Stupid little Valentine's fic. First time writing Melk; here's to hoping I didn't butcher her. I feel like I should have reread her arc before doing this, but ran out of time.
Also, I cannot come up with titles worth anything. Jesus, you'd think I could by now…
So, yes. Nothing but a fluffy OT3 thing.
be mine, be ours
He could have written Melk, asked her to send Pochiko to pick up the chocolate he planned to make, but Komatsu hadn't seen the sharpener in months and, well – he'd be lying if he claimed he didn't miss her. Komatsu worried about her, always on her own while her father was working for the President; the thought of Melk alone on the top of that mountain, with nothing but knives for company on Valentine's Day, upset him a little.
Toriko had been amenable, agreeing easily when Komatsu suggested the surprise visit – saying he wanted to thank Melk the First for his tip about the Mellow Cola – and so on February 14th the chef found himself face to face with his favorite sharpener, Toriko down in Heavy Hole but due to return any minute.
Komatsu glanced at his pack, biting his lip and thinking about the blue box inside, one of two that contained a multitude of different chocolates – Toriko's box was orange and much larger, if only because the bishokuya would eat more candy than either he or Melk or any normal human could manage without getting sick – and wondering if he should just grab it, thrust it in Melk's general direction, and hope for the best. For all that Komatsu had wanted to deliver his gift by hand, he'd completely overlooked the fact that this was all super giga giga awkward, which was stupid of him, considering.
In the end, Melk proved herself far braver than he, standing before Komatsu with a pretty circular box held in her hands, eyes cast toward the floor and cheeks flushed an appealing shade of dusky pink. "Chef Komatsu," she started, dragging her gaze away from the stone to fix on Komatsu instead as she continued, "please accept this."
The way her voice started out strong and then faded to a quiet murmur was way too charming, and Komatsu reached out to accept Melk's chocolate with one hand, the other diving into his pack to pull free the sharpener's own gift. "For you," he said, offering the blue box to her, the sleek silver ribbon tying it shut catching what soft evening light filtered through the windows. Komatsu's smile was so wide it actually hurt, and his heart kicked slightly out of rhythm when Melk smiled back at him, bright and warm.
They each cradled their presents close for a few silent moments, simply admiring, and then exchanged sheepish grins as they pulled the boxes open. Komatsu inhaled the sweet scent of Melk's handmade chocolate and popped one into his mouth without hesitation, nearly groaning as the candy melted on his tongue, smooth and silky and perfect. Melk may not be a chef, but she certainly had a way with ingredients. His eyes flickered open – when had he closed them? – just in time to see a piece of the chocolate he'd made pass between her lips, just in time to hear her sigh in bliss as she bit into the black bee honey infused sweet.
"Just as I'd expect from you, Chef Komatsu," Melk said, no longer trying to avoid is eyes. "This is the most delicious chocolate I've ever tasted."
Komatsu rubbed at the back of his head, pleased and humbled by her compliment. "You don't deserve anything less than my best, Melk-san. Your chocolate is amazing too." He nibbled at a second piece, small bites this time to draw out and savor the flavor.
"It's a little embarrassing, giving such a talented chef my clumsy attempts at cooking," Melk said, then stuffed another chocolate into her mouth as if trying to keep herself from saying anything else.
"You shouldn't be! These really are so good, Melk-san," Komatsu protested immediately.
Melk's smile grew a little, from a whisper to a purr, and just when it looked like she had something else to say, the back door swung open and Toriko strode into the workshop, beaming at them, clearly in high spirits.
"Hey, you two!" he greeted, dropping a sack overflowing with shimmering, newly mined whetstone and scenting the air, zeroing in on their open boxes of candy at once (it had been hard work to stop Toriko eating everything on the trip here, lots of shouting and hand slapping and threats about withheld meals both knew Komatsu never intended to follow up on, but Toriko grudgingly backed off anyway). Without preamble, he was at Komatsu's side, fitting his hand around the chef's wrist and guiding it upwards, where he eagerly sucked the globe of chocolate Komatsu had pinched between his forefinger and thumb into his mouth, licking not only at the sweet but Komatsu's fingertips as well.
Worried that Melk would take offense, Komatsu glanced over at the sharpener to check if she was angry, steadfastly ignoring the wet rasp of Toriko's tongue. But Melk didn't seem in the least bit bothered by Toriko appropriating the chocolate she'd meant for Komatsu – on the contrary, her full attention was riveted to the place where Toriko's lips pouted around his fingers. And she looked hungry, pupils blown wide and cheeks suffused with heat, loose strands of hair falling messily into her face. Komatsu shivered in response, a feeling of absolute rightness, of contentment and excitement settling in the pit of his stomach. It was as if Toriko being here made this perfect, and Melk apparently agreed.
Humming happily, Toriko pulled free of Komatsu's fingers – Komatsu resisted the urge to clean them with his tongue, hastily wiping the spit on his pants rather than doing something that would only encourage his partner – and turned to Melk, stealing one of her chocolates and munching on it with another sound of pleasure. Komatsu huffed, digging out the candy he'd made for Toriko before he took any more of theirs. When he turned back to them, Komatsu swallowed a surprised noise – Melk had a second box of her own, handing it to Toriko with much less of the flustered uncertainty she'd shown earlier. Komatsu supposed Toriko invited boldness.
(Toriko had no chocolate for Komatsu and Melk; instead, he hauled them in for deep, indulgent kisses, more luscious than any sugary confection.)
A/N - So, Happy Valentine's Day, everyone! Better yet, Happy Singles' Awareness Day…