Learning how to make coffee wasn't a difficult task, especially when she was supported by Blake and her mother. Cream and sugar go into the cup first, next the freshly brewed coffee, a quick simple stir to ensure that the sugar is fully melted, and finally topped off with a top and a coffee sleeve. It wasn't much, but it was honest work. Work that Weiss was not used to but had found a slight joy in doing it, it was simple and entertaining. Yes, she did mess up a few orders here and there due to the introductions of various flavor syrups some people wanted in their coffees, or if the customer wanted an iced coffee rather than a hot one.
'But why would someone want an iced drink when it's cold out' Weiss shook her head; everyone has their quirks she supposed.
Despite all the small mishaps, she picked up on it very quickly without needing much help from Mrs. Belladonna or Blake. Blake managed the espresso machine and the blender section of the Café while Weiss was on strictly coffee, seeing as it was her first day and didn't want to stress Weiss out too much. Mrs. Belladonna manned the cash register and would call out drink orders to the two.
Yang had come in earlier to see Ruby and say Hi to Mrs. Belladonna and Blake before having to return home to help her dad with moving a few things in the house and go grocery shopping for dinner tonight. Ruby stayed behind not wanting to get in the way of the two rearranging the house and opted to stay and finish the rest of her Math homework.
Another hour passed by before Weiss had realized it and she glanced over to Mrs. Belladonna who finished ringing up another customer's order.
"Alright ladies, one large cappuccino for this young lady please." Mrs. Belladonna rang out and turned to look at Weiss, "Alright honey, it looks like it has quiet down a bit. It's around 4 pm right now, would you like to take a small break? Blake and I could handle it if anyone came in."
Weiss let out a small sigh, "Thank you, I think I'd like to do that." She smiled at Blake watching her pour in the last of the foam into the customer's cappuccino. "Blake, I'll be back."
Blake, eyes still focused on her task, smiled and spoke softly. "Weiss, you should go check up on Ruby, I don't know if you've been aware of her looking at you the entire time."
A blush crept up onto her fair complexion, 'What does that mean?'.
Weiss hung the apron that Mrs. Belladonna provided her with onto the hook by the entrance to the back and come out from behind the counter. The Café only had a few booths of people left, but only one table was occupied by a red-clad figure. Ruby sat at the table hunched over a large sketchbook and was vigorously shading in something that Weiss couldn't fully see. Not wanting to bother Ruby or to startle her, Weiss took a seat across from her, respecting Ruby's space and not peeking over to see what she was drawing.
This did in fact alerted Ruby but the panic in her eyes was quickly washed away as she realized who it was. Ruby closed her sketchbook and tucked it away as she turned to sit in her chair normally to face Weiss.
"Heya Weiss, how was work?" Ruby rested her elbow on the table and rested her chin on her palm, clearly giving Weiss her full attention. The gentle smile on Ruby's face warmed Weiss' heart, she hasn't ever been on the receiving end of such a look. Weiss didn't know what this feeling was, but she rather not make Ruby wait too long for an answer.
"It was a bit confusing at first, but I seem to be managing just fine." Smiling Weiss continued genuinely, "I'm glad I found this place, I'm glad I came to this town." Blushing she muttered under her breath, "I'm glad I met you and Blake, I haven't spoken to Yang much but she's nice as well."
Ruby gave out a laugh, gentle and warm. "My sister can be a little crazy, but she means well. She has been busy lately and though it makes me sad, I'm glad. I don't want to hold her back from anything."
Weiss smiled, Ruby was a sweet girl and one who looked out for others before she looked after herself. She liked this clumsy girl. Ruby was easy to talk to and the two shared many interests such as music and reading. Looking over at Ruby's left hand once more, Weiss grabbed a napkin from the table and gave it to Ruby.
"Oh, you dolt, look at your hands! You'll get all this stuck on your face!" Weiss leaned forward across the table to point out where Ruby smudged some graphite on her cheek.
"Pfft, sorry, I got caught up and didn't realize it. Thanks, Weiss." She started wiping her cheek where Weiss pointed out she smudged all whilst chuckling.
"You were so focused on drawing earlier, is it also an assignment?"
"Ack, no. I couldn't focus on my Math homework anymore and decided to take a break and draw…something." She rubbed the back of her head again sheepishly.
