Cover art done by ram-jam on dA ^^
(I would add a link, but fanfic won't let me...)
"Dammit!"
Weiss cursed under her breath as she cycled up the road towards The White Stag. I've blown it. I've completely blown it. I've made the worst possible first impression. My second week into this job and I'm 20 minutes late; on a Saturday of all days! They're busiest day of the week, besides Thursdays. Blake's probably already there, serving customers I should be handling-
She skidded to a halt outside the small coffee shop. It was strangely deserted. She frowned, then walked over to the sign showing the opening hours. Surely...
She blinked. They opened at 8:00 on a Saturday, not 7:30, which was what she had assumed. She didn't need to be there until 7:50. She was ten minutes early.
She propped her bike against he wall and let out a sigh of relief, then grabbed the keys to the back door from the pocket of her shirt, which was, of course, strictly within the dress code, and let herself in. She took the chairs off the tables, arranged the boxes of tea and baked goods by the counter, checked the fridge that kept the jugs of water cool was on, keeping herself busy until Blake arrived.
Blake was the only other person who worked on Saturdays. Weiss hadn't quite figured her out yet. She was quiet, mysterious, and always seemed to have a book somewhere nearby. But she was good at making coffee. Weiss was better at taking orders, so they worked well as a team.
When Blake did come in, they opened almost immediately, as per her advice. Blake had been working at The White Stag for much longer, and had a lot more experience, so she was able to guess that most customers would come earlier rather than later.
The White Stag had been open for a while now. The fashionable, almost boutique coffee shop, like all coffee shops, had its regular customers. The ones that grabbed something quickly on the way to work. The ones that came daily during their lunch break. There was even a writer who sat for hours in the back corner by the window, typing away on a laptop, meeting with publishers and editors as if it was her office.
But none of these regulars were quite like Ruby Rose.
Weiss had already served a couple of people when Ruby first came in, on that Saturday morning. The first thing that struck the barista about her was her bright red cloak, which didn't fit in anywhere within a kilometre radius of the place.
A voice came from outside, and while the door was open, a motorcycle engine could be heard. "Don't take too long!"
"Okay, Yang!" the customer called back, throwing back the hood, revealing a bright, childish face and silver eyes gleaming with mischief. She let go of the door, letting it swing shut, then approached the counter, looking up at the menu displayed on the back wall. As she was walking, she managed to knock over a chair with some sort of weapon which was slung across her back. The girl quickly dashed over, standing the chair back up, looking anxious and awkward and adorable all at the same time. She glanced around to see if anyone had seen, remaining oblivious to Weiss's critical glare as she watched from the cash register. The girl finally caught her eye and smiled grimly, apologetically. Weiss rolled her eyes as the customer stepped up to the counter.
"Could I have..." she trailed off, looking up at the menu again. "Gosh, you have a lot of options for a coffee shop of this size. Ooh, and you have tea! Do you have any herbal teas?"
"We have the largest variety of teas in the area," Weiss said proudly, slightly amused by the girl's excitement over such a trivial matter.
"Wow..." she breathed, looking at the assortment of loose leaf teas on the counter. "Do you have rose tea?"
"Yes."
"Okay..." she paused, looking up at the menu gain. "Do you think I could get strong rose tea, with milk in it?"
Weiss hesitated. Herb tea with milk in it was certainly strange. "Rose tea...with milk?" she confirmed.
"Yeah."
Weiss frowned. "So...white rose tea?"
Ruby nodded. "Can you do that here?" she asked brightly, as if the order wasn't strange at all.
"...sure. Can I get a name?"
"Ruby."
"Have here, or take away?"
"Take away, please."
"Okay, that'll be 3.50."
At this point, Blake looked over at her, surprise evident on her face. They normally charged a lot more for herbal teas. Weiss pretended she hadn't noticed as Ruby fished around her dress pockets for some change, quickly handing it over.
White rose tea... Weiss thought to herself. That was the strangest order she'd had since she started working here, besides that one Canadian who came in every so often and order coffee with maple syrup in it. Nonetheless, she started boiling the kettle as Ruby leant against the counter.
"So, who are you?"
Weiss looked up. "Pardon?"
Ruby shrugged. "Just making conversation."
"I'm Weiss," she said quickly, before turning back around to pour the boiling water into Ruby's cup.
"Weiss? Isn't that white in German or something?"
"Yes."
"That's ironic," the girl replied, laughing a little.
Weiss narrowed her eyes, not looking around, reaching for the teabag. "Why would it be so ironic if my name meant 'white'?" If anything I thought it'd be quite fitting.
"Well my surname's Rose. So it's ironic."
