Summary: It's a slow day at the café, with Osvald being Partitio's only customer, and Partitio figured that the rest of the day would be just as uneventful. Oh, how wrong he was…


It was a slow morning at the café, but Partitio wasn't complaining about it today. Ochette was home sick with the flu, so he was running the place solo until Agnea came in for the afternoon shift. Even though he enjoyed the regular hustle and bustle of his job, Partitio did like a nice, quiet day sometimes, as it allowed him to focus on cleaning the neglected parts of his little shop.

"There, nice and shiny!" Partitio said as he grinned at his reflection in the pastry case. Glancing over his shoulder, he beamed at his only customer at the moment. "How's it look, Osvald?"

Glancing up from the papers that he was grading, Osvald gazed at Partitio's handiwork over his glasses with an eyebrow raised. "It looks nice, but I think you missed a spot over there."

Partitio hummed and moved over to the right side of the case where Osvald was pointing, and he sighed and shook his head. "Shoot, you're right, partner. You've got a keen eye for this kinda thing!"

Osvald chuckled and went back to his work, and Partitio did the same, his tongue peaking out from between his lips as he concentrated hard on scrubbing the window so that it was squeaky clean. When he was satisfied, he wiped his brow and tossed the cleaning rag over his shoulder, and grinned as he heard the door chime go off.

"There, mission accomp-" he stared as he turned towards the door to see who had entered the café, but his breath caught in his throat when he found a knife pointed directly at his chest. Partitio's hands shot up as his eyes locked with those of his potential assailant.

"Easy there, friend." Partitio's voice was calm and he hoped that it masked the fear that had gripped him completely. The man bared his teeth and pushed the knife closer to Partitio, but Partitio noticed that his hand was shaking. Was he scared too…?

"I-I don't want any t-trouble," the man stuttered, his messy black hair sticking to his sweaty forehead, and his glasses slipped down the bridge of his nose as he trembled, "J-Just give me all of y-your money, and I won't h-hurt you."

Partitio's eyes flicked briefly over to the counter where the cash register sat before locking back with the man's. "Now, there's no need for the threats, partner. If you need help, you can just-"

"J-Just do it!"

Partitio's face paled when the tip of the knife grazed his shirt, and but he didn't flinch and maintained eye contact. "Do you like coffee?"

"H-Huh?"

"Do you like coffee?" Partitio smiled as he slowly took a sidestep towards the coffee pot that sat on the counter. "I always say that a nice cup of coffee makes for a great start to a conversation!"

"W-What?" the man kept the knife pointed dangerously at Partitio's chest and matched him step for step. Partitio slowly reached out to grab the pot, and he poured a steaming mug of coffee.

"Here, take it." Partitio held it out to the man, and it took all of his concentration to keep his hand from shaking. The man's brow knitted with confusion, and he slowly lowered the knife, which would prove to be a costly mistake.

Suddenly, Osvald popped up out of nowhere and grabbed the man's shoulder, slamming him face-first into the pastry case, with one hand pinning his arm behind his back while the other had a firm grip on the wrist that held the knife.

"Drop it. Now."

Osvald's voice was dripping with rage, and Partitio's heart hammered hard within his chest as the man whimpered and wisely obeyed. Hoo-eey, did Osvald look really hot right now, but this was definitely not the time to unpack all that so Partitio quickly pushed those thoughts from his mind.

"We'll just leave that up there outta the way…" Partitio said as he picked the knife up off the ground and placed it on top of the pastry case. He turned to Osvald, who still had the man roughly pinned to the case. "Let him up, Osvald."

Osvald's eyes narrowed as he scoffed. "What are you doing? Call the police already."

Shaking his head, Partitio placed his hands on his hips as his eyes locked with Osvald's. "He's no danger now, and he's got some coffee to drink."

"Partitio…"

Osvald pursed his lips as he glared at Partitio, but Partitio didn't back down. Letting out a frustrated sigh, Osvald eventually let the man up, but he still gripped his shoulder with a firm hand. The man's gaze was fixed on the floor, his whole body trembling, and Partitio offered him a small smile as he held out the steaming mug of coffee.

"C'mon, friend. It tastes the best while it's hot!"

The man slowly lifted his gaze to Partitio's, sniffing as a few tears stained his cheeks. He reached out and took the mug from Partitio, before slowly lifting it to his face and taking a small sip.

"It's…amazing…" the man said, before he started sobbing uncontrollably, and Partitio quickly took the mug back from him before he could spill the hot coffee all over himself.

The man covered his face with his hands as he continued to sob, and Partitio gently rubbed his other shoulder while trying to ignore the heated glare that Osvald was sending his way.

