Café
Chapter Two: Eru Flat White
FTOYWGAD: Thanks for the reviews so far guys. I'm hoping to get more for this chapter. And don't worry, it may not seem like it but there will be progress soon. Oh and there will be somewhat regular updates for this fic but I don't guarantee that after chapter five is published (currently working on chapter six n.n"). Anyways, shouout to Kit, my beta for this fic. LUFF FOR YOU!
Disclaimer: So I was walking down the street yesterday singing about how I own Death Note and all that stuff and these two men in black tuxedos and sunglasses grabbed me from behind and…the rest was a blur…
(Mello's Apartment in New York)
It was no use. Even if a person spent the rest of his life dedicated to this task, it would be of no use.
Mello screamed in frustration and kicked an innocent cardboard box, sending useless knickknacks and chocolate wrappers flying everywhere.
He'd spent the past half an hour trying desperately to find loose change lying around. After an entire horror movie's worth of screaming and yelling, never had Mello been as happy as when he found two quarters in the drain of the sink.
It may be his last day in that apartment, but at least he'd have some money for coffee.
Some may say that it was obsession, but Mello likes to call it an uncanny attraction to a beautiful piece of culinary art.
Giving up looking for any more money since he already had enough for another espresso, he collapsed on his recliner. He made a mental note to throw it away as soon as possible.
He allowed himself to rest his eyes after a long day.
He'd been asked to retrieve all his items from his office from work. Even though he'd been fired a week ago from the company he worked for, the boss had be a bastard enough to tell him to get his things a week later.
His boss was the sole reason Mello was worrying sick about what he would do after he gives up the keys to his apartment. The blonde forced himself to focus on other matters. If he thought about that day any longer, he was going to go on another rampage and get into another shouting match with the neighbors.
The thought of where he could stay for a while until he got another job and enough money to rent another apartment. Maybe he could stay at Balsa's place? Then he realized that he barely knew where the woman was, never mind sharing an apartment with her. There was always his friend from college, Linder. Then again, she'd probably be too busy now that she was married and all. Not to mention, he doubted she'd be comfortable enough to ask him over.
He'd always been the tough kid in school and was never seen without his 'goons' behind him. He would terrorize the other children just for spite. Of course he'd grown out of that stage but his tough exterior never left him. Back then, he was always surrounded by students and children; he still found himself lonely. It suddenly dawned on Mello that he'd never really had friends. If he were to disappear right off the face of the earth, no one would know. No one would care.
For the first time in year, Mello's throat constricted and his nose felt impossibly stuffy. The severity of the situation finally caught up with the leather-clad man, and realizing this, he fell back, closing his eyes.
He was in desperate need of coffee right now.
(Eru Café)
Although Matt had just begun working at the café a few weeks ago, he'd seen enough customers come in there and pretend like they were the Queen of England. Still, he managed and treated them like royalty and sometimes even mouthed 'your majesty' every time they demanded a "like, a medium Eru Cappuccino Latte with a tablespoon and a quarter of cream and half a pinch of cinnamon on top." Yeah, he was a saint. But never in his life had he ever met someone as thickheaded and egotistical as the small-framed blonde that had walked in earlier. Of course at first, he was slightly ticked off that he'd walked in right where he cleaned earlier. But then he realized that there was no way the man could have known that so he forgave him and even gave him a towel. So after attempting small talk with the man and even making him the best coffee in the world, what does he do? He tells him his masterpiece was worth less than the dirt on his shoe. So Matt did what every sane person would do after that. He told the blonde douche bag to get the hell out. Hey, maybe it was sort of mean to kick out a person, a customer much less, out in the cold afternoon showers of New York, but he honestly couldn't stand the guy.
So when Matt packed up that day to go home after his shift, he was already in a bad mood. And that was pretty rare for the redhead since the boy was so easygoing.
Before the boy could even step around the counter, he heard a shuffle behind him. Considering it was the sound of footsteps without shoes on, it wasn't had to guess how it was.
"Where do you think you're going?" came the drawling voice of Matt's boss.
Turning around, the goggle-clad man faced the very man who was lucky enough to deem himself the owner of the Eru franchise. The man was unbelievably pale and dressed in nothing but a long-sleeved white shirt and baggy jeans that Matt thought were at least two sizes too big for him. His bulging eyes and inky black hair was enough to send little children crying. It was very misleading, Matt had once thought. The man wore baggy clothes but he knew that beneath those clothes was a man who had years of experience in martial arts. Matt knew because of a robbery incident that happened a few days ago. He was held at gunpoint while the masked man demanded all the money in the cash register. Before the boy could even reach for the money, his boss flew from behind him and spin kicked the robber, knocking him unconscious.
