A/N: Hewwo bebes :3 Mal here with a new ficcy. It's been a while. During quarantine I got back into watching Fairy Tail, and was reminded of my love for Natsu x Gray. I also read some stories for them to get inspired. As someone who works in specialty coffee, I thought it would be fun to use that as a bouncing off point for them in a real world AU. Btw, I work full time AND I'm in school full time, so forgive me if updates are a lil irregular! Enjoy. :)
Chapter 1
Natsu lay on the floor of his new apartment, the hardwood straightening out his back pleasantly. It was a cool reprieve in the thick of summer, especially after bringing up the last of his boxes. Central air currently blasted in all rooms, but he was still overheated. Not in small part because he held his cat, Happy, on his chest. The purring and the dying light lulled him into a drowse; of course, he was exhausted, too. Moves were never easy, much less cross-country. He forced his eyes open, looked about the mostly empty dwelling. Furniture would have to come in waves, as he accumulated money again. Between the truck, the security deposit, and first month's rent, Natsu was strapped. He still needed to nab some groceries and essentials, in addition to food and litter for Happy. His first paycheck couldn't come fast enough.
Natsu Dragneel was a barista. Normally that would mean having to hit the ground running with applications and interviews when arriving in a new city, but he was something of a minor celebrity in the coffee world. He specialized in latte art and beverage innovation. He had managed to compete on the national level for his last coffee shop down south. While he failed to take the top spot, the extra exposure boosted his already impressive social media presence. He was told he charmed with his smile and good looks, though these were qualities he himself could not see. Natsu just loved what he did; he had fun. Sometimes he'd watch footage of himself from qualifiers and competitions and laugh at the expressions he made. Natsu certainly missed whatever memo went out about his appeal, because to his eyes there was only a nerd with exaggerated facial movements. Nonetheless, when he applied to the barista position with photos of his work and his insta handle, he got a very quick call back.
He sighed heavily, causing Happy to slightly open his eyes and seemingly glare at Natsu for disturbing his rest. It was hard, starting over. As freeing and exhilarating as it was to move to the city of his dreams, he felt overwhelmed. No friends, no family—besides Happy, no familiar place in which to seek solace. The adulting of it all got to him, too. He still had to set up his internet. Natsu managed to figure out how to turn on electricity and heat services, at least. It took his entire will to make a spreadsheet to track how much rent and monthly expenses would be. His father, before he passed, had instilled in the young Natsu the importance of finances. "I won't be around forever to make sure those quarters are used wisely," he would joke gently. It seemed cruel that, indeed, Ignatius Dragneel was not. The thought of his father still brought a quietude upon Natsu. No longer did he sob, or curse the heavens. But there was an emptiness he instinctually knew would never be filled again. It was neither good nor bad; it just was.
Golden hour ebbed away, and shadows began to overtake the apartment. "Guess we've rested long enough, eh Happy?" The cat yawned and stretched, then looked at him with clear, expectant eyes. "After all that moving you've earned a fish, buddy." At the word fish, Happy leapt off, and began meowing hungrily. With a groan, Natsu righted himself, and walked to the kitchen. His new apartment wasn't huge, but still a steal for the price. A true one bedroom, it gave the illusion of space despite the overall lack thereof. Upon entering from the hall, at the left was the kitchen, with clean white tile floors, and space underneath the cabinets which opened into the living room, creating a bar seating situation. Across the kitchen was the bathroom, on the right. The living room was recessed, a feature that amused Natsu. A small patio was accessible by a sliding glass door at the far end of the room, and through the bedroom. Along the right side of the living room was a half wall that sectioned off the hallway to the bedroom in the back of the apartment. He lucked out with a northeastern corner unit, and thus was privileged ample sunlight. As there were no barstools yet and the kitchen itself was a bit narrow, he situated Happy's food and water dishes under the counter on the living room side. He opened up a can of tuna for the insistently meowing cat, and couldn't help but laugh as he loudly tucked into the fish.
