marching to his assigned task. Ren turned and spotted the aforementioned couple. The girl’s back was towards him but he caught the eye of the guy. The eye contact remained for an uncomfortable 3 minutes in which both parties seemed to be trying to figure the other out before it was broken as the girl stood up to take her leave. She pecked her boyfriend on the cheek and walked out, heels clicking as she went.
Ren sighed before walking over to check on the newly roasted coffee when he jumped as he heard his name. He turned around to see the young man moving from the booth he had been sharing with his girlfriend to a stool and counter right across him.
“You’re Ren right?” he chirruped excitedly, his voice deep yet throaty. The young man was tall (very tall) with a long face and sharp features. He seemed almost as old as Ren yet had a child-like energy.
“Do I know you?” Ren queried, surprised. The man’s smile vanished almost painfully fast and he seemed taken aback.
“It’s me… Shinichi… don’t you remember me?”
The name did ring a bell… and a distant memory of a squeaky voice but that was all.
Ren scratched his head.
“I can’t believe this,” Shinichi sighed, shoulders slumping.
“I’m sorry?” Ren said unsure of what to make of his disappointment. He racked his head and could remember nothing of his childhood but the day he arrived at his grandfather’s mansion and the years that followed.
Shinichi looked up at him, observing him for a while before smiling almost sadly, as if out of pity.
“I guess it’s for the best…,”
“I hate to say this but you’re freaking me out just a tad bit,”
Shinichi shook his head, an apologetic look on his face and lengthened a lanky arm.
“My name is Shinichi Nakamura, I’m an intern photographer at Blink and my father owns the music store down the lane so you’ll be seeing me pretty often,”
Ren stared hesitantly at the outstretched hand which Shinchi wriggled encouragingly, a grin in place. He gave an awkward smile (that seemed more like a frown with his lips pulled up) before grasping it lightly. He almost flinched at the other’s strong grip.
“Nice to meet you,”
“Same here… I guess,”
~*~“So, it’s a lifestyle magazine?” Ren asked curiously flipping through the glossy pages. It was a pleasant day, the café was mildly crowded. Yuki had paid him a surprise visit and was happily teaching Shin how to work the Espresso machine. He had forced Ren out of the kitchen too, taking orders and making a spectacle out of each dish with ridiculous decor. With Rin back at the counter and Naoki light on his feet, Ren decided to let him have his fun.
He was currently sitting opposite the lanky photographer, going through the magazine he had brought over and keeping a hand in front of his face to shield it from Shinichi’s mischievous lens. It was awkward and he wasn’t so fond of taking pictures of himself.
“Yup,” Shinchi responded, clicking away anyway. Ren gave him a glare and rolled his eyes as Shinichi changed his angle and clicked again.
“What are you a paparazzi?” He sneered but scowled as the clicking continued.
“Say, do you want your café to be featured in our next issue? Your coffee is amazing, food is great but not many people come down this lane so it’s a pity… it will be good publicity!” Shinichi exclaimed and Ren sighed as the darn camera was finally placed to rest on the polished table.
“I don’t know… can you do that?” he asked with mild interest. Could an intern really influence a feature in such an established magazine? His fingers froze between two leafs as he spotted a whole two-page spectacular spread of Shinichi in a white shirt and rugged jeans.
“Oh, I model for them too once in a while,” Shinichi added nonchalantly.
“So you co-own a music store, play multiple instruments, work for a prestigious magazine as a model and photographer… anything else to make me feel like I’ve done absolutely nothing with my life?”
“I have a hot girlfriend,” Shinichi quipped with a wink. Ren glared at him. As if on cue the door opened with a gentle ting-a-ling and the girlfriend walked in. She spotted her enthusiastic boy, long arms waving in the air and shuffled over to his table just as Ren left it.
“Wait, I’ll introduce you to her,” Shinichi said quickly grabbing his arm.
“Ito-san, this is Ren-chan… he owns the place!”
Ito did not meet Ren’s eyes but walked between the two, forcing Shinichi to release Ren’s arm before sitting across him.
