It's been a long day.
Working at Flourish and Blotts is a nice job. It's slow, generally, apart from the Hogwarts shopping once a year. It gives Percy the chance to familiarize himself with the books and get to know the regular customers a bit. But it can be so dull sometimes. He finds it hard to stay awake somedays. And days like this, when he has to stay until close and tidy up afterward, he needs a little pick-me-up.
The time for his lunch break rolls around, and while his whole shift so far has felt more or less like a break, he's hungry and frankly just needs a change of scenery for a bit. He's the only one working today, so Percy makes a quick lap through the shelves, checking to see if any customers are still hanging about. Finding no one, he grabs the shop key and locks up behind himself. There's a small restaurant just down the street, right off the main stretch of Diagon Alley itself, that he likes to frequent. Today, however, the little café on the main road is calling his name.
Percy enters the coffee shop, the door dinging with his arrival. The shop is largely decorated with wood and comfortable chairs – it makes it feel warm and inviting, a far reach from the freezing December air outside. As he steps inside, he's greeted by the barista at the register. Percy smiles vaguely in response, too distracted by the other boy's wide, genuine smile and short, chestnut brown hair. "Hey."
"Uh… hi," Percy stammers, awkward, the blush running up his cheeks the color of a cherry blossom in full bloom.
"What can I get for you?" the barista asks – Oliver, based on his name tag.
Percy curses himself for not planning out his order already. But he's already made a fool of himself, what does he have to lose, really? "Um… I'm not sure, really. I'm not much of a coffee drinker, but—"
"Wanted to become one?" Percy gives a nod, and Oliver chuckles. "I hear that a lot." His voice is cheerful – maybe a little too cheerful for the rather mundane topic of coffee, Percy thinks. He secretly wonders just how many cups of the stuff Oliver's had so far today. "Do you want to try a latte? Sort of a beginner's coffee, and if you don't like it, I could make you something different."
Percy smiles before biting his bottom lip and nodding. Latte sounds like coffee and coffee sounds like not my cup of tea but it also sounds like just the energy boost Percy needs today, so he hands over the Sickles to pay for the drink. He goes to sit and wait for his drink, but it doesn't take long. Oliver's very efficient, handing off the drink only a minute or so later.
"You wanna try it now, see if it's something you like?" he asks, wiping his hands on his apron and meeting Percy's eyes. Percy raises an eyebrow, skeptical and halfway wishing that Oliver wouldn't be watching him as he tried the latte. He didn't want him to see his disgusted face if he didn't end up liking the coffee. But Oliver's waiting expectantly, so Percy takes a small sip. The drink's hot, it burns his tongue a bit, but he doesn't mind. It's a different taste, not one he's accustomed to, but he doesn't hate it. The texture - slightly frothy, slightly smooth – is pleasant and the heat warms him up from the inside. Percy grins at Oliver, taking comfort in the feeling of warmth moving through his body – both from the drink and the way Oliver winks at him.
"I may just make a coffee drinker of you, yet." He gives himself a proud smile, looking back at the door as another customer enters. "I should get back to work. Enjoy the latte – I'm sorry, I didn't catch your name earlier."
"Percy," he says, the blush returning to his face.
"Percy. Love that name. Well, enjoy the latte, Percy. See you around?"
He nods again, and Oliver moves back over to the register. Percy's body feels almost numb, and it's nothing to do with the weather outside. He goes back to his seat, forgetting completely about his hunger as he spends the rest of his lunch break watching Oliver make latte after latte.
The café becomes a regular fixture of Percy's schedule. He starts each day by stopping in for a coffee from Oliver. They strike up a banter most mornings – where Percy works, how his weekend was, what he'd be having for lunch that day. If he was being honest with himself, Percy would say that he was going there for more than just the caffeine. Oliver was a friendly face, genuine and always able to brighten Percy's day. He kept him motivated to get through the slower shifts at work, if only to come back during his lunch break for a sandwich and another coffee.
"Alright," Oliver said one afternoon as Percy reached his register. "You seem to like lattes enough, don't you ever want to try something different?"
Percy shrugged. "If it's not broke, don't fix it?" he suggested, but Oliver could tell he wasn't convinced. As much as he disliked change, he wanted something different. Something fresh, that made him as excited for his coffee runs as much as Oliver did.
"Ah, come on. I'll make something you'll like. Have some faith in me."
So Percy lets Oliver come up with his own concoction, and Oliver doesn't charge him. It's a nice trade-off, Percy figures. He's not sure what exactly it is that Oliver's made him, but he likes it much more than the traditional latte. From then on, Percy tells Oliver to surprise him, and he's never been disappointed by a resulting drink.