"You are having trouble in Math? Could I look at what you're having trouble with?"
"Oh uh, yeah!" After rummaging in her backpack and the sounds of pens and pencils hitting each other, Ruby materialized a notebook.
"It's this problem here, I know the formula but it's just so confusing to me, I start to get confused around this step." Ruby leaned over and slid the notebook closer to Weiss, tucking back some of her hair behind her ear to focus clearly on Weiss' explanation.
"Oh, here. You got these two steps mixed up in your notes. You apply this part of the equation before you do this step, it'll come out looking a little intimidating at first but once you do this last part…".
Weiss explained slowly and started writing small notes on Ruby's papers, "You'll end up with this. Now you can check it by plugging it back into the equation."
Ruby stared back at Weiss and allowed a ghost of a smile to grace her lips, "Thanks Weiss, I can clearly understand it now."
"What is it? Why are you smiling like that?"
No longer able to hold back a snicker, Ruby shook her head laughing wholeheartedly.
"You're exactly like Blake is when you concentrate."
"What-?"
"You both stick your tongue out when you're concentrating, but it's just funny because Blake is-"
Blake appeared at the table as though she was summoned, "Ruby I'd appreciate that you stop making fun of me and take this cookie. My mom is still trying out new recipes and she hopes this one passes the Ruby Test."
Ruby looked as though she saw a ghost before she nodded, "Sorry about that Blake, it slipped my mind. I'll take the cookie please."
Weiss, once again, was confused but chose not to pry into her friend's words, instead, she turned to Blake, "Would you like to switch places? I am good as new again."
"Sure thing, I haven't taken a break since I got here from school. I'd appreciate it Weiss, plus there is only…" Blake looked at her watch on her wrist, "two and a half hours left in your shift, but it tends to be slow at this time. We can both take it easy despite not being on break."
Weiss smiled, "Thank you, Blake, I'm glad I'm working with you." She walked back behind the counter and engaged in a conversation with Mrs. Belladonna.
"Ruby, I saw you." Blake's tone was a teasing one, "You think you're sneaky, but you know that you aren't. You're lucky she didn't see you."
"Argh Blake, stop being so sneaky then!" Ruby's face nearly matched the shade of her hoodie, pouting she continued, "How did you know?"
"Ruby," Blake sighed, "You literally look like you had a neon sign above your head".
"I do not!" a weak retort was all she could offer, and all Blake could do was laugh at her friend's hopelessness.
Sighing Blake leaned over to whisper to Ruby, "Also Ruby, please don't tell her, I rather her find out naturally from us than from someone else. I trust you and I love you as my best friend but please don't tell her before I can okay?"
Flushed with shame and embarrassment for almost revealing her best friend's secret before Blake herself had a chance to tell their new friend, Ruby's eyes focused onto the table, head hung low.
"Sorry Blake, I didn't mean to, I got too caught up with the flow of the conversation with Weiss. I didn't mean to hurt you." Ruby loved her friends; she would never seek out to hurt any of them on purpose. Ruby felt extreme guilt, but Blake was forgiving, knowing it was an innocent accident.
Blake reached over and rubbed Ruby's shoulder, "It's okay Ruby, I know and it's alright. I just wanted to tell you to be more careful, I'm not mad. I was just scared." Blake offered a soft smile to Ruby and decided to change the subject again.
"What did you see that made you get into a drawing frenzy? I haven't seen you get so focused on drawing ever since you first met Gambol"
Gambol was Blake's cat. He was a 6-year-old cat she had found in the front of her café one morning with a crooked tail. She took him to a nearby vet who told her that he was alright, just a bit dehydrated, deaf, and had to get part of his tail amputated since it had an infection. The first night she brought him home, he was like a grumpy old man, but a week later she woke up to him laying next to her purring and leaning into her as she slept. He was now a sweet cat who would do anything to just lay down on Blake's lap as she read a book. Gambol still had a hard time trusting other people, but he did enjoy the company of Ruby and Yang whenever they came to visit the Belladonna house.
"Ah yeah, I saw something that I really had an urge to draw, I just…" Ruby trailed off as she looked beyond the counter again. "I still can't quite grasp the aura around it."