Matt learned that day, that he was extremely possessive about his money. No one got near it. He'd been away, managing another international café in London. After a few years it took him to realize he'd been missing home, he arrived in New York and relieved Balsa from her managerial duties. Then he was kind enough to give Matt a job to help pay for his college.
Matt thought fondly of the incident when he was shaken out of his reverie.
"Matt, let me ask you again. Where are you going?" L asked, now walking into the café from the stairs that led to the storage room.
"Geez, L, I'm done with my shift. I'm going home," the redhead replied, waving to the other man and walking toward the exit with his backpack full of homework he did on days like these when no one stepped foot in the café.
There was a deafening silence behind him and Matt made the mistake of turning around. He got an eyeful of L's face.
"Shit, don't sneak up like that!"
"Matt, do you remember what happened exactly three weeks and two days ago?" L asked with a creepy smile.
Matt being used to peculiar behavior just shrugged not bothering with answering the man.
"You signed a contract with me stating that you will accept this job, working in the café as long as you do as I say and work the shifts that I assign you. I assure you that I did pay heed to your busy schedule being a college student and all," the pale man said, bringing his thumb to rest on his lower lip; another one of his unusual habits.
Matt nodded, remembering the day. It was one of his happiest, knowing that he would be able to pay for college and his education himself.
"Well, as I recall, Matt, I see that your shift on Wednesdays start at 6:30 in the morning and end at 2:15 PM," L mumbled.
"Yes," Matt slowly said, unsure of where this was going.
"Then take a look at the watch Matt."
The redhead glanced at his wristwatch noticing that it was 2:13 exactly. Then Matt understood where L was taking this.
"You're not serious…"
"As a heart attack, Matt."
"But there's no one even here!"
"Need I remind you of the contract?"
Matt groaned and slumped against the chair, mumbling about unfair bosses.
L stood and stared right ahead at the clear glass doors of the small shop, right into the dark and depressing streets of the now wet New York.
2:14
"It's been raining quite a lot, huh, Matt?" L said.
"Mm-hmm." Matt agreed, not bothering to look up.
"Any customers today?" L asked as he always did.
"One," Matt murmured again. "He was a douche bag."
L shot Matt an inquiring look.
The other, feeling the stare behind him, said, "Don't worry, I was nice."
L produced a satisfied sound.
"But I told him to get out…" Matt whispered to the chair he was leaning on, hoping to God he hadn't heard him.
"Matt," L said warningly. "That could mean one less customer."
"I've never even seen him before! He just came in all wet and told me off, just like that," the younger boy whined.
L scrunched up his face. "One more error like that and I will be forced to – "
2:15
"See ya, L!" Matt slung his backpack around his shoulder and made a run for the door. Not even bothering to put his hood up, the redhead sprinted all the way to his apartment.
Once inside, said redhead dumped his belongings on the floor and proceeded to remove his heavy hoodie. Once he was wearing nothing but his tank top and boxers, he snuggled his toned body into the bed and piled blankets and blankets on top of himself. After shutting his eyes for a few minutes, he opened one and found his term paper half typed on his laptop on one end of the room and his PS3, Modern Warfare on pause on the other end.
It was a no-brainer. Education was important to him after all. After somehow convincing his brain that he needed a clear head to write his paper, he grabbed his controller and continued to play.
While he played, his thoughts wandered to the bills piling up on the small kitchen counter. When he said that L gave him the job at the café to pay for his college, he meant exactly that. There was barely enough money for him to rent the dinky apartment. L tried to convince him to stay in the dorms the college provided for him, but he blatantly refused saying that the campus was too far away and he preferred commuting. Every once in a while he'd get an angry tax collector at his door demanding money. And then Matt would proceed to shut the door in his face earning him a string of threats.
What Matt really wanted at the moment was a roommate, one who wouldn't mind the sloppiness and would pay half the rent. And he needed one desperately.
Funny, he thought. Scar-face pops into my head.
(Eru Café)
L watched the retreating figure, somewhat put off at the thought that he might lose another customer. He went back behind the counter to do some paperwork when he heard the front door opening. Surprised that he would get any business in the busy weather, he looked up.
He found what seemed to be a blonde woman in a fitting leather jacket. When the figure walked closer, and upon closer inspection he made out an angry scar covering the left side of the face. He also noticed that it was a man, not a woman. He congratulated in figuring that out early or the results might have been dire.
