#takihiko and darlene were originally from a friend

[ashblackcallas]

a bittersweet taste

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The near-silent hum of the air conditioner filled the air as the man pressed the button of a small, white remote. A content sigh fell from his lips, and he set the remote down on the glass counter, right behind a quaint little bell.

The counter-top was filled with all kinds of what you considered toppings—nuts, chocolate chips, sprinkles, cashews, and there was even a whole can of whipped cream sitting there. Inside it, were some premade cupcakes and slices of some tasty-looking pastries placed on simple white dishes.

It was early, and the morning sun’s rays filtered in through the loosely curtained glass. It gave the little café a bit of a homely look—from its earthy tones and colors to the faint scent of sugary sweets and coffee wafting through the air. The natural light cast a light-yellow glow throughout the whole thing, and the slightly dim lights made it so that everything looked easy on the eyes.

A Japanese-styled glass wind chime rang at the opening of the glass door, and the sight of a short girl entered the building. Her obsidian hair was a bit messy, dark as the bags under her eyes. She looked extremely tired, and with the look of her slightly crumpled working uniform, she looked as if she had rushed out of her home in a hurry for work.

But well, if you ever got to know her, this isn’t exactly true.

Walking sluggishly towards the counter, she made her way around and behind the counter, nudging the male out of the way lightly. When he moved out of the way, she pulled a high chair from near the marble counter, or where the coffee machines and other things where at, and placed it down in front of her. She sat down, loosely tucking a stray strand of hair to her ear.

The mahogany eyes of the other twinkled, like the brightly shining sun, “Good morning, Darlene!” he placed a thing of very strong black coffee in front of her, “Did you get some sleep?”

Knowing his ‘friend’ well enough, it’s likely that she did, though less than the normal amount of sleep a human being needs. Most likely, she didn’t get any. Although he didn’t like that fact, he couldn’t exactly stop her from doing so.

“Yeah, yeah,” Darlene answered curtly, swiped the coffee from the counter, then immediately brought it up to her lips. She sipped at the coffee for a moment, feeling the warm bitter taste hit her mouth and partially wake her up. When she brought it back down, almost half of it was already gone. It was a huge cup, mind you.

“So,” she started, absentmindedly tapping her fingers on the counter, “How’re you, dear ol’ Takoyaki—er—Takihiko?”

For some reason, he’d always felt giddy whenever she asked how he was—or well, ask anything about him, really. She made his heart soar.

“I’m fine, thank you!” Takihiko exclaimed, happiness tracing his voice. Of course he was happy. She was here, after all, and it always felt wonderful being in her presence. To him, at least, it did. The customers, however, did not.

She nodded, and proceeded to lay her head on her arms on the counter, presumably to get a few more minutes of sleep. She knew Takihiko wouldn’t mind, he always seemed to love doing things for her. Ever since she entered his life again, it was always like this now. She felt like an idiot, but the deed has been done.

Oh, how she wished that she knew how to turn back time, but she couldn’t exactly leave him miserable there… right?

A grin stretched his lips wide, and a shake of his head ruffled his fluffy ebony hair. He adjusted his glasses, and went to work at wiping some stains off the counter behind them.

Just another normal day at the dessert café, it seemed.