“I know, nice to finally be able to see you up close,” she responded politely, going through the menu.
“I’m sorry?”
She looked up at Ren and smiled, the gesture not reaching her eyes.
“The whole staff of my café comes to work early to watch you jog up and down the lane,”
Shinichi guffawed at Ren’s flustered expression. He realized Ito worked at the maid café across the street. The girl did not resume conversing and continued browsing the menu in silence.
“Um, I’ll send someone to get your order for you,” Ren replied after minutes of awkward silence and she nodded. Shinichi watched the cold exchange in confusion, eyes following Ren as he returned to the kitchen where he was met with a handful of flour to the face.
“Yuki what the hell?”
~*~“They were squabbling today!”
“Who?”
“The couple on table 4! They are usually so lovey dovey but today they seemed to have fought over something!”
“Naoki-senpai, you should stay out of other people’s business,”
“Rin-chan, I’ve entrusted my belief in true love on this couple’s relationship!”
“You’re being unnecessarily dramatic, even more than usual,”
Ren shook his head at the exchange as he locked up the café. He waved to Shin as the boy took off and received a tight hug from his sister and grumbled at the one-armed hug from Naoki before seeing them setting off for their respective residences.
He zipped up his jacket as he and Yuki began their walk to the nearest train station to send Yuki home.
“You’ve made a new friend,”
Ren puffed up his cheeks.
“He’s annoyingly bright and well… infuriatingly perfect,”
“Hah, someone’s jealous,”
“I guess… but he’s nice,”
“Seemed nice,”
“He knew my name… well he knew me… and he seemed upset that I didn’t remember him,”
“Oh… an old acquaintance?”
“I’ve spent most of my time at home, don’t remember him… there is a possibility I knew him back at the orphanage but he has a family and I don’t remember much cause I was really small but then he does and he is my age…,”
“Some have better memory than most,”
“Hmm,”
“Is it really bothering you?”
“He said something really weird, like I was better off not remembering my time at the orphanage, not his exact words but I guess it’s what he was implying,”
“Don’t think about it too much, he seemed like a trustworthy guy and I think he would have told you if it was really important,”
“Yeah… I guess you’re right,”
“So you think he’s cool or… no?”
“I don’t know…,”
“Why are you so complicated man?”
“Does it matter?”
“You were enjoying his company,”
“Someone’s jealous… ouch!” Ren exclaimed as Yuki threw a punch that landed on his shoulder.
“You still hit like a girl,” Ren sneered. Yuki shoved him sideways forcefully, slamming him against the wall before taking off on a sprint, a furious Ren on his heels.
~*~
“I think they broke up,”
Ren frowned at Naoki’s dramatic announcement which was coincidentally followed by a roll of thunder. It was yet another rainy day and the atmosphere in the café was gloomy and kind of lazy.
“He ordered a café Americano, 3 shots… no sugar…,”
“So?”
“The bitterness inside his heart is clear for all to see…,”
“Naoki… shut up, you're assuming things,”
“Ni-chan, maybe you should go talk to him,”
Ren threw an incredulous look at his younger sister.
“You’re not doing that again,”
“Please, you made Sora-san feel better, maybe he just needs some company,”
“I’ll make it worse,”
“Um boss?”
All three turned to look at Shin who was halfway into the kitchen, an empty tray in hand.
“The customer on table 4 is asking for you,”
An awkward silence followed the announcement.
Ren cleared his throat distractedly, throwing his head back, avoiding everyone’s eyes before stumbling on his way to the designated table. Shinichi sniggered a little at his clumsiness before beckoning him to sit.
“Um, everything okay?” Ren asked quietly as he noticed, to his concern that Shinichi looked terrible. He is eyelids were droopy, casting gray shadows under his eyes and he didn’t seem to have styled his hair, instead had it crunched under a woollen beanie. He was clasping his mug between his hands, legs folded on the sofa seat, elbows on the table.
“Why is it never enough? I do everything for her… and everything I do is a problem, for her… for dad… for everyone…,”
Ren stared at him silently, inwardly praying that whatever Shinichi was upset about was something that could be corrected by a hot drink and a good meal.