Natsu thought about doing a live stream to show off his new big city life, but figured it would be better to wait until the apartment looked more lived-in. He settled instead on a shower. By the door to the bathroom, he left the box containing a shower curtain, a bath mat, among other toiletries and fixtures. His whole body was sore, but it was a necessary last step. Once the items were in place, he ran the shower hot, and let steam fill the room. It felt strange to perform the small actions of living alone, like showering with the door open. For so long he lived surrounded by other people. Once his father died, a special codicil of his will instructed him to be sent to one of his oldest friends, Makarov Dreyar. The small but mighty man became his guardian, and prevented Natsu from being lost in the foster care system. Makarov, something of a failed father in his own right, had taken in several wayward youths already—in addition to raising his grandson, Laxus. These became Natsu's siblings, for all intents and purposes: Cana, Mirajane, Ezra, Elfman, and Lisanna; they were all his family too. It made for a lively upbringing, but meant he got precious little time to himself. Even the quiet of his new home, beyond the sound of the elevator in the hall, cars in the street, or sirens in the distance, felt odd. It thrilled Natsu, too. I've earned this, he thought, my new beginning. He stepped into the scalding water, and sighed blissfully.
The coffee shop sat at the corner of its block downtown, close to the river. It was a new café, having just opened earlier the same year. It had already attracted attention in industry periodicals for its exceedingly competitive wages, sourcing from small, POC-led roasters, and LGBTQ staff. Natsu felt proud and humbled to be chosen to join such a team, which included several competitive baristas. As he walked up the street, he could see there was no patio, though there were some benches along the tree-lined sidewalk. Several patrons were sitting on them, chatting pleasantly and holding cups with the store's minimalist logo. It was called Pull Thru, and the design on the cups showed half of a heart being bisected by a line, conveying latte art technique. The interior was breathtaking, and Natsu paused to take it all in. The layout was triangular, with floor-to-ceiling windows facing the cross streets. The bar was interestingly situated in the round, toward the middle of the store, with seating radiating outward. There were vignettes of plants sprinkled throughout as well, adding the only color to the mostly neutral space. The floors were concrete, the lighting fixtures white, the seating mostly wooden. Lo-fi instrumentals adding to the overall aura of spacious calm. Natsu had never worked in such a fancy establishment before, and suddenly felt self-conscious. By no means was he unprofessional, but he was not used to being on display in this manner. At his old shop he could be loud, informal with his coworkers and regulars, and he typically wore casual clothing with no apron; there was definitely a more polished vibe, here. As he made his way to the counter, he noticed that even the conversation among the customers was subdued. Natsu hoped he hadn't made a mistake.
"Good morning, welcome to Pull Thru. How can I help you?" The barista behind the bar had longer green hair pulled into a bun. He wore a burgundy dress shirt and a half apron tied around his waist. He was cool, polite, but did not smile. It made Natsu slightly nervous.
"Hey, I'm Natsu! I'm actually—"
"Ah, yes. Our new hire, of course. I'm Fried, the lead barista. You can go on to the back. Door at the end of the hallway on the left." The way Fried nodded seemed somewhat dismissive, and his tone didn't exactly radiate warmth. And this was who he had to answer to…
"Cool, thanks Fried. Nice to meet ya." Natsu smiled hopefully, but Fried was already looking beyond him.
"Good morning, welcome to Pull Thru. How can I help you?"
As Natsu rounded the bar, could see pour over stations on the right, and an espresso machine on the left. Some customers were standing around on their phones, waiting for drinks. He noticed another guy close to the same age as Fried, with messy blue hair and tattoos.
"Don't mind Fried, he's like that with anyone new he meets. Name's Bickslow, the not-the-lead-barista." Bickslow winked at Natsu conspiratorially. "See you on the floor soon." He finished lidding a drink and called it out, his voice filling the space. "Small flat white for Anna on the bar. Anna."
Relief flooded Natsu. Bickslow seemed more his speed, if for no other reason than that he gave off a chiller energy than Fried. At least not everyone here was so refined. The hallway was sectioned off from the main space by a wall of frosted glass, with two restrooms and then the manager's office at the end. He knocked softly at the door, and waited.
When the door opened he was met with a surprisingly younger woman than he pictured on the phone, perhaps a bit older than the boys on bar but not terribly so. She had cat's eye glasses, long hair, and wore a simple green dress with yellow heels. "Natsu, right on time. Come on in."