"You're staring at her again." Ruby choked on the cookie she had just started munching on.
"Okay listen, she's very pretty and I like drawing so I'm drawing her. That's not weird is it?"
Blake rolled her eyes and smirked, "Ruby that's very…" Blake pondered what word she should use, "Ruby that's really homosexual of you."
"Tell me something I don't know" Ruby grumbled playfully.
"Ruby, I can still hear you."
"I KNOW BLAKE." Cheeks puffed up and pink, Ruby sighed. "Can I get your opinion on it though? I feel like I'm missing something like the shading is off." Blake simply nodded, not knowing much about art but still curious.
Ruby pulled her sketchbook out and turned its pages until she came upon the page she was working on earlier. I was various drawings of Weiss at different angles, none of them complete as though Ruby couldn't find a way to finish them.
"These are impressive as always Ruby, what makes you say something is missing?" Blake thought they looked amazing, the shading and the lines were perfectly done, yet Ruby said otherwise.
"I'm not sure but…" She trailed off again to observe Weiss again. Mrs. Belladonna was teaching Weiss the ways to ring up orders on the register.
"Hmm, I've only noticed that she's left-handed but tends to lean on her right side whenever she's doing something, which sometimes makes her placement a little bit awkward," Blake stated as she remembered how she thought the way Weiss took note was a bit awkward and looked uncomfortable.
"I seem to notice that too, but I haven't thought too much about that. I wonder what that means." Ruby rubbed her temples remembering, "Ah I still have more Math to do, and I DON'T want to do it."
Blake glanced back towards her mother and Weiss who seemed to be doing fine learning the price chart.
"Okay let me help you with your homework, Yang would be sad if you let yourself get overwhelmed with homework again." She looked at Ruby with stern eyes.
Ruby laughed nervously, "Thanks Blake, you're the best. I don't know what I'd be doing without your help."
"Probably crying over another word problem in your Math homework."
"Okay so one espresso shot costs $1, but if they want to add one to a drink, it's an upcharge of $0.75?"
"Yes dear, it's true for any drink. A latte already comes with one, so if they want an extra shot, it's the base price plus $0.75."
"Oh, that's simple then. I think I can do this." Weiss nodded.
The way the Belladonna Café took orders was the manual way. Orders were taken on paper and rung up on the register. Thankfully the register was upgraded but the fashion of taking orders on paper was just a practice that Mrs. Belladonna kept ever since she and her late husband opened the café.
"I know it may seem difficult as it gets busier and busier, but don't worry too much. The people of Vale who do business with us are kind, we've only had a few bad eggs here and there, but you don't have to worry about them." She smiled as she patted Weiss' shoulder, slightly causing Weiss to jump.
"Yes ma'am, I'll try my best. Today was fun and I know I didn't do many things, but I am glad you hired me." She had never been so excited to wake up and have a full schedule before but, it seems like, things are changing bit by bit.
It was close to 6:30 and Blake was showing Weiss how to clock out of their system using her own pin number on the register, when Ruby walked up to the counter to give Blake back an empty plate.
"Blake, where'd your mom go?" Ruby peeked behind the two taller girls towards the back where the kitchen was, "I was going to give her feedback on the cookies".
"Give me a second, I think she went back there to find some more sugar to fill up the containers." Blake parted the curtain that blocked the view of the kitchen and walked in calling out for her mom. In the meantime, Ruby looked at Weiss who just stared off into the distance, "Are you about to head home Weiss?" Snapped out of her wandering mind, Weiss answered.
"Yes Ruby, they said I can go home a little early seeing as it'll be quite cold tonight and they didn't want me walking outside so late." Thinking back, she wondered if the heating in her apartment even worked, never thinking to check it out beforehand. Worried, she started to think if she packed her warm comforter with her in her luggage, she didn't remember seeing it when she unpacked.
"..iss, Weiss? Are you okay?" Ruby's alarmed voice ranged out. She was trying to ask Weiss if she needed a friend to walk her back to her apartment, but her blank gaze worried Ruby a bit.
"Oh, no. It's nothing! I'm just more tired than I thought." Weiss lied through her teeth, not wanting to worry her new friend too much. "I was wondering if the grocery store was still opened." A weak lie but also a truth, she was running low on food at her home and needed to restock if she wanted to eat something tomorrow morning.
