Day 9 - Coffee Shop

"Here," said Souji with poorly-concealed excitement. "This is what I wanted to show you."

Yosuke appraised the side alley that Souji had led him to. When they'd got off the train at Yongen-Jaya, Yosuke hadn't known what to expect. He'd never been in this part of Tokyo before. It was an older area, primarily residential, with lots of wooden homes built nearly on top of each other. There were a few antique shops that gave off a vintage feel.

Anyway, Souji was looking at the coffee shop to his left (though Yosuke spied a sign past it for hot baths that they could totally hit up later). It looked cozy, he guessed. The potted plants outside were well-tended. He read the name of the shop on the awning over the door. "Leblanc, huh?"

"You aren't supposed to pronounce the 'c'," Souji told him.

"Leblan? Now I'm thinking of my grandma's flan..." Yosuke made a face. "I didn't think you were into coffee. Oh, but you do have your own mug at Dojima's place, don't you?"

"The coffee's pretty good," Souji said, "but that's not the best thing about this place. Let's go in."

A bell jingled when they opened the door. The aroma of coffee hit Yosuke full force, making him strongly desire one all of a sudden. It took a moment for his eyes to adjust from being outside. The wall behind the bar housed a wide variety of bags of coffee beans. Yosuke wondered vaguely if they had that stuff made of civet dung.

"I'll be right there," said a man's voice from the back.

Souji sat at the bar and patted the stool next to him. Yosuke joined him there with a grin. He'd been hoping they'd sit at the bar instead of any of the booths. They could hold hands a lot easier seated next to each other like this, which Yosuke immediately instigated. Souji's hands were always so soft now that they weren't fighting in the TV World. He loved that he could do this.

A middle-aged man in a pink shirt and a black work apron came out from the back area. Yosuke assumed he was the cafe's owner. "Oh, it's you again," the man said. "Welcome back. What'll it be today?"

Souji ordered a mocha. Yosuke couldn't help but tease him. "Really? Chocolate in your coffee?"

"I like it," Souji murmured, turning his eyes down.

"Better than an affogato," the cafe owner said conversationally. "Though I serve it, I've never quite understood the appeal. Anyway, I'll have it ready for you in a moment. Is your friend having anything?"

"Do you serve, uh... not coffee?" Yosuke asked. Now that he'd become accustomed to the scent, he didn't crave coffee anymore. Besides, he knew the caffeine would be bad for him. "Like a chai tea?"

The man lifted his head to give him the most disdainful look. "I might be able to scrounge something up," he said. He headed into the back, apparently to do just that.

"That guy kinda reminds me of your uncle," Yosuke whispered.

Souji shook his head. "He's harmless. Well, so is my uncle."

"You're forgetting the time your uncle took out a creep during the LMB Festival. I mean, I didn't see it but I heard everyone talking about it."

"Harmless," Souji repeated, squeezing his hand. "You'll see why soon."

"I'll trust you," Yosuke said.

They shared a quiet moment after that. Yosuke had some fun reading the names of the types of coffee beans available. Monsooned Malabar, Eugenioide, Pacamara Petite...

"Oh!" Yosuke said as an idea came to him. "If we kiss after this, I wonder if you'll taste like chocolate?"

"I'll taste like mocha," Souji corrected. "There's espresso with the chocolate. And if you're having chai, I think I'll pass. I don't like cinnamon."

Yosuke deflated. "Really? Dammit..."

While Yosuke was silently berating himself the man came out with their drinks. Souji's was definitely a coffee—it was the right color and the mug was steaming, but Yosuke's was green, not at all what he expected.

The man correctly interpreted his look. "I made you some matcha green tea. You didn't seem to care what you got, as long as it wasn't coffee, right? This should fit the bill."

"Matcha is better than cinnamon," Souji said, nudging him gently with an elbow.

As that, Yosuke grinned. "It's perfect, thanks!"

While they enjoyed their drinks, the owner told them a little about different types of coffee beans. Sure enough, they did have some dung-based beans in the cafe. He pointed them out when Yosuke asked.

The man gave them the bill when they were done, then moved to the sink to start cleaning some dishes.

"That was pretty good," Yosuke said. "But you said the coffee wasn't the best thing about the place. Did you mean the atmosphere? It is pretty nice. I think they should serve food."

"They do serve a mean curry," Souji said. "but actually..." He raised his voice to address the owner. "Sojiro-san, is Morgana in?"

"I knew you'd ask," Sojiro said, shaking his head with a wry smile. He called towards the attic stairs at the back of the store. "Hey, come down here, and bring Morgana!"

A couple of minutes later, a teenager wearing a stylish black and red high school uniform came down the stairs. He took in the scene with a bored expression, but rolled his eyes when he saw Souji. With a sigh he took down the duffel bag he carried and opened it up.

Out came a black cat, who... didn't seem all that happy to see Souji.

Not that Souji noticed. "Kitty..." he cooed, letting go of Yosuke's hand to offer it to the cat to sniff.

"I should have known," Yosuke said with a heavy sigh.

"A cafe isn't complete without a resident cat," Souji said.

The cat howled at that, as if it disagreed.

"I should charge an extra fee to see the cat," Sojiro said when the cat quieted down. "All right, that's probably enough."

Souji waved goodbye when the teenager took the cat back upstairs.

After that they paid the bill. When they went outside, Yosuke stretched. Going from the muted cafe lighting to the bright sunshine made him feel like he needed to move around.

Then he sighed. "I can't believe I'm jealous of a cat," he said.

"Don't be," Souji said.

"Why not? You came all this way out here for that."

"Yeah, but..." Souji hesitated before growing a playful grin. "You're the only one I want to mix mocha and matcha with."

"What do you mean..." Yosuke began, and then it dawned on him. It helped that Souji kept raising his barely-visible eyebrows up at him suggestively. "Oh. Well." Yosuke coughed, then glanced around. "Maybe we should uh... find a darker alley?"

Souji grabbed his hand. "Let's."