White Rose.
"Plus, you work at The White Stag."
Weiss blinked. "I suppose that would be a strange coincidence."
Ruby shrugged, and sprung onto a nearby table, swinging her legs, which didn't quite reach the ground. Weiss did her best to ignore her increasing heart rate, and the heat she could feel in her cheeks.
Stop it! She's cute, sure, but...in that way?
Weiss nervously checked her watch. She had to stand there awkwardly for another minute before the tea was strong enough. She allowed herself to glance at Blake, who was handing coffees to a couple of other people. Blake made eye contact, then glanced at Ruby. Then back at Weiss. Then raised her eyebrows, her amber eyes gleaming with curiosity. Weiss blushed even more deeply. W-what is she trying to say?!
After what felt like hours, the tea was done. She quickly took out the teabag and threw into the bin near the back corner, then reached for the milk, smoothly pouring a little bit in, as if it was English Breakfast or something. I hope that's what she wanted.
She picked up the paper cup, put a lid on it, then turned around to give it to Ruby, who was waiting expectantly. "Here you go," she said quickly, hoping the red in her cheeks had lessened. "One white rose tea."
"Thankyou!"
Weiss smiled. "H-have a nice day!" she called as Ruby opened the door, leaving the shop.
"You too! I'll come back tomorrow!"
Weiss found herself staring at the door for a good couple of minutes after Ruby left, though she couldn't put her finger on why. Eventually Blake came over and nudged her. "You like her," she stated quietly.
"What!?"
Blake smiled softly. "I don't know if you prefer girls in general, but you definitely like her."
"How did you-"
"3.50? Avoiding her gaze? Blushing like there was no tomorrow? Please, Weiss, stop trying to deny it."
Weiss crossed her arms, looking away. "It's none of your business if I like her," she huffed, but Blake just laughed, before moving on to serve the next customer.
Weiss couldn't have been more shocked when Ruby returned to The White Stag the very next day.
The bells on the door rung brightly as she pushed it open. Blake looked over at Weiss, her eyebrows shooting upwards, but Weiss pointedly ignored her, though her heart suddenly thudded harder in her chest when she recognised the customer. Ruby came in, dressed in much the same clothing - black dress, lined with red, black stockings and boots, and that bright red hood. Weiss looked at Blake desperately, mouthing 'help', but Blake just winked. Weiss let out a sigh of exasperation.
"Hello, Weiss! I was hoping you'd be here!" Ruby said brightly, resting her forearms on the counter, smiling.
She was? "Y-you were?"
"Well, yeah. You seem nice."
Weiss felt her stomach flutter.
"And," she went on. "I don't have to explain my order a second time if you're here, do I?"
"I guess not. Same thing then?" Weiss replied, pleased that her voice didn't sound as shaky as she expected.
"Yes, please! But eat in, this time."
Eat in? So she'll be here even longer? Is that a good thing or a bad thing?!
Weiss nodded and reached for the rose tea, cursing under her breath as her shaking hand knocked the entire box off the shelf, sending teabags all over the floor. Ruby looked up, surprised. "I'll help," she offered.
Weiss knelt down, starting to pick them up. "No, you don't have to-"
But Ruby had already jumped easily over the counter, landing heavily beside Weiss.
Right beside her.
Oh God... The counter wasn't separating them any more. Ruby knelt down and helped pick up the rose tea scattered across the tiles. Her silver eyes finally met Weiss's icy blue ones as she picked as many teabags as she cold hold at once and handed them to Weiss. Weiss swallowed hard. "Thanks."
"No problem." Ruby continued to hold Weiss's gaze, and Weiss was relatively sure she'd have a heart attack right then. "Are..." Ruby trailed off, offering her hand to Weiss so that she could pull her up. "Are you okay? Your hands are still shaking."
"I'm fine," Weiss replied, but she said it a bit too quickly. "I-I just...it's cold in here."
"Oh. That would explain why your cheeks are all red, too."
Weiss's eyes widened as they probably went even redder. "Are they?"
"Yeah," Ruby laughed. "They're really, really red."
"Like roses," Weiss joked, taking Ruby's hand. Ruby laughed. The sound was enough to to make her grin like an idiot as she got to her feet, with Ruby's help, and brushed dust off her knees.
Ruby inconspicuously stepped around to the other side of the counter. Weiss hesitated, reluctant to use the teabag which had just been on the floor. As she continued to pause, holding the teabag above the cup, Ruby eventually stated she didn't care, so Weiss put it in and started boiling some water.
"I was wondering..."
"Yes?"
"How much is this?" Ruby pointed to a cinnamon roll inside a case by the counter.
