Note: I found a prompt that I really like and it's so fluffy and cute, UGGHHH!
Disclaimer: I do not own any of Sherlock rights.
The first time he ever walks into her shop, it was in the middle of autumn.
Humming to a random pop song in her head, Molly cleaned the front counter without a care in the world. She heard the bell of the door, but before she could lift her head to greet the newcomer, a shadow fell over her and a deep baritone voice barked out.
"Black. Two sugars." It said. Molly was taken back at the demand and looked up at the most gorgeous man she had ever laid eyes upon.
Ringlets of dark chocolate hair sat neatly groomed on the top of his head. Cat-like eyes of crystal-clear cerulean with traces of gold and bits of jade bore into hers, and her stomach churned at the intensity behind them. His face was elongated with the sharpest cheekbones she had ever seen on a man, and they seem to increase the intimidation of his demeanor. His plump lips with a perfect Cupid's bow formed a deep irritated scowl; however, it didn't diminish his good looks. The rosy color of said lips contrasted remarkably well with his porcelain skin.
His attire consisted of a tight aubergine dress shirt with the top two buttons undone with the others straining to keep together. Over the shirt was a sharp-cut, black suit with tight trousers. But what stuck out the most about him was the fact he wore a large Belstaff coat over his suit with the collar popped up to frame his face, and a blue, knitted scarf was wrapped around his long neck.
Molly froze, unsure of what to do until the man let out an impatient sigh. "I said, 'Black. Two Sugars.'" He grumbled at her. Molly immediately snapped out of her trance before she gave a scowl of her own at him. "What size would you like, sir?" she said with a forced smile. The man stared at her for a moment, not saying anything.
Molly fidgeted under his gaze as she brushed a loose strand of hair behind her ear. The man stopped his staring and answered gruffly. "Medium," he said as he looked away from her. Molly nods at him as she turned the coffee machine.
As Molly prepares his order, she wonders about this mysterious man for a moment.
Despite how good-looking he is, Molly doesn't appreciate the way he treated her. Be nice to people for God's sake, even if those people are complete strangers. Molly rolled her eyes. Oh well, if the guy can't be patient for the half-second it takes to fully comprehend an order, odds are that gorgeous mean man won't be back. Pity, but somewhat not a pity.
Molly finished off the order by putting on the plastic lid, and she was about to turn back to the man when she saw a black marker beside her. An idea struck her in that moment, and she looked over her shoulder at the man, who was now distracted by his phone, his thumbs tapping away at it in a frantic pace.
A small mischievous smirk came across her face as she swiftly gave the marker and wrote a little nerdy pick-up line she read the other day on the cup:
"Did you invent the airplane? Because you seem Wright for me!"
Molly led out a giggle under her breath before she finally turned back to the man. She places the cup on the counter with the line towards her, making it not visible to the man.
"That'll be 5.17, please!" She chirped happily. As she tells him the price, the man continued to stare at her again for a moment before he gave her exact change, grabbed his coffee, and dropped a fiver in the tip jar before leaving the shop without a good day.
Molly looked on with a confused frown. Rude, but gave a somewhat generous tip. She shrugged, not giving it another thought. She thinks back on the pick-up line she gave him and giggled again.
Either the pick-up line will make him feel a bit better or will just irritate him more. Either way, it was a win-win.
Three weeks goes by and the man stays in the back of her mind. When he comes back again, Molly didn't notice him walk in. This day, however, Molly wasn't alone working in the shop; her best friend Mary was there as well. Mary was at the register while Molly was at the coffee machine, preparing a couple's order.
"Black. Two sugars." She heard his voice and froze when she recognizes the voice. "Okay, what size do you want?" Mary's curt voice asked, clearly not liking the fact that the man was short with her. "Medium," he replied back just as curt.
"I've got it, Mary!" Molly said with a happy smile. "Thanks, Molls." She said as she rang up the order. Molly briefly made eye contact with the man before he looks away at the wall. Molly notices his cheeks were red but determined that to be from the cold weather outside.
A quick moment later, Molly fixed his order and quickly pull a black marker from her apron pocket before writing on the cup:
"Are you made of copper and tellurium? Because you are CuTe!"
She always loved the nerdy pick-up lines. Quietly laughing, Molly quickly puts the marker back into her pocket and grabs a cardboard coffee cozy to hide the pick-up line from him.
She walks to the counter and gives him the coffee. She ignores the way her fingers tingle when they brushed against his. "Enjoy!" she said. The man clears his throat. "Thank you," he says as he leaves the shop.
Molly turns back to Mary, who was looking at her with a smirk. "You know him?" Molly blushed a bit and waved a dismissive hand. "No, just remembered him from last time."
"And did you write something on his cup last time?" Mary wiggled her eyebrows. "Maybe," Molly giggled as she brushed her hair behind her ear.
Mary winks at her before she leaves to go help the next customer.
Then the next week, he comes again. Same order, same demeanor, and Molly can't help herself to writing another pick-up line.
"Do you love water? That means you love 80 percent of me!"
As she gave him this order, he actually smiles at her before saying his thanks and leaving.
Then over the course of six months, she wrote a pick-up line on every single order he got.
"They say the tongue is the strongest muscle in the body. Wanna fight?"
"If I was an enzyme, I'd be DNA helicase so I could unzip your genes."
"Did we just share electrons? Because I'm feeling a covalent bond between us."
It was getting pretty hard trying to think of what to write, but then one day, it came to a stop.
The usual routine happened. He came in and walked up to the counter. She already has his order ready with the pick-up line ready on the cup. He smiled and gave her the money before dropping another fiver in the tip jar and took his leave.
She smiled as he walked out and opened the register drawer to put the money in before she heard the door's bell chime out.
"Go out with me." A voice called out.
Molly frozen and look up at the man who she's been flirting with all this time.
"W-what?" she said blushing.
The man gave a bit of a shudder as he watched her tuck a loose stand of hair behind her ear. "You do that when you're nervous. You try to stop the habit because you think people are annoyed by it. However, in reality, it's very endearing to see. Please go out with me." He said in a quick huff.
Molly stared at him, face beet red before looking down at the counter and nodding shyly.
A deep chuckle rang out. "Months of endless bad pick-up lines, and now, you choose the moment to be shy." He said. She looked back up at his face to see a wide beautiful smile across his face.
He takes her hand in his and brings it up to his lips to kiss the back of it. "Sherlock Holmes, and you're Molly…" he said, waiting for her last name.
"Hooper." She said with a shy smile. Sherlock's eyes made her feel warm as he gazes at her. He brushes her hand with his long fingers.
"Well then, Molly Hooper, like today's pick-up line says," he said as he shows her the cup.
There, in Molly's no-nonsense handwriting, it reads:
"You raise my dopamine levels."