AN: Hello dear customers!
As promised, less cake, more drinks this time (if you can call it that? It's not really drink-centred). Either way, I'm sorry this chapter is shorter, but a lot has been going on.
In which Ochako starts interacting with Shouto and instantly accepts him into the family (also, it just may be the start of her Todomomo shipping spree, but more about that later).
I hope you enjoy!
Chapter 4: What's Hidden Behind the Name
Opening the door to the cafe is like walking through a portal to a different dimension: the buzz and chitter-chatter, along with the sound of spoons stirring the honey in the tea mugs instantly surrounds Momo, replacing the isolation of the bathroom with the warm feeling of belonging. Sometimes, she feels like the cafe is a living organism, just as alive as the cells she studies every day, just as prone to evolving as they are.
Spotting Shouto is easy- he's always sitting at the same table, and his bicolored hair isn't exactly unnoticeable. He's drinking his Calm Blitz, part of the cafe like an organelle- maybe he's a mitochondria, Momo reasons.
She can't deny the pang of disappointment she feels- she wasn't there to take his order, which means she didn't get to talk to him today. However, simply observing his focused look as he deciphers the notes is rewarding- he has this way of swirling his pen between his index and middle finger while he's thinking that almost hypnotises Momo.
Perhaps he feels her staring, but he looks up and meets her eyes. He nods in greeting and tilts his head in an invitation for her to sit next to him. At least that's how Momk interprets it- and he doesn't look weirded out as she closes in on his table, so she's most likely right.
"Is Uravity okay?" he asks as soon as Momo is within hearing range, sparing the barista in question a worried look. "Her face seemed very… red earlier," he adds, to Momo's concern. Ochako seemed just fine at the start of her shift- what has happened?
"I'll go check and let you know," she tells Shouto and leaves, the concern for her friend outclassing the interest for her customer.
Momo schools her face into that of a pleasant barista doing her best, and avoids the 'worried friend' look. Time has taught her that displaying your emotions made some feel uncomfortable, especially when it's their health that put the wrinkles on your face in the first place.
So Momo slides behind the counter as per usual and picks up a cup from Sato's hand to join Ochako near the cupboards brimming with herb mixtures. She fishes the vanilla and rooibos tea, without needing to read through the labels- after all, it was her that arranged them in the first place, and some mixes, such as the Rooibos Whisper, are her creation from scratch.
Momo steals a sideways glance at her friend, but notices nothing out of the ordinary. Ochako's cheeks are their usual rosy colour, and she even hums a small tune as she filters the herbs out of the steaming hot water and lets the tea stream into a paper cup.
"You seem in a good mood," Momo remarks, trying not to let her curiosity leak and sliding the pot out of Ochako's hands to wash it. "Did something good happen?"
Ochako hums out of her little bubble of joy and smiles brightly. Her cheeks redden, and she presses both palms against them, covering her eyes half-way.
Momo tilts her head, giving up on keeping her curiosity in check. "What is it?" she pushes Ochako, poking at her shoulder. "Come on," she grins when Ochako flushes even redder. That sounds like Mina, Momo catches herself thinking and pulls her hand from Ochako's shoulder, but she talks anyway.
"You know that necklace Deku-kun gave me?" Momo nods- Ochako was absolutely ecstatic when her boyfriend gave her the silver necklace with a heart pendant. Momo's eyes dart to Ochako's neck and catch the sparkle of the item that hasn't left the nape of her neck since her last birthday. "That half-and-half guy said it suits me! And when I told him it's from my boyfriend, he said 'Well, he has good taste.'"
Momo can imagine Shouto saying that with a stoic look, and understands immediately why Ochako's face was flushed. A smile curls about her lips.
"So you've been reminded of Midoriya?" The wild red that covers Ochako's cheekbones is a loud enough answer. "How long has it been since you last saw him?"
"He couldn't make it to the Halloween party, so… two weeks?" The grin on Ochako's face dampens. "He's busy with his project and my training sessions are insane," she deadpans. "But we talk daily!" Momo's smile withers and she gives Ochako a friendly rub on the back. She smiles gratefully, but fails to keep in an ever-growing sigh. "It's just- I miss him."
"I'm sure he misses you too."
"I know," the woman sighs again. "Autumn is just so hectic, you know? And exams are coming up soon, so we probably won't get to see each other until December. So this-" Ochako touches her necklace with a faraway look "-is really important to me. And it's nice that strangers see it as part of my look, because that's like saying that Deku-kun is part of me."