“I’m getting a scholarship to study music abroad, in America and it comes with an internship with a well-known photographer,”
“That’s amazing!” Ren exclaimed shocked. Shinichi smiled bitterly.
“Dad wants me to take over the shop because he’s like music and photography isn’t going to help me get a stable life; he says it’s going to be hard to manage a marriage with Saki if I’m always travelling and it would be better if I just stayed here,”
Ren pursed his lips.
“I understood that, me and Saki have known each other for years and have been together since high school… but I’m secretly always so insecure about her… I mean is she serious with me? Is it worth it to give up my dreams for a life with her?”
“You love her right?”
“That’s not the problem; I don’t think she loves me,”
“What? That’s crazy! You’re literally the most perfect guy around! What else does she want?”
Shinichi rested his head on the table, a small smile in place.
“Thanks Ren-chan, but everyone’s got a different perspective on what being perfect is, I’ve always given her my attention and she’s a great girl but sometimes she makes me feel like she would prefer being just friends… she always gets so awkward when I mention marriage and kids… I mean I’m not forcing her to that commitment right now but I wanted her to know I’m serious about her,”
“Why hasn’t she broken up with you then?” Ren said bluntly, evidently confused.
“She hasn’t found what she’s been looking for, she’s comfortable with me because we are old friends but I’ve never been her type. She’s been seeing people behind my back and I’ve always known but said nothing, because I know at the end of the day she’ll come back to me, upset and frustrated but relieved that she’s got someone, I don’t want to take that away from her,”
Ren was speechless. He’s never witnessed a relationship like this. It was so… complicated.
“So you’re going to stay as her back up until she finds someone new and leaves you?” he blurted out, enraged. That seemed pathetic to him, was anyone even happy?
Shinichi sighed.
“You’re hurting yourself… I’m not in your position but I feel suffocated,” Ren responded truthfully staring at his hands.
“What would you do, if you were me?”
Ren frowned.
“I don’t know… but I don’t think I’ll be able to tolerate this as much as you have, even if it is somebody I love dearly,”
“Do you have someone?”
Ren shook his head, a bit read in the face.
Shinichi smiled kindly.
“You might not remember, but you’ve been hurt once… and it was a pain I would have never been able to tolerate,” he continued sadly staring at the deluge through the window. Ren scrutinized his face, arguing with himself to ask. How could there be something… someone he once knew and did not remember. Was he close to Shinichi? What was it that the man knew about him that even he didn’t?
“I won’t tell you, your grandfather wanted you to forget it as well and I think I would want to honour his wishes… even if he did take you away,”
Ren’s eyes widened, very much taken aback.
“Nakamura-kun… just who are you?”
Shinichi reached out and flicked his forehead, a playful smile in place.
“That’s a secret… for now,”
Ren glared at him, rubbing his forehead. Shinichi’s smile vanished as his message tone rang. His eyes focused on the screen before he sighed wearily.
“She wants to talk,” he said getting to his feet.
“I’ll see you later,”
Ren stumbled out of the booth, staggering to his feet as Shinichi arranged swift steps towards the exit.
“Nakamura-kun!”
Shinichi halted, looking at him in surprise.
“Don’t get hurt.”
~*~
“Will we be closing for golden week?”
Ren reflected on the question as Naoki wiped the empty glasses. Rin was absent again. Traffic had been mild but not too bad, but he was too far from his goal to think about closing for days.
“No, you guys can take a break or come in shifts… either way I’ll manage,” he concluded, spinning on his stool. The ‘Irrashaimasen’ was stuck in his throat and he stumbled off his seat as Saki Ito barged into the café, eyes bloodshot yet glinting with murder.
“Ito-san?” he squeaked as she fixed him with her teary eyes before marching up to him, still clad in her maid outfit from work.
Naoki was about to interfere but he froze as Saki raised her hand and struck his boss on the face, real hard.
~*~A/N: Got my muse back. Took me an hour to wrap this chapter up. Comments are appreciated!