Weiss paused this time to make sure she got the price right. "5.50."
Ruby smiled. "I'll take one of those too then!"
"Sure."
"Thankyou!"
Weiss handed Ruby a number for her table, and Ruby took it over to the one closest to the window. As she did so, Blake came in from the back entrance, carrying a couple of bags of coffee beans. "I had to leave as you were taking her order. How did it go?"
"How did what go?"
"I don't know. Interacting with her, in general."
Weiss went slightly red again. "Fine."
Blake grinned. "You screwed up, didn't you?"
Weiss glared sourly at the box of rose tea. Blake rolled her eyes. "Did she want anything else?"
"Cinnamon roll."
"Okay, I'll take it out to her."
"Wait."
Blake looked around at Weiss, faintly surprised. Weiss swallowed nervously, looking over at Ruby. She was taking off her cloak, draping it over the back of the chair. "I'll do it," Weiss murmured, watching as she pulled out the chair and sat down.
"Okay."
Blake moved over to the cash register to intercept another customer as Weiss continued to gaze steadily at Ruby. Did she really...like her? Most signs seemed to point to a pretty solid 'yes'. She was incredibly sweet and good-natured, very charming, and even if she was a little awkward, to Weiss, that could only add to her charm. And her eyes...those silver eyes that expressed so much emotion, were so wide and innocent. And her concern and interest in a total stranger was touching.
It took a moment for her to register that Ruby was staring back at her, grinning. Weiss jumped back, she was so surprised, making Ruby laugh. Weiss awkwardly averted her eyes, turning some obscene shade of scarlet, while Ruby continued to badly attempt to stifle her laughter.
Burning with embarrassment, Weiss turned around and took the teabag out of Ruby's tea - it had been brewing for long enough. She quickly put in a dash of milk, picked up the cinnamon bun off the counter, (Blake had already put it on a plate,) and walked over.
Ruby smiled as she approached, hastily taking her arms off the table so that Weiss could put down the food. "Thankyou! Say..." She paused, narrowing her eyes, looking at the empty seat opposite her. Eventually she shrugged, then looked back at Weiss. "Are you still cold?"
"I'm fine, thanks," Weiss replied steadily.
"Are you sure? You can have my cloak - I can't have drinks when they're really hot, so I'll be here for a while-"
"Thanks, but no," Weiss repeated. "I do...really appreciate you offering though," she added hesitantly.
"Of course. Why wouldn't I?"
"You hardly know me."
"So?"
Weiss shrugged. "It's just...unusual."
"Like white rose tea?"
"Exactly like white rose tea," she grinned. Unusual, intriguing, and incredibly sweet.
With that, she returned to the counter to serve other customers. They closed at midday on a Sunday, so it wouldn't be terribly long until she could go home, though she did hope that the time would pass more slowly while Ruby was here.
As Ruby had said, she'd taken a while to drink the tea - she stayed near the window for a good half hour while it cooled down. At one point Weiss had asked if she wanted her to make it a little cooler in the first place next time, but Ruby had just shaken her head. "I like watching the people in the café, and outside while I wait, and that cinnamon roll was really good. Do you have any cookies?"
Eventually Ruby paid, and left. To Weiss's surprise, Blake didn't mention her again that day - Weiss was grateful for that. She was prepared for Ruby to come back now - she was determined not to be caught off guard like that again.
Weiss only worked at The White Stag on weekends, and Monday afternoons, the only afternoon she had free period, when she didn't have to study. She also had a free every second week on a Monday, so she could make sure she arrived early.
Usually she didn't hurry to get there on those Mondays - she didn't have to be there until 3:00 - but today she made a beeline for the coffee shop, eager to arrive early so as not to miss Ruby, should she come. Besides, there was something else she wanted to do.
She let herself in and made for the rose tea. She quickly boiled some water, put a teabag in, trying to forget that it had probably been on the floor the day before, poured the hot water and waited impatiently for the tea to brew, tapping her foot on the tiles. She knew Blake wouldn't turn up today, so she wouldn't be questioned as to why she was doing this - it was Fox and Coco that worked alongside her on Mondays, (they worked every afternoon on weekdays,) and they usually kept to themselves. They were both a couple of years older than her, and she had the impression that they knew each other rather well.
She took the teabag out, poured in the milk, and let the tea cool down for a couple of minutes before finally putting it to her lips.
It tasted freaking incredible.
She finished it quickly and threw out the paper cup, putting some money into the cash register as Coco and Fox came in. They exchanged greetings, then got to work before opening.
Ruby didn't come that day. Weiss couldn't help but be disappointed.
Next weekend. She might come on Saturday.