"Oh yeah! They usually close at 10 pm, so you still have some time to do some shopping. But will you be okay? It's another block and a half away and you're going to be alone. Yang tells me never to walk alone at night or take a cab this late, she worries about me a lot, but I understand where she is coming from." Ruby wasn't about to let Weiss endanger herself too much in one night, so she pouted while thinking of a plan. 'Call Yang? No, she probably just got dinner ready for everyone in the family.' Furrowing her brows, she willed her brain to run harder. 'Blake and Mrs. Belladonna won't be closing the Café until 9 pm which was another few hours.'
Seeing her friend have an internal breakdown, Weiss assured Ruby that she'll save the trip to the store for tomorrow. Hoping to herself that she'll be able to conjure something to eat.
As Ruby came down from her fight with her thoughts, Mrs. Belladonna and Blake walked out of the kitchen.
"Ruby, are you having another meltdown?" Blake asked nonchalantly, as though it was a normal occurrence between the two. Ruby only lowered her head and sighed.
"Before you run out of brainpower," teased Mrs. Belladonna, "care to let me know how those cookies tasted?"
"Oh!" The girl in question squeaked and started rambling a mile a minute to Mrs. Belladonna about the new recipe and how she enjoyed the subtle smell of citrus, to the buttery taste, to how the cookie had a softness yet a crisp edge.
"Before you asked," Blake offered Weiss a look, "She gets like this every time my mother asks her about a new cookie recipe. We call it the Ruby test."
'A klutz, a dork, a cute drooling fool, and a cookie connoisseur. What else is this girl' Weiss gave a small playful huff. "Has she ever rejected an idea?" Blake laughed loud and nodded.
"We don't call the test after her for nothing. She won't hesitate to tell you if something is off with the texture or if the flavors are clashing. Ruby is no joke when it comes to cookies."
Weiss, impressed, continued. "Is Ruby going to school for Culinary Arts? Does she cook?"
This time Mrs. Belladonna joined her daughter in laughing, overhearing their conversation. Ruby blushed and hid her face in her hoodie.
"Goodness no, Ruby will burn everything into smithereens. It's quite a talent really." Laughter filled the café again, but this time also joined in by Ruby and Weiss.
After a few more moments of cooking discussing and showing Weiss where the put up some equipment at the end of the day, the red and white pair now stood outside the café. Weiss only had her cardigan on while ruby wore her worn-out red hoodie. A breeze blew between the two and Weiss let out a shiver.
"Goodness it gets windy here, I should have brought a better coat with me tonight." She pulled out her phone to check the weather. "Is it always like this at night?"
Ruby huddled closer to Weiss as if it was second nature and simply said "Yeah, Vale is cold at Night but nice in the mornings. It's always good to keep a thicker sweater or hoodie on you." Ruby typed away at her phone to Yang asking her to pick her up at Weiss's apartment complex. She didn't want to leave Weiss alone out in the dark so without a word started walking with Weiss towards her apartment. The other party only smiled in thanks, as the sweet gesture was not unwelcome but appreciated more than she could admit.
As the two got closer to the complex, Weiss, who was checking the forecast for the morning while still chatting with Ruby, slid backward on a slippery patch of grass that had overgrown onto the sidewalk. The fall had been less than graceful and was accompanied by a loud gasp from Ruby, who tried to save her but was a bit too late in doing so. Her head hit the concrete floor with a small thud, a sound that guaranteed that Weiss would be nursing a headache tonight.
Frozen with fear that Weiss may have given herself a concussion, Ruby's voice came out soft and pained as though she was feeling Weiss' misfortune.
"Are you…okay Weiss?"
Weiss laid there trying to let the stars in her vision fade away before she tried to stand up.
"I now know how you felt when you walked straight into that streetlamp."
A/N: I have a habit of leaving the chapter with a dialogue line and I feel like that's very 2011 fanfiction writer of me. Anyways, I honestly have no idea where I'm going with this story, but it's been fun to just write. I usually only ever write one-shots, and I have many one-shots planned. I have so many old ships I've been wanting to write for, but my brain can only handle so much writing.
Again, thank you for taking the time to read my writing. Let me know your thoughts!