"It's alright. What's your name, partner?"

The man rubbed at his eyes and took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. "T-Thurston…" he mumbled, and Partitio smiled as he took one of his hands.

"Partitio, at your service! Nice to meet you, friend!" he said, giving his hand a shake, "But you might have a better chance of making friends if you don't threaten them with a knife." Partitio winked and Thurston's eyes welled up with tears again.

"I-I'm so sorry…"

"Why'd you go and do that, anyway?"

"It's just…" Thurston let out a weary sigh and hugged himself, rubbing his arms as his gaze fell to the floor again. "I-I was fired from my job, a-and my son is sick…I need money to pay his medical bills…"

Partitio laughed and gave Thurston's shoulder a gentle squeeze. "Well shoot, why didn't ya just say so? You don't have to steal from me, 'cause I'll do ya one better."

"Huh?"

Placing both hands on his arms, Partitio looked Thurston in the eye and grinned. "Come here and work for me, Thurston."

"Partitio, what the hell are you-" Osvald started to loudly protest, but Partitio whipped his head towards him and shot him a heated glare. Osvald's eyes went wide as he cut himself off, and he glared back at Partitio for a few tense moments before he huffed and stayed silent.

Thurston's jaw had dropped as he looked at Partitio with a dumbstruck look on his face. "A-Are you serious?"

"Yep!" Partitio laughed as he flicked up the brim of his hat. "You've got passion, Thurston, I can see it in your eyes. And it's pretty easy to see how much you love your son, and that you'd do anything to protect him. But you can't protect him if you go to jail, right? I wanna make sure that doesn't happen to ya."

Thurston hung his head in shame and slowly nodded, his shoulders heaving as he sobbed again. "T-Thank you, Partitio. I-I want to take you up on that offer."

"Great! Then you better come in bright and early tomorrow, 'cause I'm gonna make a damn fine barista outta you!" Partitio took Thurston's hand and gave it a shake. "You go home and give your son a big hug for me, will ya?"

A small smile crossed Thurston's face and he nodded as he rubbed his face. "I will…Thank you so much, and…I'm so, so sorry for the trouble."

Partitio tipped his hat at him and shot Osvald a stern look, and he grumbled as he finally let go of Thurston's shoulder so the man could quickly leave the shop. Partitio's stomach churned as the adrenaline left his body, and Osvald scoffed beside him.

"What the hell are you thinking, Partitio-" Osvald started to scold, but he was cut short as he quickly moved to catch Partitio before he could fall to the floor. His legs had turned to jelly, his breathing was erratic, and he couldn't stop himself from trembling.

Osvald's warm arms wrapped around him, and Partitio felt safe in his strong, comforting embrace. He had been so focused on defusing the situation that he didn't have time to be scared, but now that it had been dealt with, all of that fear that he had been suppressing had come back in full force.

"Easy," Osvald said, gently rubbing Partitio's back as he cried softly into his chest, "You're alright. You're safe."

"T-Thankee kindly, Osvald…" Partitio said, swallowing thickly as he gripped Osvald's back for dear life. "Hoo-eyy, I r-reckon I've never been so scared in my life…"

Osvald sighed, resting a hand behind Partitio's head and running his fingers through his hair. "You're damned lucky that he only had a knife. Things might have turned out differently if he had brought a gun with him."

Partitio blanched and buried his face into Osvald's chest. "D-Don't make me think about that…"

"And then you gave that cretin a job!" Osvald scowled and shook his head. "Have you lost your mind, Partitio?"

Rolling his eyes, Partitio pouted as he rest his chin on Osvald's chest so that he could look up at him. "I don't regret it for one second. He's not a bad man, Osvald. I could see it in his eyes. With those types, it's best to kill 'em with kindness, you know."

"Of all the foolish…That bleeding heart of yours is going to get you in trouble some day." Osvald's brow knitted as he pinched the bridge of his nose, and his lips set into a tight line. "I'm just…thankful that I was here."

Partitio's face flushed and he smiled. "Me too, partner." He felt Osvald's arms tighten around him, and he was now keenly aware that he had probably spent far too much time wrapped in his arms. Clearing his throat, Partitio reluctantly let go of Osvald and took a step back, rubbing at the back of his neck.

Crossing his arms over his chest, Osvald's gaze wandered to the coffee mug on the counter. "You do realize that you're never going to see that man again, right?"

"Hogwash," Partitio stuck out his tongue and waved his hand nonchalantly, "He'll be here tomorrow, just like he said."

"Nonsense."

Partitio locked eyes with Osvald, before a sly grin crossed his face. "Wanna bet on it?"