"Thanks a bunch, Evergreen."
After a brief onboarding process where Evergreen walked him through his rate of pay (above starting salary due to his experience), his benefits package, general rules and expectations, and his schedule, she handed him an apron and told him to report to Fried—who would be supervising his first week. Once his training was complete, he would be a full-fledged employee. The grace period was to make sure they were a good fit. Natsu deflated a bit upon learning he wasn't training under Bickslow, which Evergreen didn't miss. He could see why she ended up as a manager, her eyes caught everything. "Fried can be a bit…cold at first, but he really is one of the best barista's I've come across. You could probably learn a bit from each other."
Once behind the bar, though, Natsu felt at ease. He was still intimidated, but a busy café made him feel at home. In his absence, Fried and Bickslow had swapped, and now Fried was making drinks.
"I thought I'd see where you were, flow wise. The bar is a pretty simple set up. Milk fridge is there, special ingredients are in that one there. I'll cover our menu once you demonstrate your skill set. I've seen you compete, but it's different in person." Natsu grinned despite himself; he relished a challenge. It also meant Fried knew more about him than he initially let on. He got the sense Fried was territorial. He'd do his best not to ruffle any feathers, but he wouldn't hold back.
"Got it. Manual pour overs are there?"
Fried nodded, "The weights are written to the side for each coffee. Every new one we rotate in I test first, and adjust the ratio. Same with the espressos." A chit printed out and interrupted them. "Your first drink. He's a regular, so."
Natsu took the small piece of paper from Fried and read it out loud, "Gray. Medium Iced Americano. Dine-In. Easy enough." Natsu looked around, and found the glasses under the bar. He dosed and tamped his espresso, and pulled the shot. While he was waiting, he filled the glass with a scoop of ice, and went to add water.
"I'll need more ice than that."
The smooth, sure voice startled Natsu, and he looked up. On the other side of the counter was a very handsome guy, his own age by the looks of it. His dark hair seemed almost blue and black at once, contrasting against his pale skin. He wore a white button down and navy slacks. The shirt fit just right, hugging his shoulders and biceps. He noticed it wasn't buttoned to the top, and a necklace hung around his neck. Natsu did his best to keep his expression and voice neutral.
"Ah, you must be Gray. You got it! I'm new, you'll have to bear with me."
"I can see that."
His tone wasn't entirely rude; there was a sarcastic bemusement to it that made Natsu want to internally roll his eyes more than get angry. He knew how particular people could be about their daily rituals, coffee especially, and took it in stride. "Heh, well I'm Natsu. A pleasure." He topped off the glass with ice, and added some water. As the ice was displaced, he looked at Gray again who seemed to be studying him carefully. "That's good or…?"
Gray smirked. "A bit more."
He added a few extra cubes, so that there was still enough room for the espresso at the top, looked at Gray, and received an approving nod. "I'll remember this for next time." He slowly poured the espresso on top, so that the crema of the espresso remained. "Hope you like it, Gray."
The slightly taller man tsked, and raised his eyebrow. Natsu felt his stomach drop, and Fried came to his side. "Our standard here is two pulls for a medium Americano, hot or iced."
"Shit—I mean shoot. My bad." Natsu felt his face heat up, both at his inadvertent expletive and his mistake. He removed another portafilter and readied his next pull. When it was finished, he poured it on top, with virtually no room to spare. "I'll make it perfect next time, promise."
"I sure as hell hope so." Again, it wasn't truly antagonistic. As Natsu handed the drink off, their fingers brushed for a moment, and their eyes met. "And hopefully I don't spill it everywhere. Thanks a bunch, Natsu."
"Have a nice day…Gray." He watched as the prickly guy walked toward the windows that faced the river, and noted how the slacks cupped his rear. Damn.
"He's not much friendlier than that, even on a good day." Fried struck up a surprisingly commiserate tone. "And I should have told you about the second pull. But now we have multiple drinks."
"Huh?" Reality slinked back in, and Natsu groaned when he saw the chits hanging off the printer. Yeah, dumbass, you're working. Not in a rom-com.
"Let's see what you're really made of, Natsu."