Momo can't help but hug her friend, ignoring the fact that she's holding two hot cups of tea. Ochako awkwardly nuzzles her nose against Momo's hair, unable to move her hands without spilling the drinks.
"Thanks, Momo."
Creati just hums in return.
"Uravity is okay," Momo assures Shouto after she chats with the customer sitting at the table next to his, delivering his order.
"That's good," the man agrees, stealing a glimpse at the bar. He squints, as if his eyes are focusing in on Ochako. "She looks somewhat… refreshed?"
"She is," Momo chuckles. Shouto gives her a baffled look, oblivious to the consequences of his compliment, and Momo changes the subject swiftly. "By the way, Sato wanted you to name the mousse."
"Name it?" Shouto repeats, as if the words haven't sunken it just yet. "Me?" His mind obviously doesn't label the association as possible.
"Yes. He says you played a part in the making, so you should name it."
Shouto seems lost in thought for a few moments. "How do you name a dessert?" he muses, and Momo isn't sure whether he's talking to himself or to her. His eyes dart to her lazily, and they linger there, aimlessly searching for something. It seems like forever until he mutters, "Onyx."
Momo's breath catches in her throat, and she wonders whether she heard him right. "I beg your pardon?"
"Nothing," he says and Momo thinks he must have just been thinking up possible names for the mousse. She doesn't understand how onyx could have anything to do with it, though.
Shouto looks very tired when he reaches the counter the next day. There aren't bags under his eyes, but a misty fog is courtaining the intelligent glint in his mismatched eyes, as if his sleep has been troubled.
Momo begins to fill in the usual when he stops her, "Actually, I'd like Hot Chocolate today."
"Oh?" She ticks accordingly and throws him a somewhat intrigued sideway glance. "May I ask what caused the change?"
There's a pause, and when Momo looks up to him, he's biting his lower lip thoughtfully. The gesture fits his image so perfectly that she finds it hard to unglue her eyes from his lips- it's as if he's literally munching over his thoughts, tasting his words before he spits them, filtering them before letting them leave the prison of his mouth.
"I've been thinking of the name-thing, and I figured that tasting something different will give me an idea? I mean, I want to see why the Molten Enigma is a Molten Enigma."
Momo hides a small smile. Has that kept him awake? "Well, I hope you find your inspiration."
"Isn't this where you say something like 'The magic will come to you?'" He raises an eyebrow and thins his voice. His eyes betray both amusement and genuine curiosity.
Momo is on the boundary between laughing out loud or feeling insulted by his awful impersonation of her. However, the exchange caused the fog in his eyes to clear a bit, so she decides to take it seriously.
"Magic won't solve your problems, Shouto. Only hard work can get you anywhere- magic just cushions your path."
She sees him deflate, yet his eyes flicker, as if he's achieved something. She doesn't question it as she gives him back his change, along with a warm smile. "Good luck."
"Thanks."
Being subtle proves to be hard when your last customer doesn't seem to realise that the sound of the broom brushing against the sparkling clean floor is a clue to leave. Momo steals the tenth exasperated glance at Shouto, who is intently staring at his hot chocolate mug, and finally gives up. With a sigh, she abandons the broom next to a wall, pretends not to hear Ochako's chuckle, and sits down in front of Shouto. He doesn't jerk when the chair screeches against the floor, nor when Momo leans her forearm on the table.
"You look troubled," she states the obvious.
He lazily looks up to her and his shoulders slump. "It's impossible," he whispers, and his eyes widen slightly, as if saying it out loud makes the weight of the truth suddenly fall on him. "How do you guys name these things?" He sounds absolutely horrified- well, he actually sounds just a bit unarmed, but anything other than stoic is an extreme reaction for Shouto.
Momo reminds herself that laughing at one's problems, no matter how trivial, is rude, yet the way he takes this so seriously is endearing. A small part of her mind registers another chuckle from Ochako, who's cleaning up the bar, but she dismisses it, far too occupied with trying not to laugh at Shouto's dejected expression.
"Usually, we think of something fun." His face remains blank. "We try to figure out what was involved in the process of making that dish or drink and then we kinda code it." His face still doesn't betray any "enlightenment", so Momo points to his cup.
"The Molten Enigma is Uravity's. When she first started working here, she made a bet with Mina that she could make better hot chocolate than the powder we used. Fifteen minutes later, Mina called me saying we needed to get this on our menu. It was indeed delicious, but when I tried asking Ochako how she did it, she said it was her little secret."
"So… Enigma."
"Exactly. The molten part is more of an allusion to the hot chocolate."
