Three days later, Rivaille finds himself at the same disjointed banner, same glass doors, same drifting aroma of coffee and chocolate drifting lazily from the slight gaps between the glass. It wasn't snowing, but the wind was picking up, rustling his coat, his hair billowing around his face, and he couldn't help but give an involuntary shiver at the cold that surrounded him.

It's not for Eren, I'm just freezing my ass off in this weather, just here to get a cup of coffee and leave. With a deep breath, Rivaille relaxed his shoulders and ran a hand through his hair, pushing open the glass doors with his gloved hands. The bell rang once, the two tone announcing his arrival, and as Rivaille looked around, he inwardly cursed; there was barely anyone in the shop. Fuck. He had no choice but to sit down by the window, there was no backing out now, (he'd gone too far for any hope of return) and slid out a chair, the scrape that it made dragging along the tiles another bolt to prove his presence. He sat down, arranging his scarf again to disguise his trembling hands. Even though they were almost empty, there was no way that it would be Eren who would serve him-

"Welcome!" Fuck.

Rivaille managed a grunt in response, pulling out a notebook and pen from his coat pocket, determinedly looking down at the table, finding the clockwise swirl of grains fascinating.

"May I take your order?" Eren's voice prompted again, calm as ever.

"A small black coffee." Rivaille coughed into his glove, clearing his throat to get rid of the embarrassing waver that threatened to overtake his words.

"We'll have that in a second." Polished shoes turned around and walked away, and Rivaille found it safe to look up again, fingers itching to pick up his pen and spin it across the paper, to release the thoughts that clambered and scrambled around in his mind, eager to release it before the filth was enough to take over his brain, enough to confuse his mind.

"Here you go." A cup was set down in front of him, the white china making a gentle clink against the wood as the bottom rim met the table.

"A-ah. Thanks." Rivaille gave a jerky nod, running yet another hand through his hair again, cursing the nerves that were making his legs tremble.

The shoes lingered by his table. "Do you need anything else?"

Yes. "No." Rivaille replied shortly, reaching for the cup.

"Wait-" Rivaille choked, almost spitting out the coffee before he clapped a hand over his mouth, forcing himself to swallow. "It's hot." Eren said apologetically.

"What the fuck was that?" Rivaille hissed, still feeling the burn in his tongue and throat. "That-what did you do, go down to hell and take some of the fire there and use it?!"

Eren laughed, the sound ten times more mature than Rivaille remembered (oh, the naivety that they had), and snickered. "No, actually."

"Tch." Rivaille blew on his coffee, more cautious this time as he took another tentative sip. A pause, and suddenly another body was sliding into the chair across from him.

"What-" Rivaille spluttered, looking up at Eren for the first time. "Don't you have work to do?"

"My shift ends now." Eren casually explained, removing his vest. Rivaille couldn't help but eye the new muscles that shifted and flexed as Eren folded it up, glancing ever so slightly at the dark sweep of eyelashes against his cheek as he looked down.

"Like what you see?" Eren snickered, extending his arms to show his (impressive) wingspan. "I haven't changed much, have I?"

"You'd be surprised." Rivaille rolled his eyes. "You're more attractive when you don't talk."

Eren hummed, leaning forward on his elbows as he watched Rivaille write. "What are you doing?"

"Writing for the next article I have to do." Rivaille sighed, reimbursing himself in the toilet incident. Because of that screw up, they were behind schedule, which made him have to put in extra hours so that the magazine would get released on time.

"What magazine is it?" Eren inquired, twisting a piece of hair in his hand, still watching Rivaille with a stubbornly concentrated gaze.

"The wall street journal."

"Ah? Rivaille, I never took you for economics!" Eren grinned a Cheshire cat smile. "I guess you really have changed, after all!"

"You never knew me well in the first place." Rivaille suddenly snapped, feeling self conscious.

"Well…that's true, I guess." Eren's smile faded, expression growing more serious as he started reminiscing. "I thought I did, until…"

"I don't know what you're talking about." Rivaille airily replied, fingers suddenly feeling too empty. He took the hold of the cup again. "What was it again?"

"…Never mind." Eren mumbled, eyes sliding closed.

"Oy, if you're this tired, then go home already." Rivaille sighed, too used to this for his own good.

"You didn't call." Eren murmured, face hidden between his arms. "I was waiting." The disappointed tone was almost enough to make him waver.

"I didn't have a reason." Was his short reply, not even using the pretense of not seeing the number scrawled out so legibly on the chocolate bark.

"You didn't have to have one." Eren drew deeper in himself. "You could've called, you know."

Rivaille didn't grace that with a reply, choosing only to wrap his hands around the cooling coffee more securely and look out the window, pen and paper forgotten by his side.

"Hey," He said softly, not wanting to disturb the mood. "How's Mikasa?"

"She's…good." Eren hesitated. "She's just been traveling a lot, that's all. But I hear you're also engaged? Who's the unfortunate girl?"

"Petra." Rivaille said shortly, grip tightening around his drink.

"That's good, she's liked you for a long time, right?"

"I guess." Rivaille couldn't help but feel some sort of disappointment in his chest.

They both went without talking for a while. When he was talking with Eren, Rivaille felt like he was dancing around thorns; he had stepped on glass before, roses were no different.

"Hey," Eren imitated his tone from earlier. "Are we adults now? What do you think?"

"…" Rivaille went quiet, thinking. "Maybe you become an adult when you realize that everything anyone ever taught you was just an opinion."

"To me," Eren had mustered after silence had followed, "feelings are the only definite truths. But if feelings are always fluxing-is there a definite truth, after all?"

"…."

"Being sentimental doesn't suit you either." Rivaille replied, taking another sip of the coffee.

Eren let out a breathy laugh, tugging down his collar to revel a glimpse his décolletage.

After that it was just a litany of required talks, 'how's life?' and all that bullshit, useless things in Rivaille's eyes. It was inherent in Eren's eyes and body that he was hurting, and Rivaille was almost 100% convinced that it was him causing the damage.

It is almost six p.m. when they finally run out of things to talk about, the coffee long gone into Rivaille's lips. Eren takes his cup and brings it to the counter, stepping back into the kitchen.

(Now, here's your chance to leave.)

"Rivaille, wait!" Too late.

Eren hurries out, face flushed. "Call me, okay?"

Rivaille freezes, then forces his head to nod jerkily. That, apparently, is good enough for Eren, whose face relaxes into a slight smile. (The most beautiful expression, Rivaille thinks)

"That's good."


Whoooo I think I've found my inspiration in writing again (is that a good thing I don't even know) but this is just a quick update to the long forgotten café au lait (I'm so sorry I literally forgot about this and just pulled it up when looking through my files again)

Because the next school year will most likely be a complete disaster, I'm going to cram and cram and cram and get as much writing done as I can in the summer to make up for the inevitable gap in the school year of fanfiction writing.

I'm actually working on a new fanfiction idea for Rivaere (yes, I know K.K's going to start something else that she can't finish ORZ) but some of the story starts that I left hanging will soon be tied up I SWEARRRR

But the new fanfiction that I'm planning is going to be in canon-verse, (there's not enough of those QAQ) and hopefully it'll be as well accepted as Something InfalliableLike Eternity was *crosses fingers* because I'm going to put in every single bit of effort in writing the first chapter of that on the plane to San Francisco (yay actually going somewhere~)

Please tell me your thoughts on this; I would love to hear them!
Until next time~!
Ja ne!

K.K