As the months go on, Percy and Oliver become more friendly. They ask each other how their last shift was, how their favorite Quidditch teams are faring, what their dream jobs would be outside of customer service. When the weather becomes nicer, Percy starts to drink his lattes out on the patio, bringing a book from work and sitting at a small table underneath an umbrella. When Oliver goes on his own breaks, he joins Percy at the table and they spend the time sharing stories about their days.
Percy spends so much time at the café, he starts to learn all the ins and outs. He gets to know the other baristas and the sounds of the espresso machines. He knows which chairs are the wonky ones that wobble every time you move, he knows which bathroom is nicer and which pastries are the most filling. He starts to feel like he spends more time here than at his own job.
"Why do I never get to see you at Flourish and Blotts?" Oliver asks one morning.
"Because you're always here, Ol," Percy says. There's just a hint of sarcasm in his tone, and Oliver laughs. Percy laughs, too, because they both know it's true.
"I'm off work tomorrow. How about I come by, see your book-shop-worker life."
Percy grins, picking up his coffee. "It's a date." Damn, he thinks, stopping himself immediately. He can't believe he just said that, he knows they're not dating. He doesn't want to meet Oliver's eye, embarrassed and worried he'll start laughing again, at him this time.
"It's a date," Oliver confirms. Percy's sure that Oliver noticed his panic. He's never been the best at concealing his emotions. But Oliver doesn't question it, so Percy half-smiles and leaves the café quicker than he ever has before.
The next day, Percy's stocking a new set of books in the front corner of the shop. The bell tinkles, and Oliver walks in. He looks so…different wearing his day-to-day clothes. Percy's never seen him outside of work. He looks happier, more refreshed. "Oliver. Hi," Percy says, putting the last book on the shelf and making his way over to the door. "Look, about yesterday—"
But Oliver grins, leaning back against the doorframe. "You have nothing to apologize for, really, Perce."
"I just… I didn't mean to say this was a date. I didn't – I don't—"
"Oh." Oliver's smile fades, but Percy's quick to backtrack his words.
"I didn't mean… Look," he says, starting over. "I'm just happy to be spending time with you. We don't have to – to make this anything it isn't."
"So you're… straight?" Oliver looks confused, like he's trying to piece together Percy's stuttered clues.
"Are you?"
Oliver meets Percy's eyes, seeing the trust they've built up over the months. "No. And I'm sorry if I came on too strong, if you're not interested. I promise, I wasn't trying to hit on you."
Percy's face falls this time. "You weren't?" Oliver looks even more confused at this.
"Let me get this straight. You wanted me to be flirting with you, but you didn't want this to be a date?"
"No, no." Percy sighs, exhausted by this whole misunderstanding. "I did. If you did."
"I did, too."
"Good. Good. In that case, there's something I wanted to show you." Percy walks off behind the counter, leaning down to retrieve something. Oliver waits near the door, watching, transfixed. It's strange to see Percy in his natural habitat, outside of the cafe, in a place that's inarguably more Percy's than Oliver's.
When Percy returns, he's carrying a small, butcher-paper-bound parcel. And given their location and Percy's job, Oliver knows what it is before he opens it. Still, the navy and gold of a Puddlemere United Quidditch book surprises him nonetheless.
"Wow." He's speechless, really. Oliver turns the book over in his hands, feeling the detailed leatherwork on the cover, flipping through the pages, marveling at the elaborate coloring of the photos.
"Just a little something for you. A gift, in exchange for all the free coffees. It hasn't even hit the shelves yet. I hope you like it." Percy finds himself rambling because Oliver hasn't responded yet. He's just standing there, staring at the book with eyes wide and full of affection.
"Aw, Perce, you shouldn't have."
"I wanted to."
"Well," Oliver says, a sly grin teasing at the corner of his lips. "I want to ask if you'd like to go to dinner this weekend. Think of it as a second date."
Percy blushed, nodding. "I'd love to."
The last thing he wanted to do now was to go back to work.
A/N: Written for: Holmes: (setting) Diagon Alley; Auction: Coffeeshop!AU; Writing Club - Character Appreciation 4: (trait) Motivational, Bonus: Perciver; Disney Challenge C1: Prompt set - umbrella, cheerful, efficient; Cookie's Crafty Corner - Scarf: Prompt set - freezing, gift, sharing, wonky, comfort; Showtime 11: (word) Faith; Count Your Buttons W4: Awkward; Film Festival 15: (plot point) trying to hit on a gay man, 45: (emotion) Embarrassed; Seasonal - Days of the Year - Aug 9: were a fic set in Flourish and Blotts; Color Prompts: cherry blossom; Gryffindor Challenge - Oliver Wood;Fortnightly – Chocolate – C5: Write about cheering someone up; Sophie's Tearoom – Earl Grey Tea: (color) Chestnut brown; Dragons and Writing Month: wc 1755; 365 Prompts – 328: (trope) Coffee shop; Insane House Challenge – 190: (location) Flourish and Blotts