"Well, it is pretty dense," Shouto hums, tracing the mug's outline with his finger. "That's a fitting name. I thought it was more like-" he stops himself all of a sudden, and his eyes lose their focus into the brown mix.
"Like?" Momo encourages him.
His voice is uncertain when he speaks again, "I thought it was something that went deeper, like the feelings you get when you drink the hot cocoa and this strange fuzziness spreads from your stomach to your guts and then floods your system."
Momo covers her mouth with a hand so that Shouto can't see the smile she can't suppress. She has no right to think that him opening up like this is her achievement- it's probably the Molten Enigma that did it.
"That's what's great about names," she says in return. "Everyone finds their own meaning in them, and it doesn't have to be the intended one, as long as it makes the moment special to them. It's just like art, I think- everybody brings a part of themselves into their interpretation, and that's truly meaningful."
She doesn't notice Shouto staring at her until he speaks up, and his voice is so soothing that it makes her search for the warmth in his eyes again. "Adventure," is the only word that leaves the gates of his parted lips.
Momo says nothing, because she knows he's searching for his own meaning in her eyes, and she lets him roam around until he finds it. He eventually regains his composure and dares a faint smile.
"I think I got it."
"Creamy Adventure?" Shouto nods, gulping as he waits for Sato's verdict. His eyes dart from the customer and newly initiated cook to the dessert, and his head bobs as he considers it. Momo wonders if he's just putting up a show or if he's really thinking, until the small creases around his eyes betray him.
Sato eventually meets Momo's look for approval. She nods gravely, as if they are treating a matter of utmost importance. Ochako nods with them, stiff as a board when Shouto glances at her, but hiding a thumbs up when Momo winks. "It passes," the cook eventually declares.
"Really?" There's a flicker of excitement in Shouto's eyes as he checks for honesty in the three baristas, and Momo can tell with a single glance that they all find his reaction adorable. Momo steels herself for the squeals Ochako will doubtlessly give her once they're alone, and smiles at the thought.
"Really," she says out loud, masking their game under a serious tone. "It's A Cup of Magicish."
"We are proud of you," Uravity adds and can't help patting his shoulder.
"You have gotten into the spirit!" Sato also praises him.
Momo notices Shouto stealing a glance at her and smiles encouragingly. She's never seen him so needy or… vulnerable. If it was anyone else, she'd say it was just normally asking for recognition, but like this- he looks like he wants confirmation more.
"Thank you," the boy bows all of a sudden, startling everyone.
"What are you doing? Get up!" Ochako awkwardly says, she and Sato fussing over the boy as they weaver between pulling him up and bowing themselves- they end up doing both.
Momo doesn't, however, because her mind is busy trying to understand that last glimpse of his face that she caught. There was something hidden in his features, a feeling that he certainly didn't display often because his mouth was crumbled into a clumsy smile and his eyes were bashfully looking for an escape, but not because he didn't enjoy himself- rather, it seemed like this was new for him.
When he looks up again, something clicks in Momo's mind and the word she was looking for pops up: gratefulness.
"Stop being so polite," Ochako says and playfully jabs at his shoulder. "You're part of the family now!"
Shouto's lips part and his face softens into an unasked question. "Family?" he finally asks when he realises the word was so natural for the group that they didn't need to explain it.
"Yes of course! Once you step behind the bar you're one of us! Even more so if you've named a dish!" Ochako's smile appears to be dazzling for Shouto, because he blinks as if she's the sun, but his cheeks also warm with a dust of blood as if she burnt him, and he smiles like a kid that proudly smashed his first watermelon with his eyes closed.
If anything, his smile seems to have even more of an effect on Ochako, because she backs away a few steps before launching herself towards him and yelling "Family hug!"
Sato and Momo know it's their cue to follow her and tangle their hands around each other, awkwardly sandwiching Shouto between them. For a moment, Momo's afraid there's too much affection for Shouto, but the grateful smile he wears on his face and the way he strangely wraps his hands around Momo and Ochako's shoulders, drawing them closer as he gains confidence is enough to tell her otherwise.
Family- it's probably something he has been longing after for a long while.
Hello again!
So Shouto is now officially family- and he is also officially adopted by A Cup of Magic. Their "must protect" senses are tingling. I know this doesn't have a lot of Todomomo, but I've paved the way for a full todomomo chapter next time- plus, you can't tell me you don't love all of his interactions with the gang at the cafe, I mean come on! I love everybody's chemistry! (Pun absolutely intended- forgive me, I'm chemistry trash).
I hope you've enjoyed! Thank you for all the kudos and kind words- your love keeps me alive!
Till next time with a cup of hot chocolate~