Work Text:
Bach’s hand moved against the cup in a practiced slide, elegant and loopy writing gracing the cup sleeve. He capped his marker and gave a slight look to his new coworker, Taffy, before nodding the espresso machine.
“Oh! Yeah, go for it, I’ll take the orders for you.” She quickly sent him a thumbs up and gave him a flash of a smile. He nodded back in solidarity.
He felt lucky that she was sensitive to his condition. Their last barista hadn’t been so kind— it seemed to be his eternal mission to force Bach to speak. At least Taffy took orders for him and called out the orders. It did help too, that she had some barista experience, even if it had been Starbucks.
Quickly finishing up on pulling his espresso shots, Bach’s mind went peacefully clear as he poured in flavors and steamed milk. He loved this part of the job— the repetitive motions, clear measurements, and comfortable atmosphere.
As the clock struck two, Bach had to lower his face to hide the smile tugging at the corners of his lips. He heard the familiar ring of the front door and Taffy’s cry of “Lisa!”
He popped the lids on the two drinks he had made, then slid them over to Taffy’s counter for hand-off. Then he started working on Lisa’s regular drink.
She always got a lavender-vanilla matcha at two o’clock on the dot, save for Sundays and Thursdays. She didn’t start the habit until Taffy started working at Shelley Beans– he would later find out that they were step-sisters.
But he didn’t want to be that creep who worked with her sister, categorizing every interaction like a stalker. So he didn’t talk to her (not that he could in the first place, mind you.) Instead, he made her latte, sliding it over to Taffy as soon as possible.
That way Lisa would leave faster and Bach’s heart could stop beating so fast.
He was halfway through stirring the syrup into her drink when Taffy called out, “Hey Bach, someone spilled coffee near the bathrooms, I’m going to mop it up real quick!” She walked off before he had a chance to respond.
He sent a quick glance towards the register— luckily there was no one in line. Unluckily, Lisa was leaning against the counter, waiting and chewing on her lip as she scrolled on her phone.
Restraining an anxious sigh, he chose to slowly finish working on her drink. Perhaps if he was slow enough, Taffy could finish mopping and give Lisa her matcha. He knew realistically, however, that it was highly unlikely.
And he was right. He finished her drink with a bit of whip cream and topped off with (complimentary) sprinkles. He chose purple sprinkles, mostly because of the color of Lisa’s poofy skirt that day.
Then he couldn’t hold it off any longer. He took a deep breath, turned around and marched to the register with an air of resignation. Bach would get it over with, one way or another.
Still engrossed in her phone, Lisa startled a bit when he slid her drink over. Her eyes flickered up, then quickly back down to her drink.
“Oh, wow— thank you, this looks good.” She gingerly picked it up with one hand and took a sip, sighing in content and adding on, “Tastes great too. You’re one of Taffy’s coworkers, right?”
Lisa finally looked up at him and she seemingly spotted his nametag, and more specifically his ‘Mute, Not Deaf’ badge, and her mouth made a little ‘oh’.
“That makes you… Bach, I believe. Taffy’s talked about you before— it’s nice to meet you.” Now that they were so close, Bach could see flecks of gold in Lisa’s eyes. They were so pretty, like shining river rocks.
He blinked. Then he smiled back at her, hoping it conveyed all that he wanted to say to her.
She took another sip, “Thank you, again. And—”
Lisa stopped herself. She hesitated for a second, something unreadable on her face. Then she shook her head and continued, “Let Taffy know I’ll see her at home. I’ll see you later, Bach.”
She gave him another shy smile, dropped something in the tip jar and left with another ring of the bell.
Bach stared after her, wondering if… that had really happened.
God, he sure hope it did.