"Well, hello." L said, his face not betraying the slightest of emotion.
The blonde raised his eyebrows. He'd only been gone for two hours and the redhead switches shifts already? Not that he wanted him back. Not at all.
"Hi," he replied. "Wasn't there a weird redhead here a while ago?"
Not expecting the question, L gave a start. "Redhead?"
"Yeah, he had goggles and was way too tall for his age," Mello gesticulated using his hands.
L wanted to ask whether it was because he was too short for his age but bit his tongue in time. "I think you're talking about Matt. His shift was over a few minutes ago. But I'll be taking his place."
The pale man wondered whether this was the man who Matt thought was a 'douche bag.'
"Good, that freak was a nuisance anyway."
And that confirmed his prediction. "So, what would you like?"
"Eru Espresso." He said automatically.
L pulled a face at the order which received an eyebrow raise from the other. "Are you sure?"
Mello looked like he'd be punched in the face. "What do you mean 'am I sure?' Do I look like I'm kidding?"
L reluctantly went about working on the coffee. As the owner of the café, he knew all the items on there by heart. And the espresso was by far, his least favorite. Judging by the look on the blonde's face, he knew he hadn't tried anything else on the menu. He was sure that if he tried his favorite, he'd love it.
And so, L, defying his own and clichéd rule of 'the customer is always right,' set about working on his newest concoction.
Once finished with the drink – and in less than two minutes – he presented it to the person before him with what could only be described as a triumphant smile.
The scarred man took the drink warily and sipped. For a moment or two nothing happened but then the man started to choke.
"Ah-hak! What the hell is this?" He managed to choke out.
L smilingly said, "Why, that is Eru Flat White."
"But I asked for an espresso!"
"Yes."
"…"
"…"
"ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME?" As the blonde began to raise bloody hell about this blasphemy, the door behind the storage room opened again and out stepped a man who seemed only a few years older than Mello. He had carefully sculpted brown hair and a lean build.
"What the hell is going on?" he asked, clearly angry about the yelling.
"Hello there, Light," L greeted as if there wasn't a blonde about to murder him.
Noticing the blonde himself, said Light raised a questioning eyebrow at the pale man.
"Well, he asked for an espresso."
Light let out a soft growl. "Dammit, L, you can't force other people to like what you do!" He turned to the slightly confused blonde. "I'm so sorry; I'll get you an espresso right away."
With that said he turned around and began to get to work right away. L regarded his business partner with slight disappointment.
(Eru Café – Mello's POV)
When Mello tasted the drink, the first thing that came to mind was that this wasn't espresso at all. Then when the taste actually registered, he reconsidered his favorite drink. Nonetheless, he'd asked for an Eru Espresso and he didn't expect any less. So he did what he did best and raised a tantrum.
As soon as the brunet man came into play and apologized, he calmed down and sat back down on his chair.
Then he felt the ebony-haired man's gaze on him. "That flat white is 3.15."
"What the hell? You messed up my order! Who do you even think you are – "
"I'm pretty sure I am, L, the owner of this establishment – "
"Manners, L!"
Mello was ready for another snappy comment when L was jostled out of the way and Light placed an Eru Espresso in front of the blonde.
"On the house," he said with a smile. Then he looked at his partner and the smiling eyes grew into a glare. "You are sleeping on the couch tonight," he murmured.
L seemed defeated while Mello was raised to an entire new level of shock. Not knowing whether to be more surprised that the pale man before him was the owner of his favorite place in the work or that the man next to him was sleeping in the same room as him, he just awkwardly sipped his drink. He silently thanked the Gods that he didn't have to pay for either drink and that he could save the money for another day.
FTOYWGAD: Um...spring break sucks. Just so you know. It's raining. Like a lot. Hope you guys are enjoying yours wherever you are. (^_^) Oh and please review! It makes me post quicker.
Food For Thought: According to Heisenberg's Uncertainty Principle, an electron doesn't have a definite position; it can be in two places at once. "You imagine a cat in a box. Also in the box is a vial of poison and an electron. If the electron hits the vial, the poison is released and the cat dies. If the electron does not hit the vial, the cat lives. Since initially the electron is in two places at once, the inescapable conclusion is that the cat is both dead and alive at the same time." So there's another theory that there could be two universes: one where the cat is dead and one where the cat is dead. So even the smallest of things can create a domino effect, thus potentially creating an infinite number of universes. Fuckin' awesome is what I say. XD
~Silver
P.S. Most of the Food For Thought (in this one; especially the one in quotes) is taken from a book called The Last Universe by William Stealtor. I don't own that either.