"...Yes." Osvald snorted and held out his hand. "Ten bucks says that he doesn't show up."

"Deal." Partitio grabbed Osvald's hand and shook it, before shooting him a wink. "I'm gonna feel mighty guilty about takin' money from my favorite customer."

"We'll see about that." Osvald chuckled and stroked his beard. "My favorite barista better not get too cocky."

Their eyes met, and a bubbly warmth blossomed within Partitio's chest at Osvald's words, and the smile that crossed his face was bright enough to take his breath away. Partitio heard the door open, and he turned to see a smiling Agnea walking up to him.

"Hey, Partitio! I know I'm early, but when I heard that Ochette was sick, I figured that you might need some help," Agnea said, looking between the two men, "Hi Professor Vanstein!"

Osvald gave her a nod, and Partitio grinned and tipped his hat. "Thankee kindly, Agnea. It's a bit slow today though."

"So I guess I didn't miss too much, right?"

"Nah, not really. Just me and Osvald thwarting a robbery is all."

"That's nice-Wait, what?"

Osvald sighed and shook his head as Agnea gawked at the two of them, and he returned to his paperwork as Partitio recounted their eventful morning to her. The rest of the day thankfully passed without incident, and soon enough, the next day was upon them.

In contrast to the previous morning, the café was really hopping today, and Partitio was busy slinging drinks while Agnea took orders and Ochette manned the kitchen. Every so often, Partitio stole a glance at Osvald, who was sitting in his usual spot, and if their eyes met, he shot Partitio a smug grin.

Partitio frowned as he stared at the door, and then at the clock. It was only mid-morning, so he had plenty of time to win this bet of theirs. He knew that Thurston wouldn't pass up this opportunity, he just knew it…

The doorbell chimed and Partitio jerked his head towards it, and a beaming smile crossed his face when he saw a familiar face enter. Thurston cleared his throat before slowly approaching the counter, wringing his hands together nervously. As Partitio snatched an apron off of its hook, he stole a glance at Osvald, who was staring at him, wide-eyed and slack-jawed. Partitio shot him a wink and a toothy grin, before turning his attention back to his brand-new employee.

"Howdy, Thurston!" Partitio slapped a friendly hand to his back and handed him the apron. "Glad to see ya!"

"Yes, well…" Thurston put the apron on and wore a sheepish smile. "Thank you again for this opportunity, Partitio. I won't let you down."

"I know you won't. Ochette, show our new employee here the kitchen, please!"

"Sure thing, Parti!"

As Ochette dragged Thurston into the back room, Partitio grabbed the coffee pot and headed over to Osvald with a skip in his step. He grinned when he saw Osvald frowning with his arms crossed over his chest, and Partitio topped off his coffee as he leaned over to whisper in his ear.

"Told ya so, partner."

Osvald let out a long sigh as he fished a ten dollar bill from his wallet, and Partitio pocketed it as his heart swelled with triumph. Letting out a light chuckle, Osvald's eyes locked with Partitio's as he shrugged.

"I…concede defeat." Osvald said, and the softness of his gaze made Partitio's mouth go dry and heart jump into his throat. "You truly are one of a kind, Partitio."

"O-Oh…" Partitio swallowed thickly as he rubbed at his neck, suddenly feeling very warm. "You're makin' me blush here, Osvald…"

"It's a good look for you."

"...What?"

"Er, n-nothing," Osvald said quickly, clearing his throat as he suddenly became very interested in his coffee. Partitio's face flushed an even deeper red, and a goofy grin crossed his face. He knew what he had heard, and Osvald really knew how to get Partitio's heart racing, even if he was oblivious to how it affected him.

"Hey, boss man! Quit flirting over there and come help us out!"

Partitio gawked at Agnea as she grinned at him from behind the counter, and he let out a nervous chuckle when he noticed that the other occupants of the café had all turned their attention to him and Osvald.

"B-Be right there!" Partitio topped off Osvald's coffee one more time before giving him a wave. "See ya later, p-partner."

"Ah, yes, t-thank you, Partitio." Osvald lifted his mug to his face, and Partitio did not fail to notice the cute blush that covered his cheeks. Shucks, he was so handsome…

Partitio got back to work and quickly got lost in keeping up with the rush and training his newest employee, who was turning out to be quite the excellent impulse hire. The attempted robbery ordeal had worked out in the end, but it might have turned out very differently if Osvald hadn't been there with him. Partitio blushed as he recalled how warm and safe he had felt while wrapped in his arms, and he could feel himself slipping further down the slippery slope of a crush that he'd wound up on.