Café

Inu-Tenshi

No character I use from Inuyasha belongs to me.

"A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step."

Day 2

Dressed in uniform the next day, Kagome was ready for work. It seemed as if fate was playing a cruel joke on her, for when she stepped out the door of her house, the first thing she saw was that arrogant co-worker of hers.

"What in the world are you doing here?" she asked, quite rudely.

And all it took was one gaze from him to shut her up. He walked past her swiftly, the air around him dignified and aloof.

"Ostentatious jerk." she mumbled.

As she walked to work, she watched Sesshoumaru silently, his platinum hair swaying left and right with every step he took. Surely it was a crime for this man to possess hair finer than that of a woman's?

As they approached the café, Kagome noticed a crowd of girls whispering excitedly as Sesshoumaru entered the café. It gave her the impression that they were rushing to buy concert tickets when they pushed and shoved each other in order to be the first ones inside. For a split second, she felt sorry for Sesshoumaru.

Inconspicuously, Kagome walked into the café, sighing with every step she took. Now I know why the pay's so high.

She went into the kitchen and grabbed a writing pad and a pen, keeping in mind what the manager had instructed her to do. She went over to the nearest table and said, "good morning, what would you like?" with a smile on her face.

The girls gave her strange looks. "Sorry, we want that waiter, Sesshoumaru." They generously pointed in his direction in case she was dense enough not to know who her co-worker was.

"I'm sorry, he's busy right now. Would you like me to take your orders for now? I'll see if I can get him to bring them to you." Kagome told them, still smiling patiently.

Frowning, they looked over the menu. "Fine, I'll have a coffee with milk and sugar and my friends here will both have a cappuccino with blueberry muffins."

"It will be ready in a moment."

She went into the kitchen and took out a bag of coffee beans. Just as she finished making the coffee and cappuccinos, Sesshoumaru walked in.

"Oh, hey, I was wondering if you could bring this to table 6." She asked politely. "They were asking for you."

There was a moment of awkward silence. Then, he seemed to sigh before accepting the tray.

Kagome watched him walk out, somewhat astonished. "Thanks!" She called out. "Hm, I guess he can be a nice guy after all."

Contentedly, she went to a different table and asked for their order.

"We want Sesshoumaru." They replied.

"I'm sorry, he is currently busy. What can I get for you?" She asked again, the smile still plastered on her face.

"We're still deciding," one told her as an excuse. "Yes, we are." The other two agreed, nodding eagerly.

"Then please take your time."

No matter which table she went to, it was always the same. Sesshoumaru, Sesshoumaru, Sesshoumaru. The fact that they were the only two working here didn't help either. It seemed all the other waitresses had quit and the one other waiter would always skip work. It's a miracle he still hasn't been fired.

Her train of thought ended there when the bell rang and someone stepped into the café.

Thank God it's a guy this time. Kagome thought with relief.

Smiling, she went over to him. "Welcome. What would you like?"

"An espresso." He replied without looking up from his newspaper.

"Will that be all?"

"Yes."

"It will be ready in a moment."

When she arrived with the espresso, she asked, "would you like anything else?"

Annoyed, he looked up. "Did I ask for anything else?"

How rude, she thought. "I'm sorry, sir, I'm only doing my job." She replied, no trace of hostility in her voice. "Enjoy your stay here."

Emerging from the kitchen with a piece of cloth in hand a moment later, Kagome cleaned the now empty tables. During noon, the café was full again.

"Hey, Sesshoumaru, why are we the only ones working? Are there any plans to hire more people soon?"

"... Perhaps."

"Isn't there one other waiter?"

"That is correct."

Kagome sighed. "Can't you say more than three words?"

"... Why aren't you working?"

"Okay, you win." She laughed lightheartedly and took a tray off the counter, repeating what she had been doing during the day. Am I actually getting along with him? She thought, strangely happy.

But like always, joyful moments don't last forever.

Kagome, hearing the sound of the bell and the door opening, instantly greeted "welcome". But because she was so preoccupied with her other customers, she didn't have time to look up and see what kind of person it was.

Then, she heard his voice. "Kagome? Is that you?"

Kagome froze, unwilling to lift her head up. That was the one voice that she didn't want to hear. Not now, and not any other time.

Sesshoumaru had heard him as well, but he had no idea they were acquainted with one another. He broke the silence. "What are you doing here?"

Still watching Kagome, he answered, "Me? I think it's about time I came to work."

I would like to thank Ezarine Bloom and Sweet Lil Hellcat for pointing out the need for details. Actually, I have thought about that before writing it, but I didn't want to add too much detail for the first chapter yet. When I do, I usually tend to add too much and give away too much, but I intend to do that in later chapters. Many thanks to those who reviewed and took the time to read this story.

Sweet Lil Hellcat, I realize that it's a lot of cash, and for that reason, I added in "since this is quite a popular café" in the first chapter and pointed out that Sesshoumaru's arrival was part of the reason for its popularity. The café is quite large and spacious; it's also elaborate. So the price of everything there is higher than the normal cafés.